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U.K. government borrowing in September fell by more than anticipated, official figures showed Friday, providing rare good news after a series of downbeat reports.

The Office for National Statistics said public sector net borrowing in September was 14.1 billion pounds ($22.2 billion), down on the 15.4 billion pound shortfall in the same month last year.

September’s figure was about a billion pounds better than the market consensus.

The agency also revised its August borrowing figure downward by 2 billion pounds.

The data leaves the government broadly on course to hit its full-year deficit target of 122 billion pounds, providing the economy doesn’t deteriorate further.

However, worries persist.

“We doubt that these figures fully reflect the recent slowdown in the pace of economic growth and therefore we continue to expect the trend in borrowing to deteriorate in the second half of the fiscal year,” said Samuel Tombs, U.K. economist at Capital Economics.

The statistics agency reported earlier this week that inflation had hit a three-year high of 5.2 percent. Unemployment was up to 8.1 percent in the latest report, while household incomes were growing at less than 2 percent a year; GDP rose just 0.1 percent in the second quarter.

Chris Williamson, chief economist at financial information company Markit, said the government may be forced to cut spending further to meet the borrowing target if the economy gets worse. However, he said this raises the risk that austerity measures “end up driving the deficit higher rather than reducing it.”

Concern about sagging growth has prompted the Bank of England to resume a program of buying up financial assets from the banks in the hope of increasing the money supply and getting them to lend more.

Earlier this month, the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee unanimously voted to spend another 75 billion pounds ($118 billion) on the so-called program of quantitative easing. Between March 2009 and January 2010, it bought up 200 billion pounds ($315 billion) of assets.

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Libyan fighters fanned out in Tripoli neighborhoods Saturday to search for armed supporters of fugitive leader Moammar Gadhafi a day after a major gunbattle rocked the capital for the first time in two months.

Dozens of men combed apartment buildings for suspects and weapons in the Abu Salim neighborhood, which is home to the prison of the same name that became notorious for the abuse and killing of Gadhafi opponents. A day earlier, a gunbattle broke out in the area when a group tried to raise the green flag that symbolizes the ousted regime.

Revealing serious divisions within the revolutionary ranks, Saturday’s sweep of Abu Salim was being conducted mainly by a breakaway militia that refuses to answer to the main Tripoli military council.

It is one of many factions that have refused to put themselves under the umbrella of official revolutionary authorities, raising fears of vigilante justice as the North African nation faces continued fighting by loyalists of the fugitive leader.

One anti-Gadhafi fighter stomped on a green flag as others searched vehicles. Another showed off a box stuffed with bullets he said was found in a second-floor apartment in one of the residential buildings.

Abdullah Naker, the head of the so-called revolutionary council, called on all anti-Gadhafi forces to join them in the search and warned his men will fight anybody who gets in their way.

“All of Tripoli will be searched and we will reorganize our checkpoints and our guards in public and private institutions inside of Tripoli and outside of Tripoli,” he told reporters.

He said eight wanted men and 12 other suspects were arrested. He also alleged that teachers have been telling students that Gadhafi will return and said teams had been sent to stop the practice.

“We gave the military council a chance to prove themselves and they failed, and we will not leave things to chance,” he said.

A senior Interior Ministry official, Ibrahim al-Bargathi, said Friday’s skirmish started when a group of some 30 people, including eight women and some armed men, started walking with green flags. Local opponents began fighting with them, then revolutionary forces swarmed into the area from across the city, he said payday loans.

He said six people were injured and 14 were captured _ nine men and five women.

It was the first major violence in Tripoli between Gadhafi supporters and revolutionary forces since the then-rebels swept into the capital in late August and forced the longtime leader into hiding. The tensions suggest Libyans face grave challenges in trying to reconcile after months of bitter civil war.

The flare-up in Tripoli and fierce resistance on two other fronts have set back the new rulers’ stated goals of declaring total victory and establishing democracy. It also raised fears of a protracted insurgency as Gadhafi, the ruler for nearly 42 years, remains on the run.

The capital has been relatively calm since then-rebels swept into the city two months ago. But Gadhafi’s loyalists have control of parts of his hometown of Sirte and the desert enclave of Bani Walid and have fought off NATO-backed revolutionary forces besieging them for weeks. Gadhafi has tried to rally his supporters with several audio recordings issued from hiding.

