FedEx Corp.’s second-quarter profit gain of 9 percent was overshadowed Wednesday by the outlook for the third quarter. After a strong report that exceeded analyst expectations, the company said it expected lower third-quarter earnings than last year, largely due to a sluggish U.S. economy and fuel bills. Shares fell almost 2 percent, down $2.15, to close at $111.85 on the New York Stock Exchange.
Bank’s parent firm to trim 20 jobs
Washington Banking Co., the Oak Harbor-based holding company for Whidbey Island Bank, announced Wednesday that it will eliminate 20 positions, a work force reduction that is expected to result in about $1.2 million in annual cost savings and a $600,000 charge in the fourth quarter of 2006.
Ryanair drops offer for Aer Lingus
Ryanair Holdings PLC said today that it is immediately withdrawing its offer to buy Aer Lingus after EU regulators launched a probe into its hostile bid for the Irish carrier. Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O’Leary accused European Commission competition chiefs of bias against the carrier, noting it approved a merger between Air France and Dutch airline KLM.
Costco chief takes his stock options
Costco Wholesale Corp.’s chief executive didn’t get a raise for the sixth straight year, but he exercised stock options worth more than $12 million, according to the company’s proxy statement filed Wednesday. Kirkland-based Costco said Jim Sinegal exercised options on 300,000 shares worth about $12.8 million in 2006.
Foreign footwear sales boost Nike
Nike Inc. on Wednesday said stronger sales of footwear worldwide, including faster-paced growth in Asia, drove fiscal second-quarter profit up 8 percent. For the quarter that ended Nov. 30, net income rose to $325.6 million, or $1.28 per share, from $301.1 million, or $1.14 per share, a year ago. A tax benefit totaling 13 cents per share lifted results in the latest quarter.
Big companies get fewer tax audits
The Internal Revenue Service is auditing a smaller percentage of the nation’s largest corporations and spending less time on each audit, a private watchdog group reported Wednesday. The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse noted that the IRS examined the returns of 35.3 percent of companies with assets of $250 million or more in fiscal year 2006, down from 44.1 percent in 2005 and compared with 34.4 percent in 2002. The IRS responded that tax revenues from audits were going up and the decline in hours spent on each case was a result of more efficient operations.
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