Briefcase

Regional Sears, Kmart closures announced

Sears will close its stores in Lewiston and Walla Walla, and Kmart will close its Lacey, Wash., store, parent company Sears Holdings Corp. announced Thursday.

The company released the locations of 79 outlets slated for shutdown. It plans to close as many as 120 “marginally performing” stores in all as it looks to shore up cash after a disappointing holiday shopping season.

The closings represent about 3 percent of all Sears and Kmart stores in the U.S.

Sears and Kmart have been trying for years to turn themselves around. They’re struggling against competition from big-box rivals like Target Corp. and from online retailers, which offer convenience and low prices.

From staff reports

AMR shares will be dropped from NYSE

FORT WORTH, Texas – American Airlines’ parent company, which filed for bankruptcy protection last month, said Thursday that its stock will be dropped from the New York Stock Exchange.

The shares will stop trading on the NYSE before the opening bell next Thursday. The delisting includes AMR common stock and some company-issued notes.

AMR Corp. said the NYSE notified the Fort Worth, Texas, company of the move after the average closing price of AMR shares fell below $1 for 30 straight trading days.

The shares closed at $1.62 the day before the Nov. 29 bankruptcy filing and fell to 26 cents that day. They closed Thursday down 3 cents at 52 cents, and sank another 21 cents, or 40 percent, to 30 cents in after-hours trading.

The company said that because of its Chapter 11 filing, it could not try to “cure” the weakness in its share price, and would not oppose the delisting.

AMR expects that the shares will trade on the over-the-counter bulletin board and pink-sheets electronic trading as soon as next Thursday under a new ticker symbol, not the familiar “AMR.”

American has promised passengers that it will operate normally while in bankruptcy. A judge in New York has granted the airline permission to keep paying for fuel, labor, new planes and other key expenses to keep flying.

Associated Press

Dungeness crab catch off Oregon will be down

COOS BAY, Ore. – This year’s catch of Dungeness crab off the Oregon coast is expected to be down, which could mean higher prices after the holidays.

The fishing weather since the season began has been good, and crabbers believe they already have hauled in much of the catch that’s reached legal size, according to the World newspaper in Coos Bay.

“Initially, everyone was happy,” said Nick Furman, executive director of the Oregon Dungeness Crab Association. “… Then they went out and started fishing …”

Demand for live crab is high in Asia, but California and Washington coasts are closed to crabbers as wildlife officials wait for crab to reach a legal size.

Associated Press