Business news in brief

QUOTE OF THE DAY

“While striving to reduce fuel consumption, automakers must be careful not to compromise quality.”

David Sargent, J.D. Power and Associates vice president of global automotive Article, 1D

Iraq says Exxon at risk of more penalties

Iraq is considering additional measures against Exxon Mobil Corp. over deals the company signed with the semi-autonomous Kurdish region, Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Affairs Hussain al-Shahristani said.

The Oil Ministry is “studying other measures” against Exxon after requiring the company to reduce its involvement in the West Qurna-1 field last year. Authorities in Baghdad have received a reply from the Kurdistan Regional Government on proposals for ending an impasse over oil exports from the region, al-Shahristani told reporters Wednesday in Baghdad.

“Exxon violated Iraqi law, they were informed about that, and Iraq started to take measures regarding it,” al-Shahristani said. Now the “ministry is studying other measures for violating Iraqi laws,” he said.

Iraq’s Kurds have halted crude flows via the national export pipeline to Turkey amid a dispute with authorities in Baghdad on the legality of deals the Kurds signed with international companies, such as Exxon and Total SA. The Kurdistan Regional Government has announced plans to sell crude it has pumped through its own, new pipeline to Turkey.

Al-Shahristani didn’t give details of the Kurdistan Regional Government’s response to the central government’s proposals for settling the dispute.

Casino site’s hackers criticize Adelson

Las Vegas Sands Corp., the world’s largest casino operator, was attacked by hackers who defaced at least one company website and posted personal information about employees.

The unidentified intruders temporarily took over the home page of the Sands Casino Resort in Bethlehem, Pa., posting statements criticizing Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Sheldon Adelson, a staunch supporter of Israel, over comments he made about Iran and its nuclear program.

Visitors to company websites Wednesday were told they were undergoing maintenance.

While a connection hasn’t been proved, the attack could represent the first time Adelson’s business empire has felt an impact from his high-profile positions on politics and foreign affairs. The 80-year-old Republican said in October that the U.S. should bomb Iran with a nuclear missile to deter that country’s nuclear ambitions, according to the New York-based Jewish Daily Forward newspaper.

Sands shares rose 46 cents to close Wednesday at $78.78.

  • Bloomberg News

Swimsuit issue’s Barbie seeks doll buzz

Putting Barbie in Sports Illustrated’s annual swimsuit issue is Mattel Inc.’s latest attempt to generate conversation about the doll and reverse falling Barbie-brand sales.

Mattel said Tuesday that Barbie, 54, will join the ranks of Tyra Banks, Christie Brinkley and Rachel Hunter in the magazine’s 50th anniversary swimsuit issue, which goes on sale Tuesday. Barbie will appear in an updated version of the black-and-white bathing suit she wore in her 1959 debut, the company said.

Within hours of the announcement, a debate had started on the Web and television. While some saw no controversy, others said the swimsuit issue demeans women and Barbie’s unrealistic proportions send an unhealthy message to young girls.

“What year are we?” Sallie Krawcheck, the former Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup Inc. executive, said in an interview on Bloomberg Television. “It is a terrible message for young ladies.”

The Barbie brand is struggling amid the growing popularity of Mattel’s other top doll brands - Monster High, Disney Princess and American Girl. Last year, sales of girls brands excluding Barbie surged 25 percent. Meanwhile, Barbie declined 6 percent.

  • Bloomberg News

Deere sector forecast tops estimates

CHICAGO - Deere & Co. forecast fiscal-2014 profit that exceeded analysts’ estimates as it predicted that higher construction- and forestry-equipment sales will help offset some of the decline in revenue from agriculture, its largest market.

Net income will drop to about $3.3 billion in the year through October, from $3.54 billion a year earlier, Moline based Deere said in a statement Wednesday. While that’s the same as the company’s November projection, it’s more than the $3.13 billion average of 17 estimates compiled by Bloomberg. It maintained a forecast for a 3 percent drop for equipment sales.

Deere, the world’s biggest maker of agricultural machinery, also posted fiscal first-quarter earnings and revenue that beat estimates.

Net income was $1.81 a share in the three months through Jan. 31, compared with $1.65 a year earlier. That’s more than the $1.53 average estimate. Equipment sales rose 2.2 percent to $6.95 billion in the period, higher than the $6.55 billion average estimate.

Industry wide sales for agricultural machinery in the U.S. and Canada will drop 5 percent to 10 percent for the year, particularly in high-horsepower tractors and combines, Deere said Wednesday. South American industry sales of tractors and combines will also fall 5 percent to 10 percent, the company said.

Deere shares fell 56 cents to close Wednesday at $86.90.

No. 2 shipbuilder wins Coast Guard job

General Dynamics Corp. has been awarded one of three initial contracts in a $12 billion U.S. Coast Guard ship program, with competitor Huntington Ingalls Industries Inc. shut out.

Huntington, the government’s No. 1 shipbuilder, had bid on the design contracts for the offshore patrol cutters, which will replace older ships. The Coast Guard’s decision is “a significant setback for Huntington Ingalls,” said Loren Thompson, a defense analyst with the Lexington Institute, an Arlington, Va.-based research organization.

“It is also a significant breakthrough for General Dynamics, which is likely to ultimately build the next Coast Guard ship,” Thompson said in a phone interview. General Dynamics is the No. 2 shipbuilder for the U.S. government, according to Bloomberg Industries.

Huntington Ingalls is “disappointed by the Coast Guard’s decision,” said Bill Glenn, a spokesman for the Newport News, Va.-based contractor.

  • Bloomberg News

Business, Pages 26 on 02/13/2014

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