Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
Thursday, June 11, 1998
Other workers may join Philippine Air strike
MANILA -- Flight attendants and ground crew of troubled Philippine Airlines threatened today to join a strike by about 600 pilots if the company institutes layoffs in a move to cut costs."We are going all the way with the pilots," said Roberto Anduiza, president of the 2,100-strong Flight Attendants and Stewardesses Association of the Philippines.
Anduiza said some members of the union would join the striking pilots in a picket line later today.
Gerry Rivera, vice president of the PAL Employees Association, which represents ground crew and sales personnel, said members of his union will also join the picket in a "show of support," short of an actual strike.
In a statement today the airline said it would resume regular but limited flights to 14 domestic cities and Tokyo, Singapore, Hong Kong and San Francisco beginning tomorrow, the centennial of Philippine independence from over 300 years of Spanish colonialism.
The airline has suspended its Honolulu-Manila service for at least two weeks.
Mortgage rates slide to a four-month low
WASHINGTON -- The average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages slipped to a four-month low of 7.04 percent this week, according to figures released today by Freddie Mac.The decrease, from 7.05 percent last week, brought the average to the lowest level since mid-February. It was the fifth decline in the six weeks since the average hit a 51/2-month high of 7.22 percent at the end of April.
Fifteen-year mortgages, a popular option for refinancing, rose to 6.71 percent, from a 10-week low of 6.70 percent the previous week.
On one-year adjustable-rate mortgages, lenders were asking an average initial rate of 5.71 percent, up from 5.68 percent and matching the 11-month high of four weeks ago.
The rates do not include add-on fees known as points.
Murdoch's News Corp. to sell stake in TV Guide
TULSA, Okla. -- Tele-Communications Inc. Chairman John Malone and News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch, owner of TV Guide magazine, are teaming up to provide television viewers with the most extensive listings for programs on broadcast, cable and satellite systems.United Video Satellite Group Inc., which is controlled by two TCI affiliates and operates an on-screen TV listing service, agreed to buy TV Guide for $2 billion in cash and stock from News Corp. In return, News Corp. will get 40 percent of United and half the voting control.
Viewers will ultimately have a TV Guide channel where they can click on categories such as sports, news and weather to find specific program listings, news and information. The companies hope the TV Guide brand name will attract advertisers for the magazine -- the largest in the U.S. with 13 million subscribers -- as well as the TV channel and Internet sites.
See expanded coverage in today's Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
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