Reno Gazette-Journal from Reno, Nevada • Page 28

"Reno Gazette-Journal FRIDAY JULY 29. 1994 STEVE FALCONE, BUSINESS EDITOR: PHONE, 788-6322; FAX, 788-6458 il i i Bonds: Treasury bond prices erased early losses to post their biggest gain in two weeks in a rally sparked by a surge in the dollar against its foreign counterparts. The price of the Treasury's main 30-year bond rose 9-1 6 point, or $5.63 per 1 ,000 in face alue. Its yield, which moves in the opposite direction, eased to 7.55 percent from 7.61 percent on Wednesday. i July 28, l'i'M NYSE NYSE Diarv S4P500 AM EX MldCap NASDAQ Investment group says mutual fund sales slowed NEW YORK.

Difficult financial markets continued to spook investors in June, causing them to put less money in mutual funds than they did in May, an industry report showed Thursday. Monthly statistics on mutual fund sales compiled by the Investment Company Institute suggested that investors were somewhat less anxious about how higher interest rates and inflation would affect their investments in bond and income funds than they were a few months ago. But total net cash flow into all long-term funds fell 1 5 percent from May. a clear indication that investors are siill worried and are not putting as much money into mutual funds as they once were. The ICI.

a Washington trade group, reported that net cash flow into long-term funds dropped to 10 billion in June from Si 1.8 billion in April. Amted Financial 201 Vj Amservlnc. 1 116 116 BankAmerica 477 Clorox 49 Coeurd'Alene 18 Comstock Bank R.R. Donnelley 29 Echo Bay 11 First Interstate 74 FirstMiss Gold 8 Vit First Western Fin. -f FMCGold 5 Gannett 5(B t- General Motors 50V GlamisGold 7 Granite Const.

21 -Va Harding 5V2 -Vi Nevada Power 20ft Newmont 397 -Va Pacific Telesis 32ft ft J.C. Penney 48ft -V Reno Air 6916 Rotech 19 -V Santa Fe Pac. Gold 20ft ft Sierra Pacific 19ft ft Sierra Tahoe Southwest Gas 17ft -Va US Bancorp 27'a Va Advances: 1,079 Declines: 999 Unchanged: 764 Fighting fat: A growing anti-diet has hurt weight-loss companies, are battling back. Weight Watchers, of H.J. Heinz, has boosted its ad budget from $31 million to $35 New Kathleen Sullivan ads ill air in The company Jenny Craig says it new image.

A new ad campaign broke month, featuring Jenny Craig's first Assoc idled Press FALL TAKEOFF: Gerald Greenwald, chairman and CEO of United Airlines, waves to employees after announcing the kickoff of a new shuttle service in San Francisco Thursday. Shuttle by United service will begin Oct. 1 with low-cost service between eight cities. See story below. RETAIL (GottecWk headed for Careen City building by the time we get done with it." The Fresno-based chain announced nearly three years ago that company officials were looking for a store site in Reno and narrowed their search to Park Lane Mall.

So far, there's been no action on those plans. The opportunity in Carson City came up first, Levy said. But Gottschalk's still hopes to open a Reno store in the furture, he said. Carson City Chamber of Commerce director Larry Osborne said Gottschalk's will make a good ad movement but they a division annual million. September.

needs a this jingle. 33 New lows 60 Total issues: 2,842 Composite volume: 297,518,120 1993 comp. 3U.7I4.610 The chain operates more than 20 stores in California. In Reno, it would compete with retailers such as Macy's and Weinstock's. Penney's is vacating the Carson Mall location in a few days to move to larger quarters at Southgate Shopping Center on U.S.

Highway 395 between Eagle Station Lane and Clear-view Drive. Wal-Mart has operated its first northern Nevada store in that mall since July 1991. The new Penney's opens Aug. 3 with 83,440 square-feet of space, By Susan Skorupa GAZETTE-JOl RNAL A California department store chain plans to open a store in Carson City next year, taking space that JCPenney will vacate next week hen it moves to new quarters. Gottschalk's would totally remodel the store in the Carson Mali and possibly open in early 1995.

said Joe Levy, president of Gottschalk's in Fresno, Calif. "There will be extensive remodeling," Levy said. "It will be like a new- GM scores record earnings Detroit in high gear The Big Three automakers reported surging sales and profits for the second quarter of 1 994, ail GAMING TOURISM Shareholders sue Circus Circus LAS VEGAS A Florida partnership is suing Circus Circus Enterprises Inc. and its top executives, saying their efforts to thwart unsolicited takeover offers deprives stockholders of the maximum value of their shares. The suit, filed Tuesday in state court on behalf of 7547 Partners and 4.400 other shareholders in the casino company, names president and chief executive officer Clyde Turner, chairman William Bennett, and seven directors.

