1.   Bond investors have punished Nippon Credit by driving up the rate Nippon Credit has to pay to issue five-year debentures, a key fund-raising tool.

2.   A shortage of skilled workers could fuel inflation by driving up wages for educated people.

3.   But it does mean that gamesmanship and driving up your sales price is part of the free-agent shuffle.

4.   But last year they began living up to their production cuts, and the futures traders started driving the price up.

5.   Growth in faster wireless connections to the Internet will play a huge role driving up usage, analysts predict.

6.   Other methods can start driving up the costs.

7.   That, in turn, can hurt profits by driving up the cost of borrowing for companies and by discouraging consumer spending.

8.   Any delays, he adds, would hurt the export-led German economy more by driving up the mark.

9.   Sanctions and threats of more sanctions also have weakened the Afghan currency and driven up food costs.

10.   TV makers argue that any requirement would limit choice by driving up prices.