Business

<< Previous   of   Next >>   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Mike Benbow, Business Editor benbow@heraldnet.com   Published: Wednesday, November 12, 2008 Frontier Financial Corp. stock hits 52-week low in trading The stock price for Everett-based Frontier Financial Corp. dropped more than 39 percent Tuesday to $2.36 a share, a new 52-week low. The company, which has 47 million shares outstanding, saw heavy trading of 1.3 million shares on Tuesday, about double the amount traded on Monday. In the past, Frontier has been a target of short sellers, who make money when the stock goes down. Frontier was the target of questions on various message boards Tuesday, but made no announcements. Chilean airline buys four Boeing 767s Chile's largest airline says it is purchasing four Boeing 767 aircraft for $636 million. LAN Airlines SA has told the stock regulation agency that the accord signed with Boeing includes an option for the purchase of two more similar aircraft in 2013. Monday's filing says that LAN decided to buy the planes because of delays in the delivery of Boeing 787 Dreamliner planes that were supposed to start arriving in 2011. It did not say when those aircraft will be delivered. LAN says the operation is part of its long-term fleet renewal plan. Microsoft lobbying cost hits $2 million The most recent federal disclosure forms offer a stark reminder of Microsoft Corp.'s mighty Washington, D.C., presence: The software giant's tab of almost $2 million for the third quarter alone nearly equaled the amount its rival Google Inc. spent in the first nine months of the year. But Google already has spent more on lobbying this year than it did for all of 2007 as it starts to emerge as a formidable player in D.C. lobbying circles. The lobbying muscle of both companies was on full display recently as Microsoft and Google fought over Google's plans to sell some of the online advertisements that appear alongside search results on Yahoo Inc.'s Web site. 787 supplier lays off 400, shuts plant Vought Aircraft plans to lay off 400 workers and temporarily close a plant in Charleston, S.C., because of Boeing 787 manufacturing delays. Company Chief Executive Elmer Doty said Monday the plant will close this week for at least two months. The plant makes aft fuselage sections for Boeing's new 787. A recent two-month strike at Boeing shut down production and slowed the need for parts for the new aircraft. Last month, Vought said the company might have to close the plant. Then the company laid off 50 workers, suspended fabrication work, cut overtime and dismissed 60 contract workers. Poll shows a little hope for finances The public seems to be showing a faint glimmer of hope about the foundering financial and real estate markets. Fifty-one percent say this is a bad time to invest in the stock market, according to an Associated Press-GfK poll. That's a modest but noticeable 7 percentage points fewer than the number who said that last month. At the same time, 38 percent say this would be the wrong time to invest in real estate, down from 43 percent who said so in October. Despite those signals of slightly decreased pessimism, the survey shows the public remains deeply concerned about the economy. From Herald staff and news sources READER COMMENTS Be the first to comment. You must be a registered user and verify your e-mail address to post comments to blogs or articles on HeraldNet. To register, click here. To read other terms and conditions, click here. Log out

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