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Show Page B-6 MCONSUMER CORNER, B-7 MARKET Indicators NOVEMBER28, 2001 UTAH BRIEFS, B-7 ~ BUSINESS GLANCE, B-9 Kennecott toCut 180 Jobs Consumer Copper company outsourcing work, closing facility Still Falling Confidence ‘THE BY LESLEY MITCHELL Kennecott Utah Copper said Tuesdayit will permanently close a processing facility in Magna and outsource maintenance workatits Sele, resulting in the loss of 180 nanza they had hoped for during the holidays. The New York-based Conference Board said Tuesday thatits Consumer Confidence Index unexpectedlyfell for a fifth consecutive month to 82.2 —a new 7year low — from a revised 85.3 in October. “Consumers feel lousy ‘Yight now because of concerns about jobs,” said Sung Won Sohn,chief economistat Wells Fargo & Co. in Minneapolis. Otheranalysts said the drop in confidence probably would result in tepid retail sales in the coming weeks. Holiday sales accountfor 24 percent of retailers’ annual revenue. The index, based on a monthly survey of some 5,000 U.S. households, is closely watched because consumer confidence drives consumer spending, which accounts for abouttwo-thirds ofthe nation’s economicactivity. Retailers offered deep discounts and other‘specials to lure customers to their stores this past Thanksgiving weekend, the traditional start of the holiday buying season. Early results barely met merchants’ modestexpectations — save Wal-Mart Stores Inc.‘and someother discount “Tt’s going to be a rough Christmas forretailers,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Jol The cutback of 9 percentof Ken- necott's work force ofabout1,975 is the second majorcost-cutting move taken this year by the company, which has operated the open-pit Bingham Canyon Mine on the eastern slopes of the Oquirrh Mountains for more than 90 years, “This is absolutely necessary if Kennecott is to survive in today’s difficult economic climate,” Kennecott spokesman Louis Cononelos said. With copperprices so low,“all you can do in this business is to 1-800 Contacts Ordered ToStop Misleading Ads controlcosts.” In June, Kennecott, reeling from. A federal judge ordered Draper- based 1-800 Contacts Inc. to stop misleading advertising involving contact lenses made by Johnson & Johnson. US.District Judge Harvey: Schlesingerin Jacksonville, Fla., granted J&J's petition for a preliminary injunction last week, noting 1800 Contacts’ ads were “deceptive” and contained “an inherent contradiction.” 1-800 Contacts had told customers it was unableto sell them certain contacts, including the popular Acu- vueline, because J&J refused to directly supply the companywith the lenses. But 1-800 Contacts’ lawyers told the court the companyhad, through indirect means,filled virtually all orders for J&J lenses. “1-800 must choose whichof these statements it will hold outto the public. Until thattime,it is enjoined from making either statement,” the judge wrote. J&J sued 1-800 Contacts in October, saying the company was promoting J&J lenses it couldn't supply to attract customers,only to sell them a rival's product. Thelegal wrangling comes even as J&J settled a nationwideantitrust suit earlier this year, promising to sell it: lenses, undercertain circumstances,directly to mail-order firms and otheroutlets. low copper prices, laid off 235 workers whenit temporarily suspended operation of its gna concentrator. The layoffs at the concentrator, which grinds rock to a fine powder from which copper concentrate is extracted, represented nearly 11 percent of a work force of2,200. In its latest move, the concentrator will be shut down permanently and 30 workers will be laid off. An additional 150 workers will lose their jobs when the company outsources maintenance work at the smelter near Magna, which melts the copper concentrate produced by the concentrator into copper metal. The concentrator , generated enough concentrate material to produce about60,000 tons ofcopper annually, while Kennecott’s other In a separate report, the National Association ofRealtors said sales of previously owned homes increased 5.5 percent in October, generated enough to produce about 260,000 tons of copper. Even without oneofits concentrators, Kennecott still will pro- mirroring the housing market’s continued strong demand. The groupsaidthe results mayreflecta number of transactions that were postponed in September, when existing-home sales plunged_11.6 duce about 320,000 tons of copper annually because the company has a surplus of concentrate that will percent. The unexpected dip in consumer confidence pushed the markets lower, with the Dow Jones industrial averagefinishing off 110 points to nearly 9,873 and the Nasdaq composite index off 5 points tofinish just shy of1936. last for about twoyears. After two years, production of concentrate at Copperton may in- crease to maintain the samelevel of copper production. ‘Tribune file photo Kennecott Utah Copperwill close facility in Magna in a cost-cutting move thatwill trim 180 jobs. The companyalso will outsource maintenance work. See KENNECOTT,Page B-7 did not immediately return a telephonecall Tuesday. Utah Company Improves Process Salt Lake Gity Hotel Occupancy Nasdaq Delisting Daw The Nasdaq Stock Market notified Daw TechnologiesInc.it will be delisted for failure to file a quarterly financial report for the third quarter