Wednesday, December 30, 1998
Markets
The
Dow Jones Industrial Average
, the
S&P 500
and the
Nasdaq Composite Index
all closed down today, with Internet stocks suffering for the second straight day.
TheStreet.com Internet Sector
index lost 29.72, or 6.8%, to 405.97.
The Dow lost 46.34 to 9274.64, the S&P 500 lost 9.88 to 1231.93 and the Nasdaq lost 14.82 to 2166.95, while the
Russell 2000
rose 1.50 to 411.91.
European bourses in general were lackluster.
For more markets action and news, click
here.
Companies
Boeing
(
(BA) - Get Report
BA:NYSE) announced that it has delivered 550 commercial jets this year to meet its 1998 goal.
The
Federal Trade Commission
conditionally approved
British Petroleum's
(
(BP) - Get Report
BP:NYSE ADR) purchase of
Amoco
(
(AN) - Get Report
AN:NYSE). But FTC boss
Robert Pitofsky
said that it would be dangerous for the oil industry to consolidate any further.
CBS
(
(CBS) - Get Report
CBS:NYSE) is selling its 50% stake in the
CBS Eye on People
cable network to partner
Discovery Communications
.
Pinched by sinking oil prices,
Conoco
(
(COC)
COC:NYSE) announced that it will cut 975 jobs to reduce expenses by $500 million.
Real estate investment trust
Hospitality Properties Trust
(
(HPT)
HPT:NYSE) said that it will buy 17 hotels from
Marriott International
(
(MAR) - Get Report
MAR:NYSE) for $201.7 million.
Air cargo plane operator
Kitty Hawk
(
(KTTY)
KTTY:Nasdaq) plans to eliminate 1,500 jobs at its American International Airways division amidst shrinking profit margins.
Clothing manufacturer
Salant
(
(SLT) - Get Report
SLT:NYSE) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy and named Michael Setola chairman and CEO.
For more news on companies and stocks, click
here.
International
State spending on public works helped China's economy grow by 7.8% in 1998, down by 1% from 1997's pace.
Nomura Securities
said it will pare back its loss-taking overseas operations in 1999 by cutting about 20% of its workforce in Europe and the Americas.
Russia missed a $363 million payment on $26 billion in loans owed to a group of about 600 Western commercial creditors. Meanwhile, Russian police are investigating the possibility that insiders at that country's
Central Bank
misappropriated as much as $1 billion in public funds.
Hong Kong Telecommunications
(
(HKT)
HKT:NYSE ADR) completed its acquisition of Internet service provider
Star Internet
.
For more international news and commentary, click
here.
Tech
Quickturn Design Systems
(
(QKTN)
QKTN:Nasdaq) rejected software maker
Mentor Graphics'
(
(MENT)
MENT:Nasdaq) new takeover offer.
Telecom service provider
RCN
(
(RCNC)
RCNC:Nasdaq) will combine its four Internet service provider businesses into a single entity branded
RCN.com
.
The
Telecommunications Industry Association
told the
Federal Communications Commission
yesterday that consumer access to the Internet is being hampered by excessive regulatory barriers.
The
Commerce Department
said it has relaxed regulations limiting exports of encryption software.
For more tech news and commentary, click
here.
Politics
U.S. aircraft attacked a defense site in southern Iraq early Wednesday after it fired several missiles at a British plane.
Cambodia's
King Norodom Sihanouk
refused amnesty for two Khmer Rouge leaders after Prime Minister
Hun Sen
said he would not try them for crimes against humanity.
A group of 200 villagers tortured and killed 8 Indonesian soldiers after forcing them off a public bus.
A county grand jury said today that it found no evidence of conspiracy in the Oklahoma City bombing.
Elsewhere
The
National Basketball Association
lockout quietly turned six months old today.
A jury in Richmond, Calif., awarded $255,000 to the owner of a dog accidentally shot by police in 1991.