The complaint alleges the defendants "hav wrongfully refused to properly consider bona fide indications of interest for the company and have taken a reactive defensive action, wrongfully designed to entrench themselves in their positions of control." Circus Circus officials did not return calls seeking comment on the matter. Commission OK's Boulder Station LAS VEGAS The Nevada Gaming Commission voted unanimously to license the $103 million Boulder Station hotel-casino, scheduled to open here Aug. 23. The resort, on Boulder Highway and U.S. 95, features 300 guest rooms, five restaurants, eight fast-food outlets and a casino in a turn-of-the-century railroad theme.

Glen Christenson. chief financial officer and treasurer of Station Casinos said Boulder Station is the corporation's attempt to capitalize on rapid growth in eastern Las Vegas. Station Casinos already operates the Palace Station hotel-casino, a casino that has been successful appealing to local customers. Ameristar Aztar Bally Gaming Bally Enter. Boomtown Caesars World Casino Data Sys.

Circus Circus Grand Casinos Harveys Hilton Hotels IGT Jackpot Ent. MGM Grand Mikohn Gaming Mirage Monarch Primadonna Promus Cos. Rio Hotel Sahara Gaming Sands Regent Showboat Sodak United Gaming 9 V2 6ft 12 -ft 6ft 15 -ft 39ft -Va 22Vi -Va 25ft -ft 15ft -ft 12 62ft -ft 18ft ft 8ft 26 11ft ft 17ft 25 ft 28ft -ft 13ft -Va 6ft 11ft 15ft 11ft ft 7ft -Va I $338Nw I billion billion 1. $294 I i i 1 i I I I i '111 I I I $131 I $171 i $1.92 Mm IKXO Associated Press BIG QUARTER: Chevrolet pickups at a lot near GM headquarters in Detroit. Lower production costs have helped the company return to profitability in a big way.

I III I I I I eorfTBs. 1-1 1J iffcffc Fiis mi iisr? 2nd quarter: Largest industrial company pulls in $1.9 billion. DETROIT (AP) General Motors Corp. doubled second-quarter earnings to a record 1 .9 billion, saying the results reflected improved domestic profitability and strong automotive operations abroad. The figures reported Thursday by the world's largest industrial company capped one of the healthiest quarters for the Big Three automakers, which together earned nearly $5 billion in the April-June period on improved sales and more efficient manufacturing.

Still, GM executives said they weren't satisfied because their largest and most important business, North American vehicle making, recorded a profit margin of only 2.7 percent, far below their goal of 5 percent. Profit margin measures profit as a percentage of sales and is a barometer of a manufacturer's efficiency. GM has been moving aggressively over the past few years to improve its profit margin by lowering the cost of building cars and trucks in North America. "That's where our challenge and opportunity continues to be," said chief financial officer J. Michael Losh.

To accomplish the target, he AIRLINES it 1994 1993 1994 1993 1994 1993 1994 1993 Revenues Net income Revenues Net income --14) -A-121 A11.4 -11fi dition to the city's retail mix and it's shaping up as a regional shopping center. "Gottschalk's is a fine department store with an excellent reputation," he said. "It's what we'd like to sec come in and balance out the type of retail sector we're becoming. "We're real excited they've apparently stepped forward and made a move to come to this area. A lot can go on between now and then.

We always like to wait until we see the doors open, but it's excellent for the entire community." Chrysler filllon J685 million 1994 1993 1994 1993 Revenues Net income A 19 I 1k 39.6 share: $2 23 Earnings per share: $2.61 APC. Sanderson er discounting devices, he said. GM incentive costs dropped to $750 per vehicle for the quarter, $100 below a year ago. Losh said he believes the current growth of the U.S. industry will continue, but that GM must "act with a sense of urgency, like that downturn could come tomor Western Union Local employees: Burst out in song for creator.

By Susan Skorupa GAZETTE-JOURNAL On July 28, 1 933, a woman named Lucille Lips sang Happy Birthday to entertainer Rudy Vallee over the telephone in New York City. The call was the first singing telegram and the brainchild of Western Union publicity director George Os-lin. In honor of the 61st anniversary of that first personalized greeting, West-em Union employees in the company's Reno customer service center IBM's PC unit IBM Personal Computer the sluggish PCdivision of IBM, is expected to announced a 20 percent cut in its 10,000 member workforce today. Company spokesman Peter Thonis had no comment on the layoff speculation. But Wall Street analysts say the announcement is compared with about 60,000 square-feet in the existing store.

The new store will emphasize apparel and home furnishings, including national brand names and Penney's own private labels. JCPenney catalog service will be through an in-store order center. In addition to a 1 2-stall hair styling salon, the new store includes luggage, bath and sleep shops, curtains, draperies, children's and infant's apparel and active sports wear. The new store will employ a staff of 1 50 with about 35 new positions. -j RSif HI York Stock Exchange.

