The Des Moines Register from Des Moines, Iowa • Page 44

Coca-Cola's New Leader Will Bring Global Outlook Page 9S 10S Web Sites l. For local news and special projects, join us at: DesMolnesRegister.comnews WEDNESDAY DAVID ELBERT Business Editor, 515-284-8533e-mail: elbertdnews.dmreg.com STljc Iks motors Bcgisfcr December 8, Markets dow 3D Industriali BONDS 30 yr. Treasurin credit cards, fell at a 0.6 per cent annual rate in October the first decline in a year. Total consumer credit, excluding mortgage debt, rose by 3.7 percent The Mortgage Bankers As 4- 6oo NASDAQ Compoilla sociation, in yet another re port, said the percentage of homeowners behind on mort Local Stocks hour of work, rose at a 4.9 percent annual rate from July through September, the Labor Department said. At the same time, unit labor costs, considered a good measure of inflation pressures, fell at a 0.2 percent annual rate the biggest drop since spring 1997.

Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan and other economists have linked the recent years' upturn in American productivity to massive investments that businesses have made in computers and other technology. As long as workers are increasingly productive, employers can afford to pay them more because of increased Minneapolis. However, many wonder for how long workers' productivity gains can continue to offset the affects of very low unemployment, which is compelling employers to offer wage and benefit incentives to attract and keep workers. "You just need a slight slowdown in productivity for the unit labor costs to trend upward," said Kathleen Stephansen, senior economist with Donaldson, Lufkin Jen-rette Securities in New York. In a separate report Tuesday, the Fed said Americans' borrowing has slowed this fall compared with heavy summertime loans and credit card use.

Revolving credit, primarily By ALICE ANN LOVE AssociATF.n Washington, D.C. Workers' productivity, a key to national economic vitality, grew at the fastest rate In seven years in the third quarter. At the same time, companies' labor costs actually declined a recipe for keeping inflation at bay. Tuesday's report was good news for investors wary of signs of inflation that could trigger another interest rate increase from the Federal Reserve. "It is hard to see where inflation is supposed to come from," said Gerald Cohen, an economist with Merrill Lynch output without needing to raise prices.

If productivity falters, however, pressures for higher wages can result in price increases. The Fed already has raised interest rates three times this year, trying to prevent inflation, and Greenspan has said the nation's central bankers are staying alert for any slowdown in productivity. The Fed policy-makers' next meeting is Dec. 21. Few analysts now expect them to touch interest rates again this "Chairman Greenspan and his colleagues can probably go out Christmas shopping and skip the next meeting," said Sung Won Sohn, an economist with Wells Fargo Co.

in in New York. The Dow Jones average of industrial stocks rose immediately after release of the government report but closed down 118 points Tuesday, at 11,106.65. Analysts attributed the drop to investor jitters about the outlook for some big companies, such as Coca-Cola "To get the strong productivity growth at this point in an expansion is really an extraordinary achievement," said Martin Baily, chairman of President Clinton's Council of Economic Advisers. The U.S.. economy's continuing upswing is at a peacetime record of eight years and counting.

Productivity, defined as the amount of output for each gage payments fell to 4.1 percent from July through September, the lowest delinquency rate in almost four years. The 4.9 percent third-quarter I gam in productivity was revised upward in Tuesday's re-1 Close Change 237i6 108 v. -38 103ft -Va 934 port frort a previous estimate of 4.2 percent, making it the AmerUs Brenton. Caseys EMC Eng Ani FBL Fin fastest growth since the last 8-3l6 1434-lVl6 three months of 1992, when productivity rose at a 7.4 per cent annual rate. H'rtlandExpi49ig -5ie Hon 221116.1 Maytag 49Vie 3M McLeodySA453i1.5i6 Meredith 393i6, 3As Micrpware .434 5b MidAm Egy 3311ie V16 Co-op Upgrades Hasbro toys to be focused High-tech firms ban high times on Dec.

31 13 'Winnebago 19 Va 1 ST I News of Note on high tech By MARTHA MEND0ZA Associated Oven. ineyre moving into ai whole kids entertainment I company. It's the way tht toy industry has to go," saic Chris Byrne, editor of the New York City-based Toy Repor and an industry consultant. Cliff Annicelli, managing ed itor of Playthings Magazine ir i CE Software reports net loss CE Software Holdings Inc. of West Des Moines Thursday reported a net loss of $1 .4 million, or $1 .32 per share, for its fiscal year ended Sept 30.

