US stocks tumble on global worries

US stocks tumble on global worries

NEW YORK

Stocks plunged across all sectors in the heaviest trading of the year Friday as enthusiasm over a long-awaited increase in U.S. interest rates faded.

Several other negative factors combined to give the market its second big loss in a row, bringing the indexes lower for the week.

Bank stocks, which investors had bid up in hopes they would become more profitable as loan rates climbed, fell the most. Technology shares suffered more declines as a bad December got worse for Apple. The world’s most-valuable publicly traded company sank again, bringing its monthly loss to 10 percent.

Judge refuses to toss lawsuit over earthquake damage

CHANDLER, Okla.

An Oklahoma judge has rejected a request from two energy companies to throw out a lawsuit by a woman who claims she was injured in an earthquake caused by the injection of wastewater.

Lincoln County District Judge Cynthia Ferrell Ashwood on Friday overruled the motions to dismiss that were filed by Oklahoma-based Spess Oil Co. and New Dominion LLC.

The lawsuit by Prague resident Sandra Ladra alleges the companies are liable because they operated wastewater-disposal wells that triggered the largest earthquake in state history, a 5.6-magnitude temblor in 2011. Ladra claims the quake crumbled her fireplace, causing rocks to fall on her knee.

The companies wanted the lawsuit dismissed because they say Ladra waited too long to file it.

Fiat Chrysler recalls nearly 56K Jeeps to fix leak

DETROIT

Fiat Chrysler is recalling nearly 56,000 Jeep Cherokee SUVs worldwide to fix a water leak that can cause an electrical short in the power tailgates.

The recall covers Cherokees from the 2015 and 2016 model years. Water can get into the tailgate control module, increasing the risk of a fire. The company says no fires or injuries have been reported. Fiat Chrysler says two customer complaints led to the recall.

The Jeeps were manufactured from Feb. 18 to Sept. 10.

Dealers will inspect the module and replace damaged parts. They’ll also replace a water shield with a better one. The company is developing a schedule for the recall and will notify owners.

In the meantime, owners are advised to check tailgates and make sure they are kept dry until repairs are made.

JPMorgan to pay $307M settlement

WASHINGTON

JPMorgan Chase is paying $307 million to settle federal charges of failing to reveal conflicts of interest from steering clients into certain investments tied to its businesses.

The civil settlements were announced Friday by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. JPMorgan, the largest U.S. bank by assets, admitted wrongdoing in the settlements.

Associated Press