U.S. jobs up, but many gigs are not 40 hours

Employers kept hiring in June, adding a better-than-expected 195,000 jobs, but many of them were part-time or temporary positions, hinting at a hollow economic recovery.

The number of part-timers who said they would prefer full-time work soared 322,000 to 8.2 million — the most in eight months, according to the Labor Department's monthly jobs report. These people were working part time because their hours had been cut or because they were unable to find a full-time job, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said.

The growing number of part-time workers may be related to the across-the-board federal budget cuts and the associated cutbacks and furloughs of federal employees, said Michael D. Goodman, associate professor and chairman of the Department of Public Policy at UMass Dartmouth.

And some employers may be reluctant to hire full-time workers because they would have to offer them health insurance under the Affordable Care Act, which starts to go into effect next year.

"Obamacare pretty much does discourage full-time work by withholding subsidies from a large majority of full-time workers and by penalizing employers who don't offer health insurance," said Casey B. Mulligan, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago.

But while there are incentives built into the Affordable Care Act that will lead some companies to hire part-timers over full-timers, that is not as important as sufficient demand for goods and services, said Robert A. Nakosteen, professor of economics and statistics at the UMass Amherst Isenberg School of Management.

"We still have a 'demand-deficient' economy — not enough spending in the aggregate, "Nakosteen wrote in an email, "and until this problem comes to an end, companies will not hire in sufficient quantities, and/or will hire part-timers, to bring our labor market to full employment."

Because more people started looking for work, the unemployment rate remained at 7.6 percent last month, according to the Labor Department.

"But the broadest official measure of unemployment, the so-called 'U-6', rose from 13.8 percent to 14.3 percent in June," Goodman said. "This measure includes the unemployed and workers who want to work but have given up looking and those working part-time for economic reasons. Thus, while the recovery continues, it is continuing to leave troublingly high numbers of American workers behind."

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Hyundai does luxury right

The 2013 Azera, which is slotted between Hyundai's Sonata and Genesis, is one of six sedans in the Korean automaker's 10-model lineup. I'm amazed that Hyundai offers that many models, but I shouldn't be surprised, Hyundais are everywhere you look these days. But with all those models, it's difficult to distinguish the Azera from the others.

The Azera's $33,000 base price puts the sedan in direct competition with the Ford Taurus, Nissan Maxima and Buick LaCrosse. Our test model included a technology package that hiked the price up to $37,000, which certainly doesn't make the Azera a bargain, but it remains competitive when you consider that the sedan is loaded with luxury features.

Dual-zone climate controls, heated seats throughout, and touch screen navigation with a back-up camera are all part of the Azera's standard equipment package. Power seat adjustments mounted near the door handles made it easy to see the controls and tweak the driver's seat positions. Interior space was ample with plenty of head and foot room in the backseat.

The Azera's $4,000 technology package included ventilated front seats that cooled the Azera's leather interior after it baked in the June sun. Rear and side window sunshades also helped keep the sedan cool. The shades also gave the Azera's two-tone camel and black interior an upscale feel. A panoramic tilt and slide sunroof opened up the roof for both front and backseat passengers. Xenon headlights and a powerful Infinity stereo rounded out the package. While these features were appreciated, if I were buying an Azera, I think I'd hold on to the extra $4,000.

Our test Azera was painted in a bronze metallic with plenty of chrome trim and was set on 19-inch wheels. A push-button-ignition turned over the sedan's 3.3 liter V6 engine that produced 293 horsepower. The engine and 6-speed transmission combined to return 23 mpg overall. The Azera's acceleration was smooth with a comfortable ride quality and had minimal road noise. While the Azera's front-wheel drive is welcome for winter driving in New England, it did hinder the sedan's handling.

If you're considering a Sonata, the Azera might be worth a look. The extra $10,000 gets you more room and a cabin loaded with luxury touches. Better performance and handling can be found with the rear-wheel-drive Genesis that offers a choice of a V6 or a V8 engine mated to an 8-speed automatic. The Genesis has a base price of $35,000.

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Egyptian unrest trips hike in crude oil prices

Crude oil prices surged yesterday on a better-than-expected U.S. jobs report and concern about escalating unrest and violence in Egypt.

