Raleigh America Inc. of Kent is recalling about 500 bicycles because the bottom bracket spindle can break, causing riders to lose control and crash, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said Tuesday. The recalled bicycles are the 2001 Diamondback XSL-Race and XSL- Pro Mountain models. The safety commission said consumers should contact their Diamondback dealer for a free repair. For more information, consumers can contact Raleigh America at 800-222-5527 between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
FedEx Corp. said Tuesday it will raise its rates for air and ground package shipments about 3.5 percent next year. The increase, effective Jan. 7, follows an announcement earlier this month by FedEx’s chief rival, United Parcel Service Inc., that its ground shipping rates would go up by 3.5 percent on that date. Atlanta-based UPS also is increasing overnight and two-day express services by 4 percent. FedEx Express, the Memphis-based company’s air cargo subsidiary, will raise rates about 3.5 percent for shipments within the U.S. and to other countries. That includes a $1.35 per-package charge for nonfreight shipments within the United States to private homes, an increase in courier pickup charges from $3 to $4 and an adjustment to fees for dangerous goods.
The U.S. trade deficit narrowed by a record amount in September, but for all the wrong reasons – growing economic weakness at home and huge insurance payments as a result of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the trade gap shrank by 31 percent to $18.7 billion, the smallest imbalance in 2 1/2years. The decline in the deficit reflected a huge 14 percent drop in imports of goods and services, which offset an 8.5 percent decline in U.S. exports. The big drop in imports occurred primarily because of an estimated $11 billion foreign insurance firms will pay for the terrorist attacks.
In a blow to supermarkets selling trademark goods at cut-rate prices, the highest court in the European Union on Tuesday ruled that companies like Levi Strauss &Co. have broad rights to control the sale of their products. The European Court of Justice sided with Levi Strauss in its three-year battle with British supermarket chain Tesco over jeans sales, arguing for the need of clear consent by a trademark holder before imports of its goods are sold within the 18-member European Economic Area. The tussle began after the Tesco supermarket chain started selling Levi’s 501s it imported from outside the EU, where the jeans are cheaper. A pair of Levi’s in Europe costs roughly twice as much as in the United States.
Herald news services
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
