U S Cities

Home prices in the nation's largest cities fell in October for the second straight month, suggesting that prices will head down further next year and dashing hopes that the sluggish housing market was headed for an upturn. The Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index, a measure closely followed by economists, showed price drops in 19 of 20 cities since September. Overall, the price index slipped 1.2% month over month and fell 3.4% compared with October 2010. The decline is typical of the season, when home buyers back off after the busy summer period.

Estimates of the likelihood of an earthquake that will cause significant damage within 50 years and considers entire metropolitan areas, taking into account building conditions and local geology. City: Estimated Risk Los Angeles: 96% to 99% San Francisco: 30 to 85 Salt Lake City (including nearby cities): 15 to 40 Seattle: 15 to 25 St. Louis: 3 to 15 Denver: 2 to 10 SOURCES: David Perkins, U.S. Geological Survey; Roulac Real Estate Consulting Group of Deloitte Haskins & Sells.

Seattle, above, is the best city for business in the country, according to Fortune magazine's fourth-annual ranking of 60 metropolitan areas. The magazine noted that Seattle is home of America's biggest exporter, Boeing, and is one of the nation's largest seaports. Fortune compiled its list by asking Moran Stahl & Boyer, a consulting firm, to survey more than 900 executives on subjects ranging from taxes and social conflict to the quality of the labor force.

Here is a list of selected national and international airlines that offer flights out of major cities in the United States. In some cases, an airline may not have its own mileage award program, but it may partner with another airline. Note: "FF" denotes "frequent flier." Aer Lingus (800) 474-7424 reservations/FF www.aerlingus.com Aero California (800) 237-6225 reservations Aeroflot Russian Airlines (888) 340-6400 reservations/FF www.aeroflot.

Los Angeles will be one of 10 cities globally to host an all-electric race series - dubbed Formula E - as soon as 2014, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa announced. The series will be the first in the world to feature fully electric open-wheel race cars similar to those that recently raced at the Long Beach Grand Prix. "These cars are not your grandma's Priuses," Villaraigosa said Monday. "Imagine cutting-edge technology on display that will push the boundaries of what electric cars can do. " The races are organized and promoted by Formula E Holdings.

It's the kind of news that Americans waiting for holiday spending bills to arrive don't want to hear: “Even with increasing energy production in the U.S., declining fuel consumption, and improving fuel efficiency, Americans may still face rising gasoline prices in 2013. " The quote comes from Gregg Laskoski, one of the senior petroleum analysts at GasBuddy.com. That's the fuel price spotting service used by several million smartphone users to report the highest and lowest gasoline and diesel prices they encounter.

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko of Japan will make their first trip to the United States in that capacity starting June 10, the government announced Friday amid reports they will stop in Pearl Harbor. The royal couple will visit 10 American cities in a two-week trip.

Guitar virtuoso Eric Clapton is planning a six-week U.S. tour that will take the British rocker to 27 cities in the spring. It will be Clapton's first U.S. tour since 1987, although he appeared with the Rolling Stones several times during their just-completed "Steel Wheels" tour. Clapton's smashing groups of the 1960s and early '70s included Cream, Blind Faith and Derek and the Dominoes.

Unseasonably cold weather chilled the East, Midwest, the Southwest and the Middle Atlantic states Friday, shattering or tying records in more than 30 cities. Temperatures dropped to below freezing in a few places from western New York across western Pennsylvania to northern West Virginia, the National Weather Service reported. The readings included 27 degrees at Franklinville, N. Y.; 28 degrees at Bradford, Pa., and 29 degrees at Thomas, W. Va.

Some U.S. cities are unprepared for an attack by weapons of mass destruction, with biological agents a greater danger than nuclear or chemical weapons, an FBI official said on Friday. "Some American communities are very unprepared. They certainly don't have the equipment and resources necessary to handle a major attack," Robert Blitzer, chief of the FBI's domestic terrorism section, said.