U.S.Postal Service lifts stamp price by 1 cent
The new prices lift the cost of a first-class stamp to 45 cents starting on January 22, 2012, the first increase in more than two years.The Postal Service is facing a financial crisis because mail volumes have declined as more people use electronic mail or the services of private sector competitors such as FedEx and United Parcel Service.The Postal Service said the cost to mail a postcard will go up three cents to 32 cents, letters to Canada or Mexico will increase five cents to 85 cents, and letters to other international locations will increase seven cents to $1.05.The agency, which is allowed to raise prices in line with the rate of inflation, said it filed the new prices with the Postal Regulatory Commission on Tuesday. The regulator has 45 days to approve the changes.Until the price changes take effect, consumers can still purchase 44-cent Forever stamps, which do not require additional postage after prices go up.”The overall average price increase is small and is needed to help address our current financial crisis,” said Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe. “We continue to take actions within our control to increase revenue in other ways and to aggressively cut costs.”The Postal Service has asked Congress for permission to drastically overhaul its business, including cutting Saturday mail delivery and eliminating a massive annual payment to prefund retiree health benefits. The agency also is studying thousands of post offices and processing facilities for possible closure.
UPDATE 1-Ford Chicago UAW local rejects contract-official
DETROIT Oct 13 (Reuters) - Workers at a major Ford Motor
Co auto plant in Chicago overwhelmingly rejected the
proposed United Auto Workers-Ford four-year contact, a local
union hall official said on Thursday.Of the 2,317 Chicago Assembly Plant workers casting
ballots, 77 percent voted to reject the proposed deal, said
Scott Houldieson, secretary-treasurer of UAW Local 551.Ford and the UAW reached a tentative deal on Oct. 4 that
calls for profit-sharing and signing bonuses rather than wage
increases for veteran workers. UAW local unions representing
about 41,000 workers will vote on the contract through Oct.
18.Earlier this week, UAW Local 900, which represents nearly
3,000 workers at three plants near Detroit, narrowly rejected
the proposed contract.General Motors Co workers in late September ratified
their new four-year contract, which is slightly less generous
than the proposed Ford pact.On Wednesday, Chrysler Group LLC and the UAW reached a
tentative deal that is less generous than GM’s contract. UAW
officials said that Chrysler’s 26,000 UAW-represented workers
will hold ratification votes over the next two weeks.
UPDATE 1-UTC’s Pratt to buy Rolls share of engine venture
Oct 12 (Reuters) - Pratt & Whitney said on Wednesday that
it is buying Rolls Royce Holding Plc’s share of the
International Aero Engines consortium, which produces the
engine that powers the Airbus A320 plane family, for
$1.5 billion.Pratt said it intends to offer a portion of the Rolls
shares it is buying to other IAE partners: Germany’s MTU Aero
Engines and Japanese Aero Engines Corp.Pratt, a unit of United Technologies Corp , and
Britain’s Rolls Royce also said they would form a new company
in which each partner will hold an equal share to develop new
engines for mid-size aircraft. The companies added the venture
will focus on high-bypass ratio geared turbofan technology.Rolls Royce will also make a “modest financial investment”
in the geared turbofan engine made by Pratt that is an option
for the Airbus A320neo narrowbody program.Pratt’s geared turbofan engine has secured more than 1,000
orders.
UPDATE 2-Honda’s Thai factory shut as floods hit Japan firms
* Toyota to close 3 plants until at least Oct 15, Nissan
open* Nikon, Canon, Ajinomoto, Kubota among others affected* Tightens firms’ output capacity as they recover from Japan
disasterBy Tim KellyTOKYO, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co shut a
plant in central Thailand because of flooding, closing down 4.7
percent of its global output, in a natural disaster that has
echoes of the supply chain disruption caused by Japan’s
earthquake and tsunami.Other Japanese firms that set up production hubs in
Thailand, including Toyota Motor Corp , Canon Inc
, Pioneer and Sony Corp , have reported
flood damage to plants or supply snags affecting production.The earthquake and tsunami that swiped the northeast of
Japan on March 11 destroyed factories and crumpled supply
chains, impacting companies globally.While supply chains have been largely repaired following the
Japanese quake, Japanese firms had relied on plants in other
countries to make up for lost production. With manufacturing now
hobbled in Thailand, they have less capacity at home to make up
