IN BRIEF (Page 17)

US economy down 6.3%

The US economy shrank in the fourth quarter more than previously estimated, leading to the biggest plunge in corporate earnings in a half century and underscoring why companies are slashing payrolls this year.

Gross domestic product contracted at a 6.3 percent annual rate from October to December, the weakest since 1982, the Commerce Department said yesterday in Washington. Profits dropped 16.5 percent from the prior quarter, the most since 1953.