Shares of Lumera Corp. rose 38 percent, or 88 cents, to $3.17 on Tuesday after the Bothell-based company announced that it has received a purchase order from Lockheed Martin for Lumera’s high electro-optic activity materials. Lockheed’s agreement runs through the end of 2009, but no other details were released.
Microsoft not free of court oversight
Court oversight of Microsoft Corp.’s market power, which began in 2002 after a landmark antitrust settlement, has been extended by 18 months. A federal judge late Tuesday ruled that the settlement would remain in effect until November 2009. A group of 10 states, led by California and New York, had requested the oversight be extended until late 2012.
Alaska Air inspects 737s for flap woes
Alaska Airlines says it’s inspecting all 40 of its Boeing 737-400s, about a third of its fleet, for wing flap problems that caused three emergency landings this month in Alaska. The airline says the flaps were unable to extend fully to help slow the planes on landing. A spokesman in Seattle, Paul McElroy, says the problem is caused by wear on a wing door that covers the flaps.
Panasonic closing TV plant in state
The Panasonic projection TV assembly plant in Vancouver, Wash., will lay off its last 89 workers and close shop March 29, hurt by the rising popularity and falling prices of flat-panel televisions. The plant was opened in 1986 to make TVs and VCRs. The plant employed 460 people at its peak in 2001 but had already made significant cuts to its work force. That included a 2006 round of layoffs that left just 100 employees.
Firms may team up for WiMax network
Wireless Internet provider Clearwire Corp. and cellular operator Sprint Nextel Corp. have reportedly restarted talks to combine their high-speed wireless WiMax networks. Sprint and Clearwire, based in Kirkland, are discussing a joint venture that would attract funding from Intel Corp., a major backer of WiMax technology, which promises faster wireless Web connection speeds.
Confidence keeps falling for economy
Consumer confidence fell sharply in January on worries over deteriorating business conditions and a weakening job market, a business research group said. The New York-based Conference Board said its Consumer Confidence Index dropped to 87.9 in January from a revised 90.6 in December. The index, which measures how consumers feel now about the economy, has been weakening since July.
FBI investigating mortgage industry
The Federal Bureau of Investigation said it is investigating 14 companies for possible fraud or insider trading violations in connection with loans made to risky borrowers, and investments spun off those loans. Agency officials did not identify the companies under investigation but said the wide-ranging probe, which began in spring 2007, involves companies across the industry.
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