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AP Business NewsBrief at 7:18 p.m. EST
(AP Online Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) Alcoa to cut 13 pct of global work forcePITTSBURGH (AP) _ Alcoa Inc., the world's third-largest aluminum maker, said Tuesday it will cut 13,500 jobs, or 13 percent of its work force, and slash spending and output to cope with the global economic slowdown. The reductions expand on cost-cutting measures announced in October, when Alcoa reported a 52-percent decline in third quarter profit, due to sharply lower aluminum prices, weaker demand and a charge from curtailing a smelter in Texas.
LyondellBasell units file for bankruptcyDALLAS (AP) _ The U.S. arm of chemical giant LyondellBasell Industries has filed for bankruptcy as the recession continues to weaken demand for its products, which are used in everything from cars to detergents. The Houston-based company said Tuesday that it had arranged for up to $8 billion in financing to keep operating while it reorganizes.
Stocks end higher on hopes for economic reboundNEW YORK (AP) _ Wall Street brushed off more bad economic news Tuesday to finish with a moderate advance that left broad stock indexes at their highest levels in two months. Stocks gained after stumbling in the early going because of mixed readings on the service sector, factory orders and pending home sales. While investors expected the data would show further deterioration, they were hoping the pace of the declines would slow. The market is eager for signs that the U.S. recession will end this year.
Economy in grip of recession, reports showWASHINGTON (AP) _ Anyone looking for a bright spot in the recession might have pointed to a reading Tuesday of the nation's office workers, retailers and other service industries, which contracted at a slower-than-expected pace in December. But even the closely watched gauge of activity in the service sector, where most Americans work, showed it was still shrinking. And coupled with two bleaker economic reports, it suggested to analysts that the struggling economy is likely to shed many more jobs in the months ahead.
Financial crisis takes human tollBERLIN (AP) _ His spirit broken by financial fears, German billionaire Adolf Merckle took his own life this week _ becoming the latest high-profile casualty of a global economic crisis that already has claimed the lives of executives in Europe and the U.S. Merckle, a respected businessmen with a wife and four children, jumped in front of a train in the town of Blaubeuren in southwestern Germany, officials said Tuesday.
Apple cuts copy protection and prices on iTunesSAN FRANCISCO (AP) _ Apple Inc. is cutting the price of some songs in its market-leading iTunes online store to as little as 69 cents and plans to make every track available without copy protection. In Apple's final appearance at the Macworld trade show, Apple's top marketing executive, Philip Schiller, said Tuesday that iTunes song prices will come in three tiers: 69 cents, 99 cents and $1.29. Record companies will choose the prices, which marks a significant change, since Apple previously made all songs sell for 99 cents.
After sales, will shoppers pay full price again?NEW YORK (AP) _ Shoppers are getting used to those 75 percent off sale signs, and that's bad news for merchants who worry they will also have to quickly slash prices on spring goods to attract customers. Anxieties about how rampant discounts have affected shoppers' psyches and stores' profits are running high ahead of expected dismal December sales figures on Thursday. The holiday season is anticipated to be the worst in decades.
Skilling convictions upheld; will get resentencedHOUSTON (AP) _ A federal appeals court Tuesday upheld former Enron Corp. CEO Jeff Skilling's convictions for his role in the energy giant's collapse but threw out his 24-year prison term and ordered that he be resentenced. A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans denied Skilling's request to overturn his convictions. Skilling argued his convictions were invalid because of what his lawyers argued were incorrect legal theory, faulty jury instructions, a biased jury and prosecutorial misconduct, including accusations of witness intimidation and withholding evidence.
Natural gas shortages slam many European nationsVIENNA, Austria (AP) _ The Russia-Ukraine natural gas dispute hit Europe with the force of a winter storm Tuesday, cutting or limiting supplies to at least a dozen nations. Tens of thousands of people were left without heat and governments scrambled to find alternate energy sources. Shocked by how fast the shortages were spreading, the European Union demanded a quick end to the quarrel _ a sharp turnaround from their earlier stance, when officials had downplayed the conflict between Moscow and Kiev as primarily a business matter.
Economy trumps geopolitical strife: oil fallsCOLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) _ Oil prices fell Tuesday as fresh signs of a deepening U.S. recession trumped tensions in the Middle East and worries over natural gas shortages in Europe. Light, sweet crude for February delivery fell 23 cents to $48.58 a barrel in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices early on reached $50.47, the highest point since Dec. 1, before the National Association of Realtors reported that pending home sales fell to the lowest level on record in November.
Copyright ? 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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