U.S. markets slide on wholesale report
NEW YORK, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- U.S. stock markets slid early Tuesday after the Bureau of Labor Statistics said prices for producers rose faster than expected in November.
Producer prices rose 2.4 percent in the month, a sharper incline than the 1.7 percent prediction.
The New York Federal Reserve banks said business conditions in the Empire State "leveled off in December, following four months of improvements."
North of New York, Statistics Canada reported new vehicle sales rose 3.5 percent in October with the sale of 133,559 cars and light trucks.
In late morning trading, the Dow Jones industrial average shed 26.83 points, 0.26 percent, to 10,474.22. The Standard & Poor's 500 lost 0.36 percent, 4.02, to 1,110.09. The Nasdaq composite index lost 0.2 percent, 4.51, to 2,207.59.
The benchmark 10-year Treasury fell 13/32 to yield 3.601 percent.
The euro fell to $1.4558 from Monday's $1.4653. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 89.67 yen from Monday's 88.58 yen.
In Japan, the Nikkei 225 index lost 0.22 percent, 22.20, to 10,083.48.
BA flight crews vote for holiday strike
LONDON, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- British Airways' flight attendants voted to strike for 12 days in December, potentially sabotaging travel plans for almost 1 million passengers, the union said.
The union Unite said more than 80 percent of its 12,700 members voted approved a walkout, which is to begin Dec. 22, The Times of London reported Tuesday.
The airline and union members disagreed about staffing levels for flights and wages, which management proposed freezing at current levels for two years. BA is attempting to reduce its payroll by 1,700 workers to save $227 million in annual operating costs.
About 900,00 passengers are booked on BA flights during the 12-day duration of the planned strike, The Times reported.
BA Chief Executive Officer Willie Walsh said, "They have no justification for threatening such extreme action. It is very sad they are seeking to use the Christmas holiday plans and family reunions of hundreds of thousands of people to try to pursue their case."
However, union leader Steve Turner told The Times the 12-day walkout was potentially "the first in a whole series of strikes."
Union and company representatives said no talks were presently scheduled to resolve the differences.
Window shade recall is massive
WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission announced a series of window shade and blinds recalls Tuesday due to a risk of strangulation to children.
The recalls involves eight separate announcements covering "all Roman shades and roll-up blinds," the commission said.
The recalls involved blinds and window shades sold at Wal-Mart, J.C. Penney, Pottery Barn, Pottery Barn Kids, The Land of Nod, All Strong Industry, West Elm, Big Lots and Ace Hardware.
The recall concerns window shades with cords that form a loop around the bottom of the shade for lifting and lowering. About 5 million Roman shades and about 3 million roll-up window blinds are sold each year, the commission said.
The recalls are the result of 15 years of studies on window coverings, Inez Tenenbaum, CPSC chairman said.
The commission said it has reviewed reports of five deaths and 15 near strangulations since 2006.
The recall involves shades and blinds made in the United States, China, Taiwan, Mexico, Thailand and Hong Kong.
Hazards on most of the shades can be remedied with a free repair kit, the commission said.
Consumers were advised to call 800-506-4636 for more information.
U.S. Mint breaks up credit reward scams
WASHINGTON, Dec. 15 (UPI) -- The U.S. Mint says some consumers were buying Sacagawea coins with their credit cards just to rack up rewards on their credit cards.
The simple scam is "not the right thing to do," said Tom Jurkowsky, a spokesman for the Mint, the Los Angeles Times reported Tuesday.
The Mint said it has notified about 75 cardholders who were using the scheme to accumulate reward miles from airlines that the jig was up.
The Mint traced the problem to June 2008, when it allowed buyers to purchase $500 in dollar coins depicting presidents Washington, John Adams, Jefferson, Madison and Jackson, the Times said.
The sky was the limit, so to speak, on Sacagawea coins, however, and shipping was free. Consumers quickly figured out they could order coins at face value with credit cards, earn rewards from credit card companies and use the coins to pay their credit card bills.
Jurkowsky said the Mint will start billing coin purchases as "cash advances," which usually do not qualify as an acceptable purchase under credit card reward programs.
