Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
Saturday, April 7, 2001
U.S. airlines' traffic rises 0.5 percent in March
WASHINGTON >> U.S. passenger traffic at the 10 largest airlines rose 0.5 percent in March, driven by a 5.4 percent increase in international demand. Traffic, measured in miles flown by paying passengers, climbed to 56.1 billion miles from 55.8 billion, according to reports filed by the airlines. Capacity, or number of available seats, rose 1.3 percent. The average rate of seats filled per plane was 74.0 percent, down from 74.6 percent a year earlier.Most of these major U.S. airlines are expected to post losses when they report earnings this month because of fewer business passengers as companies scale back on employee travel in a slowing U.S. economy.
At US Airways Group Inc., which has agreed to be bought by UAL Corp.'s United Airlines, business rose the fastest at 15.8 percent. The airline carried more passengers because it replaced older, smaller aircraft such as McDonnell Douglas Corp. DC-9s with larger, new planes like the Airbus Industrie A319, spokesman Rick Weintraub said.
Financial literacy needs to improve, Greenspan says
WASHINGTON >> More must be done to help Americans understand the changing financial world, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan said.Just as job training helps workers adapt to the spread of computers and technology throughout the economy, so does financial literacy help improve standards of living for consumers, Greenspan said in an address yesterday to a Fed Community Affairs Research Conference.
Greenspan didn't discuss the state of the U.S. economy or Fed interest-rate policy in the text of his remarks, which were provided by the Fed.
Advances in computer technology have led to the creation of a "wide range" of new financial products, while at the same time lowering the cost and broadening the scope of financial services, Greenspan said. As a result, however, Americans "need to accumulate the appropriate knowledge on how to use new technologies and on how to make financial decisions in an informed manner," he said.
Temp workers are first to go in U.S. economy
WASHINGTON >> Temporary workers are among the first casualties in a slowing economy as businesses grapple with sluggish demand and struggle to cut costs. The number of people employed by temporary-personnel supply firms has declined for six straight months after reaching a record 3.89 million in September, the same month unemployment fell to a 30-year low, Labor Department figures show.Even in a slowing economy, businesses are reluctant to fire full-time workers who were hard to find last year. Firing temporary workers is also easier for businesses because they're able to escape severance payments and other costs associated with elimination of full-time workers.
In other news . . .
WILMINGTON, Del. >> A federal judge cleared the way yesterday for bankrupt Trans World Airlines to be sold to the parent company of American Airlines for $742 million, though an appeals panel in Philadelphia could still temporarily block the deal. U.S. District Judge Sue Robinson denied a request by creditors to delay Monday's planned sale of TWA to Dallas-based AMR Corp.The 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia was expected to consider an appeal of her decision over the weekend.