General Electric agrees to settlement


May 8, 2015 at 12:00a.m.

General Electric agrees to settlement

GROVE CITY, PA.

General Electric here agreed to a settlement of charges by the National Labor Relations Board that the company illegally interfered with free speech and labor rights of more than 1,000 workers at its diesel engine plants.

GE has agreed to post notices at 10 locations within the plants, pledging not to violate those rights. The company further agrees to “repeal the rule in our handbook that prevents our employees” from promoting the union during nonwork time and distributing union literature in nonwork areas during nonwork time.

Allegiant reports passenger increase

VIENNA

Allegiant Travel Co., the only commercial airline in operation at the Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport, reported a 14.2 percent total system increase in passengers from April 2014 to April 2015.

The Las Vegas-based airline also reported an 11.7 percent increase in revenue passenger miles and a 20.7 percent increase in departures.

The results exceeded the company’s expectations.

General Motors’ sales down in China

DETROIT

General Motors and its joint ventures sold 258,484 vehicles last month in China, down 0.4 percent year over year.

Domestic sales by SAIC-GM-Wuling were up 10.2 percent year over year to 139,041 units. Shanghai GM’s domestic sales were down 6.7 percent to 119,032 units.

Chevrolet sales in China decreased 5.6 percent on an annual basis to 49,528 units. Its most popular nameplate in April was the Cruze, which sold 19,836 units. It was followed by the Sail, which had sales of 12,974 units, and the Malibu, whose sales totaled 8,731 units.

Hazy view of US economy emerges

WASHINGTON

When the government reports today on job growth during April, it could help clarify an increasingly nagging question: Just how strong is the U.S. economy?

The picture has grown hazier of late. Employers added only 126,000 jobs in March, ending a yearlong streak of monthly gains above 200,000. For April, economists predict a rebound to 222,500 added jobs.

Yet weaknesses have emerged in reports showing falling worker productivity, a slowdown in exports, modest consumer spending and sluggish overall economic expansion.

Over the past few years, the United States has served as a powerful engine for the world’s economy. But on Thursday, the International Monetary Fund predicted that Asian economies would lead global growth in 2015, in part thanks to recoveries in India and Japan.

Since the year began, the U.S. economy has sent signals of both potential strength and potentially debilitating weakness. Lower oil prices have forced cutbacks at energy companies and the manufacturers supplying them.

Staff/wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 26.38 .04

Avalon Holdings,3.63.05

Clear Channel, .46 21.90 —.11

Cortland Bancorp, 15.15.00

Farmers Nat., .128.18 —.04

First Energy, 1.44, 34.78—.05

Fifth/Third, .5219.93—.18

FirstMerit Corp., .64,19.31 —.13

First Niles Financial, .32,8.50.00

FNB Corp., .48,13.13.03

General Motors, 1.2034.86.09

General Electric, .88,27.01.20

Huntington Bank, .20, 10.87—.01

JP Morgan Chase, 1.60,64.49.57

Key Corp, .26,14.31—.15

LaFarge, 17.60 —.35

Macy’s, 1.25, 64.671.06

Parker Hannifin, 1.92, 120.94—.12

PNC, 1.92,92.21—.45

RTI Intl. Metals,38.55.10

Simon Prop. Grp.,5.20,183.401.79

Stoneridge 11.57 —.21

Talmer Bank, 15.56—.11

United Comm. Fin., .04 5.31—.03

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