| Show n DOW JONES ! V : atllajn 1IWMJ9 AC 4B Standard-Examin- Business Editor Wednesday June 2 1 999 er ECONOMY New home sales up except The Associated Press WASHINGTON - Sales of new homes climbed to the second-highelevel on record in April increasing a surprisingly strong 92 percent the government said today The Commerce Department reported that the increase in sales of new singlefamily homes followed four straight months of declines Analysts had expected a fifth straight decline in April contending that rising mortgage rates were cooling off what had been a red-hhousing market However the new report showed strong st ot sales in every region of the country except the West The strong activity pushed sales of new homes to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 978000 units last month the second-highe- st level on record The high was a sales rate of 985000 units set last November The housing industry has been one of the main beneficiaries of the country’s current good economic times The lowest unemployment rate in three decades record high levels of consumer confidence and low interest rates pushed new home sales to an 1 high last year all-ti- Analysts have been predicting a slowdown in this sector because mortgage rates have been creeping up in recent weeks A national survey of mortgage rates showed them hitting 723 percent for the past two weeks the highest level in 18 months Existing home sales did decline in April by 33 percent but that drop was from a record high set in March The report on new home sales showed that the surge in demand was accompanied by a rise in prices The median price of all new homes sold last month climbed 3 percent to a record $159500 West dud The average sales price rose 37 percent well of $193100 All regions of the country except the West enjoyed strong increases in sales last month Sales surged 335 percent to an annual rate of 21 1 000 units in the Midwest Sales were up 171 percent to a rate of 89000 units in the Northeast and climbed 75 percent to a rate of 429000 units in the South The West which had seen sales jump 229 percent in the previous month suffered a drop of 53 percent in April to an annual rate of 249000 units to a record as DEALS Barnes & Noble kills Ingram ibook buy The Associated - M 625-424- 5 MEF Top of Utah Toddlers focusr-o- f June ‘Games’ OGDEN - Toddlers willSST the focus of Ogden City MiiV next Family Fun event second annual Toddler GT3JSS —— set for June 12 The games involve a Sasr : —! Street Miniature Athletic Stadium and Creative CorfiSZ Music Center for parents dBSCS: children ages 18 months ttry- years The free event from 1 1 am to 3 pm will feature Little Tikes toys and an emphadlSWr participation not competitldrf” Participants must register gj the mall information boothjjnw to the event or from 1 0 amto 2 pm the event day Each participant will receive a gifr bag with samples of Gerber" Graduates “The Official Snack Food of Toddler Games" The Safety Street featured toddlers riding sports carsaod other vehicles on a specially designed course leaving (h car to pump gasoline and continuing to home base The stadium showcases Atl j toddlers and parents playing basketball golf baseball thdH M Press NEW YORK - Barnes & Noble Inc called off its planned acquisition of Ingram Book Group today amid growing speculation that the $600 million deal to unite the world's largest bookstore chain and the No I book distributor would be challenged Iby antitrust regulators 1 The announcement follows '"published reports in recent days that the Federal Trade Commission staff had concluded that such a combination would give Barnes & Noble an unfair position 2 Both companies in separate statements this morning said that they worried that a review by the FTC would I hurt their busihesses “The review process has been disappointing to us’’ Ingram Book Group Chairman John R Ingram said in a statement announcing the deal has been terminated “For six months we’ve responded to every question “The events of the last several days have made it clear that some (FTC) staff hold an outdated view of the marketplace making an objective analysis of the transaction impossible” he said Since the companies announced their merger plans in November the deal has come under fire Critics said that such a union would give Barnes & Noble an unfair advantage over independent bookstores Barnes & Noble officials however have said the acquisition would allow Ingram to distribute a wider selection of titles and allow Barnes & Noble to deliver books faster and at less cost Ingram a subsidiary of Ingram Industries Inc of Nashville Tenn distributes trade books audio tapes textbooks and specialty magazines through 11 distribution centers around the nation It ships some 115 million titles every year I j bowling The Creativity Corner Music Center features adjustable easels and muddf instruments for parents and children to create works of art:' Following the games the— grand finale features a drawing for participants in which all Ltife Tikes toys will be awarded1 2 r More information is available 0 by calling the mall at com-Ipetiti- ve 621-266- National pro--long- ed A quick AMANDA HOME WORK: Jam T reasure Ballif owner of Jann’s Unique Decor and Accessories cuts a piece of weathered wood into the shape of a table leg This home firm goes against the grain Farr West woman branches out with woodworking business By BRICE WALLACE Standard-Examine- r FARR staff WEST - For Jann Ballif a really party