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HAWAII

'Weekend effect' lowers tax take

State tax collections in December declined 10.6 percent over the same month last year because of a "weekend effect," officials said yesterday.

The Department of Taxation reported that $270.8 million went into the general fund last month, compared with $302.9 million in December of last year.

Because the last day of November 2003 fell on a Sunday, some tax liability payments incurred in November were not deposited until the first day of the following month, resulting in higher reported collections for December 2003, the department said.

Even with the December decline, general fund deposits for the first six months of fiscal year 2005 are up 12.7 percent over the same period in the previous fiscal year.

The state's tax take for the first six months of the fiscal year was $1.83 billion, compared with $1.62 billion for the first half of the previous year.

Nominees sought for Ilima Awards

Entries are being sought for the Ilima Awards, a contest to recognize marketing and communication professionals for their best work in 2004.

The competition is hosted by the Hawaii chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators.

The deadline is Feb. 11. Forms are available at www.iabchawaii.com or by calling 748-5311. The awards ceremony will be held April 7 at the Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki.

NATION

Oracle plans to fire 5,000 workers

Oracle Corp., a week after completing its $10.3 billion purchase of PeopleSoft Inc., said it plans to fire about 5,000 workers, or 9 percent of the combined software company's staff.

Employees were being notified of the firings yesterday, Redwood City, Calif.-based Oracle said in a statement. Oracle won't disclose at this time how many workers were cut from each company, Oracle spokesman Jeff Lettes said in an interview.

Crude oil lifts for fourth day in row

Crude oil futures prices rose for the fourth day in a row yesterday, reaching a level not seen since late November as traders pinned a 6 percent rise in the past week on supply snags and expectations of colder weather.

Light sweet crude for February delivery was up 34 cents to settle at $48.38 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Last Friday, oil futures settled at $45.43 per barrel.

Other factors contributing to higher prices were the strong dollar, the possibility of another OPEC production cut and fears of more attacks against oil infrastructure in Iraq, analysts said.

May Department Stores chief quits under pressure

Gene S. Kahn, the chairman and chief executive of May Department Stores, resigned under pressure yesterday, six months after he led a $3.2 billion purchase of the Marshall Field's chain.

A search to fill the position will begin immediately, according to a company news release, and will encompass "both internal and external candidates."

With 501 stores, May is the largest department store chain in the country. It includes Lord & Taylor, whose chief executive, Jane Elfers, is being mentioned as a strong candidate to be the successor, Filene's, Hecht's and Robinson-May. For fiscal 2003, which ended Jan. 31, 2004, May had sales of $13.3 billion, but its stock has dropped and sales have been disappointing.

Director of Goodyear Tire leaves board

AKRON, Ohio >> A member of Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co.'s board of directors has resigned after being charged with perjury last week in a matter unrelated to world's largest tire company.

James Zimmerman, the former chairman and chief executive of Federated Department Stores Inc., is accused of lying under oath in an investigation of antitrust issues. He pleaded not guilty to the charges.

His resignation from the Goodyear board is effectively immediately, the company said in a news release yesterday. He had been a member since June 2001.

FBI has 257.5 million records on passengers

WASHINGTON >> If you're among the millions of Americans who took airline flights in the months before the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the FBI probably knows about it -- and possibly where you stayed, whom you traveled with, what credit card you used and even whether you ordered a kosher meal.

The bureau is keeping 257.5 million records on people who flew on commercial airlines from June through September 2001 in its permanent investigative database, according to information obtained by a privacy group and made available to the Associated Press.

Privacy advocates say they're troubled by the possibility that the FBI could be analyzing personal information about people without their knowledge or permission.

"The FBI collected a vast amount of information about millions of people with no indication that they had done anything unlawful," said Marcia Hofmann, attorney with the Electronic Privacy Information Center, which learned about the data through a Freedom of Information Act request.

WORLD

Embattled oil firm Yukos delisted

One of Moscow's two major stock exchanges delisted Yukos yesterday and the Prosecutor-General's office said a new criminal investigation had been opened against the oil company's jailed former CEO, Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

The dollar-denominated RTS exchange took Yukos off its list of traded shares, but over-the-counter deals will remain possible.

Samsung profit beats $10 billion for the year

Samsung Electronics Co. said yesterday its profits fell 2 percent in the fourth quarter but surpassed $10 billion for the full year for the first time, a landmark in its 35-year evolution from a Third World television maker to the world's biggest producer of memory chips and flat panel screens.

The company said strong demand for its chips and a growing appetite for its mobile phones would help its results this year and said it plans to boost investment by 34 percent to upgrade production facilities.