for the shortfall in the post-quake catch up.The north of Thailand, the northeast and central plains have
been badly affected by heavy monsoon rains, floods and
mudslides. Bangkok, just two metres above sea level, is in
danger as water overflows from reservoirs in the north.Thailand’s Finance Ministry has estimated the initial cost
of damage at 69 billion baht ($2.2 billion). It expects economic
growth this year to now be 3.7 percent, rather than 4 percent.HSBC says the floods may cut its 4.7 percent growth estimate
for the fourth quarter by 1 percentage point.AUTOSThe eastern seaboard of Thailand, home to refineries,
petrochemical plants and car factories, has not been affected by
the floods.But the centre of the country, including Ayutthaya province,
is one of the worst hit areas and has plants production
electronic goods and parts, hard disk drives and cars and parts.Toyota has been forced to curtail production because of
disruption to its supply of parts rather than any physical
damage to its own facilities. Nissan Motor Co said it
may experience some disruption to its operations.That suggests Honda risks losing the most from the floods
among Japan’s big three automakers.”Cars at the facility (in Ayutthaya) appear to be floating,”
Honda spokesman Tomohiro Okada said.As no one is allowed into the area, Honda is still unable to
assess the damage to production machinery or give any estimate
of when output, halted since Oct. 4, can restart, he added. It
makes cars and parts at its Ayutthaya complex.”We think resuming production will take some time,” Nomura
analyst Masataka Kunugimoto wrote in a report.If it takes three months, that would mean lost production of
60,000 vehicles and could shave 25 billion yen ($325 million)
off operating profit, he estimated. For the year to March 31,
Honda expects operating profit of 270 billion yen.Honda’s Thai plant supplies parts to other factories in the
region, so the damage may infect its supply chain and hurt
output in other locations unless it can rustle up parts from
elsewhere.”Capacity utilisation in Japan is already high to meet
post-earthquake recovery demand, so Honda’s Japanese plants may
not be able to supply sufficient volumes,” Kunugimoto said in
his report.Toyota said on Wednesday that it would close its three Thai
plants, which account for around 8 percent of its global
production, until at least Oct. 15 because of a dearth of parts.Nissan’s plant will operate normally until Thursday, a
spokesman said, but output from Friday remains “a question mark”
because it was uncertain if it would be able to receive parts.CAMERAS, PRINTERS, LENSESSony closed a camera factory in Ayutthaya on Tuesday and
said it would be shut at least until Friday. The plant is Sony’s
only one globally that makes bodies for its interchangeable lens
cameras, including its NEX mirrorless series.Other Japanese firms affected by the floods include Nikon
Corp , which was forced to halt production of cameras in
Thailand. The factory, Nikon’s only one globally that makes
digital single-lens reflex cameras for entry-level and
semi-professional users, can produce up to 5 million units a
year.Rival Canon said it would be unable to operate its
printer plant in Ayutthaya until at least Friday because of
flooding.Minebea , Japan’s leading ball bearing maker, said
two of its five factories, both located in Ayutthaya, had
closed. One of them, which makes die cast parts, was flooded the
company said.Hoya , Japan’s largest fabricator of optical lenses
and glass components, said it had halted output at a factory in
the same area making spectacle lenses.Other plants in northern Thailand producing glass substrates
for hard disk drives and other products were unaffected, the
company said.Pioneer , a manufacturer of navigation systems for
cars, announced that two if its production sites had been
partially flooded, forcing it to halt operations on Oct 8. It
added that it didn’t know when it could reopen the plants.Ajinomoto , a Japanese food and flavourings maker,
also shut down two plants in the region. One, which flooded,
makes beverages, the other producing frozen foods.Farm equipment builder, Kubota , said it will halt
production of tractors in Thailand from Oct 17 because of
difficulty procuring parts.Nippon Meat Packers , Japan’s biggest producer of
ham and sausages, said on Wednesday that two of its plants in
the region had been closed since Saturday and it was not yet
sure when they would restart.Most of the shares in Japanese companies affected by the
Thai floods underperformed the Tokyo market on Wednesday.Honda fell 2.2 percent, compared with a 0.4 percent decline
in the benchmark Nikkei average.Toyota fell 0.3 percent, Nissan dropped 1.6 percent and
Nikon lost 3.5 percent.Canon ended the day 0.3 percent lower with Nippon
Meat Packers losing 1.5 percent, Ajinomoto 2.4 percent, Kubota 2
percent and Pioneer 4.3 percent. Minebea gained 0.4 percent with
Hoya up 0.2 percent.
