By Lorie Hailey
Associate Editor
A Berea candle maker plans to lay off 99 employees soon, but says it is possible the majority of workers will be recalled in several months, reports the Lexington Herald Leader.
The move is related to the sale of the Light House Home Products line by the manufacturer’s parent company, according to notification documents required to be filed with the government in advance of mass layoffs.
+++
Ashland Inc., the Covington-based specialty chemical company, announced on Wednesday that it has reached a five-year agreement with TNK-BP of Russia to distribute Valvoline motor oil in that country, reports the Cincinnati Inquirer.
TNK-BP is Russia’s third-largest oil company, and was formed in 2003.
The deal reflects Ashland’s growing focus on emerging markets and the BRIC (Brazil, Russia, India, China) nations, where there is a growing middle class, the paper reports.
Fifty-four percent of Ashland’s sales in fiscal 2011 came from North America; Europe, the Asia Pacific and Latin America/other made up the rest.
+++
Gov. Steve Beshear on Wednesday vetoed $50 million in funding for roads in or near Senate President David Williams’ district, but still signed into law a two-year road plan, the Lexington Herald Leader reports.
The Kentucky Senate will approve a $4.5 billion operating budget for the Transportation Cabinet on Friday and end a special legislative session that began Monday, Williams said.
+++
Shortages of parts and materials could limit the number of new vehicles in showrooms later this year and crimp a historic turnaround in the U.S. auto industry, reports the Associated Press.
The most immediate problem — a shortage of a crucial plastic resin, caused by an explosion March 31 at a plant in Germany — could surface in a few weeks. Later this year or beyond, automakers could be confronted with an even bigger crisis, running short of parts simply because there aren’t enough factories and people to make them, the AP says.
+++
The number of people applying for unemployment benefits dipped last week but remained higher than in recent weeks, the Associated Press reports.
The Labor Department said Thursday that weekly applications declined 2,000 to a seasonally adjusted 386,000. The previous week’s data was revised up 8,000 to 388,000.
+++
Get your status updates ready and mark your calendars for May 17. This might be the day social network Facebook makes its big Wall Street splash, USA Today reports.
According to TechCrunch — citing “multiple sources close to the company” —Facebook’s initial public offering (IPO) will hit the NASDAQ on May 17, the newspaper reports.
The report says the company’s IPO will value them at roughly $100 billion.
Add Comment