TOP STORIES -- Dec. 1-5

A rally Thursday failed to gain traction the next day when the government's jobs report was surprisingly soft.

Stocks bounced early in the week on positive economic news, including strong reports on factory orders and construction, as well as a promising start to the holiday shopping season. But investors couldn't muster the momentum to push the Dow back above 10,000 or the Nasdaq composite index past 2,000.

The Nasdaq surpassed 2,000 on Wednesday but couldn't hold above that level. Investors sold tech shares, and Nasdaq ended the week down 1.1%. For the week, the Dow rose 0.8% to 9,862.68, and the Standard & Poor's 500 index gained 0.3%.

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Bush Rescinds Tariffs on Imported Steel

President Bush lifted tariffs on imported steel, averting a costly global trade war but angering the domestic steel industry and many of his Republican allies from Rust Belt states, where steelworkers have benefited from the protective measures he imposed early last year.

His decision came after the European Union threatened to levy $2.2 billion in tariffs on U.S. exports. Other trading partners made similar threats.

Many California manufacturers applauded the White House's decision to repeal the tariffs 16 months before the protections were to end.

Despite protests from the domestic steel industry and labor unions, the Bush administration said that the tariffs were being removed because the U.S. steel industry had used the "breathing space" to restructure and was strong enough to face foreign competition.

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Roy Disney Quits, Urges Eisner to Step Down

With a volley of harsh words, Roy Disney quit the board of the company founded by his uncle Walt Disney and called for the resignation of Chairman Michael Eisner, saying the entertainment company had "lost its focus, its creative energy, and its heritage."

Disney told Eisner in a three-page letter that "you are no longer the best person to run" Walt Disney Co. The 73-year-old vice chairman accused Eisner of maneuvering to have the board's nominating committee leave his name off the slate of directors to be elected in the coming year -- "effectively muzzling my voice."

Eisner declined to comment.

Stanley P. Gold also quit the board while vowing to press for Eisner's ouster.

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November Job Gains Miss Expectations

American employers added 57,000 workers to payrolls in November, the Labor Department said, extending the country's run of job gains to four straight months but falling well short of expectations.

The showing helped to trim the unemployment rate to 5.9% from 6%. But the employment increase was barely one-third the size analysts had predicted.

The comparatively weak showing reignited political debate over President Bush's stewardship of the economy and revived worries that a wedge has been driven between economic growth and job growth.

Economists found some silver linings in the November numbers. New hiring, though modest, was pretty much across the board. The manufacturing sector shed a net 17,000 jobs, a big improvement over 100,000-a-month losses of a few years ago.

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Boeing CEO Resigns; Tanker Deal Is Delayed

Boeing Co. Chairman and Chief Executive Philip M. Condit unexpectedly resigned, as the world's largest aerospace company moved to restore an image sullied by scandal.

The company said that Condit, 62, was not forced out but that its board decided that a "new structure for the leadership was needed." Boeing's named a former company president, Harry C. Stonecipher, 67, as CEO.

The Pentagon stepped up an inquiry into allegations that Boeing's finance chief, Michael Sears, began recruiting a top Defense Department procurement official to join Boeing at the same time it was bidding on an $18-billion contract for aerial refueling tankers. Boeing fired Sears and the former Pentagon official, Darleen Druyun, last month, citing breach of company policy. Sears has denied the allegations.

The Pentagon said it would delay the deal for 100 Boeing air tankers until officials investigated circumstances surrounding the awarding of the contract. Boeing has denied wrongdoing.

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SEC Proposes New Rules for Fund Industry

The Securities and Exchange Commission launched a regulatory strike against the illicit practices that have rattled the mutual fund industry in recent months and shaken public faith in an investment once viewed as a haven from financial trickery.

The agency proposed new measures to prevent after-hours trading and other improper practices. The commission ruled that fund firms must appoint an internal watchdog who would report to the board of directors. The 5-0 votes represent the SEC's most visible attempt to tighten rules governing mutual funds since revelations surfaced of widespread trading abuses.