UPDATE 2-Honda’s Thai factory shut as floods hit Japan firms
* Toyota to close 3 plants until at least Oct 15, Nissan
open* Nikon, Canon, Ajinomoto, Kubota among others affected* Tightens firms’ output capacity as they recover from Japan
disasterBy Tim KellyTOKYO, Oct 12 (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co shut a
plant in central Thailand because of flooding, closing down 4.7
percent of its global output, in a natural disaster that has
echoes of the supply chain disruption caused by Japan’s
earthquake and tsunami.Other Japanese firms that set up production hubs in
Thailand, including Toyota Motor Corp , Canon Inc
, Pioneer and Sony Corp , have reported
flood damage to plants or supply snags affecting production.The earthquake and tsunami that swiped the northeast of
Japan on March 11 destroyed factories and crumpled supply
chains, impacting companies globally.While supply chains have been largely repaired following the
Japanese quake, Japanese firms had relied on plants in other
countries to make up for lost production. With manufacturing now
hobbled in Thailand, they have less capacity at home to make up
for the shortfall in the post-quake catch up.The north of Thailand, the northeast and central plains have
been badly affected by heavy monsoon rains, floods and
mudslides. Bangkok, just two metres above sea level, is in
danger as water overflows from reservoirs in the north.Thailand’s Finance Ministry has estimated the initial cost
of damage at 69 billion baht ($2.2 billion). It expects economic
growth this year to now be 3.7 percent, rather than 4 percent.HSBC says the floods may cut its 4.7 percent growth estimate
for the fourth quarter by 1 percentage point.AUTOSThe eastern seaboard of Thailand, home to refineries,
petrochemical plants and car factories, has not been affected by
the floods.But the centre of the country, including Ayutthaya province,
is one of the worst hit areas and has plants production
electronic goods and parts, hard disk drives and cars and parts.Toyota has been forced to curtail production because of
disruption to its supply of parts rather than any physical
damage to its own facilities. Nissan Motor Co said it
may experience some disruption to its operations.That suggests Honda risks losing the most from the floods
among Japan’s big three automakers.”Cars at the facility (in Ayutthaya) appear to be floating,”
Honda spokesman Tomohiro Okada said.As no one is allowed into the area, Honda is still unable to
assess the damage to production machinery or give any estimate
of when output, halted since Oct. 4, can restart, he added. It
makes cars and parts at its Ayutthaya complex.”We think resuming production will take some time,” Nomura
analyst Masataka Kunugimoto wrote in a report.If it takes three months, that would mean lost production of
60,000 vehicles and could shave 25 billion yen ($325 million)
off operating profit, he estimated. For the year to March 31,
Honda expects operating profit of 270 billion yen.Honda’s Thai plant supplies parts to other factories in the
region, so the damage may infect its supply chain and hurt
output in other locations unless it can rustle up parts from
elsewhere.”Capacity utilisation in Japan is already high to meet
post-earthquake recovery demand, so Honda’s Japanese plants may
not be able to supply sufficient volumes,” Kunugimoto said in
his report.Toyota said on Wednesday that it would close its three Thai
plants, which account for around 8 percent of its global
production, until at least Oct. 15 because of a dearth of parts.Nissan’s plant will operate normally until Thursday, a
spokesman said, but output from Friday remains “a question mark”
because it was uncertain if it would be able to receive parts.CAMERAS, PRINTERS, LENSESSony closed a camera factory in Ayutthaya on Tuesday and
said it would be shut at least until Friday. The plant is Sony’s
only one globally that makes bodies for its interchangeable lens
cameras, including its NEX mirrorless series.Other Japanese firms affected by the floods include Nikon
Corp , which was forced to halt production of cameras in
Thailand. The factory, Nikon’s only one globally that makes
digital single-lens reflex cameras for entry-level and
semi-professional users, can produce up to 5 million units a
year.Rival Canon said it would be unable to operate its
printer plant in Ayutthaya until at least Friday because of
flooding.Minebea , Japan’s leading ball bearing maker, said
two of its five factories, both located in Ayutthaya, had
closed. One of them, which makes die cast parts, was flooded the
company said.Hoya , Japan’s largest fabricator of optical lenses
and glass components, said it had halted output at a factory in
the same area making spectacle lenses.Other plants in northern Thailand producing glass substrates
for hard disk drives and other products were unaffected, the
company said.Pioneer , a manufacturer of navigation systems for
cars, announced that two if its production sites had been
partially flooded, forcing it to halt operations on Oct 8. It
added that it didn’t know when it could reopen the plants.Ajinomoto , a Japanese food and flavourings maker,
also shut down two plants in the region. One, which flooded,
makes beverages, the other producing frozen foods.Farm equipment builder, Kubota , said it will halt
production of tractors in Thailand from Oct 17 because of
difficulty procuring parts.Nippon Meat Packers , Japan’s biggest producer of
ham and sausages, said on Wednesday that two of its plants in
the region had been closed since Saturday and it was not yet
sure when they would restart.Most of the shares in Japanese companies affected by the
Thai floods underperformed the Tokyo market on Wednesday.Honda fell 2.2 percent, compared with a 0.4 percent decline
in the benchmark Nikkei average.Toyota fell 0.3 percent, Nissan dropped 1.6 percent and
Nikon lost 3.5 percent.Canon ended the day 0.3 percent lower with Nippon
Meat Packers losing 1.5 percent, Ajinomoto 2.4 percent, Kubota 2
percent and Pioneer 4.3 percent. Minebea gained 0.4 percent with
Hoya up 0.2 percent.