U.S. crude oil futures hit a 14-month high, climbing more than $1.98 per barrel to close at $103.22, after hitting a peak of $103.32. Brent crude for August delivery, meanwhile, touched a three-month high of $107.88 and settled at $107.72, up $2.18.

Oil has been on a fairly strong, bullish trend over the past two weeks, according to Addison Armstrong, senior director of market research at energy investment advisors Tradition Energy in Stamford, Conn.

"(The) unemployment report was just another in a recent series of good macro-economic data about the U.S. economy, which also helps support the view that demand for oil will increase," Armstrong told the Herald.

The job growth suggests a stronger economy makes it more likely the Federal Reserve will slow its bond purchases, which have kept interest rates low, boosting investments such as stocks and oil.

In Egypt, meanwhile, protests over the ouster of Egyptian president Mohammed Morsi turned violent.

Those headlines also helped to support the bullish momentum, Armstrong said.

Egypt is not an oil-producer, but its control of the Suez Canal, one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies.

But, Armstrong added, "I don't think professional traders have any expectation of serious disruption of oil from the Middle East because of the potential closure of the Suez Canal."

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Set loft-y goals in sunny JP unit

Carved out of a former carriage factory in Jamaica Plain, this authentic-looking loft has brick walls throughout and gets lots of light from a wall of front-facing windows.

Unit 9 at 172 Green St. is one of 14 units in a former brick carriage factory built by Hub entrepreneur Patrick Meehan in 1880 in the Brookside industrial area of Jamaica Plain, near the Green Street Orange Line T station.

The building was converted into condos in 1999-2000 in a way that preserved much of the original brick-and beam look, but with new windows and systems.

The 1,677-square-foot loft, which has a walled-off bedroom and a granite and cherrywood kitchen added in 2006, is on the market for $699,000.

The unit is dominated by one long room with areas for a living room, dining space and a home office. The 10-foot ceilings and columns feature original wood beams and the refinished floors are dark-stained maple.

This open area gets lots of light from 10 front-facing windows and three side windows, all with brick arches overhead.

The living room has a center gas fireplace fed by a metal duct, part of a network of ductwork across the ceiling.

A set of wood beams sets off a dining area with contemporary lighting overhead.

And there's another area in the large room currently used as a home office.

Off the dining area is the unit's large full bathroom with granite floors, a Corian-topped vanity and a one-piece Fiberglas shower.

Adjacent is a laundry/utility room with a stacked Kenmore washer and dryer. There's also a good amount of pantry and storage space in this room that also holds the unit's forced-hot-air-by-gas heating and an electric central air-conditioning system added in 2004.

Perpendicular to the home office area is the kitchen, redone in 2006. The kitchen has cherrywood cabinets, some with glass fronts, and absolute black granite counters, including an area with a breakfast bar. There's overhead and pendant lighting and refinished maple floors.

The owners also added stainless-steel appliances, including a high-end DCS gas stove, an LG refrigerator and a Bosch dishwasher.

Off the kitchen, the current owners built a wall with custom woodwork in 2006 to create a private 16-by-13-foot bedroom whose entrance features two glass doors with transom windows and track lights above. The bedroom has brick walls and two front-facing windows. There's also a double-door closet.

An added amenity is that the unit comes with a good-sized private storage room in the building's basement.

There's a common outdoor patio in the back of the building, where there's also parking. The unit comes with one deeded parking space.

Broker: Denise Smigielski of McCormack & Scanlan Real Estate at 617-905-2098

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NSA’s surveillance program blasted by Hub demonstrators

Protesters used the Fourth of July reading of the Declaration of Independence at the Old State House in Boston yesterday to launch a daylong demonstration against the National Security Agency surveillance program and companies that they said help facilitate it by handing over private information to the government.

More than 100 protesters chanted, "Restore the Fourth (Amendment)," which guards against unreasonable searches and seizures and requires any warrant to be judicially sanctioned and supported by probable cause.

"I believe we need to get back to believing in the Constitution and our rights, and this is a great day to come out as an American," said Bryan Gallant, 29, of Leominster. "I don't agree with the NSA's tactics. Spying on Americans is unconstitutional."