The figures compare with net earnings of $3.7 million, or $3.32 per share, for the previous fiscal year. Revenue for the fiscal year just ended was $3.8 million, compared with $4.4 million a year earlier. The operating loss was $1.5 million for the year just ended, compared with $1.2 million a year The company's stock closed at $9.81 Tuesday, up 31 cents from a day earlier. E-Markets names a new CEO David Abbott has been New York, said, however, tha' Hasbro reorganization the company into a "high 1-I i -fS I lugher-nsk area o-'l toymaking. fej III I i He said the.

areas Hasbro! plans to streamline pre! school, creative play and girls I'r-fMiu toys "are pretty stable cate-1 gories I thought were part oil the base the company built on," San Jose, Calif. Top officials at many high-tech firms will be spending this New Year's Eve at their offices. "We'll have about 20,000 employees at work when midnight comes. There will be time to party later," said Hewlett-Packard Brad Whitworth. High-tech companies have spent the past few years and billions of dollars working to prevent Y2K crashes when computer systems roll over from 1999 to 2000.

Corporate executives don't expect major problems, but they're taking no chances. Whitworth said HP President Carly Fiorina would be spending at least part of her New Year's Eve at the company's "Y2K command center," a conference room stocked with emergency supplies in Palo Alto, Calif. Thousands of Corp. employees are also preparing to spend their New Year's Eve watching digital networks and standing by in "SWAT teams" at the company's Basking Ridge, N.J., headquarters and other facilities around the world. Spokesman Dave Johnson said that workers would be well-fed but that the only bubbly flowing would be soda pop.

That's also the case at computer chipmaker Intel Corp. in Santa Clara, where staff will be standing by at a Y2K Turn to Page 8S By MICHAEL MELL0 AssfioiATF.n Press Providence, R.I. rlasbro Inc. announced a broad reor-ganization of its business on Tuesday, a move that will allow the world's No. 2 toymaker to expand its offerings of hightech toys and popular core brands, including" Furby and Pokemon.

Hasbro will cut 2,200 jobs, or J9 percent of its work force close two plants and shift much of its manufacturing to Asia. It also will discontinue some of its underperforming toys; Hasbro will take a pretax charge of $141 million in the fourth quarter to cover costs associated with the restructuring. Like many toy companies in recent years, Hasbro has been stepping up its high-tech offerings to make playtime more entertaining and challenging for today's computer-literate lads. Hasbro, which trails No. 1 toymaker Mattel by a narrow margin, has seen tremendous growth in its interactive division, which produces computer and video games, as well as playsets that connect with PCs.

With the latest restructuring, Hasbro said it will be able to better focus on building its interactive offerings and extending its best-selling brands, such as "Star Wars," Pokemon, Fur-by, Tonka, and Easy Bake 4 L. sA Jill i I Investors on Wall Street wa vered on the Hasbro an nouncement. The stock wat down 25 cents to $21.18 at th I end of the day on the New Yort I Stock Exchange, but it harl fallen as much $1.50 earlier ir I the day. Under the reorganization announced Tuesday, Hasbrcl will close plants UTTyuanal Mexico, and Ashford, England Of the 2,200 jobs that will bf I cut, about 1,850 will be manu 5-51 Pit- dMAlL i I facturing positions. About 300 jobs will be cut ir I the United States.

named president, chief executive officer and a member of the board of directors of E-Markets an agricultural-based e-commerce technology company in Ames. Abbott was president and chief executive officer of Purina Mills Inc. until the company was sold in 1998 to Koch Industries. He most recently owned a consulting business in St. Louis.

Tomorrow Gifts for workers is creating business Gifts for workers on duty this New Year's Eve are creating business for some companies. Iowa Numbers Number of lowans employed by real estate firms: About 1 0,000 -Do You Know Hasbro also plans to discon tinue some toys, including Formula One racing toys, somi I TOM 1'kess Work is under way at the Farmer's Co-op Elevator in Clara City, to add handling equipment and a track system to accommodate 110-unit shuttle trains. of its large dolls and a fligh? simulator. Gah Pac-Man be finished? Iowan will make the call Union OKs contract at Donnelley By WILLIAM RYBERG Rroistfr Bi sivkssWritfr 1 Members of Teamsters Loca 358 a new five-yeai contract this week with the R.R.' Donnelley Sons maga zine printing plant in Des -r 1 A video game titan from Florida has 100 grand that says it can't be done. By STEVEN S.