The $1.9 billion was the largest quarterly profit GM had ever reported the previous high was $1.61 billion in the first period of 1984. GM's report followed similar records posted by Ford Motor Co. and Chrysler Corp. GM's North American automotive operations produced a $723 million profit, compared with a $33 million loss in the second quarter of 1993. International automotive operations had a net income of $543 million, up from $306 million.

The only segment where GM showed a decline was its financial business. General Motors Acceptance Corp. profits slipped 24 percent as the mortgage business fell See EARNINGS on page 7B telegrams' 61th position at the time. The company thought it was a silly stunt. "But he knew it was Rudy's birthday, so he asked for an operator and they gave him Lucille Lips," Bechtel said.

"He will always be known as the father of the singing telegram." But that's not Oslin's only claim to fame, Bechtel added. Two years ago, after some 60 years of work, Mercer University Press in Macon, published Oslin's book, "The Story of Telecommunications." Oslin and his wife Susan both retired from Western Union in 1964. The Reno operation sends about 140 singing telegrams a year, Teglas said. "Whoever feels comfortable doing it, does it," said Walsh, one of Thursday's singers. Most recipients get excited when they hear a singing telegram, Olson said.

"Somejust giggle." the end of this year. The company hopes to cut $8 billion in expenses by '96. IBM Personal Computers is a wholly owned subsidiary of IBM. This year, IBM slipped to No. 3 in the PC market, behind Compaq and Apple.

row. Analyst Joseph Phillippi of Lehman Brothers in New York said GM's performance has been impressive, but it needs that sense of urgency. "They're just basically above the surface from where they were," he said. "They have a long way to go." GM said its revenues for the quarter were $40.4 billion, up from $36.3 billion in 1993. Earnings per share were $2.23 vs.

92 cents a year ago, when the quarterly profit was $889 million. The results were better than expected on Wall Street, where investment professionals had expected per-share results of about $2.06, according to Zack's Investment Research. GM stock rose 37'2 cents to $50.25 on the New celebrates singing sent Oslin, 95, their own singing telegram on Thursday. Jo Walsh, a 15-year Western Union employee, and Dcnise Olson, a four-year veteran, practiced singing "Happy Anniversary to You" at a workstation just minutes before placing a call to Oslin's Del Ray Beach, Fla. home at 10 a.m.

Oslin answered the telephone after several rings and seemed surprised and pleased by the call and the best wishes from the two singers and from Reno center manager Steve Teglas. Oslin recalled that Vallee was the recipient of the first telegram and that it was sent during the depths of the Great Depression. Oslin joined Western Union in New York City in 1929. "He had the idea and he knew where he wanted the first telegram sent," said Warren Bechtel, company spokesman. "There was a lot of op -1 ite 129.14 United cuts California shuttle fares by 60 Earnings per share: $1 .63 Earnings per Source: Ford; General Motors; Chrysler said, the company will continue to focus on cutting costs and improving productivity.

"We're getting a significant part of our year-to-year gain in cost cutting," Losh said. The bottom line also will be helped by higher prices and reduced reliance on rebates and oth- Stewart didn't say whether Southwest will drop fares further. He did say: "We're ready to defend what's ours." Stewart repeated Southwest's threat to expand into long markets "to borrow customers from United." The Shuttle became possible two weeks ago after United workers got 55 percent of the airline's stock for $5 billion in wage cuts and work-rule changes over five years. The Shuttle's costs will be almost as low as Southwest's. Like Southwest, it will fly Boeing 737s, have "everyday" low prices, frequent flights and refundable tickets.

Greenwald says its advantages include: A frequent-flier plan that lets passengers take trips throughout the world. Southwest only flies in the United States. Scats that are assigned at the airport. Southwest doesn't assign seats. Fliers board on a first-come basis.

Gannett News Service Low air fares are spreading through California, and they are likely to hurt one or more airlines. United Airlines slashed fares up to 60 percent Thursday when it began selling seats on its low-fare airline, The Shuttle By United. The Shuttle takes off Oct. 1 with 184 daily flights between seven California cities, Las Vegas and Seattle. In December, it will have 286 daily flights and expand service to Phoenix.

By year's end, the Shuttle will compete with Southwest Airlines, California's biggest airline, on nine of 14 routes. "This is definitely an attack on Southwest," says Southwest's Ed Stewart. "We're going to match them on price, exceed them on service," vows United CEO Gerald Greenwald. United has claimed San Francisco International as its stronghold. Southwest is hunkered down at Oakland International, 30 miles from downtown San Francisco.

Gaming Index Carson Valley's April Sports pools at all non-restricted locations tn Carson City, Gardnerville, Mmden and Topaz: Football $4,000 Basketball 3 $6,000 Baseball I SI Parlay cards EZ3 Source: Nevada Gaming Control Board Gazette-Journal expected to cut workforce by 20 widely expected to come today. "The plan we've heard about would be consistent with the company's stated plans to reduce its workforce and expenses," says John Jones, who follows IBM for Salomon Bros. IBM pledged to cut its workforce from 235,000 to 215,000 by.