On Wednesday December 29, 2010, 5:55 pm EST
Travelers say airlines'
customer service failed
Passengers are lashing out
at airlines for poor customer service after this week's storm on the East Coast
left thousands stranded and unable to get through to reservation agents.
Critics are incensed over
what they say is the airlines' effort to blame everything on the weather and
take themselves off the hook.
Travelers stranded by the blizzard
have been calling airlines to rebook flights in huge numbers, but the airlines
have fewer reservations agents to take their calls
BP's spill costs look
manageable 8 months later
NEW YORK (AP) -- As the
Gulf oil spill gushed out of control, BP's financial liabilities seemed big
enough to sink the company. No more.
Cleanup, government fines,
lawsuits, legal fees and damage claims will likely exceed the $40 billion that
BP has publicly estimated, according to an Associated Press analysis. But
they'll be far below the highest estimates made over the summer by legal
experts and prominent Wall Street banks, such as Goldman Sachs, which said
costs could near $200 billion.
BP will survive the worst
oil spill in U.S. history for several key reasons: It has little debt; its
global businesses are forecast to generate $26 billion next year in cash flow
from operations; the environmental impact of the spill isn't as bad as feared;
and the government seems unlikely to ban BP from Gulf drilling. To bolster its
finances, BP has cut its dividend, issued debt and sold more than $21 billion
in assets.
Stocks end higher as market
approaches new year
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks
finished higher Wednesday as the market continued on pace for its best December
in nearly 20 years.
The Standard and Poor's
500-stock index -- the market measure used by most professional investors --
has gained 6.7 percent this month. If it closes Friday at this level or higher,
it will be the best December return for the index since 1991.
Trading continued to be
thin ahead of the New Year's holiday. In the absence of any fresh economic data
or major corporate news, investors were attracted to the government's latest
bond auction. Treasurys rallied and stocks also drew strength from the
successful sale. Traders' moods also appear to be buoyed by the mostly positive
economic news of recent weeks.
Strong corporate profits
have helped push stocks higher for much of 2010.
Dec. 26 storms delay $1
billion in retail spending
ATLANTA (AP) -- The
blizzard that swept through the Northeast on Sunday and Monday delayed $1
billion in retail spending, according to research firm ShopperTrak, but won't
derail a holiday shopping season expected to be the best since 2007.
The effect won't be as bad
as last year's pre-Christmas snowstorm that similarly paralyzed parts of the
East Coast. That cost retailers an estimated $2 billion, according to weather
research firm Planalytics.
About $10 billion in retail
sales usually occurs Dec. 26-27, ShopperTrak says. Bad weather likely delayed
about 10 percent of that, but the storm's effects weren't enough to change
ShopperTrak's estimate for a 4 percent gain over last year in revenue for the
Nov. 1-Dec. 31 holiday season.
Auto industry recalled 20
million vehicles in 2010
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Automakers recalled about 20 million vehicles in 2010, led by high-profile
recalls by Toyota that prompted new scrutiny of the auto industry's safety
record.
The number of recalls this
year was the largest in the United States since 2004, according to an analysis
of federal data by The Associated Press. The auto industry set a record with
30.8 million recalled vehicles that year.
Toyota Motor Corp. recalled
about 7.1 million vehicles in 2010 to fix faulty gas pedals, floor mats that
could trap accelerators, defective braking and stalling engines. The safety
woes by the world's No. 1 automaker brought more attention to auto safety from
government regulators and the public. Drivers filed more than 64,000 complaints
with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly double the
number in a typical year.
AP Enterprise: Few sites
redeveloped after mining
HINDMAN, Ky. (AP) -- A
short drive up a side road through dense Appalachian forest ends at a vast,
flat clearing where a mountaintop used to be.
The peak that stood for an
eon is gone, replaced by a giant recreation area that was built after a coal
company scraped away thousands of tons of earth, lowering the mountain by 200
feet.
Coal industry supporters
say the Knott County Sportsplex in eastern Kentucky is one of many examples of
economic opportunity created by strip mining techniques that include the
often-vilified method known as mountaintop removal.
