Kentucky.com: Daily Business Report
News, sports, and entertainment from Kentucky.com

• Massey Energy to pay $4.2M in 2006 fatal fire case
  A Massey Energy subsidiary has agreed to pay $4.2 million in civil and criminal penalties and plead guilty to federal charges stemming from a fire that killed two miners at a southern West Virginia coal mine in January 2006, a federal official said Tuesday. But U.S. Attorney Charles Miller said his investigation is ongoing and did not rule out the possibility that individuals might be charged with violating federal mine safety laws. "It's our hope this sends a message to the coal industry," Miller said. Mine Safety and Health Administration spokeswoman Amy Louviere said the $1.7 million civil penalty was the agency's highest ever against a coal company. The $2.5 million criminal penalty was the second-highest. State and federal investigators say an overheated conveyer belt caused the Jan. 19, 2006, fire at Aracoma Coal Co.'s Alma No. 1 mine.
• PNC, National City shareholders approve merger
  PNC Financial Services Group Inc. and National City shareholders on Tuesday approved a merger between the banks. The shareholders approved the merger at separate meetings in Pittsburgh and Cleveland, a largely symbolic gesture that sets the wheels in motion for the integration that is expected to be complete by late 2009. PNC is acquiring Cleveland-based National City for $5.6 billion with money it obtained through the government's $700 billion bailout program. PNC is the first U.S. bank to use that money to make an acquisition. The combined bank will have about $180 billion in deposits and more than 2,700 branches, most in the Mid-Atlantic, the Midwest and Florida. It will have the largest deposit bases in Pennsylvania, Ohio and Kentucky and the second-largest in Maryland and Indiana. Peter E. Raskind, National City Corp.'s chairman, president and chief executive, announced the merger had been approved at the meeting in Cleveland, but did not immediately provide vote totals. Those were expected later Tuesday.
• Stock futures point to little changed opening
  Wall Street appeared headed for a flat opening Wednesday ahead of data on jobs and consumer spending that are expected to show more weakness. The Commerce Department is expected to report that consumer spending dropped 0.7 percent in November, which would mark the fifth straight month of decline. Meanwhile, the Labor Department's tally of initial applications for unemployment benefits last week is expected to increase slightly to a seasonally adjusted 560,000 from 554,000 in the prior week. The Commerce Department will also release a report on durable goods orders. Economists are expecting a decline of 3 percent last month, after a 6.2 percent drop in October. Still, with many investors on vacation during Christmas week, trading is expected to be light; that could skew the market's movements. The markets were closing early, at 1 p.m. EST.
• November existing home sales fall by 8.6 percent
  Sales of existing homes plunged far more than expected last month as buyers recoiled from October's financial wreckage on Wall Street. The median sales price fell by the largest amount on record. The National Association of Realtors said Tuesday existing home sales fell 8.6 percent to an annual rate of 4.49 million in November, from a downwardly revised pace of 4.91 million in October. Sales had been expected to fall to a pace of 4.9 million units. according to Thomson Reuters. The median sales price plunged 13.2 percent in November to $181,300, from $208,000 a year ago. That was the lowest price since February 2004, the biggest year-over-year drop on records going back to 1968 and most likely the biggest drop since the Great Depression. Lawrence Yun, the normally upbeat chief economist of the Realtors group, found few positive spots in the month's dismal data. But he did note that after prior stock market crashes home sales usually rebounded within a few months.
• IRS got $2.8 billion less from audits than in '07
  WASHINGTON The amount of money the IRS collects from audits and other reviews fell by nearly $3 billion this year as the agency shifted resources to make sure people got their economic stimulus checks. Overall, collections dropped to $56.4 billion for the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30 a 4.7 percent decrease from $59.2 billion collected in 2007, the agency said Monday. It was the first year-to-year decrease in collections in a decade. In addition to its regular duties, the IRS issued 117 million payments totaling more than $95 billion as part of the federal economic stimulus program this past spring.
• Circuit City gets loan OK
  RICHMOND, Va. Circuit City Stores Inc. on Monday received final approval for $1.1 billion in financing to keep operating while the nation's second-biggest electronics retailer is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Kevin Huennekens approved these debtor-in-possession loans at a hearing in Richmond. The financing, which replaces a $1.3 billion asset-backed loan the company had been using, will be used to stock merchandise and pay employees. Richmond, Va.-based Circuit City filed for bankruptcy protection last month as it faced pressure from vendors and consumers who aren't spending. Lexington, Ky.-based printer maker Lexmark is among Circuit City's top 50 creditors, according to the filing, and is owed nearly $3 million. Circuit City's largest creditor is Hew lett-Packard at $118.8 million.
• GM stock loses 21.6% after analysts say federal aid will dilute shares
  NEW YORK Washington's emergency loan program won't provide much of a lifeline for holders of General Motors Corp. shares, Wall Street analysts said. The bearish reports, which warned that the measures called for in the loan program would severely dilute existing GM shares, sent GM's stock sharply lower. A negative outlook from Toyota Motor Corp. added to the pessimistic view of automakers Monday. Buckingham Research auto analyst Joseph Amaturo said the $17.4 billion loan program approved by the White House is likely to diminish the value of GM stock in the long term as the company restructures and the government takes a stake. Amaturo reiterated his $1 price target on GM. That implies an expected 72 percent drop in value from GM's Monday close of $3.52.
• Bank buys condos for $5 million
  With no other bidders in sight, Central Bank Trust Co . bought The Mark Lofts at Woodland Park for $5 million during a court-ordered sale on Monday. The bank's chief executive officer, Luther Deaton Jr., said Central plans to sell the failed condominium project as a whole or unit by unit, but that nothing would be done that would harm property values in the adjacent residential neighborhoods. "We live here, and we work here and we'll take care of it," Deaton said. The auction resulted from a foreclosure action Central filed in September against Tribecca Development Co., the project's developer.
• Kentucky jobless rate up to 7 percent
  FRANKFORT A state labor market analyst says the loss of 7,600 jobs pushed Kentucky's unemployment rate to 7 percent in November. That was up from 6.8 percent in October. The analyst, Justine Detzel of the Kentucky Office of Employment and Training, blamed the state's economy for the job losses. She said most of the job losses were tied to declines in consumer spending. The job losses were in seven of the state's 11 major job sectors. The professional and business services sector was hardest hit with 2,300 jobs lost in November. The leisure and hospitality sector had a decline of 2,100 jobs.
• Wall Street points to moderately higher open
  Wall Street pointed to a moderately higher open Tuesday as investors awaited reports on the nation's housing industry and the broader economy. While the reports are expected to show further weakness, investors have likely already priced in very low expectations. The Commerce Department will release its final gross domestic product figures for the third quarter at 8:30 a.m. EST. Analysts believe the overall economy contracted slightly in the July-September quarter. The concern, however, is that the current quarter will be much worse. Wall Street expects that the GDP, the country's total output of goods and services, fell at an annual rate of 0.5 percent in the July-September quarter. That would fall in line with the estimate for GDP made a month ago. Later Tuesday morning, the Commerce Department will report on last month's new home sales, while the National Association of Realtors will report on existing home sales. Economists forecast that both will show declines.