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Show GheSaltLakeSribune BUSINES m CONSUMER CORNER, B-5 Indicators Bail CLOSE: NASDAQ Bm 8 CLOSE: 1,880.51 NYSE CLOSE: 582.32 ‘MI BUSINESS GIANCE, B7 NOVEMBER21, 2001 EconomyInches Up in October ‘MARKET YESTERDAY'S Dow Jones Mf UTAH BRIEFS, B-5 Page B-4 S&P 500 1 J CLOSE: 1,142.66 Utah’s ‘Top Performers 1 The Bloomberg Utah Index measures the stock | performanceofthe Analysts not impressed by indicator’s’slightrise; trade deficit narrows BY IAST de BOURBON interest rate cuts. “Don't read too much THE ASSOCIATED PRESS than decline,but you haveto take offthe cover and look underneath it and see into this particular number.It's better NEW YORK — keyforecasting gauge .of U.S. economicactivity moved slightly higherlast month, but not enough to suggest the economy will probably recover anytime soon, analysts said. ‘The Conference Board said Tuesday its Index of Leading Economic Indicators rose 0.3 percent in October to 109.4 after tumbling 0.5 percent in September and dipping 0.1 percent in August. “The Federal Reserve is responsible for mostofthe strength in the index,” said Michael Swanson, chief economist at Wells Fargo & Co., referring to the board’s what's driving it.” The index indicates where the overall U.S. economyis headed in the next three to six months.It stood at 100 in 1996,its base year. Analysts were expecting no change. Thereport coincided anotherreleased Tuesday by the Commerce Department saying the September U.S. trade deficit narrowed by a record amount in that month to $18.7 billion. But the improvement was due mostly to huge payments by foreign insurance companies for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, which offset a growing deficit in goods. The markets finished lower following the release of the reports amid some Conference Board economist Ken Goldstein also appeared unimpressed the increase in the index, saying it rose sim- Daw Tech To Restate Earnings Foreign currency changes will alter 1999-2001 income A Park City company that spent more than $100,000to renovatea historic building may not have been entitled to renew its lease on the property, asa trial judgeruled three years ago, the Utah SupremeCourt said Tuesday. In 1993, White Pine Touring en- BY PAUL BEEBE ‘THE SALT LAKETRIBUNE Stung by overseas currency fluc- tuations that were not accounted for correctly, Daw TechnologiesInc. will restate its income for 1999, 2000 and this year. At the same time, the Nasdaq Stock Market has halted trading of tered into a lease agreement to rent the old Utah Coal and LumberBuilding, 201 Heber Ave., from Utah Coal Inc., and subsequently paid $105,000 to upgradethe structure, which was built in the 1920s. The five-year lease whichcost Salt Lake City-based Daw’s common stock. Trading is suspended until Daw meets Nasdaq’s request for more White Pine $33,000 per year — included an option to renew, but required White Pineto notify Utah information. Theeffect of restating its income will mean that Daw’s$3.5 million net profit in 2001 will shrink andits $45.2 million loss in 1999' will increase, putting morepressure on the company’s stock, which is off 46 percent since January. Daw chet‘financial officer B.J. Mendenhall said the weakening of several European and Middle East : currencies since 1999 caused contracts booked by a Daw office in the Coal ofits intention to doso three months before the lease expired. Duetoareorganizationofits busi- ness, White Pine missedthecut-off date by 11 days in 1998, and Utah Coal sought to alter the rental agree- ment. White Pinerejected the new terms andrefused to vacate, and Utah Coal took the company tocourt. ThirdDistrict Judge William A. Thornesided with WhitePine,calling their oversight an “honest and United Kingdom tolose value. Daw is a maker of super-lean manufacturing rooms for the semi- justifiable mistake.” He found White Pine shouldbeexcused fromstrict own negligence resultedin its failure to notify its landlordin time. The case was remanded backtotrial court. ~ computers, is enduring its worst Station Preschoolin Salt Lake City. The consumergroupreleased its annual report on hazardous toys. Above, a PIRG membershowsa plastic photo album made with a chemical that maybe toxic. Consumergroup compileslist of hazardous toys Small businesses hurt by this Mostofthe several dozen toys identified as hazardous to children in the U.S. Public Interest Research Group's “Trouble in Toyland”report released Tuesday appear innocuous. But the yellow Winnie the the insects in 1848 infested approx‘imately 3.3 million acres in Utah. Congressallocated$31 million to ‘control Mormoncrickets and other ‘pests in the West. Farmers are eligi‘ble for disasterrelief. Now the Small Business Adminis‘tration says small businesses that ‘suffered lowersales, slimmerprofits anddifficulties getting supplies because of the crickets can apply for low-interest loans. Loans ofup to $1.5 million may be approved,at 4 percentinterest. Businesses that can meettheir financial needs through other sources are not eligible. New VP at Albertson’s Robert Dunst, a SafewayInc. vice for the super- systems and technology, is joining Albertson’sInc. as executive vice president, conductor, disk drive and other tech- nology industries. The semiconductor industry, which makes chips for BYILESLEY MITCHELL interestloansto help cope with their losses. : The crickets named for Mor‘monpioneers whowere plagued by Photos by Al Hartmann/TheSalt Lake Tribune The plastic toy eyeball on a key chain,top, is an example of a choking hazard forchildren, explains Adam Richardson, outreach director for U.S. Public Interest Research Group on Tuesday at Kid ‘Mormon Cricket Loans year’s infestation of Mormoncrick‘ets can get up to $1.5 million in low- NDJFMAMJJASO 2000 2001 ‘The Associated Press ply because the attacks