Harold Maass of The Week The Best of Today's Business

NEWS AT A GLANCE

The mobile home rolls on

The housing boom was hard on the mobile home industry, as rising property values led landlords to sell plots from underneath the prefab houses and cities froze or quashed the growth of mobile home parks. But with the collapse of the housing bubble, the mobile home industry could be making a comeback, as the demand for affordable housing rises. Mobile homes are also benefiting from a trend toward small, energy efficient homes, and an increase in quality and cachet, as shown in a recent showcase at New York's Museum of Modern Art. "The hardest thing is going to be changing that negative feeling you get when you say you live in a mobile home park," said Carol Konkel, property manager for Leesburg Mobile Park in Virginia. (The Washington Post)

Indian oil firm ONGC makes a bid on Russia

India's state-run Oil & Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) Videsh offered to buy Britain's Imperial Energy PLC for $2.58 billion, to tap Imperial's Siberian oil deposits. Imperial said earlier this month that it was entertaining a rival offer from a second firm, reportedly China's Sinopec, but the ONGC deal has the blessing of the Russian and Indian governments, according to sources. (Reuters) Chinese firms have recently outbid Indian ones as both nations compete for energy to fuel their booming economies. India imports more than 75 percent of its oil. "ONGC seems to be in a reasonable position in this deal," said consultant Tony Regan with Nexant Inc. "But the Chinese can move very quickly when they have to." (Bloomberg)

Rio Tinto profit jumps on aluminum

Anglo-Australian mining giant Rio Tinto reported a 113 percent rise in first-half profit, to $6.91 billion, beating Wall Street estimates. The earnings were boosted by increased aluminum production, record iron ore prices, and Rio's 2007 acquisition of Alcan. (MarketWatch) Iron ore prices are up 97 percent from April, and fivefold from 2001; Rio Tinto is the world's No. 2 iron ore producer. The firm raised its dividend by 31 percent, to 68 cents a share. (Bloomberg) "The headline profit number is certainly well ahead of expectations and the commentary associated with numbers appears very positive at this point in time," said analyst Adam Dixon at Ausbil Dexia in Australia. (Reuters)

The Rust Belt's green revival

The shuttered SUV and steel plants of the industrial Midwest are slowly being replaced by a wave of new manufacturing in solar energy technology. First Solar announced the expansion of a plant in Ohio this week, and Germany's Flabeg is breaking ground on a factory outside Pittsburgh; Energy Conversion Devices has three plants in Michigan, and is doubling capacity at one of them. In fact, outside of a factory in Las Vegas and one being built in California, all of the U.S. solar manufacturing activity is in the Rust Belt. Solar power won't revive the Midwest's industrial economy by itself. (Fortune in CNNMoney.com) Luckily, two separate Gulf Arab investors have expressed interest in buying GM's flagging Hummer brand. (Reuters in Yahoo! Finance)

BEST COLUMNS OF THE DAY

Inflation is a problem

Double-digit inflation is back for the first time since the "bad old days of 1981," says Irwin Kellner in MarketWatch, so "why are most pundits silent?" For some, maybe it's because oil prices, seen as behind the recent inflationary spike, are falling; perhaps others think that the slowing economy will stop businesses from raising prices. "Whatever the reasons, those who profess not to be worried that inflation is getting worse are looking at the wrong data, are cockeyed optimists, or are simply keeping their fingers crossed." Inflation is a problem, and the cause? "Too much money chasing too few goods." The Federal Reserve needs to tighten supply, but it won't, so get used to high inflation for a while.

Finding the elusive online travel deal

Consumers can still find online travel deals, says Sarah Nassauer in The Wall Street Journal, "if they are willing to spend the time looking." Online travel agencies lost their dominance after they started charging booking fees, and "suppliers" -- the airlines and hotels themselves -- picked up the slack, accounting for 61 percent of travel purchases last year, from 50 percent in 2003. But the online agencies, such as Expedia and Travelocity, "are regaining some ground by offering aggressive deals." This is a good opportunity for travelers, but for the best deal, check multiple sites and the supplier itself. Some companies in each camp, such as Orbitz and Delta, even pledge to guarantee the best fare.

GOOD DAY FOR: Being healthy, wealthy, and wise, after UC San Francisco researchers said that California's far-reaching tobacco control program has saved $86 billion in its first 15 years, from 1989 to 2004. The state has spent $1.8 billion on the program, which targets both adults and kids through ads and promoting policies such as smoke-free environments. (Reuters)

BAD DAY FOR: Safety in numbers, after the Identity Theft Resource Center said there have been more data breaches so far this year than in all of 2007. Last year, 446 U.S. companies, agencies, and universities reported a loss or theft of consumer data; 449 have this year. The increase could be due to better reporting, but the number of thefts is also almost certainly under-reported. (The Washington Post)

NOTED: Temasek, Singapore's $130 billion sovereign wealth fund, said that its full-year profit doubled, to a record $12.8 billion. The fund's sales of energy and Chinese banking stocks compensated for its losses on investments in banks such as Merrill Lynch and Barclays. Temasek Chairman S. Dhanabalan warned, "The fallout of the credit crisis will continue to dampen the global economy over the next 24 months, with sharply escalated oil and food prices beginning to test inflation expectations." (Bloomberg)

This column was written by Peter Weber and edited by Harold Maass of TheWeekDaily.com.