WOO Rec.istf.r Staff Writer An Iowa man will determine whether a Pac-Man player can achieve what one Florida man is betting $100,000 is impossible: Finish the last Pac-Man Moines. The agreement covers abou' 110 workers who label, sor and prepare magazines foi shipment. Larry Cratty, the local's president, said the contraci Florida businessman Billy Mitchell will award $10,000 prizes to the first players to score more than 1 million points in any of these classic games: Ms. Pac-Man, Carnival, Berzerk, Donkey Kong, Frogger, Rally-X, Hypersports and Tutankham. He will award $1,000 prizes to the first players to beat the records in any of these games: Carnival, Crystal Castles, Berzerk, Dig Dug, Donkey Kong, Frogger, Hypersports, Joust, Kungu Master, Missile Command, Ms.

Pac-Man, Pole Position, QIX, Rally-X or Tutankham. Contact Walter Day about breaking these records at his Web site: provides for pay increases to taling 1J percent over the lif of the agreement. Hourly wage rates will $8.44 to $15.21 with the first numbers." A "perfect game" constitutes clearing half of the remaining screen. The only way to get past the screen and back to the first screen is to have someone else open the back of the standing game's console and manipulate the switches, Mitchell said. "But you can't play past that screen, and that's what I'm betting on," said Mitchell, whose hot sauce company, Rickey's World Famous Sauce, will pay the prize.

Mitchell said Pac-Man players have claimed for years to have gotten through the game's 256th maze. But all have refused to divulge their secrets, and the feat has gone unproven. Day plans to verily that feat in persoa The 50-year-old has been an official video game, storekeeper since opening an arcade in Ottumwa. in 1981. The arcade started keeping track of high scores for video games and pinball machines and expanded it to include arcades around the world.

Even though Day's arcade closed in 1984, he continues to record high scores. year 3 percent increase added Cratty said. The Teamsters union is nm of several unions that reore sent workers at the nlant In 1994, unions accented na I KATHRYN BENNETT Occupation: Vocational consult-' ant and sole proprietor of Bennett Rehabilitation, West Des Moines. Background: Career has ranged from teacher, director and consultant to company owner; a member of rehabilitation organizations and a certified specialist. Notable Achievement: Included In the 2000-2001 edition of the Rational Register's "Who's Who in Erecutves 4 Professionals." Off-the-Job Interests: Family, goif.

favel. in-line skating and gardening h-vm ffA jV. 'A't 'jrj You i'-Cv' Yf 'Vl Vr. rf; t-vr cuts to Keep the plant open The 256th and final maze in Pac-Man is actually only half maze. The other part of the screen is scrambled.

screen. Walter Day, president of Twin Galaxies Intergalactic Scoreboard in Fairfield, will determine whether a player has cleared Pac-Man's final maze. The first person capable of the feat will earn $100,00 from Florida businessman Billy Mitchell. Mitchell, 34, who recorded a perfect Pac-Man game last summer, says playing the entire last screen. No.

256, is impossible. The game runs out of memory. The left side of the screen is a normal maze, "but on the right side, the screen is obscured with small, colorful boxes, symbols and random Keductions in weeklv nav fm www.twingalaxies.com many workers totaled about 1 i percent, with an 8 percen' wage cut and paid lunch peri ods eliminated. i Cratty said pay for TeamM the Twin Galaxies' Web site to include a searchable score database. The site will make enough money to allow him to quit his day job, he said.

Day already has confirmed games that required Mitchell to pay up. People send Day photographs or videotapes of their games to verify their scores. While Twin Galaxies has been a part-time business and hobby, Day plans to work at the home business full time next year. He wants to expand He had to write two $1,000 checks when the world records for Dig Dug and Tutankham were beaten by Dwayne Richard of Grand Prairie, Alberta, last summer. Tve been stung twice," Mitchell said.

sters union members wil climb back up to the levf in the second or third year the new agreement, depending on job classification..