exaggerated September’sfigure. Justices Rule Against White Pine Touring But Tuesday's unanimous SupremeCourt ruling tossed out that 110 higher stock prices and the Fed’sinterest cutting campaign overthe past year. But the labor and housing sectors lost ground. Swanson said improvement in employmentandfactory use would convince him that the economy is on the verge of turningthe tide. Wall Street's efforts to start a new bull market stalled Tuesday in an expected pullbackas investors sold stocks to preserveprofits fromtheir latestrally. decision,finding that White Pine’s 1996 = 100 The Conference Board largely attributed the October gain in the index to state's major ment. Seasonally adjusted profit-taking. publicly held companies. compliance with thelease agree- Here is a look at the Index of Leading Economic at www.toysafety.net. Tips Parents “Our message to parents is be for cautious,” Richardson said. > CHECK FOR CHOKING HAZARDS THESALT LAKETRIBUNE “Just because toy isinthestore Toys and parts that fit into an empty or does not appear in our report toilet paper tube are not safe for does not mean it is safe. children underthe age of 3. Check Manufacturers of toys listed toys periodically for looseparts that in the report on Tuesday decould be pulled off. Avoid balloons, nounced PIRG’s findings.Illinois which can cause a child underthe age toy maker SassyInc., for examof 8 to choke. ple,said its soft photo album and books for babies andtoddlers do > WATCH OUT FOR LOUD TOYS Toys with sounds that measure 85 or not leach dangerous chemicals more decibels can cause hearing loss as PIRGalleges. in children, PIRG said. Parents At issue are chemicals that obviously cannot test the loudness of are added to make hard po! eachtoy, but if it seems loud to them, nyl chloride (PVC) soft and pli: it probably is too loud for their child. able for use in toys such as Pooh balloons designed to cele- brate a child's first birthday can cause children younger than 8 to choke,said AdamRichardson, a Utah representative of PIRG, a consumeradvocacy organization based in Washington,D.C. A plastic fire engine emits sounds loud enough to damage a child’s hearing, he said, while a soft plastic photo album designed for babies contains a chemical that is a probable human carcinogen. ‘The groupissues its report on toy safety each’year at the start of the Christmas shopping season as a warningto parents that toys can hurt or even kill children, The report, which tests toys boughtat stores nationwide over the past two months,is available ing rings hildren’ aes"tineaetiods over time can leach outof the plastic and into the mouths of children, ‘One way to make the toy quieteris to _puttape ove the speaker The eer at ee be = ae PIRGalleges. > ATTENTION Somestudies, the group says, “RECOMMENDED AGE FOR A TOY have shown that those chemicals A toy safe for a 3 year old may not be safe foran infant. > BE WARY OF SCOOTERS ed Inc. maintains PVC is Scooters continue to cause numerous ie. injuries to children. Childrenthat use can cause liver and kidney lamage. “PVC is not hazardous to children and ... the PIRG them always should use a helmet, knee and elbow pads and wrist guards. slump in memory, according to Semiconductor Equipment and Ma- terials International, a trade group. Mendenhall said an employee at the office did not revalue the contracts to reflect depressed market conditions. That omission caused the companyto overstate its earnings for at least two years. On Monday, Daw issued statement saying it will be unable to release its third-quarter financial results until at least mid-December. “Management expects that the reconciliation and restatementoffinancial statements will adversely affect the financial results of the companyfor 1999 and 2000,” according to the statement. Dawsaid it doesn’t know whether it will need to make large readjustments toits first- and second-quarter 2001 results, The company has saidit earned $196,000 and $101,000, respectively, in the first and second quarters. Like most technology companies, w has struggled with weak business conditions for more than a year. Its work force has dropped to about 150 employees from about 200 employees at the beginning ofthis year. In July, the company did a fourfor-one reverse stock split to boost its price and avoid being delisted from Nasdaqfor failing to maintaina $1 minimum bid price. Daw was at $1.15 per share when Nasdaq ted trading Monday See CONSUMER,Page B-9 Source: US. PIRG South Jordan Company Sues to Reclaim Web Domain After Registration Lapses BY LISA CARRICABURU ‘THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE It happens more often than many realize, a federal lawsuit that seeks to reclaim to the domain name, trademark false advertising, federal cyPrac her iis Greg the vaneAbrams Fe cagitared domain the domain asan Internet search/link portal, Incline’s U.S. District Court lawsuit alleges. Incline says it contacted Consulting First to notify the companyof its trademark infringement and other violations, The lawsuit says the defendants then “intentionally and in complete disregard for the rights of deceived as to the origin, sponsorship or approval of the apeape unnaine just ours after Incline au damages. allowed it to Incline, modified the Web site A query sent by fax to Consulting Chad oat ancestralquest.com to directly com- First seeking commenton the allegaSalt Lake law firm Parr Wad- pete with Incline’s Ancestral Quest doupe Brown, taeanal Lavelees 680 ‘The Colorado company thenalleg: also using *< te tnsmbale se 8 me emae software.” Incline alleges Consulting First’s unlawful use ofthe domain name “has caused confusion, mistake or has tions was not immediately answered Tuesday. McCoy said Tuesday a hearing has not been set. 4 aha aieaiacihetelh > 9th om ot haat inti atiebetinh com bAsttahdaaeatba hansen |
