Business Highlights

Neb. woman who ate spinach

OMAHA, Neb. — An elderly woman who died in late August was infected with E. coli after eating fresh spinach, bringing to three the number of people who have perished in a nationwide outbreak of the bacteria, health officials said Friday. The woman, who was in her 80s, ate spinach contaminated with the same strain of E. coli that has sickened at least 190 other people around the country, state health officials said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed that the woman’s death had been linked to the outbreak.

The news came a day after Idaho health officials confirmed that a 2-year-old boy had died from eating contaminated greens.

Hewlett-Packard scandal latest high-profile target for Lockyer

SAN JOSE — State Attorney General Bill Lockyer had a reputation for going after the biggest targets even before he filed criminal charges in the Hewlett-Packard Co. spying scandal.

Lockyer, a Democrat running for state treasurer next month, already went after the Bush administration and the world’s largest automakers. But the case against five HP insiders and detectives on charges of violating state privacy laws could be one of his most daunting cases yet, legal experts said.

Merck cancer drug approved

WASHINGTON — A Merck & Co. Inc. drug received federal approval Friday to treat a slow-growing cancer that affects infection-fighting white blood cells. The Food and Drug Administration approved the drug, Zolinza, to treat advanced cases of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, a rare cancer that’s a form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Roughly 20,000 Americans have the cancer, Merck said.

Consumer spending slows in August; slowest pace in months

WASHINGTON — Consumer borrowing rose in August at the slowest pace in five months, reflecting weaker demand for auto loans.

The Federal Reserve reported Friday that consumer borrowing rose at an annual rate of 2.6 percent in August, compared to a 4.3 percent rate of increase in July. That was the slowest performance since borrowing actually fell in March. The overall economy slowed in the spring as consumers were battered by soaring energy costs, rising interest rates and a cooling housing market.

Ex-Enron executive

given two years probation

for insider trading

HOUSTON — Paula Rieker, Enron Corp.’s former No. 2 executive in investor relations and later its corporate secretary, was sentenced Friday to two years’ probation for insider trading.

Rieker faced up to 10 years in prison. Prosecutors had asked she be given a reduced sentence because she helped authorities in their investigation.

It was the second sentencing in as many weeks to be far lighter than expected. A federal judge reduced former Enron Chief Financial Officer Andrew Fastow’s prison sentence from 10 years to six years when he was sentenced last week.

Rieker, 52, pleaded guilty in May 2004 to insider trading for selling company shares in mid-2001 upon learning that Enron’s broadband unit lost millions of dollars more than had been publicly disclosed.