Business Highlights

WASHINGTON — Oil prices zoomed to a four-and-a-half month high above $68 a barrel Friday, rallying on supply fears tied to Iran’s tense diplomatic standoff with the West over its nuclear ambitions. Labor unrest in oil-rich Nigeria and new threats from al-Qaida contributed to traders' jitters at a time when global petroleum demand is high and the emergency supply cushion is thin, leaving little room in the event of an output disruption. The fear of new supply disruptions outweighs the knowledge that crude-oil inventory levels are at multiyear highs and that winter temperatures in the U.S. have been above-normal, keeping demand for home-heating fuels low.

Bad fourth quarter for General Electric Co.

STAMFORD, Conn. — General Electric Co. said Friday fourth-quarter profits fell 46 percent as the industrial products, financial services and media giant absorbed nearly $3 billion in losses selling most of its insurance business. While the earnings results met expectations, revenue for the quarter was below what analysts expected. GE said the sale of the volatile insurance business last year and growth in developing markets would help boost the bottom line.

Investors punish Citigroup Inc.

NEW YORK — Citigroup Inc., the nation's largest financial institution, on Friday said its profit rose 30 percent in the fourth quarter, largely on strength in its international operations and a gain on the sale of its asset management business.

Excluding the sale, however, earnings were below expectations and investors punished the stock.

The company said net income totaled $6.93 billion, or $1.37 per share, in the October-December period, up from $5.32 billion, or $1.02 a share, a year earlier. Excluding the $2.1 billion gain on the sale of its asset management business, however, net income fell about 3 percent from the year-earlier quarter to $4.97 billion and earnings per share were flat at 98 cents.

Ford ranks last

DETROIT — In a survey released this week, Ford Motor Co. ranked last among major automakers in the use of its North American plant capacity. The company aims to change that with a restructuring plan to be announced Monday that likely will include closing some U.S. plants, cutting jobs and changing the company's product lineup. Already some are wondering if shutting 10 plants and laying off 25,000 hourly workers, as the Wall Street Journal reported, will be enough to reverse the automaker's billion-dollar losses in North America.

Vioxx case still to be

re-tried in New Orleans

NEW ORLEANS — Although New Orleans has fewer than half the residents it did before Hurricane Katrina, the judge hearing the first federal Vioxx trial has told attorneys he does not expect any problems finding a jury to retry that case. The Eastern District of Louisiana is sending more notices than usual to registered voters, to make sure enough notices get through even if some are sent to empty houses or get lost in the mail.<