Exxon Mobil Corp. posted record profits for any U.S. company on Monday – $10.71 billion for the fourth quarter and $36.13 billion for the year – as the world’s biggest publicly traded oil company benefited from high prices and solid demand for refined products. Earnings amounted to $1.71 per share for the October-December quarter, up 27 percent from $1.30 per share a year ago.
Kodak earnings hit digital high
On its bumpy journey into the digital era, Eastman Kodak Co. sped past a historic milestone by generating more annual sales from digital imaging than from film-based photography. Digital sales reached 54 percent of total revenue in 2005, exceeding sales from film, paper and other chemical-based businesses for the first time for the 125-year-old company.
Striking machinists near contract
The Boeing Co. said Monday it reached an understanding on contract offers with the union representing about 1,500 Delta rocket workers in Alabama, Florida and California. The machinists went on strike on Nov. 2 after last-minute talks broke down. Boeing said the new contract offers lump-sum bonuses and wage increases, a pension increase for employees who retire on or after March 1, and lower monthly premiums for some medical plans.
Kraft Foods plans severe cutbacks
Kraft Foods Inc., the nation’s largest food manufacturer, said Monday it would eliminate 8,000 more jobs, or about 8 percent of its work force, and close up to 20 production plants as it broadens ongoing restructuring. Kraft said the cuts would save an additional $700 million annually.
T-bill rates rise in Monday auction
The Treasury Department sold three-month bills Monday at a discount rate of 4.375 percent, up from 4.29 percent last week. Six-month bills were auctioned at a discount rate of 4.435 percent, up from 4.34 percent last week. The discount rates reflect that these bills sell for less than face value. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,889.41 while a six-month bill sold for $9,775.79. Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for changing adjustable rate mortgages, rose to 4.5 percent last week from 4.43 percent the previous week.
From Herald staff and news service reports
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