Business news

Stillwater Mining workers go on strike

Billings, Mont. Workers at Stillwater Mining Co., the only U.S. producer of palladium and platinum, went on strike Monday after union members rejected a three-year labor contract.

Ahead of the anticipated strike, the company on Sunday began shutting down operations at the Stillwater Mine near Nye and processing facilities in Columbus, officials said. In a statement early Monday, the Columbus-based company said the union told management it would strike if an agreement was not reached by noon, when the contract expires.

The dispute affects between 850 and 900 employees, but not the company’s East Boulder Mine, officials said.

Brad Shorey, the local union president, said union leaders planned to meet with company representatives to discuss possible resolutions.

“I really can’t say how long we’ll be out,” said Shorey, head of the Paper, Allied Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International union local 8-0001.

However, “right now, we are on strike,” he said.

John Pearson, investor relations representative for Stillwater Mining, declined late Monday afternoon to discuss possible negotiations. Shorey did not return a message left late in the day.

Apple’s iTunes hits sales of 100 million

Cupertino, Calif. It took nearly three months longer than Apple Computer Inc. chief executive Steve Jobs predicted but Apple’s iTunes Music Store has sold its 100 millionth song, the company said Monday.

When the market-leading music download store launched April 28, 2003, a confident Jobs forecast that iTunes would sell 100 million songs within a year. However, the service reported selling about 70 million songs by the time it reached its first anniversary.

In a statement Monday, Jobs called the sales mark a “historic milestone.” Apple also marked the occasion with a contest, awarding the buyer of the 100 millionth song – a Kansas man – a free Apple computer, an iPod digital music player and 10,000 free downloads.

Tidyman’s to close two North Idaho stores

Moscow Inland Northwest grocery chain Tidyman’s is closing two of its four northern Idaho stores because they were losing money.

The stores in Moscow and Lewiston will shut down on Tuesday, idling 79 workers, Tidyman’s spokeswoman Patty Kilcup said.

“We haven’t seen growth and profitability over the past couple of years,” Kilcup said.

Employees will be offered severance packages, she said, but did not elaborate.

Google will list IPO on Nasdaq exchange

San Jose, Calif. Google Inc. plans to list on the Nasdaq National Market for its impending initial public stock offering, according to a filing Monday with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The $2.7 billion offering for online search engine Google promises to make the biggest IPO splash yet in the post-dot-com era and is expected to give the Mountain View-based company a market value of at least $20 billion. Thirty brokerage houses have teamed up to facilitate the online public auction that Google plans to use to set its offering price.