New York  - US breakfast cereal maker Kellogg Company said Thursday profits rose in the second quarter despite increased costs for its raw ingredients as it passed on the prices to consumers.

Net profits rose 4 per cent to 312 million dollars, or 82 cents per share, from 301 million dollars, or 71 cents per share, the Battle Creek, Michigan-based firm said.

Revenue rose 11 per cent to 3.3 billion dollars on the weaker dollar and higher prices for its popular cereals.

New York  - Major US stock indices rose Wednesday after a surge in oil prices led energy companies to their largest gains in six years, while the Federal Reserve said it would extend borrowing to investment banks.

Crude oil jumped 4.58 dollars to 126.77 dollars per barrel in New York trading as petrol inventories declined, sending an energy sector index up 5.6 per cent.

New York  - The Walt Disney Company said Wednesday that earnings rose in the third quarter led by profits from its theme parks and cable television networks.

Net profits rose 9 per cent to 1.3 billion dollars, or 66 cents per share, including one-time profits, from 1.2 billion, or 58 cents per share, in the year-earlier period. Nearly half the profit came from the purchase and sale of subsidiaries, including the acquisition of Disney Stores North America and the sale of movie. com.

New York  - Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak said Wednesday that the resignation of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will not endanger peace negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.

Visiting the United Nations, Barak said that Olmert, who has been ensnared by a corruption scandal, made the right decision by not seeking re-election as Kadima party leader, meaning he will leave office in September.

New York  - The temperature in the United Nations Secretariat will go up a few degrees in order to cut greenhouse gas emissions and save money, Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said Wednesday.

On Friday, the landmark headquarters of the United Nations in New York will heat up and the more than 4,000 employees will be working in 25-degree-Celsius temperatures, up from 22 degrees. The major conference rooms will be a little bit cooler, at 23.9 degrees Celsius.

New York  - Starbucks reported losses in its third quarter due to costs related to the closure of 600 stores in the United States, the coffee giant said Wednesday.

The Seattle, Washington-based firm lost 7 million dollars in the quarter down from earnings of 158 million dollars in the year-earlier period. Revenue rose 9 per cent to 2.6 billion dollars.