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* * * * * FRIDAY, JANUARY 30, 2015 ~ VOL. CCLXV NO. 24 WSJ.com HHHH $3 .00

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What’sNews

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World-WidenObama will ask Congressin his budget to boost govern-ment spending by $74 billion,or 7% above levels fixed in a2011 deficit-cutting deal. A2nTensions between Israeland Hezbollah eased and Is-rael said the Lebanese grouphad asked for a cease-firethrough U.N. intermediaries. A6nThe U.S. has formed tieswith Houthi rebels who seizedcontrol of Yemen’s capital, in asign of a shift in Washington’sapproach in that country. A6n Jordan demanded prooffrom Islamic State that acaptured pilot was still aliveas a deadline for a possibleprisoner swap expired. A6nThe Senate voted 62-36 toapprove the Keystone pipeline,moving Congress closer to ashowdown with Obama. A5nEU foreign ministers agreedto extend by six months tar-geted sanctions against indi-viduals and companies in Rus-sia and eastern Ukraine. A8nEgypt’s military said assail-ants attacked police stationsand military bases in Sinai,killing at least 20 people. A6nThe Mexican governmentplans to make spending cutsto offset a drop in revenuefrom falling oil prices. A9nMIT researchers found thatthey could identify individualswith only limited metadata. A3nThe U.S. rate of homeown-ership fell to a 20-year low inthe fourth quarter of 2014. A2nDartmouth is banninghard alcohol and warning fra-ternities they must reform. A3

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The surging dollar is roil-ing currencies world-wide

amid efforts to boost eco-nomic growth, spurring awave of bets by investors. A1n Amazon posted higher-than-expected quarterly netdespite sales growth belowforecasts. Shares rose sharplyin after-hours trading. B1nGoogle’s revenue grewmoreslowly than expected in thefourth quarter. The firm citedthe strong dollar as a factor. B4nU.S. stocks rose as earningsreports helped lift consumershares. The Dow climbed225.48 points to 17416.85. C4n Ally’s CEO reacted angrilyto ex-parent GM’s decisionto squeeze the lender out ofthe car-leasing business. C1n U.S. prosecutors are drop-ping insider-trading chargesagainst five men in the wakeof an appeals-court ruling. C1nAlibaba said profit fell 28%,largely due to expenses, anddefended itself against claimsit let fake goods be sold. B4n Ford posted a sharp drop inquarterly net, largely becauseof accounting moves, but is-sued a strong 2015 forecast. B5n Deutsche Bank swung toa profit on lower litigationreserves and higher invest-ment-banking revenue. C3n Blackstone beat earningsexpectations as the world’slargest private-equity firm setseveral full-year records. C3n Spotify is workingwithGoldman on a new round offundraising, potentially delay-ing an IPO for another year. B3

Business&Finance

A surging dollar is pummel-ing currencies around the globeamid efforts to boost economicgrowth, prompting a wave of in-vestor bets to profit from theupheaval.

Many global central banks areweakening their currencies asthey try to counter signs of eco-nomic gloom, signaled by fallingcommodity prices, declining in-flation and softening growth ex-pectations.

Those shifts, together withmoves such as this month’s sur-prise decision by the Swiss Na-tional Bank to abandon itsthree-year-old policy of limitinggains in the Swiss franc againstthe euro, have fed a jump in theprice swings of currencies.These dynamics are tempting in-vestors to make large bets oncurrency moves, potentially fuel-ing further exchange-rate shifts.

Denmark’s central bank cutits deposit rate for the thirdtime in two weeks on Thursday,charging banks more to holdtheir money, as it sought to de-fend its long-established cur-rency peg against a weakeningeuro, which has tumbled sincelast week when the EuropeanCentral Bank adopted a €1 tril-lion-plus ($1.129 trillion) stimu-lus package.

On Thursday, the dollarclimbed to an 11-year highagainst a basket of currenciesand is up 15% in the past year.

The Turkish lira slumped to alow against the dollar amid

PleaseturntopageA8

By Gregory Zuckerman,Laurence Fletcher

and Chiara Albanese

CurrencyTumultAttractsBig Bets

PARIS—When a young French-woman showed up early thismonth at an Islamic State bordercheckpoint in northern Syria, theextremists controlling that aridexpanse were expecting her.

They waved her right throughand let her bodyguards accom-pany her, according to Westerncounterterrorism officials.

The militants had been told togive Hayat Boumeddiene specialtreatment by the network ofchaperones who had arranged her

travel. The reason would soon beclear: The same day she crossedthe border, her husband, AmedyCoulibaly, unleashed his terrorspree in Paris, and she became themost-wanted woman in France.

No charges have been filed butauthorities are eager to questionMs. Boumeddiene. “She is the

prize—a high-value asset—be-cause she knows a lot about thepreparation of the attack,” said acounterterrorism official.