Nate Barr, a 31-year-old entrepreneur and Web developer from Somerville, said domestic surveillance could put him and other business owners at a competitive disadvantage.

"Easily half of your (Web) traffic comes from international visitors, who may decide to use a foreign company over you because of their lack of trust in American businesses," Barr said. "There goes our industry."

Other protesters, some of whom carried signs bearing NSA leaker Edward Snowden's photo, called him a "true patriot" and a "textbook case of a whistleblower" whom President Obama should pardon for bringing the domestic surveillance program to light. Snowden is believed to be stuck in a transit area at a Moscow airport, seeking asylum from one of more than a dozen countries.

"It used to be that political dissidents fled to the United States," said Matthew Krawitz, 42, of Swampscott. "Now they flee from the United States."

Krawitz and other protesters made their way toward Downtown Crossing, where they demonstrated outside Verizon, AT&T and Sprint, accusing them of facilitating government surveillance of U.S. citizens. Managers at all three stores declined to comment.

Yesterday's street demonstration — one of several around the nation — coincided with an online protest organized by the Internet Defense League, a coalition of thousands of websites that formed after the Internet blackout against the Stop Online Piracy Act.

Sites displayed a message saying they stood by the Fourth Amendment and against the government's unconstitutional surveillance of Internet users. More than 13,000 people sent out a tweet with the same message, reaching a total of more than 9 million people.

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The Ticker

Central banks send signal on interest rates

European central bankers broke new ground to protect their economies from a U.S.-led surge in bond yields, indicating they will keep benchmark interest rates low for longer than investors bet.

With rising market borrowing costs posing fresh threats to weak expansions, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney and European Central Bank President Mario Draghi gave greater clarity over their monetary policy thinking in the hope financial markets will correct.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghi said, "It is important to acknowledge that there are limits to what monetary policy can achieve."

The pound and euro slid against the dollar, while bonds and stocks rose as both officials used rhetoric to distance themselves from Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's signal that the U.S. is preparing to start unwinding its $85-billion-a-month bond-buying program later this year.

Zynga lure$ CEO from Microsoft

Struggling Web game maker Zynga gave new CEO Don Mattrick a $5 million signing bonus and stock awards valued at $40 million to lure him away from his previous job overseeing Microsoft's Xbox console for video games.

Mattrick's compensation package also includes a $1 million annual salary and a guaranteed bonus of about $1 million this year, according to a regulatory filing.

Security hole puts 99 percent of 
Android's 900 million phones at risk

Mobile security startup Bluebox Security has unearthed a vulnerability in Android's security model which it says means that the nearly 900 million Android phones released in the past four years could be exploited, or some 99 percent of Android devices. Bluebox intends to detail the flaw at the Black Hat USA conference at the end of this month, but in the meanwhile it's written a blog delving into some detail.

TODAY

 Labor Department releases employment data for June.

 FORGE Worldwide adds Amanda Hines, left, to the new position of account supervisor. Hines will take on responsibility for several agency accounts including Rockland Trust and Spaulding Rehabilitation Network. Hines joins the agency from Roundarch Isobar in Boston where she spent two years as a senior account executive.

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Dinner-to-go from work is easily done

When Kelly Schaefer's five male friends hired a personal chef to cook for them once a week, passing along his recipes and prepping the ingredients for them as he went, Schaefer saw them transformed into "gourmet chefs" with very little effort.

"I wanted to see how I could do that for the everyday person, without the cost of hiring a personal chef," she said.

So Schaefer, 27, teamed up earlier this year with fellow Harvard Business School student Heidi Kim and founded Easily to deliver ready-to-cook meal kits to companies for employees to take home without ever having to stop at the grocery store.

"We were often talking about issues of work-life balance, especially for women, and thinking about our futures as professional women and, one day, as mothers," said Kim, 25. "We thought this would allow us to impact the lives of people juggling careers and home life."

The startup accelerator and competition MassChallenge thought so too and chose Easily as one of 128 finalists out of a field of 1,200 entrants to compete for 
$1.3 million in prizes.

