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Unemployment claims drop for second week

By TIMES WIRES
Published December 15, 2006

The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits dropped sharply for a second straight week, pushing total claims down to the lowest level in two months. The Labor Department reported that 304,000 newly laid-off workers filed claims for jobless benefits last week, a drop of 20,000 from the previous week, when claims had fallen by 34,000.

Executive repays a loan, gets a bonus

Speedway Motorsports Inc. set up a deal to pay chief executive O. Bruton Smith a $1.45-million bonus for 2006 based on the fact that he repaid some of the money he's owed his company for at least four years, says a recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. "Basing a portion of a bonus on simply the repayment of outstanding debt is not only unusual, it is inconsistent with pay-for-performance," said Bruce R. Ellig, author of a guide to executive compensation.

Airlines wasting valuable trash

According to a new report by the advocacy group Natural Resources Defense Council, the U.S. airline industry discards enough aluminum cans each year to build 58 Boeing 747 airplanes. While the Environmental Protection Agency estimates the national recycling rate for municipal waste - trash from homes and commercial establishments - stands at 32 percent, the nation's airports have an average recycling rate of 17 percent.

Nestle has deal to buy Novartis

Nestle SA agreed to buy a unit of Swiss drugmaker Novartis AG for $2.5-billion to become the second-biggest maker of nutritional supplements for hospitals. The division has annual sales of $950-million. The purchase will boost sales of higher-priced nutritional foods by about 20 percent for Nestle, which has spent about $1.3-billion this year buying diet-food maker Jenny Craig and cereal-bar producer Uncle Tobys.

Online spending strong this season

Online spending for the holiday season remains robust, and free shipping upgrades and other offers are expected to extend the season later this year than last year, according to the latest report from comScore Networks Inc., an Internet research company. Online spending reached $17.6-billion from Nov. 1 through Tuesday, marking a 24 percent increase compared with a year ago, comScore reported Thursday.

Hedge fund exec admits fraud

A co-founder of the collapsed Bayou hedge funds admitted in federal court Thursday that he conspired to defraud investors of more than $10-million, prosecutors said. U.S. Attorney Michael Garcia said James C. Marquez pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud and could be sentenced to up to five years in prison.

[Last modified December 15, 2006, 00:02:12]