Richmond Times-Dispatch from Richmond, Virginia • B8

10821TD2B08B FERG Biz 821 B8 10821TD2B08B ZALLCALL 23 082009 B8 Friday, August 21, 2009 BUSINESS Richmond Times-Dispatch Sears posts 2nd-quarter loss BUSINESS BRIEFS tomers continued to abandon its brands. "At some point, we need to see a rebound in the top line, and that's going to depend on consumers' willingness to shop at Kmart and Sears," Morningstar analyst Kim Picciola said. "I think they still haven't quite figured out what's going to draw consumers back into their stores." It hasn't been for lack Executives said results were dragged down by lower sales of clothing and home appliances along with one-time costs. Sales at stores open at least a year dropped 12.5 percent at Sears' U.S. stores and 3.9 percent at Kmart locations.

Yesterday's results were far below expectations and sent the company's shares plunging $8.76, or 11.9 i in UH i II Future of once-formidable firm unclear as it struggles to end years of falling sales The Associated Press CHICAGO Once a mainstay in American shopping culture, the parent of Sears and Kmart stores took another step backward yesterday, announcing a surprising second-quarter loss that dimmed hopes about the ailing merchant's future. Although Sears Holdings Corp. is paying down debt and has a $1.3 billion cash mm war chest enough to give investors confidence in its financial footing for now experts say it desperately needs to end vears of declining sales if Since the merger, the company's revenue has declined virtually every quarter. Meanwhile, sales in stores open at least a year have decreased every period. The trends got worse during this year's second quarter.

percent, to close at $65. Despite the dismal performance, observers say Sears isn't in imminent danger of following now-defunct retailers Circuit City Stores Inc. and Linens Things into bankruptcy. Still, the company will most likely face difficult choices, especially about its real estate holdings, considered by many to be among Sears' most valuable assets. But even those have lost their luster as commercial real estate values plummet.

"All roads lead to hell," said Howard Davidowitz, chairman of retail consulting and investment of trying. Sears has tried wooing shoppers by emphasizing its Kenmore, Craftsman and DieHard brands, along with offers of trend-ier clothing and housewares backed by celebrities, layaway deals, a series of online ventures and the ill-fated Sears Essentials stores, which sold merchandise from both stores but never resonated with shoppers. This week, the company started a program mimicking old-fashioned Christmas club accounts to help shoppers save to buy presents. Since the merger, the company's revenue has declined virtually every it wants to stay viable. I Led by Chairman Ed- 2006, BLOOMBERG NEWS Starbucks glveth, taketh away Starbucks Corp.

says if 8 raising prices on certain harder-to-make beverages and cutting the costs for simpler ones like a plain cup of coffee. The price increases are as much as 30 cents on some drinks, such as the cold, blended Frappuccino. Most items with increased prices will climb 10 to 15 cents. The changes went into effect yesterday in selected cities and will expand into c4herrnarlm the ccroingr Officials at the Seattle-based coffee giant say they are increasing prices to cover higher labor and material costs. Some basic items will have price cuts of 5 to 15 cents.

Other prices wont change. wdiu ijaiiipeii aim ail 111- terim CEO who's been at the helm for more than 18 months, Sears continues to struggle to attract shoppers who, even before the recession, were taking their wallets to competitors that offered more products at cheaper prices with more appealing store atmospheres. Since acquiring control of Kmart out of bankruptcy in 2003 and adding Sears, Roebuck and Co. in 2005, Lampert has had the retailer spend trillions buying back stock and trimming debt. A renowned and reclusive financier, he carefully guarded how much money the Hoffman Estates-based company spent updating its mostly aging store base.

And so, while investors eventually began viewing the retailer as a way to buy into Lampert's hedge-fund mystique, cus- banking firm Davidowitz Associates, who's been skeptical of Lampert's efforts for years. "It doesn't look to me like he has any good options, but he has to pick the best of the worst." Among them, Davidowitz said, is keeping the company as is, a move tantamount to holding onto a shrinking asset. Other choices are selling and closing more stores, or selling off some of the company's assets like its popular brands or online ventures. quarter. Meanwhile, sales in stores open at least a year have decreased every period.

The trends got worse during this year's second quarter when the company lost $94 million, or 79 cents per share its third loss in six quarters. Sales careened 10 percent to $10.55 billion. That compares with a profit of $65 million, or 50 cents per share, a year ago when revenue was $11.76 billion. Biz to Go Sponsors stick with Eagles after Vick signing saw their limits cut between April 2008 and October 2008. Limit cuts jumped 32 percent in the following six months, as the economy faltered and banks looked for ways to cut risk.

