Workshop offered on business dynamics
The University of Arkansas Global Campus is offering a workshop to teach professionals how to manage and implement change in the workplace.
"Organizations face change every day, from introducing a new product to restructuring," said Tara Dryer, the Global Campus director of training, corporate development and academic outreach.
The class, Against the Odds: An Introduction to Successful Strategic Change, will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., Oct. 20 at the Global Campus, Suite 402, 3300 Market St. in Rogers. Registration is open online and the class costs $99. A 10 percent discount is available for UA faculty, staff and students.
Grace Judson is the instructor.
-- John Magsam
30-year mortgage rate rises to 3.47%
WASHINGTON -- Long-term U.S. mortgage rates rose this week as the prospect of a year-end interest-rate increase by the Federal Reserve grew more likely.
Mortgage giant Freddie Mac said Thursday the average for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased to 3.47 percent from 3.42 percent last week. Rates still remain near historic lows. The benchmark 30-year rate is down from 3.82 percent a year ago and close to its all-time low of 3.31 percent in November 2012.
The 15-year fixed-rate mortgage, popular with homeowners who are refinancing, ticked up to 2.76 percent from 2.72 percent.
To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country at the beginning of each week. The average doesn't include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.
The average fee for a 30-year mortgage rose to 0.6 point from 0.5 point last week. The fee for a 15-year loan also increased to 0.6 point from 0.5 point.
-- The Associated Press
Kellogg to buy Brazil food firm Parati
Kellogg Co., looking abroad for growth in the face of a moribund U.S. cereal business, agreed to buy Brazil's Parati Group for about $432 million, acquiring a maker of biscuits, pasta and powdered beverages.
The all-cash acquisition is expected to be completed late this year, Battle Creek, Mich.-based Kellogg said in a statement Thursday. To preserve financial flexibility, Kellogg is reducing its 2016 share buyback program to a range that tops out at $550 million, down from a previous range of as much as $750 million.
The deal marks Kellogg's largest purchase in Latin America and the company's fourth acquisition in emerging markets during the past two years. The overseas expansion comes as the maker of Froot Loops and Special K is mired in a cereal slump, with many Americans turning away from the one-time breakfast favorite. Kellogg, the largest U.S. cereal maker, has expanded its snack business since acquiring the Pringles brand in 2012, with that unit accounting for roughly 50 percent of sales last year.
Parati's products include Hot Cracker biscuits, Trink powdered beverages and Parati dried pasta.
-- Bloomberg News
Recall of Samsung Note 7s to expand
Samsung Electronics Co. and the Consumer Product Safety Commission agreed on an expanded recall of original and replacement Note 7 smartphones in the United States, increasing the number of devices that can be returned to 1.9 million.
All owners of the Note 7s will be able to exchange their devices for another Samsung smartphone or receive a refund under the plan approved by the safety commission, the company and agency said in statements Thursday. Customers who exchange the Note 7 for a Samsung device will get a $100 credit, while those opting for an alternative brand will receive $25 credit.
Samsung cut its third-quarter operating profit by $2.3 billion on Wednesday after deciding to permanently end production of the smartphone. The Note 7 devices were overheating and catching fire even after a recall that was supposed to fix the problem.
"We are committed to doing everything we can to make this right," said Tim Baxter, president and chief operating officer of Samsung Electronics America.
The announcement almost doubles the number of smartphones subject to the recall. The U.S. consumer agency had announced a voluntary recall of almost 1 million Note 7s on Sept. 15.
-- The Associated Press
Pfizer loses UK patent appeal over Lyrica
Pfizer Inc. lost an appeal in a United Kingdom patent dispute over Lyrica, one of the company's top-selling drugs.
Three London judges upheld a 2015 ruling that Allergan PLC's Actavis unit didn't infringe Pfizer patents with its version of the drug pregabalin. The disputed patent covers the use of pregabalin for the treatment of pain. Teva bought the business this year.
Lyrica, also used to treat epilepsy, generated sales of $4.8 billion for Pfizer in 2015. Pfizer has also sued Dr. Reddy's Laboratories and Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. over their generic pregabalin products.
"We maintain our belief in the validity and importance" of the patent, said Pfizer spokesman Katie Banks. She said the company is hoping to take its appeal to the U.K. Supreme Court.
"The judgment offers a pragmatic way forward in seeking to strike a fair balance between the patentee's right to a return for its investment in innovation and the generic manufacturer's right to sell into the nonpatented market," said Tim Powell, a lawyer representing Actavis.
At the first hearing of the lawsuit, Judge Richard Arnold criticized Pfizer for making "groundless threats" of legal action against British doctors and drugstores if they attempted to sell generic products offered by competitors.
-- Bloomberg News
Business on 10/14/2016