Gasoline prices begin to slide

Gasoline prices begin to slide

NEW YORK

Gasoline prices have begun their seasonal slide.

Better late than never, drivers say.

The national average retail price has fallen for 10 straight days and is now $3.74 per gallon. It could mark the beginning of the usual autumn decrease that was delayed this year because of refinery problems and high oil prices.

Tom Kloza, chief oil analyst at the Oil Price Information Service, predicts drops of 5 cents to 15 cents per week for the next three weeks. Over the next several weeks, the national average could be at or below where it was last year.

“There’s some nice relief coming,” he said.

Applications for unemployment rise

WASHINGTON

Weekly applications for U.S. unemployment benefits jumped 46,000 last week to a seasonally adjusted 388,000, the highest in four months. The increase marks a rebound from the previous week’s sharp drop. Both swings were largely due to technical factors.

The four-week average of applications, a less volatile measure, rose slightly to 365,500, the Labor Department said Thursday. That’s still a level consistent with modest hiring.

A department spokesman said the past two weeks’ figures were distorted by seasonal adjustments the department makes.

Google delivers letdown early

SAN FRANCISCO

As far as unpleasant surprises go, Google hit Wall Street with a double whammy Thursday.

The Internet search leader that prides itself on organizing the world’s information lost control of its own data when a contractor released its third-quarter earnings report more than three hours before the numbers were supposed to come out.

As if that wasn’t jarring enough, the results alarmed investors because the company’s earnings and revenue fell well below analyst projections. The disappointment triggered an 8 percent drop in Google’s stock price that erased about $20 billion in shareholder wealth.

From wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .66, 25.66 —.05

Avalon Holdings,4.11.11

Clear Channel, .73 70.58 .63

Cortland Bancorp, 9.60.00

Farmers Nat., .126.48 —.04

First Energy, 2.20, 46.28.50

FirstMerit Corp., .64,14.19 .09

First Niles Financial, .32,6.70 —.15

First Place Fin., .7611—.0639

FNB Corp., .48,10.77—.01

General Motors,25.55.49

General Electric, .68,22.81—.10

Motors Liquidation, .0422.00

Huntington Bank, .16, 6.61—.44

JP Morgan Chase, 1.20,43.01—.31

Key Corp, .20,8.78.37

LaFarge, 14.72 —.10

Macy’s, .80, 40.46—.38

Parker Hannifin, 1.64, 85.07.96

PNC, 1.60,59.84.07

RTI Intl. Metals,23.75.05

Simon Prop. Grp.,4.20,154.801.95

Stoneridge 4.80 —.15

United Community Fin. 3.82.03

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Thursday. Provided by Stifel Nicolaus. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.