DETROIT (AP) -- Maybe Daimler wants to cut its losses on Chrysler, or Cerberus Capital Management wants to own the U.S. automaker outright. Whatever the motivation, the companies confirmed Wednesday that talks are under way for Daimler to sell its remaining 19.9 percent stake in Chrysler to the private equity firm.

Neither side would give further details, except Cerberus said it approached Daimler and if the transaction is successful, "all existing industrial relationships between Daimler and Chrysler would continue."

The talks, reported earlier Wednesday in Germany's Manager Magazin, come amid a crisis in the U.S. auto industry with falling sales, billions in losses and a dramatic market shift away from trucks and sport utility vehicles to small, fuel-efficient cars. Chrysler LLC's U.S. sales are down 24 percent through August, the worst performance of any major automaker.

Analysts say it's a good time for Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler to bail out, but it may be a bad time for Cerberus, which already is overexposed to U.S. economic problems, to spend more money on a losing operation.

"I can see why Daimler would want to exit," said Mark Warnsman, an auto analyst with Calyon Securities. "The only reason I could think that Cerberus would want more exposure is they're getting a very attractive price."

Cerberus Capital Management LP bought 80.1 percent of Chrysler from Daimler AG in August 2007 in a $7.4 billion deal. The sale ended a stormy nine-year partnership between Daimler and Auburn Hills, Mich.-

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House, responding to growing public demand for more domestic energy, voted Wednesday to end a quarter-century ban on oil and natural gas drilling off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts, giving Republicans a major victory on energy policy.

An extension of the ban for another year was left off a $630 billion-plus stopgap government spending bill that President Bush had threatened to veto -- possibly shutting down the government -- if the anti-drilling measure were included.

The bill was approved 370-58 and now goes to the Senate, where it is likely to be approved within the next few days, also without the drilling ban.

The decision to avoid a fight with the White House over offshore drilling marks a major shift by Democrats on energy policy and a reflection that the GOP argument for more domestic energy production had found a support among voters this election year, even though coastal states long have worried that offshore drilling might cause spills, soil beaches and threaten their tourist businesses.

Republican presidential nominee John McCain has made expanded offshore drilling a central part of his campaign, arguing that access to an estimated 18 billion barrels of oil in the off-limits Outer Continental Shelf is essential if the country is to become more energy independent.

McCain's Democratic presidential rival, Barack Obama, also has endorsed limited expansion of offshore drilling, but only as part of a broader energy package that boosts use of alternative energy sources and

NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil prices ended a choppy session slightly lower Wednesday, falling below $106 a barrel as weak U.S. fuel demand and a stronger dollar outweighed concerns over a reduction in global crude output.

Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell 88 cents to settle at $105.73 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange after rising as high as $109.50. On Tuesday, the contract fell $2.76 to settle at $106.61.

Crude prices have risen about $15 in the past week as investors funnel money back into commodities on worries that a proposed $700 billion bailout of financial firms will undercut the dollar and boost inflation.

But analysts said signs of weak U.S. demand for fuel have taken some of the momentum out of the rally. The economic slowdown has forced American consumers and businesses to cut back on energy use, sending oil prices falling from a record $147.27 a barrel reached July 11.

Demand for gasoline over the four weeks ended Sept. 19 was 3.5 percent lower than a year earlier, averaging 9 million barrels a day, the U.S. Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said in its weekly inventory report.

"Demand continues to be sluggish at best," said Andrew Lebow, senior vice president and broker at MF Global in New York. "Some people want to own real assets as an inflation hedge but others see crude as a consumable good, and any economic weakness is going to be bearish factor even if this bailout gets approved."

Highlighting Americans' reduced driving habits, filling stations hungry for business continued to ratchet

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- American International Group Inc. may have agreed to take the U.S. government up on a two-year, $85 billion loan to help stave off bankruptcy, but now the nation's largest insurer faces an FBI investigation.

The news sent AIG shares down nearly 34 percent Wednesday.

Law enforcement officials said Tuesday that the FBI was investigating the New York-based insurer for potential fraud, as well as mortgage finance companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, and investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.

The inquiries will focus on the financial institutions and the individuals who ran them, a senior law enforcement official said.

The law enforcement officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigations are ongoing and are in the very early stages.

The four financial institutions' recent travails helped trigger the government's $700 billion bailout plan, which continued to be discussed on Capitol Hill Wednesday. Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy and the government has already taken over Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

AIG spokesman Joseph Norton said Wednesday the company did not have details on the FBI investigation, but said "of course we will cooperate."

All four companies saw their stock prices plummet this year, as they struggled to survive under the weight

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -- Nike Inc. said Wednesday that its profit fell in the fiscal first quarter from a year earlier, when it benefited from a one-time tax gain. Excluding that item, profit rose in the quarter on sales growth around the globe.

Investors, eager for good news in the market, sent Nike shares up in after-hours trading.

The Beaverton, Ore.-based athletic shoe and apparel company said its net income decreased to $510.5 million, or $1.03 per share, from $569.7 million, or $1.12 per share, a year earlier. But the 2007 quarter included a special item that increased earnings per share by 20 cents. If adjusted for the tax benefit, net income would have grown 10 percent.

Revenue jumped 17 percent to $5.43 billion. Changes in currency exchange rates increased revenue by 7 percentage points during the quarter.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, on average, had expected the company to earn 92 cents per share on sales of $5.19 billion.

Nike's biggest growth continued to be in overseas markets, with revenue jumping 36 percent in the Asia-Pacific region. The company also had significant growth in developing markets such as Russia and Turkey. Revenue grew 8 percent to $1.8 billion for the quarter in the U.S., which is Nike's largest market but also one that has struggled with sluggish sales.

President and CEO Mark Parker said he was pleased with the quarter's results but said "we are not