ended Sept. 30. Daw,a Salt Lake City-based makerofclean roomsfor manufacturing,said it will appeal the decision andits shares will staylisted pending the outcomeofthe appeal. However, Nasdaqlast week halted trading of Daw shares after the company saidits third-quarter report would be delayed andit would have to restate earnings for 1999, 2000 and this year because overseas currency fluctuations were not accounted for properly. Dawsaidit will prepare andfile its required financial information as soonas it can do so with confidence that the informationis accurate. ‘The companyalready faced delisting once this year. In July, Daw did a four-for-one reverse stock split to boost its share Po about $1 to avoid being kicked offNasdaq. Daw cabal at $1.15 when Nasdaq halted trading Nov, 19. Micron’s Waiting Game Like the hotels nationwide,Salt Lake City hotels experienced lower occupancy following the ‘Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. 100% i == Occupancy for Jan.—Oct. 2001 5 = Occupancy for Jan.-Oct. 2000 eas -+ F 10% is f 80% Jan. Feb, Mar. May + Jun. pretty make lot of sense to put equipment in when the market doesn’t want the product,” Appleton said Tuesday at the Boise-based company’s annual meeting. “We're just waiting for the right momentbefore we install equipment.” Jul. ‘Source: Rocky Mountain Lodging Report + Aug. 50% Sept. Oct. ‘The Salt LakeTribune Terror Fallout Hurting Hotels BY PAUL BEEBE ‘THE SALT LAKETRIBUNE Occupancy rates at Salt Lake City hotels continued to bleed last month from the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, butthe falloffshowed signs ofeasing. Some 54.6 percent of 8,864 guest rooms in the city, were occupied during the first full month after the at- tacks in New York and Washington, Micron Technology Inc.will wait | 90% -} F 8% + Apr. DC. By comparison, 59.5 percent of Salt Lake's rooms were rented in the same month of2000, according to the Rocky Mountain Lodging Report, which tracks the hotel industry. But the magnitude of the decline Olympics. The convention center will be the main press and international broadcast center for 9,000 visitingjournalists, Faleach at the 200-room Shiloh across from the Salt Palace Tipped to 52 percent in September and 48 percent last month. General manager Del Brewster said closing the convention center is hurting business more than the Sept. 11 attacks. “Our major business group is conventioneers. So when they close down [the convention center], that has a major impact on us,” Brewster said, predicting that November, Deae and January will continue to Dianne Binger, president and CEO ofthe Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, said conventions that came to the city in September and October had attendance levels that were about10 percent to 20 per- brie by tepid ee conditions or terrorism. In October, the bureau booked 47,000 room-nights, I, i Economy.com in West Chester, Pa. concentrator in Copperton — a newerfacility closer to its mine — A spokesman for1-800 Contacts ASSOCIATED PRESS NEW YORK — Worries about job security undermined” consumer confidence again in ‘November,raising the likelihood that retailers wouldfall short ofthe bo- THE SALT LAKETRIBUNE To Convert Heat Into Electricity controversial technology U. of U. scientists claimed could produce BY JAY LINDSAY ‘THE ASSOCIATEDPRESS Eneco’s new technology, called “solid state thermionics,” combines thermoelectrics and thermionics, century-old technologies that convert heat into electricity, but which both havepractical drawbacks. Thermoelectrics joins two conductive surfaces together, oné of which is heated to produce a lowwattage current that is too inefficientto be useful. In thermionics, a vacuum separates the two surfaces. It requires temperatures as high as 1,100 degrees Celsius, or 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Thatis far hotter than most waste heat, and limits its uses to nuclear-powered converters, such as those in space probes, satellites and somemilitary systems. In Eneco’s device, impurities are added to the heated surface to ihcrease the flow of electrons to the cooler side, generating a stronger electrical current at lower heat. A semiconductor, rather than a vacuum,lies between the two surfaces and helps maintain the temperature difference between the heated and BOSTON — Heat emitted by everything from power plants to car exhausts could be efficiently and cheaply converted into power with new technology announced Tuesday by a Massachusetts Institute of Technology scientist and a Utah company. The devices, built by Yan Kucherov of Salt Lake City-based Eneco Inc. and MIT electrical engineering professor Peter Hagelstein, are as muchas 70 percent more efficient than current technology that harnesses unused heat. ‘The science at workhas been used for decades, but has been refined to produce more powerfrom less heat. And because it produces energy directly from heat, without moving parts, it could be used to develop quieter, low-cost power generators that are easy to maintain. “It’s potentially very important,” Hagelstein said. “We've demonstrated basic effects that can be x ploited by one andall.” Privately held Eneco traces its roots to cold fusion research at the University of Utah. The company was founded in 1991 to license aa OF AAGURE OF MERIT VERSO See UTAH COMPANY,Page B-7 Fa $ | |
