Times Leader
Tuesday, October 30, 2001 Page: 1D
Local unemployment falls
Northeastern Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate fell in September, as fewer
school-age workers left their jobs, according to the state labor figures.
The numbers, released Monday, do not reflect labor figures following the
Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, however.
According to the state Department of Labor and Industry, the
Scranton/Wilkes-Barre/Hazleton region’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate
fell from 5.8 percent in August to 5.5 percent in September.
Because a greater-than-usual percentage of school-aged workers left their
jobs in August, fewer school-aged workers left their jobs in September, the
department said.
The state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 4.5 percent in
September from 4.8 percent in August.
Budget surplus in danger
After nearly a decade of an improving bottom line, the government’s budget
surplus shrank to $127 billion for 2001, about half the previous year’s record
total.
The sour economy and rising spending will probably wipe out the surplus
altogether in the current budget year that began Oct. 1, analysts said.
The smaller 2001 surplus, announced by the Bush administration Monday,
followed the record $237 billion in 2000.
The latest snapshot of the government’s finances marked the first time
since 1992 that the balance sheet didn’t show an improvement. At that time,
the government’s deficit had bloated to a record $290 billion.
FedEx has upbeat forecast
FedEx Corp. expects its second-quarter earnings to beat Wall Street
expectations even without government assistance being offered to airlines to
offset the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
Solid growth of FedEx Ground, the company’s home-delivery business,
contributed to the company’s profitability this quarter.
A broad portfolio of services helped FedEx offset the impact of the
attacks.
The express delivery company said its earnings are expected to range from
Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial/First Call had been forecasting
earnings of 35 cents a share.
United Airlines gets boost
United Airlines’ new chief got a lift Monday from Wall Street to go with
the endorsements of its unions, producing a rare upswing in both its stock
price and labor relations after a year of turmoil.
Industry analysts said John Creighton, facing a difficult year ahead in the
airline business, needs to convert that goodwill into substantial labor
concessions as he moves to convert troubled United into a smaller but
again-profitable airline.
Shares in UAL Corp. leaped as much as 10 percent Monday in investors’
initial, relieved reaction to United’s replacement of James Goodwin the
previous day, then settled to a more modest gain.
Bouncing off last week’s 14-year lows, the stock rose 22 cents, or 1.6
percent, to close at $14.15 in trading on the New York Stock Exchange. It
remained down nearly 70 percent since January.
Neither Creighton nor analysts have much hope for quick improvement.
The carrier is expected to report a quarterly loss of $500 million to $600
million on Thursday, excluding special items.
Dow drops 275 points
The stock market’s monthlong recovery stalled Monday as investors cashed in
their winnings ahead of three key economic reports due out this week. The
unsurprising pullback sent the Dow Jones industrials down more than 270
points.
Analysts weren’t alarmed, noting that stock prices have moved considerably
higher during October and that a good portion of the Dow’s decline was related
to bad news specific to Boeing.
The Dow closed down 275.67 at 9,269.50, cutting short a three-day winning
streak. It was the index’s biggest decline since the precipitous 684-point
drop on Sept. 17, when trading resumed following the terrorist attacks.
The Standard & Poor’s 500 index dropped 26.31 to 1,078.30, while the Nasdaq
composite index fell 69.44 to 1,699.52.
