Business news briefs for February 20, 2004

Friday, Feb. 20, 2004 | 11:13 a.m.

Bernhard, James hired by firm

Two government leaders have joined the Las Vegas office of Bullivant Houser Bailey PC.

Mark James, a Clark County commissioner, and Peter Bernhard, chair of the Nevada Gaming Commission, have joined the firm as corporate attorneys. James will focus on resolving commercial, real estate and environmental disputes, while Bernhard will focus on real estate transactions including both gaming and non-gaming properties, commercial litigation and alternative dispute resolution.

James is a former senator and has 20 years of experience as an attorney. Bernhard has served as a member and chair of the Nevada Commission on Ethics and has worked as an attorney since 1976.

Food, energy costs lift price index

WASHINGTON -- U.S. consumer prices rose 0.5 percent in January, reflecting the largest energy-cost jump since the Iraq War started. Prices excluding food and energy gained 0.2 percent, suggesting inflation remains subdued.

The increase in the price index last month followed a rise of 0.2 percent in December, the Labor Department said in Washington. The so-called core index, excluding volatile food and energy prices, climbed 0.1 percent the month before.

Energy prices last month surged as winter weather spurred demand and supplies dwindled. The core index gained 1.1 percent in 2003, the smallest annual increase in 43 years, as unused capacity, productivity gains and competition held down prices and spurred discounting by companies including automaker General Motors Corp. and retailer Sears, Roebuck & Co.

"Inflation still looks very low, and it's likely to remain low" for some time, said Kevin Logan, senior economist at Dresdner, Kleinwort, Wasserstein in New York. "Most of the rise was energy, and that's not likely to be repeated."