Wal-Mart drops Deen

Wal-Mart drops Deen

NEW YORK

Paula Deen was dropped by Wal-Mart and her name was stripped from four buffet restaurants Wednesday, hours after she went on TV and tearfully defended herself amid the mounting fallout over her admission of using a racial slur.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said Wednesday that it ended its relationship with Deen and will not place “any new orders beyond what’s already committed.”

Caesars Entertainment Corp. said it was “mutually decided” with Deen to remove her name from its restaurants in Joliet, Ill.; Tunica, Miss.; Cherokee, N.C.; and Elizabeth, Ind.

Deen has been dropped by the Food Network and as a celebrity endorser by Smithfield Foods.

IEA: Renewable energy growing fast

new york

Renewable energy is growing fast around the world and will edge out natural gas as the second biggest source of electricity, after coal, by 2016, according to a five-year outlook published Wednesday by the International Energy Agency.

Developing countries are building more wind, solar and hydro-electric power plants to meet rising power demand and combat local pollution problems. And the costs of renewables are falling below the cost of traditional power sources such as coal, natural gas and oil in some markets with high-priced power.

Delta fined $750K

washington

The government is fining Delta Air Lines Inc. $750,000 for bumping passengers involuntarily, without offering compensation or seeking volunteers first.

Airlines sometimes sell too many tickets for a flight, and have to “bump” some or move them to a later flight. If travelers don’t volunteer, the airline must compensate them.

The Transportation Department said Wednesday that in March 2012 it visited Delta’s Atlanta headquarters and reviewed 310 complaints about how it handled overbookings between November 2010 and January 2012.

Vindicator wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .76, 31.20 .30

Avalon Holdings,3.63.00

Clear Channel, .61 27.34 1.12

Cortland Bancorp, 9.95—.30

Farmers Nat., .126.22 .33

First Energy, 2.20, 37.05.12

FirstMerit Corp., .64,19.98 .05

First Niles Financial, .32,10.00.00

First Place Fin., .0035.00

FNB Corp., .48,11.82.15

General Motors,32.55.73

General Electric, .76,23.24.13

Motors Liquidation, .0422.00

Huntington Bank, .20, 7.86.08

JP Morgan Chase, 1.52,52.50.42

Key Corp, .22,10.88.16

LaFarge, 15.69 .05

Macy’s, 1.00, 47.741.16

Parker Hannifin, 1.80, 95.531.22

PNC, 1.76,73.22.52

RTI Intl. Metals,27.59.14

Simon Prop. Grp.,4.60,158.321.49

Stoneridge 11.00 .15

United Community Fin. 4.4410.0210

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