AUBURN HILLS, Mich. (AP) - It was all handshakes and smiles yesterday as the United Auto Workers formally opened contract talks with Chrysler Group, and while both sides were cordial, it didn't take long for their differences to surface.
UAW President Ron Gettelfinger, while repeatedly refusing to answer specific questions about bargaining strategy, told reporters that the union already has done a lot to make the Detroit Three more competitive.
He cited health care concessions for General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. and approval of buyout and early retirement packages that let all three companies reduce their work forces.
Citigroup earnings jump
NEW YORK (AP) - Citigroup Inc. said yesterday its second-quarter profit rose 18 percent on strong overseas operations that led to record revenue for the biggest U.S. bank.
Rival Wachovia Corp. also saw a double-digit jump in quarterly earnings, but both banks saw shares decline as they padded their provisions for loans that go sour - a move many other banks have made as they gird themselves for a shakier credit environment.
The nation's four largest banks - Citigroup, Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., and Wachovia - all reported rises in second-quarter profits this week. But that wasn't enough to satisfy investors, who fear a credit crunch will give the industry a run for its money.
Gas prices slip
NEW YORK (AP) - Gas prices slid again at the pump yesterday, while oil futures briefly passed $76 a barrel before settling lower in a volatile session driven by the August contract's expiration.
The average national price of a gallon of gas dropped 1.6 cents overnight to $3.004 a gallon, according to AAA and the Oil Price Information Service. Retail prices, which typically lag the futures market, are close to dipping below $3 a gallon for the second time since peaking at $3.227 a gallon in late May.
Refinery problems in the Midwest caused the most recent foray by gas prices above $3. But refineries are returning to service after a spring that had seen an unusual number of unexpected problems. That is adding to the sentiment among futures investors that gasoline prices have peaked for the year.
OxyContin maker fined $634M
ABINGDON, Va. (AP) - Purdue Pharma L.P., the maker of OxyContin, and three of its executives were ordered to pay a $634.5 million fine on yesterday for misleading the public about the painkiller's risk of addiction.
U.S. District Judge James Jones levied the fine on Purdue, its top lawyer and former president and former chief medical officer after a hearing that lasted about four-and-a-half hours. The hearing included statements by numerous people who said their lives were changed forever by the addiction potential of OxyContin, a trade name for a long-acting form of the painkiller oxycodone.
Designed to be swallowed whole and digested over 12 hours, the pills can produce a heroin-like high if crushed and then swallowed, snorted or injected.
From 1996 to 2001, the number of oxycodone-related deaths nationwide increased fivefold while the annual number of OxyContin prescriptions increased nearly 20-fold, according to a report by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. In 2002, the DEA said the drug caused 146 deaths and contributed to another 318.
Auto parts maker may strike
DETROIT (AP) - A union representing more than 2,000 of Delphi Corp.'s hourly workers said yesterday it has told the auto parts maker that it plans to terminate its contracts, a first step toward a possible strike in October.
The International Union of Electronic Workers-Communications Workers of America said the notification, delivered in a letter earlier this week, comes as contract talks have dragged on concerning job security, wages and benefits.
Lindsey Williams, a spokesman for Troy-based Delphi, said that talks continue with the union. He said the company didn't plan to comment on communications between it and the union.
