Inventories at United States wholesalers piled up at a faster pace in October as sales posted their first back-to-back declines in more than three years.	SAC Capital Advisors, a $10 billion hedge fund, has raised its stake in the Phelps Dodge Corporation to 5.1 percent and said yesterday that it would oppose a proposed takeover of the company by Freeport-McMoRan Copper and Gold.	The panel ruled that Qualcomm, a maker of cellphone chips, is infringing a Broadcom Corporation patent on a way to conserve handset battery power.
BEIJING (Reuters) - China promised on Monday to respond positively to the United States in high-level economic talks this week but drew a line in the sand by telling Washington that its exchange rate is a matter of national sovereignty.	TOKYO -- Nissan Motor Co. announced plans Monday to launch a next-generation fuel cell vehicle in the early 2010s in Japan and North America as part of its mid-term environmental strategy.	Metro faces a $116 million budget shortfall the next fiscal year, raising the possibility of fare increases, reduced bus and rail service and higher contributions from area taxpayers, according to budget documents and interviews with board members.