Using about $20,000 from an HBS grant and an International Business Model Competition in which they placed third out of 1,300 teams, the two hired a chef and enlisted a core team of volunteers: a CTO, a COO and an engineering intern to build their online platform. Together, they expect to officially launch their program in two to three weeks with two companies.

People will order in the morning at eatingeasily.com, and the meal kits, which cost between $10 and $15, will be delivered to their offices by 4 p.m.

Samplings from Easily's still-evolving menu include panko-crusted salmon with asparagus and Parmesan, flank steak in a smoky marinade with minty cous cous, and manchego mushroom quesadilla with summer corn and tomato salad.

"Part of the challenge has been dumbing down delicious meals so all you have to do is enjoy them," Kim said. "Kelly and I love to eat but aren't the best of cooks, so if it passes the test with us, that's a success."

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Asian markets up on Europe, US policy optimism

BANGKOK — Optimism that easy European and U.S. monetary policy will continue boosted Asian stock markets Friday as investors awaited a key American jobs report later in the day.

The prospect of continued monetary stimulus helped offset worries earlier in the week of a Chinese slowdown, European debt woes re-emerging and disruption of energy markets due to the military ouster of Egypt's president.

Hong Kong and Taiwanese stocks posted the biggest gains in morning trade and most other major indexes were in positive territory after the European Central Bank kept its policy interest rate at a record low to combat a persistent recession and its President Mario Draghi said the rate will remain there "for an extended period of time."

The European statement plus indications that the U.S. economy is growing — but probably not fast enough for the U.S. Federal Reserve to rush into tapering off its purchases of $85 billion in bonds each month to keep interest rates low — boosted markets that had been spooked in recent weeks at the prospect of such stimulus ending.

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 was up 1.3 percent to 14,194.39. Hong Kong's Hang Seng added 1.4 percent to 20,753.62 and Taipei's TAIEX was up 1.4 percent to 8,003.77. Sydney's S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.7 percent to 4,829.10. Seoul's KOSPI was in negative territory, edging down 0.1 percent to 1,837.32.

The Asian gains followed a strong rally in Europe that was sparked by the ECB's statement and the Bank of England's announcement that speculation it would raise rates was unwarranted.

Britain's FTSE 100 index jumped 3.1 percent to close at 6,421.67 while Germany's DAX rose 2.1 percent to 7,994.31. France's CAC 40 gained 2.9 percent to 3,809.31. Wall Street was closed Thursday for the Independence Day holiday.

Investors were also waiting for a U.S. government jobs report due Friday. Earlier in the week, Wall Street rallied after ADP, a payrolls processor, said that businesses added more jobs last month than analysts had expected. If the U.S. government confirms that Friday, it offers hope that the American recovery is continuing.

The strength of the jobs report may also offer clues to what the Federal Reserve will do next.

Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at Interactive Investor, noted that while physical exchanges were closed in the U.S. on Thursday, futures were still trading, and they indicate Wednesday's rally could continue, with Dow Jones Industrial Index futures now trading above 15,000. The index closed at 14,988.50 Wednesday.

"Whether this can be sustained will clearly be reflected by what's happening on a global basis," he said in a market commentary. "The situation in Egypt remains hugely sensitive, whilst resurgent eurozone woes could knock sentiment."

The price of oil this week passed $100 per barrel due to events in the Middle East: Egypt's military overthrew Mohammed Morsi, the country's first democratically elected president, after he defied calls to resign despite the demands of millions of protesters.

Egypt is not an oil producer but its control of the Suez canal — one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, which links the Mediterranean with the Red Sea — gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies.

High energy costs act as a drag on economic growth, but oil has eased somewhat from its Wednesday highs and on Friday was down 18 cents to $101.06 in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

In currencies, the euro was down slightly at $1.2899. The dollar rose to 100.28 yen from 100.23 yen late Thursday.

____

Toby Sterling in Amsterdam contributed to this report.

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Obamacare backers urge gov to keep state business fine

Bay State business leaders yesterday welcomed the one-year delay in a requirement in President Obama's new health care law that employers provide their workers with insurance or face fines, but health care proponents called on Gov. Deval Patrick to veto part of the state budget that would repeal a penalty on business owners who don't comply with the state's health care reform law.