But data obtained by The
Associated Press indicates that just a small percentage of the leveled
Appalachian mountain landscape has been transformed into new developments such
as businesses, prisons, golf courses and subdivisions.
Bad gifts may be history
with Amazon's idea
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) --
Amazon.com Inc., the source of many presents good, bad or ugly, has patented a
system that would let people exchange unwanted gifts for those they actually
want -- even before they get them.
For now, though, it's just
an idea, so until Amazon figures out how to implement it, you may be stuck with
that itchy sweater from Grandma, even if she bought it online.
Based on Amazon's patent
filing, recipients of unwanted gifts would be able to exchange items that are
too big, too colorful or otherwise unwanted for something of equal value. They
could also pay the difference for a more expensive item or get a gift
certificate.
They could do this before
they actually receive the gift, thus saving themselves the hassle of
repackaging and mailing the unwanted present.
California woman arrested
in insider trade scheme
NEW YORK (AP) -- A
California woman who tipped off two portfolio managers about the unannounced
earnings of technology companies is the latest person arrested in a federal
crackdown on consultants and others who specialize in feeding inside
information to hedge funds, federal authorities announced Wednesday.
Winifred Jiau, 43, was
ordered detained until a Monday bail hearing in federal court in San Francisco.
She had been arrested Tuesday at her Fremont, Calif., home. Her lawyer, Josh
Cohen, did not immediately return a message for comment.
Jiau was charged with
securities fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud for accepting more
than $200,000 over a two-year period from an expert networking firm that
promises to provide "institutional money managers and analysts with market
intelligence" through a "Global Advisory Team of Experts,"
according to a release from U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara.
Energy prices lower, still
around two-year highs
NEW YORK (AP) -- Energy
prices fell Wednesday while the East Coast continued to dig itself out of
Monday's blizzard and a cold snap swept across other parts of the country.
Heating oil, natural gas
and other energy commodities usually get more expensive as the weather chills.
But analysts said most traders already have locked in their energy contracts
for the year, and those still buying are looking ahead to 2011. With the U.S.
sitting on higher than average heating oil and natural gas supplies,
temperatures would need to drop much lower for a longer period to raise prices,
analyst Tom Kloza with Oil Price Information Service said.
Benchmark oil for February
delivery gave up 37 cents to settle at $91.12 per barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange. Oil jumped above $90 per barrel this month, setting
two-year highs as investors anticipated rising demand in 2011. Prices have held
above that level all week.
Meat labels to include
calories starting in 2012
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The
Agriculture Department will require many meat labels to include the number of
calories and other nutritional information starting in 2012 so that consumers
can make healthier decisions about what they eat.
The rule announced
Wednesday is part of the government's effort to educate Americans about
nutrition and diets. It applies to 40 of the most popular cuts of meat and
poultry products, including boneless chicken breasts, brisket and tenderloin
steak. The rule also affects hamburgers and ground turkey.
Labels will list grams of
total fat and saturated fat, and fat percentages for products already offering
lean percentages.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones Industrial
average closed 9.84 points higher, or 0.1 percent, to 11,585.38. The S&P
500 rose 1.27, or 0.1 percent, to 1,259.78. The technology-focused Nasdaq
gained 4.05, or nearly 0.2 percent, to 2,666.93.
Benchmark oil for February
delivery gave up 37 cents to settle at $91.12 per barrel on the New York
Mercantile Exchange. Oil jumped above $90 per barrel this month, setting new
two-year highs as investors anticipated rising demand in 2011. Prices have held
above that level all week.
In other Nymex trading for
contracts: heating oil for January delivery fell less than a penny to settle at
$2.515 per gallon, gasoline for January delivery lost 1.52 cents to settle at $2.3904
per gallon and natural gas for February delivery gave up less than a penny to
settle at $4.287 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent crude lost
24 cents to settle at $94.14 per barrel on the ICE Futures Exchange.