Business briefs 3/11/04

U.S. trade deficit hits record monthly high

WASHINGTON -- America's trade deficit hit a record monthly high in January, the start of an election year in which Democrats hope to use the swollen trade gap and the loss of U.S. jobs as campaign issues against President Bush. The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that the trade imbalance mushroomed to $43.1 billion in the first month of 2004, representing a 0.9 percent increase from the previous month. For all of 2003, the trade deficit posted an annual all-time high of $489.9 billion, according to revised figures.

Companies file lawsuits against spammers

WASHINGTON -- Leading Internet companies, in an unusual joint effort among corporate rivals, announced six lawsuits Wednesday against hundreds of people accused of sending millions of unwanted e-mails in violation of the new federal law against "spam." The legal actions by Microsoft Corp., America Online Inc., EarthLink Inc. and Yahoo! Inc., represent the first major industry actions under the "can spam" legislation that went into effect Jan. 1. The suits were filed in federal courts in California, Georgia, Virginia and Washington state.-- From wire reports