doesn’t cake or candles or music Just lots of old wood Ballif owner of Jann’s Unique Decor & Accessories often heads out from her home husband Brian in tow the scour the countryside for creaking cracking warped bam and fence wood Later she ll work the wood to convert it into shelves benches birdhouses even replicas of the original structure “The funnest part is going and looking for the old wood It’s a party for us And you get to meet some interesting wonderful people” she said “Sometimes people will ask if I can make a replica of their bam or house and they’ll trade me that for the wood It’s kind of neat It’s a way to keep that memory alive” Ballif often doesn’t resemble the typically businessperson A mask goggles and sawdust-covere- d apparel may seem strange even for neighbors catching a peek as she works outside but she specializes in look at Jann’s Unique Decor & A Accessories Muring Vome-tas-ri businesses in the Top H DM “The coolest part is that these woods have the most unique smell” she said surrounded by the band saw miter saw sander and nail gun used to get the finished product just so “It’s like fine wine: It has an aged through their ft ALAN it 07 Thiokol wins top award from NASA Regular workers who receive them through from their employer Trie Associated Press Pension benefits Temps who receive them through their agency - Improvements 63 at the PROMONTORY the space shuttle rockets make it unlikely another shuttle will explode NASA Administrator Dan Goldin says Goldin was in Utah Tuesday to present Thiokol with the agency’s highest honor for the second time this decade Full time vs temporary Female temps who prefer a permanent job rv: I 58 Male temps who prefer a permanent job 64 Source MURRAYStandanJ-Examine- r month the Mountain States Business Conditions survey showed an increase in the overall index with a reading of 544 up from April’s 540” said Ernie Goss of Creighton NASA Administrator Daniel Goldin presents to Thiokol Propulsion’s Gerald W Smith vice president and general manager of space operations the George M Low Award It is the highest award NASA bestows upon its contractors 69 ft The Economic Policy Institute See HOME5B A minor jump in the energy sector gave the economy a slight boost last month in Colorado Utah and Wyoming a university economics professor who monitors the economy in the region reported “For the fifth consecutive AWARD: C7 ft A birdhouse can fetch $150 to $300 Furniture has sold in a range of $30 to more than $250 In many pieces the heavy grain is exposed One cabinet still has the marks left by pellets and BBs The Associated Press Health insurance Regular workers who receive from their employer it” states’ economy improves Since 1982 the percentage of temporary workers has quadrupled to 22 percent of the work forte Here is a look at some of the issues affecting temporary workers: it 731-259- Mountain glance Temps who receive agency Owner: Jann T reasure Ballif Years in business: 6 Product: Recycled wood products 6 Phone number: scent to turning what’s old new again Working hard i i i SASLOWSlandard-Examine- r AP See AWARD5B t i - Production in the Congratulations Thiokol Propulsion crew workers hang up the banner NASA award the company’s announcing CHEERS: Thiokol Telebanc Corp ARLINGTON Va - Leqdimf online broker ETrade Group — Inc is buying online banker-Teleba- nc Financial Corp for $16 billion in stock creating the first purely Internet-basefinancial services company- Once the merger is ? provements in international See MOUNTAIN5B - complete ETrade customers be able to trade stocks apply for mortgages and pay bills all on the same Web siteT’ The combined companwijl carry the name ETrade company executives said Tuesday Customers will access Telebanc’s services through — links on ETrade’s main site ETrade based in Palo Ebo' Calif made its name as a£E5ck brokerage but has been trying to diversify The company'”" already sells mutual funds and has a deal with online mortgage Inc that l£is provider will ”” ETrade’s 1 million-plu- s customers apply for home''— mortgages online With the Arlington Telebanc in its fold ETradehas moved closer to becominga financial site MARKETS NORTHWEST GRAIN Tuesday POCATELLWhite (up 1) barley 3 55 ( percent spnng 3 25 (up 2) ordinary wmt?l (up 5) OGDEN - White wheat 2 70 (steady) baj 3 80 (steady) 14 percent spring 3 02 (uft percent winter 2 49 (up 4) PORTLAND White wheat 3 14 (up 4)- barley 00 (steady) 14 percent spnng 4 06 (up 86 3) 1 1 percent winter 3 16 (down 3) CALDWELL White wheat cwt 3 05 (up5) barley 4 00 (steady) - '' - METALS VvX V— Prices Tuesday : - - pb Aluminum 56 7 cents London Metal Exch Copper 63 15 cents per lb NY MercepoLu Lead 48 cents per lb -Zinc 48 48 cents lb delivered Gold $268 20 troy oz NY Merc spot Silver - $4 973 troy oz N Y Merc spot - — Mercury $15000 per 761b flask N Y Platinum - $362 10 troy oz N Y Merc spot vi nrtnt INTEREST3 1 RATES three-stat- e region increased id May to 592 compared to 558 in April Recent improvements in the energy sector continue to bolster industries in the region especially those closely tied to energy Goss said The regional export index stood at only 441 but that was a solid increase from April’s 418 and reflects im- A d University on Tuesday 4 Recipient of NASA's George M Low Award ETrade to buy — Tuesday bond note Inflation 5 94 note bill bill -- - "'See ini506 5 42 Federal Funds Municipal bonds Staff Standard-Examin- and wire services STOCKS f frifrirtinfca iti POC |
