(Reuters) - Makers of soap, diapers and other household products are spending much more for fuel and raw materials than expected, which means more price increases are on the way for consumers. Procter & Gamble Co (PG.N) lowered the high end of its profit forecast for the year on Thursday, as it does what it can to trim expenses and raises some prices to offset rising costs for materials.

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(Reuters) - American International Group (AIG.N) sued two money management firms on Thursday as the bailed-out insurer launched a fight to recoup billions of dollars it said it lost due to fraud. The insurer, 92 percent owned by the U.S. government, sued ICP Asset Management and Moore Capital in New York State Supreme Court, contending it suffered huge losses by insuring mortgage securities that one of the financial firms created.

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(Reuters) - Pending sales of existing U.S. homes were much stronger than expected in March and a homebuilding company trimmed losses, offering faint glimmers of hope for the depressed U.S. housing market. Pending home sales rose 5.1 percent last month, the National Association of Realtors said on Thursday. NAR's Pending Home Sales Index rose to 94.1 from 89.5 in February. The index, which has risen for two months in a row, was at its highest since November.

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(Reuters) - The world of bank regulation is not known for flamboyance but even within this beige universe Martin Gruenberg has a decidedly low-key public manner. The current No. 2 man at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp -- and a strong contender to take over from Chairman Sheila Bair in the coming months -- speaks at a volume just north of a whisper at FDIC board meetings.

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(Reuters) - Chrysler Group LLC, which came to the brink of collapse before a federal bailout in 2009, plans to fully repay more than $7 billion in loans from the U.S. and Canadian governments by the end of June. The company's announcement on Thursday comes almost two years after Chrysler emerged from a U.S.-funded bankruptcy under the management of Italian automaker Fiat SpA. (FIA.MI)

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(Reuters) - Merger hopefuls Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext attempted to dazzle investors with forecast-beating results as they stepped up efforts to see off rival bidder Nasdaq. With a crucial NYSE shareholder meeting on the $10 billion German merger plan kicking off in New York on Thursday, the battle is on to convince investors of the merits of the bid, which is about $1 billion less than Nasdaq's counter offer.

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(Reuters) - U.S. cryde prices pared gains on Thursday as weaker-than-expected economic growth in the world's top economy partly offset a sliding dollar and signs of lower North Sea supplies. U.S. crude for June rose 30 cents to $113.06 a barrel by 1334 GMT, after touching the highest in 2-1/2 years of $113.70 a barrel. Brent crude futures were up 47 cents at $125.60 a barrel by the same time.

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(Reuters) - Forecast-beating results from big U.S. corporations and expectations of more of the same easy money policies from the Federal Reserve lifted Wall Street on Wednesday, with stocks set to run higher after the S&P 500 moved above a technical resistance level. However, gains were slight after indexes rose to around 3 year highs in the prior session and investors waited for the Fed's statement on monetary policy later on Wednesday.

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(Reuters) - Boeing Co's first-quarter profit rose 13 percent, topping Wall Street expectations, and the company reaffirmed its full-year outlook that reflects an ongoing recovery in the commercial aerospace industry. Shares rose slightly on the earnings beat, despite a 2 percent decline in revenue. The company also said its total order backlog grew in the quarter.

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(Reuters) - New orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose solidly in March and bookings for the prior month were much stronger than initially thought, pointing to strength in the manufacturing sector. The Commerce Department said on Wednesday durable goods orders increased 2.5 percent after an upwardly revised 0.7 percent rise in February, which was previously reported as a 0.6 percent fall.

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