REGION

REGION

Goodyear overseas plans

AKRON — Goodyear Tire & Rubber said Wednesday it is considering building new tire factories in Eastern Europe and Asia, using money from the recent sale of its engineered products business.

Goodyear on Aug. 1 completed its sale of nearly all engineered products for $1.48 billion to EPD, part of Washington-based private equity firm The Carlyle Group. Goodyear said then it expected to use the money to reduce debt, cover obligations for employee benefits and buyouts, and invest in its core tire businesses.

Goodyear said it still plans on investing in tire factories to increase capacity of higher priced tires by 40 percent. The investment program includes modernization in North America to Goodyear’s Fayetteville, N.C., and Gadsden, Ala., tire plants for increased higher priced tires. Goodyear wants to have half of its global tire production capacity in low-cost countries by 2012.

Heinz re-elects investor

PITTSBURGH — H.J. Heinz Co. shareholders re-elected activist investor Nelson Peltz to the board of directors, the company said Wednesday at its annual shareholder meeting, where it announced first-quarter earnings are expected to exceed analyst expectations.

The turnout was sparse compared with last year’s event, which drew about 1,200 people and marked the culmination of an acrimonious proxy battle with an investor group led by Peltz, a billionaire known for leading high-profile corporate buyouts.

Heinz said it now anticipates net income between 62 cents and 63 cents per share, more than the 55-cent estimate from analysts polled by Thomson Financial. Heinz is scheduled to release its quarterly earnings report Aug. 24.

NATION

Turkey products recalled

The following product recall was announced Tuesday:

Nearly 13,000 pounds of frozen turkey products manufactured by Ian’s Natural Foods of Revere, Mass., because they may contain nonfat milk, which was not declared on the label. The recall involves 8-ounce boxes of Ian’s Popcorn Turkey Corn Dogs, Crispy Batter Dipped Turkey Dogs with the establishment number P-19011 and a packaging date of 07099, 07114, 07120 or 07173. The product was sent to distribution centers in Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, Texas and Washington.

Associated Press