Publisher slashes more jobs

Century Publishing in Coeur d’Alene has eliminated 50 of 75 jobs as struggling real estate brokers and agents in communities all over the Northwest cut back on advertising.

Vice President for Finance David Risdon said Coeur d’Alene-based Century will continue to print only 33 localized editions of “Homes and Land,” down from a peak of 150.

But aside from real estate, he said, Century’s business remains strong, and the company will maintain all its equipment. Century specializes in press runs of 15,000 to 20,000 copies, he said.

Risdon said the latest round of layoffs – Century employed as many as 135 just two years ago – was the toughest, as notices were handed to longtime employees who were also friends.

Although he said he expects to be able to hire back only a few by year-end, Risdon said Century will ride out the downturn.

NEW YORK

Weyerhaeuser loss tops $1 billion

Weyerhaeuser Co. said Friday its fourth-quarter loss ballooned to more than $1 billion as the rapidly deteriorating U.S. housing market forced the timber and wood products company to book a massive charge and write down other assets.

The Federal Way, Wash.-based company builds houses and makes pulp and wood panels from trees it grows on more than 6 million acres.

The company’s loss amounted to $5.73 per share in the three months ended Dec. 31. It reported a loss of $63 million, or 30 cents per share, in the year-earlier period.

TOKYO

Toyota expects first loss since ‘50

Toyota forecast its first annual loss since 1950 on Friday as plunging demand for cars, especially in the U.S., and the strong yen pummeled earnings at the world’s No. 1 automaker.

Toyota Motor Corp. reported a $1.8 billion loss for the October-December quarter; quarterly sales plunged 28.4 percent. Toyota said it expects a loss of $3.85 billion for the fiscal year through March – a stunning reversal from the record profit it posted the previous year.