Retail gasoline prices surged to new highs in California and nationally over the last week, the Energy Department said Monday. Prices are increasing even though supplies are plentiful. In California, the Energy Department’s weekly survey of service stations showed, the average price of a gallon of self-serve regular climbed 7.7 cents to $3.685 — the biggest increase and the highest average in the country — after hovering around the $3.60 mark for the previous three weeks. The state’s latest average was 43.3 cents higher than the same week in 2007. For the full story visit http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-gas8apr08,0,5581893.story

Image Entertainment went to court in a contract dispute with Relativity Media over providing films for Image to distribute for the DVD market. Relativity has yet to provide a single film to Chatsworth-based Image even though the agreement called for three films in 2007 and as many as 20 a year starting in 2008, the Los Angeles Times reported. Relativity was to receive shares of Image stock for every film it provided. Although there are no indications that any shares or money ultimately changed hands, Image contends that it has been deprived of millions of dollars of potential revenue because of a lack of films for distribution, the Times said. Attorney Martin D. Singer, who represents West Hollywood-based Relativity, was quoted in the Times calling the case “ridiculous and without merit,” saying the companies resolved the issue in 2007 in a binding settlement. “Even prior to the settlement, our initial agreement with Image did not obligate us to give them the films they are claiming,” Singer was quoted in the Times.

Discount air carrier Skybus Airlines shut down its operations April 5, including service at Bob Hope Airport in Burbank. The combination of rising fuel prices and a downturn in the economy forced the airline to file for bankruptcy protection under Chapter 11. “These two issues proved to be insurmountable for a new carrier,” said Skybus CEO Michael Hodge said in a prepared release. Skybus, based in Columbus, Ohio, began service in May from its hub in Ohio and smaller airports closer to large cities. To attract budget-minded passenger, a select number of seats were set aside at $10. The company regrets the decision and the impact it has on employees, customers, vendors and other partners, Hodge said. Businesses and individual investors in Columbus, and from equity capital, combined to raise the $160 million to launch the airline. The airline leased ticket counter and office space at the airport. That space now reverts back to the Burbank-Glendale-Pasadena Airport Authority. For its eight months of operation in 2007, Skybus flew nearly 93,000 passengers on its daily non-stops to Columbus. The airline cut back to one daily flight in January due to fuel costs and wanting to use its aircraft more efficiently.

The nation’s air travelers may be wondering whether last week’s three airline shutdowns signal more trouble ahead. But a bigger concern this spring may be the likelihood of more flight delays, jammed planes and even higher ticket prices. With rising fuel costs, fewer planes in the sky and heightened safety concerns with aging aircraft, travelers can expect flights to be more expensive, crowded and late, giving passengers more reasons not to fly this year. “It sure is a lot more expensive to fly these days,” said Barry Trupp, a farmer who lives outside of Denver and was flying back home from Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday. “I wonder if a lot more people will take driving vacations.” For the full story visit http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-airlines7apr07,1,6984829.story

An increase in international sales contributed to electronic equipment rental company Electro Rent Corp. reporting a net income for the third quarter. A strong demand for test and measurement equipment also figured in the positive financial showing for the Van Nuys-based company. For the quarter ending Feb. 29, Electro Rent posted a net income of $4.8 million, or $0.19 per diluted share, on revenues of $26.2 million. That is a 7 percent decrease from the net income of $5.2 million, or $0.20 per diluted share, on revenues of $24.7 million for the same period in 2007. The company developed further momentum in its international business, especially in Europe and China, Chairman and CEO Daniel Greenberg said. In China, Electro Rent has broadened its reach and expanded its presence and the distribution channel continues to grow, Greenberg said.

Washington Mutual Inc., the largest U.S. savings and loan, rallied as much as 18% in New York trading as a group led by private-equity firm TPG Inc. considers a $5 billion investment in the Seattle-based company. Negotiations with the TPG group are at an advanced stage and an agreement could be announced within days, said a person familiar with the discussions, who declined to be identified. Washington Mutual needs the funds after reporting more than $3 billion of home-mortgage writedowns and loan losses. At least 14 banks and securities firms have sought cash from outside investors in the past year after more than $230 billion of global markdowns and losses caused by the collapse of the U.S. subprime mortgage market, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Washington Mutual Chief Executive Kerry Killinger told investors in January he expected a “dramatic” increase in loans that need to be modified to avert defaults. For the full story visit http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-wamu8apr08,1,4930128.story

The executive editor of a northern California newspaper has been named as the new editor of the Daily News. Carolina Garcia replaces Ron Kaye who resigned from the position on April 4. “This is a new era for us,” Publisher Doug Hanes was quoted in the Daily News. “She has been one of the top editors in the country and we were very fortunate to bring her here.” Garcia joins the Daily News after five years as executive editor of The Monterey County Herald. Before that she was managing editor of the San Antonio Express-News from 1998 to 2003, the Daily News reported. Kaye’s departure followed by five weeks a trimming of the newsroom staff by 20 positions to cut overall costs at the paper.

Joint replacement system distributor Medacta USA Inc. announced that the first hip replacement procedures in the U.S. featuring its muscle-sparing AMIS technique have been performed. In the past four years, more than 10,000 procedures have been performed around the world using the AMIS technique and Medacta’s patented Mobile Leg Positioner. Unlike the traditional hip replacement surgical techniques in which the surgeon cuts or dissects the muscles in order to replace the patient’s hip joint, AMIS is a minimally-invasive total hip replacement surgical procedure where there are no muscle cuts, according to Camarillo-based Medacta. The desired result is that recovery time is reduced.

Disney Interactive Studios added to its global growth plans with the acquisition of a Chinese-based video game software developer. The terms of the deal between Burbank-based Disney and Gamestar were not disclosed. Gamestar becomes the sixth studio in the growing international portfolio of Disney Interactive. The company was founded in 2002 and has locations in Shanghai and Wuhan. “Our global expansion is aimed at achieving a new level of creative capacity, quality, and expertise in video game software development,” said Graham Hopper, executive vice president and general manager, Disney Interactive Studios.

Diodes Inc. added to its product line with the acquisition of Zetex, a British-based semiconductor manufacturer. Diodes, with engineering and marketing offices in Camarillo, will pay $176.3 for the company. The sale is subject to approval by Zetex shareholders and court in the United Kingdom. Zetex designs and manufactures high-performance analog and discrete semiconductors for a variety of applications. The company employs more than 650 people worldwide. The acquisition contributes a wide range of new discrete and analog products and capabilities that will aid in deeper penetration of our key end-markets, said Diodes President and CEO Keh-Shew Lu.