Energy: Oil and gasoline prices part company
Oil prices tumbled below $100 a barrel this week for the first time in six months, said Stevenson Jacobs in the Associated Press. Traders were relieved by reports that “the Gulf Coast energy infrastructure appeared relatively unharmed after Hurricane Ike.” At least 14 Gulf Coast oil refineries did have to shut down temporarily. But that actually helped keep a lid on demand, because refineries are the primary buyers of crude oil, which they process into gasoline. They won’t be buying more oil until they’re up and running again.
Gasoline prices, though, headed in the other direction, said Elizabeth Douglass in the Los Angeles Times. The average U.S. price of a gallon of regular rose about 12 cents over the weekend, to $3.79, and “weekend jumps of 30 to 60 cents weren’t out of the ordinary in some regions.” At least one filling station in Tennessee was charging $5.09 for a gallon of regular. Supplies were tight because gasoline trucks from the Gulf had trouble reaching some stations in the South and Midwest.
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Information technology: Hewlett swings the ax
Hewlett-Packard announced this week that over the next three years, it would lay off 24,600 employees, or 7.5 percent of its workforce, as it digests the acquisition of IT consultant EDS, said Jordan Robertson in the Associated Press. Hewlett-Packard bought EDS, which helps “companies manage their computing infrastructure,” for $13.9 billion in May. At the time of the acquisition, Hewlett had 178,000 employees to EDS’ 142,000. “Most of the cuts will come from within EDS’ ranks, and nearly half will hit jobs in the U.S.”
Broadcasting: Super Bowl already a win for NBC
Super Bowl XLIII won’t be played until February 2009, but NBC Universal, which will air the game, has already sold 85 percent of the program’s ad slots, said Stephanie Kang and Suzanne Vranica in The Wall Street Journal. The General Electric unit reported prices as high as $3 million for a 30-second spot. Super Bowl mainstays Anheuser-Busch, PepsiCo, and CareerBuilder.com have all bought ad time. But General Motors, “in cost-savings mode because of a nosedive in car sales,” will sit the game out.
Fast food: Chipotle hints at price hike
Fast-food upstart Chipotle warned that it “is considering raising prices to combat” rising costs for everything from meat to cooking oil, said the Associated Press. Until recently, “Chipotle had seemed largely unaffected by the dismal economic environment,” reporting a 23 percent profit increase in the second quarter. The third quarter will be much different, though, with company officials predicting a profit of 62 cents a share, well below the 72 cents analysts were expecting.
Electronic gaming: EA ends takeover quest
Videogame maker Electronic Arts this week abandoned its seven-month-long pursuit of Take-Two Software, said Nick Wingfield in The Wall Street Journal. A merger of the two firms “would have united two of the largest publishers of videogames, with hits such as EA’s Madden Football and Take-Two’s Grand Theft Auto series.” But with the two sides far apart on price, EA pulled its bid. Company executives said that “the inability to get a deal done” in time for the Christmas shopping season was a key factor.
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