High-risk challenge looms for Bernanke When the financial system was teetering, Federal Reserve Chairman lM Banarin flooded it with trillions of dollars to save the banks and free up credit for consumers and businesses. Looming in the future is a high-risk challenge for the economy's rescuer-in-chief He will have to mop up that money without disrupting a recovery. And timing is vital. Act too fast, and Bernanke risks choking off lending to businesses and everyday Americans. Wait too long, and he risks setting off crippling inflation.

Assuming he manages to help usher in a sustained recovery, Bernanke will eventually face still another challenge: He will be under enormous political pressure to keep interest rates low, even though that could speed inflation. Elsewhere PHILADELPHIA I he Philadelphia Eagles' sponsors are standing by their team. That doesn't mean anyone is ready to put extra money in Michael VIRGINIA Brink's pays pension plan $150 million The BrHft Ool said yesterday that it contributed $150 million to its underfunded U.S. pension plan. The Henrico County-based security services company said the payment reduces its pension plan's underfunding to a deficit of about $109 million, and that the plan's obligations are 85 percent funded.

The company's U.S. pension plan was underfunded by $308 million as of Dec 31. The contribution consisted of $92.4 million in cash and 2.26 million newly issued shares of Brink's common stock valued at $57.6 million. Brink's said it expects to generate about $30 million in cash flow this year from tax benefits related to the contribution. The company also said it expects required pension contributions to be reduced in 2010 and 201 1 by a total of $94 million.

Big Stone Gap miner is first Va. death in 2009 Virginia lias recorded its first mining death of 2009. A veteran miner was killed early yesterday after coal and rock fell on him while he was working at a mine in Wise County near Appalachia. William Wayne Parrott, 58, of Big Stone Gap was working 12,000 feet into Hf Lard Hh hf Corp. mine No.

2 when the accident occurred. The last mine death in Virginia occurred in July 2008. N0AA plans survey of U.S. coastal seafloors is adding MATT SLOCUMTHE ASSOCIATED PRESS Vick's pockets. The Eagles had prepared for a backlash after signing the convicted dogfight-ing ringleader last week.

But while Vick is disgraced in the court of public opinion the one that drives lucrative endorsement deals his addition has not jeopardized the team's corporate support. None of the more than four dozen Eagles sponsors had pulled out as of Wednesday, said Marlyse Fant, Eagles vice president of sales and service. The Eagles heard from about 15 to 20 sponsors a week ago, a day after Vick signed, but most simply wished they had been given advance notice to pass on to their customers. "Our clients have been in close contact with us to stay up to date on information coming from the team, and most have noticed a significant reduction in their own volume of customer inquiries since Friday," she said. The Eagles took a proactive approach, sending a letter to their top customers last week asking them to have faith that the team was not acting recklessly.

"We appreciate the complexity this creates for some partners and premium clients and ask that you join us in our support and optimism for Michael as he commits himself to showing Philadelphia and the country he is a changed human being," team President Joe Banner said in the letter. Reaction from Eagles sponsors has varied. Radio rights holder 94WYSP said it has had "little to no reaction" from the station's sponsors. PepsiCo Inc. said in a statement that Vick's illegal activities were "cruel and degrading" but backed Convicted dogflghter Michael Vick practiced with the Philadelphia Eagles this week after being signed Aug.

13. As of Wednesday, none of the team's more than four dozen sponsors had pulled their support. hundreds of jobs in trading and sales in hopes of ramping up profit in its emerging markets, foreign exchange, equity derivatives and prime brokerage businesses. The company would add as many as 400 professionals in trading and sales this year. The Eqnl Bajtayaart Op-partmlty Coaabska said it filed an age-discrimination lawsuit against AT4T the country's largest telecommunications provider.

The EEOC says discriminated against older employees by denying them the chance to be rehired solely because they retired under early-retirement plans. NORFOLK The I is planning a $40 mil ern California's Sports Business Institute. Once a $130 million player, Vick was a corporate America favorite as the star quarterback of the Atlanta Falcons. His image was used to market everything from sneakers to sports drinks, usually aimed at the coveted 18 to 34 male demographic The Falcons paid Vick $23 million in 2005, and Forbes estimated bis total compensation that year at $37.5 million with endorsements. Only 26 and at the pinnacle of his career, Vick's life and marketability imploded amid the graphic details of a dog-fighting operation in Surry County that he helped bankroll and participated in.

the team. "As sponsors of the NFL, we have the utmost confidence that the senior leader-shy) at the NFL will continue to appropriately address this issue," Pepsi said. Sponsors understood the move from a football standpoint. They do not hold the same view of Vick. The brutal nature of the former Virginia Tech star's crimes which included electrocuting, drowning and hanging dogs that underperformed in fights are not going to fade quickly from the public's memory.

