Supply Management

The giant U.S. services sector expanded at its fastest rate on record in January, but the growth failed to create many jobs, a survey by the Institute of Supply Management showed. ISM's non-manufacturing index jumped to 65.7 in January from 58 in December. A number above 50 indicates growth. The survey's employment index edged lower in January, to 53.4 from 54, while demand for new orders accelerated, with that index rising to 64.9 from 59.5.

Here are the key upcoming business and economic events. Today * Treasury bill auction. Tuesday * The Conference Board releases the results of its monthly survey on consumer confidence. Wednesday * Commerce Department reports on factory orders for February. * Best Buy Co. and Circuit City Stores Inc. report fourth-quarter results. Monsanto Co. reports second-quarter results. * OPEC to consider disregarding its earlier decision to cut its oil production ceiling by 4% in April. * Fed Gov.

A private measure of the manufacturing sector's health for January rose from a record low but still showed the 12th straight month of contraction in a global recession. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing executives, said its manufacturing index rose to 35.6 in January from an upwardly revised 32.9 in December. The January reading was above the 32.6 that economists had expected. Any reading above 50 signals growth, while a reading below 50 indicates contraction.

Growth in California's manufacturing sector slowed slightly in last year's fourth quarter but still outpaced the nation's factories, according to Chapman University in Orange. The school said its composite index for California manufacturing fell to 64.2 in the October-to-December period from 64.6 in the third quarter. A value above 50 shows expansion. High-technology industries were the main driver of growth in manufacturing for the second consecutive quarter, Chapman said.

A jury said Ariba Inc., a maker of supply-management software, infringed three patents owned by rival EPlus Inc., a decision that could result in a $294-million damage award against Ariba. The federal jury is to hold a second trial this week in Alexandria, Va., to determine the amount of damages owed. Herndon, Va.-based EPlus is seeking as much as $98 million, which could be tripled because the jury found that the infringement was intentional. Ariba, based in Sunnyvale, Calif.

Educational services, farms, utilities, stores and hospitals all saw their businesses expand in September, thanks to strong exports and deliveries, a private research group's survey showed Friday. The reading of 50.2 from the Institute for Supply Management was down from 50.6 in August, but a reading above 50 signals growth. It beat economists' prediction of a reading of 50.0, according to the consensus estimate of Wall Street economists surveyed by Thomson/IFR.

Longtime restaurant industry executive Nelson J. Marchioli has been appointed president of the El Pollo Loco chain of Mexican-style grilled chicken restaurants and vice president of the chain's owner, Flagstar Cos. Inc. Marchioli, 47, formerly was president of the Bruegger's Bagel Bakeries chain, senior vice president of worldwide supply management for Burger King Corp. and an executive of the former General Mills Restaurant Group and its Red Lobster seafood restaurant chain.

U.S. businesses added workers and manufacturing expanded in April after the economy grew in the first quarter at the strongest pace in more than two years, reports this week are likely to show. About 60,000 jobs were added this month after an increase of 58,000 in March, according to a survey of economists by Bloomberg News. The Labor Department's report on Friday may show April's rise in payrolls to be the biggest since February 2001, a month before the economy slipped into recession.

U.S. manufacturing grew at a slower rate in July as a drop in new orders spawned caution among factory managers, and U.S. private employers probably added jobs last month at their slowest rate in four years, according to separate reports Wednesday. In the key housing sector, demand for mortgage applications slid last week to the weakest level in more than five months, an industry group said, suggesting that the beleaguered U.S. housing sector has yet to hit bottom.