Weekly interest and loan rates | Home values Northwest stock contest 2004 | Consumer affairs

Business Digest
Alcoa upbeat about demand for aluminum parts in aircraft

E-mail this article Print this article Search archive

"They're very bullish in terms of what they're telling us," said William Christopher, president of Alcoa's aerospace, automotive and commercial transportation group, at a meeting yesterday with analysts in New York that was broadcast over the Internet.

Airbus had orders for 284 jets last year and is forecasting about 250 this year. Boeing has said it doesn't expect an increase in orders until 2006. Boeing had orders for about 250 planes in 2003.

Alcoa's Christopher didn't disclose how many orders the world's biggest aluminum maker expects the aircraft makers to generate this year. "We're starting to see an upturn," he said.

Separately yesterday, Boeing pressed forward with efforts to sell its 767 jet as a military-refueling tanker and chose United Technologies' Pratt & Whitney unit over General Electric to supply engines for the aircraft.

The work may mean at least $2 billion to Pratt based on the U.S. government's initial plan to lease and buy 100 tankers from Boeing. That $17 billion deal is on hold as U.S. officials review whether negotiations for the contract were tainted by a conflict-of-interest at Boeing.

REI online-sales growth helps produce record profit

SEATTLE — Recreational Equipment Inc. (REI) topped $800 million in sales last year as the outdoor retailer opened new stores in seven cities and saw online sales grow.

The Kent-based cooperative said sales rose 9.5 percent to $805.3 million in 2003, translating to a record profit of $19.1 million. Member dividends totaled $41.3 million.

Sales at stores open at least a year rose 2.9 percent, and the direct-sales division — which includes online sales — posted a gain of 12.2 percent.

In 2004, the 69-store chain plans to open six new stores. Last week, a relocated store opened in Portland's Pearl District, and this fall REI will move its Lynnwood store to Alderwood Mall.
 
Nextel Partners to add 30 retail stores this year

BELLEVUE — Nextel Partners said yesterday that it would open 30 retail stores around the country this year, bringing its total to 70.

The Kirkland company, which sells a combined mobile-telephone and walkie-talkie service under the Nextel brand, has added stores in York, Pa., and Johnson City, Tenn., already this year.

A company spokeswoman said the new stores would be in both new and existing markets, but wouldn't elaborate. Nextel Partners has the exclusive right to sell Nextel services in mid-size and rural markets, so none of the stores will be built in Washington; the company's nearest market is Boise, Idaho.

As part of the expansion, Douglas Harty has been named director of retail.

Beagle.K worm infects via ruse of asking for password

NEW YORK — The Beagle computer worm, which may have infected as many as 200,000 computers in January, has spawned a variant disguised as a message from computer administrators, in an attempt to deceive wary users.

The virus affects only personal computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system.

Beagle.K arrives as an attachment to e-mail that appears to come from within the recipient's company, said Alfred Huger, a virus researcher with Cupertino, Calif.-based Symantec, the largest maker of anti-virus software. The message says that because of problems with the e-mail system, he or she must type a password to open the attachment, which then infects the computer.

"This is an ingenious piece of social engineering," Huger said.

The password ruse is a departure from viruses whose attachments open with a click and appears to be an attempt to trick users who know better than to open unknown files, Huger said.

Global Seafood wants to bring foreign processors to Alaska

JUNEAU — A Seattle company wants to buy 70 million pounds of Alaska pink salmon for distribution in Russia.

Global Seafood of North America is seeking permission to bring in foreign processing vessels like those that Alaska's governor rejected from last year's pink-salmon fishery.

The company, which owns a processing plant in Kodiak, submitted a similar application to the state last year. The request was rejected after a survey by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game indicated domestic processors would be able to handle the 2003 salmon run.

This year's processor capacity survey indicates that, for the most part, processors can handle the 2004 run, said Fish and Game research analyst Susan Shirley.

John Manly, spokesman for Alaska Gov. Frank Murkowski, said Global Seafoods' application proposes to buy fish in Southeast, Prince William Sound, Cook Inlet and the Alaska Peninsula.

Manly said it's too soon to tell whether Global Seafoods' application will be approved.

Nation / World

Toys R Us profit sinks; Kids R Us stores sold

MOUNT LAUREL, N.J. — Toys R Us' profit declined 48 percent in its fourth fiscal quarter that covered a disappointing holiday sales season for the nation's second-biggest toy retailer.

The company, which trails only Wal-Mart in toy sales, also announced yesterday that it was selling 124 of its empty Kids R Us stores to Office Depot for $197 million. Analysts said they expected a poor earnings report and that the news of the real-estate deal was responsible for a boost in stock prices. Shares in the company were up $1.09 to close at $16.39.

Belgian, Brazilian breweries toast their mega-alliance

SÃO PAULO, Brazil — Belgium's Interbrew and Brazil's AmBev shook up the global beer industry yesterday with a blockbuster $11.4 billion deal to form the largest international brewer by volume, surpassing U.S.-based Anheuser-Busch.

The companies insisted that their stock transaction is an "alliance" and not a merger because Interbrew and AmBev will operate independently in different hemispheres and maintain separate stock listings.

But the deal's complexity confused investors, prompted harsh criticism by some analysts and sent shares of each company on a tumultuous ride. After diving about 5 percent in early trading, Interbrew's share price recovered by the end of the day, closing up 2.6 percent. AmBev's Brazilian shares were mixed in midday trading, with voting shares soaring 7 percent and non-voting shares plunging 16 percent.

Compiled from Seattle Times business staff, Bloomberg News and The Associated Press

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company