The firefight in Tripoli began after Friday prayers. Witnesses said dozens of loyalists carrying green flags appeared on a square in the Abu Salim neighborhood, which has long been a pro-Gadhafi stronghold. Residents also reported fighting in several other areas known to still hold loyalists of the former leader.

Interim leader Mustafa Abdul-Jalil, the head of the governing National Transitional Council, had hoped to declare liberation this week after what he expected would be the imminent fall of the holdout city of Sirte, Gadhafi’s hometown, 250 miles (400 kilometers) southeast of Tripoli on the Mediterranean coast. That could allow the council to name a new interim government and set a timeline for holding elections within eight months.

The revolutionary forces control much of Sirte after launching a major push a week ago but still face heavy resistance.

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A three-day rally in the stock markets faded on Friday after a mixed jobs report and credit-rating cuts for Italy and Spain.

Indexes drifted between gains and losses in the morning, then turned lower after the Fitch agency cut Spain and Italy

Ford’s chief executive says the growth of China’s auto market is sustainable as the company looks to launch 15 new vehicles by 2015 in the country.

Alan Mulally said Monday that China is a sustainable market with the country’s leadership focused on keeping inflation in check without derailing economic growth.

Ford made a comeback last year with $6.6 billion in profit, its biggest in 11 years. Now the company is looking to invest further in Asia personal loans for people with bad credit. Last weekend it broke ground for the construction of a $350 million transmission plant in the southern Chinese megacity of Chongqing.

China is the largest car market in the world. Last year, sales of passenger vehicles in China, excluding large buses, jumped by a third to 13.7 million vehicles.

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Rams quarterback Sam Bradford has a new job; appearing in Charter Communications advertisements.

Bradford is featured in print ads and three TV commercials for the cable TV and internet provider.  The commercials strive for a light touch.  In one, a fan asks Bradford to stand back so the fan can take a picture of a Charter truck paydayloans.

Charter recently announced an agreement to carry the NFL Network.

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Ford Canada said Thursday that interest in its fuel-efficient cars drove an eight per cent increase in overall sales during August over the prior year.

Canada’s top-selling automaker sold 25,927 vehicles during the month, making it the best August sales results in 23 years.

Since January, the company has sold 193,648 cars and trucks, 5.2 per cent higher than the prior year.

Solid gains from Ford Fiesta, Focus, Fusion and Lincoln MKZ pushed overall car sales up 18 per cent to 6,898 units in August. Sales since January are up 22 per cent to 52,622.

Truck sales grew five per cent to 19,029 and by 0.1 per cent to 141,026 for the year to date.

Chief executive David Mondragon said consumers are recognizing the fuel efficiency of Ford’s cars and trucks, as more than 64 per cent of cars sold in the month achieved at least 55 miles per gallon or 5.14 litres per 100 kilometres.

Also, more than 40 per cent of F-150 truck sales were EcoBoost engines, which achieve more than 30 miles per gallon (9.42 litres per 100 km).

Lincoln sales increased 27 per cent on growing interest in the MKZ, MKX and Navigator.

Mondragon said Ford is maintaining its leadership position for the second consecutive year as the Canadian auto industry is on the path of “moderate growth in 2011.”

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Summer reading and a bit of golf. That says vacation for many Americans. And briefings on the economy and national security if you’re the president.

Barack Obama began the first full day of his Martha’s Vineyard vacation on Friday by taking his daughters book shopping, then hitting the golf links at a private course.

The White House was at pains to point out he also was briefed by aides on national and international issues.

At the Bunch of Grapes bookstore, Obama was greeted by shouts of “2012″ and “Four More Years.” Dressed casually in jeans and an untucked blue polo shirt, he introduced his daughters to patrons before setting off in search of vacation reading. The girls, meanwhile, shopped with a purpose.

“They’ve got to buy some books,” Obama said of Malia, 13, and Sasha, 10, adding that one of them had a school assignment.

One woman, Terry Wilson, 63, of Alexandria, Va., told the president: “Please don’t forget the teachers.” Obama replied that he loves teachers. “How could I forget them?” he said.

At the end of the 15-minute shopping trip, Obama was seen holding five or six books, including “Brave New World,” Aldous Huxley’s futuristic classic, and “The Bayou Trilogy,” a crime novel by Daniel Woodrell set in Louisiana swampland.

