Alcoa said yesterday it will eliminate 13,500 jobs, or 13 percent of its work force, in order to conserve cash and cut costs in the face of the global economic downturn. (Today)

Logic would seem to favor building lower-cost clinics for simple surgeries. Not just for the savings, either. (Today)

Also in the day's headlines: (Today)

The idea of buying high-quality stocks and holding onto them through for the long haul has become so widely accepted that to do otherwise seems foolish. But many long-term investors this year are probably wondering if they would have been better off selling their shares. (Yesterday)

Progress Energy in Florida is planning to retire two of its old coal-fired power plants and replace them with nuclear power units from Westinghouse Electric Co. (Yesterday)