Her journey from the grittysuburbs of Paris to the Syrianborder followed a circuitous routethat—much like an undergroundrailroad—allowed her to slip awaycovertly.

Islamic State’s ability to pro-vide safe harbor to friends andfamily removes potential obsta-cles for would-be attackers in the

West. They no longer need to bepart of a terror group’s rank-and-file to benefit from its resources,according to Western counterter-rorism officials and people closeto militant networks.

There isn’t any evidence Mr.Coulibaly took orders from Is-lamic State, although he pledgedhis allegiance in a video that cir-culated online after his death.

But he didn’t act in isolationeither. Instead, he tapped into a

PleaseturntopageA7

By Noémie Bisserbe,Benoît Faucon

and Stacy Meichtry

Network Aided Terror EscapeParis Killer’sWife Spirited to Syria by Group Set Up to Recruit Jihadists, Officials Say

Ukraine Suffers as Clashes With Russia-Backed Rebels Intensify

Petr

David

Josek/AssociatedPress

Falling PricesSpread PainFar AcrossThe Oil Patch

Uber Technologies Inc. has followed a pugnaciousexpansion strategy as it rolled into 277 cities aroundthe world, sometimes skirting local laws and daringregulators to stop the smartphone-based car service.

But as fierce challenges from regulators and taxioperators pile up from Portland, Ore., to Paris toPhuket, Thailand, executives at the San Franciscocompany are trying a new tactic: compromise anddiplomacy.

Instead of defying government officials, Uber ex-ecutives say their lawyers and lobbyists are increas-ingly trying harder to negotiate agreements thatbring the company into compliance with existing

BY DOUGLAS MACMILLAN AND LISA FLEISHER

U-TURN

Hard-Driving UberGives Compromise a Try

DALLAS—Rumor became re-ality here last week when doz-ens of workers lost their jobs atLaredo Petroleum Inc. TheOklahoma-based energy outfitsaid it closed its regional officeto cope with plunging oilprices.

The layoffs were “kind of likea death in the family,” saysRobert Silver, age 62, a geo-physicist who had helped La-redo decide where to drill inthe Permian Basin in WestTexas.

Trouble has been loomingover the oil patch since crudeprices began falling last sum-mer, from over $100 a barrel tounder $50 today. But only noware the long-feared effects of abust starting to ripple throughthe complex energy ecosystem,

Pleaseturntothenextpage

BY ERIN AILWORTHAND DAN MOLINSKI

Many collectors own a piece ofthe Berlin Wall. Ticket stubs from1960s Beatles concerts are for saleon eBay. And for a few hundreddollars, you can own a seat fromthe old Yankee Stadium.

Collectors will soon be able toget their hands on another pieceof history: a piece of carpetfrom the Portland InternationalAirport.

The 28,000 square feet of tealis more than just a rug. It’s a leg-end, a monument to muffled foot-steps, a selfie magnet that is thebackground for more than 31,000Instagram photos of feet. The rughas more than 1,500 followers onTwitter. People have dressed asthe carpet for Halloween. There isa 176-square-foot mural in itshonor hanging in concourse D.Emma Milkin, a 21-year-old Port-land resident, tattooed the patternon her back.

The carpet has large, dark blue,purple and red X’s that resemblethe pattern of the airport’s criss-crossing runways as seen fromthe control tower. Through thepictures people post online whenarriving or departing the airport,the pattern has become an icon.

Soon, though, it will be gone.Despite a regular regimen of steamcleaning and vacuuming, the car-

PleaseturntopageA10

BY RYAN KNUTSON

Fans of PDX’s Magic CarpetDon’t Want It to Disappear

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Portland Airport Flooring Fans ScrapFor a Swatch; 28,000 Square Feet of Teal

Carpet fan with matching T-shirt

laws, even if it leads to lower profit margins at thecompany.

In cities where new laws are being written forapp-based car services, Uber is more willing to goalong with requirements such as providing wheel-chair-accessible vehicles and capping fares chargedby its “surge pricing” system. Executives say theyare aiming to make Uber explicitly legal everywhereit operates, up from just 22 cities and states now.

Many cities lack rules for car services like Uber,which says it isn’t bound by traditional taxi regu-lations because it owns no cars and employs nodrivers.

“We are trying to intensify our partnershipsPleaseturntopageA10

Hefty Spending by Tech Players

The Wall Street JournalSource: the companies

Note: Facebook reported earnings on Wednesday, remaining companies reported on Thursday.

Capital expenditures and R&D as a percentage of revenue for latest quarter

27%

35%

11%16%

20%

13%

31%35%

42%

18%

N/A

18%

’14’12 ’13

BATTLE WOUND: A government soldier is treated at a hospital in the town of Artemivsk while civilians in eastern Ukraine tried to flee renewed fighting. A8

BIG EXPENSES: Recent earnings reports show that technologycompanies continue to spend freely on research and development, withFacebook and Google outpacing Web rivals Alibaba and Amazon. B1, B4

Getty

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