Obama emerged to cheers from well-wishers who were kept behind yellow police tape, then climbed into his SUV and rode back to his vacation compound to drop off the girls before being driven to Vineyard Golf Club in Edgartown. Aides said his afternoon foursome included longtime Chicago friend Eric Whitaker and two White House staffers cash advance.

Several Republican presidential candidates have criticized Obama for coming to this upscale island resort off the coast of Massachusetts at a time of economic uncertainty across the country.

The 10-day stay on Martha’s Vineyard is Obama’s third straight summer on the island off Cape Cod, and his visit to the Bunch of Grapes was a reprise of how he started last year’s vacation. Once again, it was a father-and-daughters outing, with first lady Michelle Obama elsewhere on the island.

Inside the bookstore, once Malia and Sasha had picked out books, Obama went to the cashier to pay but was heard disagreeing with the $32 price he was quoted, which seemed low for the size of his stack. He later paid by credit card, telling the cashiers that he uses it only about three times a year.

“We’re counting on you!” one patron yelled as Obama left the store.

He also found a supportive audience outside the shop.

“He’s working all the time. He’s getting a little relaxing when he’s with his girls,” said Virlynn Atkinson White, from Washington, D.C., who also was on vacation. “But for the most part, I’m sure he’s working. There’s too much going on in the country. He’s very conscientious.”

The White House defends Obama’s desire for time to recharge and spend time with his family before the new school year begins. Officials also say the president is never really on vacation.

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Associated Press writer Erica Werner contributed to this report.

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The purchase of a nine per cent stake in Ireland

A billion pounds was wiped off the value of satellite broadcaster British Sky Broadcasting PLC Friday after British Prime Minister David Cameron indicated that the government was not going to wave News Corp’s bid for the company through any time soon.

In a hastily arranged press conference, Cameron said the government was doing everything by the book but that a final decision on News Corp.’s bid would take “some time” given recent events.

His comments were later echoed by Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who is assessing News Corp.’s attempt to bid for the 61 percent of shares in BSkyB that it doesn’t already own. Hunt remains under pressure from opposition politicians to refer the bid to the Competition Commission for a full-scale monopoly review which could delay a decision even further.

With the decision pushed further out into the future, investors extended a slide in BSkyB’s share price that began on Tuesday as public fury mounted over phone hacking by the Sunday tabloid News of the World, which is part of Rupert Murdoch’s British press holdings.

By late afternoon London time, BSkyB’s share price was down 7.8 percent at 749 pence ($11.98). That means the company’s market value has lost over one billion pounds ($1.6 billion).

James Murdoch, his father’s heir-apparent, announced Thursday that the paper will close after this Sunday’s edition. Many observers saw the dramatic announcement to close the scandal-ridden tabloid as a ruse to save the BSkyB bid.

Alex DeGroote, analyst at Panmure Gordon, called the closure “a cynical attempt to improve the prospects of regulatory approval for the News Corp. deal with BSkyB” which is unlikely to work.

DeGroote said it was now more likely that OFCOM, the communications regulator, will have to review its position that News Corp no fax cash loans. executives are “fit and proper” persons to hold a broadcasting license.

“Leaving the legalities to one side, we cannot believe it makes political sense for a fragile coalition (government) to let this pass without thorough and fresh scrutiny,” he said.

In a sign of further trouble, French car company said on its Twitter feed that it would not be investing in any of News International’s titles “pending the formal investigations.” News International is the U.K. subsidiary of News Corp., which also owns Fox News, The Wall Street Journal and the New York Post.

In addition to the one more edition of News of the World, News International, publishes The Sun, The Times and The Sunday Times.

Meanwhile, OFCOM, the British media regulator, released a letter on Friday which served to signal that it is watching News Corp. and BSkyB very closely to be sure that directors and controlling shareholders are “fit and proper” persons to hold a broadcasting license.

It informed John Whittingdale, chairman of the House of Commons media committee, that it would not prejudge the outcome of the current investigations. OFCOM, which had earlier given its OK to the News Corp. bid, has the power to deny or revoke a license.

The closure of the News of the World was having repercussions all across the British media sector. Shares in Trinity Mirror PLC were up around 7 percent, while those of Daily Mail & General Trust PLC spiked over 1 percent as investors conclude that their Sunday publications will be able to pick up readers from the axed News of the World, which was the most read British newspaper.

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