"He's too toxic for most companies to even consider taking a chance on him," said David Carter, who specializes in sports business and marketing as executive director of the University of South lion effort to survey and chart coastal seafloors. Contractors will conduct 39 surveys in the Chesapeake Bay and the coastal waters of Alabama, Alaska, California, Florida, Louisiana, Virginia and Washington. Contractors will map the sea floor, measure the water depth, search for debris and record coastal seabeds' natural features and aquatic fife. Data also will be collected to update nautical charts and to aid in maritime planning. THE NATION Credit-card firms cut limits for 58 million plans to pay off about $20 billion in debt in the next two years, pushing for a leaner balance sheet as growth in its phone businesses slows.

A judge in New York rejected mortgage lender Coar-trywtde Raaclafs effort to have some investor lawsuits heard in federal court. Chemical giant On Port will invest $120 million to increase production of a component used in solar cells as the company anticipates rapid growth in the photovoltaic market in the next several years. Boeaf Co. said it won orders for seven 737 aircraft valued at $485 million based on the average fist price. The company didn't identify the customers.

Aaaricaa JUriass has expanded its in-flight Internet service to more aircraft. The airline has now made the VJ-H service available on 100 MD-80 aircraft, which is two-thirds of the 150 scheduled to be com Intimidator 305 Kings Dominion's Dale Earnhardt-themed Intimidator 305 roller coaster is scheduled to open in ApriL 305 feet 85 degrees 5,100 feet uaftfc ToaspMd :6 :3 3 minutes a aw pleted by the end of 2009. $25 million SOURCE: King! Dominion Coaster From Page B6 time" humps and make three highspeed turns close to the ground, accentuating the sensation of furious speed for 1,350 people an hour on the Swiss-designed steel roller coaster. "You'll have to see it to believe it," said Pat Jones, Kings Dominion's vice president and general manager. Dale Earnhardt Inc.

is licensing the use of the late champion stock-car driver's legacy for the Kings Dominion attraction. "Either you go big or you go home," said Jeff Steiner, executive vice president and general manager of Dale Earnhardt Inc. "This is absolutely something Dale Earnhardt would have approved of." The Intimidator 305 will be the 15th roller coaster at Kings Dominion, owned and operated by Cedar Fair Entertainment Co. of Sandusky, Ohio. The 400-acre park is home to more than 60 rides, shows and attractions.

Depressed by the recession and a run of bad weather, attendance is down about 10 percent at Cedar Fair's properties, which consist of 11 amusement parks and six water parks, said Richard L. KinzeL Cedar Fair's chairman, president and CEO. But experts are betting that by the Workers From Page B6 struggling economy is taking a toll on worker morale. Those who are at places where there have been substantial layoffs are trying to cope with survivor's guilt," Chaison said. "I also think there's tremendous anxiety in the American workplace.

It's not just being anxious, its being depressed." But Chaison cautioned that both numbers may be at temporary extremes that will drift back toward historic levels once employment rises and economic conditions improve. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis called the decline in workplace fatalities a "change in the right direction," but said it does not lessen the need for stronger safety enforcement to prevent accidental injuries. "Today's report prompts us to step up our vigilance, particularly as the economy regains momentum," SoHs said. The report is based on preliminary numbers that could change when the final report is released next year. mother findings: Fatal work injuries in the construction sector dropped 20 percent.

Workplace homicides were down by 18 percent. Fatal workplace falls declined by 20 percent last year, after rising to a historic high in 2007. The number of fatal work injuries declined for all age categories except among 16- and 17-year-old workers. slashed limits for an estimated 58 million card holders in the 12 months ended in ApriL even though a high percentage had good credit scores when then-limits were cut. The widespread cuts hurt about a third of consumers, but most people did not see a big impact on credit scores, according to a study by FIDO, the company that produces the most widely known credit scores.

The limited effect may be because lenders often cut limits on cards that were unused or lightly used. The statistics in some ways verify complaints from consumers that they were targeted despite doing nothing wrong, but also show that the cuts seem to have little negative effect for the majority of people. FICO, formerly called Fan-Isaac separated the cuts into two waves as it examined data provided by credit reporting agency Equifax. About 25 million card holders time Intimidator 305 debuts next spring, the economy will be reviving and people will want to have some fun. "Hopefully they'll come out and visit the park," Kinzel said.

"We're certainly hoping for a nice increase in attendance." Kings Dominion is one of the key's to Virginia's robust tourism business, Lt. Gov. Bill Boiling told several hundred people gathered for the Intimidator 305 announcement. "My wife will be on the first ride," Boiling promised, "and I'll be watching Contact Peter Baoque at (804) 649-6813 or pbaoquetimesdspatch.oom. Average price for regular, self -serve based on about 500 stations In Richmond and 13 surrounding localities.

lb find real-time prices for your neighborhood, cck on www.aaamidatlantic.com.