"Nationally, the ACA (Affordable Care Act) is vulnerable to attack," Amy Whitcomb Slemmer, executive director of Health Care for All, wrote to the governor yesterday. "In light of the federal delay in enforcing employer requirements, it is particularly important that Massachusetts hold strong in its commitment to shared responsibility."

The Treasury Department on Tuesday announced that penalties for businesses not providing health coverage will now begin in 2015, a delay the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce called a "welcome surprise."

Meanwhile, the governor is considering a budget provision eliminating a $295 per employee assessment that employers who don't provide insurance have been paying since 2006.

Kristen Lepore of the Associated Industries of Massachusetts said the measure would reduce the administrative burden on employers and make way for the federal health law, which has larger penalties.

If the governor repeals the state provision, employers who don't provide health insurance may face no penalty for 18 months. The Executive Office for Administration and Finance said it was reviewing the issue.

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Pol: Fireworks ban ‘absurd’

The Bay State is losing millions of dollars in possible tax revenue each year, according to one state lawmaker, because of its archaic ban on fireworks as neighboring states make a killing on sparklers, fire crackers and bottle rockets.

"The prohibition on them is absurd," state Sen. Robert Hedlund (R-Weymouth) said. "It's obviously not stopping people from partaking in a long-standing tradition."

Hedlund said the state loses an estimated $2 million in taxes annually to states such as New Hampshire, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Maine that have legalized fireworks to varying degrees. The Bay State is one of four states that ban all consumer fireworks.

"It's estimated we lose about $40 million in yearly sales," Hedlund said.

He is the latest lawmaker to try to overturn the ban — a transportation tax bill amendment he sponsored in April was shot down 1-31.

Hedlund proposed giving cities and towns a local option to license sales.

"State government is dominated by paternalistic, nanny-state oppressive, anti-freedom policy makers, so I was trying a limited approach," he said.

Fireworks is a booming industry: U.S. sales grew 127 percent since 1998 to $645 million in 2012, according to the American Pyrotechnics Association.

"It can be pretty significant money for a state," said Julie Heckman, executive director of the APA.

In its first year after legalizing low-grade fireworks in 2010, Rhode Island reported collecting $2.5 million in taxes, according to the APA. Meanwhile, Maine, which legalized fireworks last year, collected $380,000 in taxes in the 12 months through May 31 on sales of $7.6 million, more than triple the initial revenue estimates.

Massachusetts, meanwhile, has hewed since 1943 to a model fireworks law promoted by Quincy's National Fire Protection Association, with state Fire Marshal Stephen Coan as its staunchest advocate.

"The Fire Service, along with a very strong coalition of medical professionals … is opposed to any attempt to weaken or change the laws," Coan said. "It's clearly safety."

But the APA argues that when consumer fireworks are legal, the number of injuries and fires decrease.

"People who are breaking the law tend to do this activity very quickly ... and that's when then most mishaps and fires occur."

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The Ticker

Expansion at Patriot Place

The Kraft Group has secured approval for an expansion at Patriot Place that would add a 122-room hotel, quick-service restaurant and CVS to the Foxboro shopping center next to Gillette Stadium. There's no word on a construction timeline or cost of the project endorsed by the Foxboro Planning Board last week.

The development will replace 600 parking spaces between the North and South Markets of Patriot Place, which opened in 2007 and features 1.3 million-plus square feet of stores, restaurants and entertainment venues.

Unemployment rate up in region

The unemployment rate in New England ticked up in May but remains considerably lower than the national rate. The New England Information Office of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics said yesterday the rate for the six-state region was 6.9 percent, up from 6.8 percent in April. A year ago, the rate in New England was 7.3 percent. The national unemployment rate for May was 7.6 percent.

Rhode Island and Connecticut had the highest jobless rates in the region in May, 8.9 percent and 8 percent, respectively. Maine's rate was 6.8 percent, Massachusetts' was 6.6 percent, New Hampshire's was 5.3 percent and Vermont's was 4.1 percent.

Oil prices highest in 14 months

The price of oil rose to its highest level in 14 months yesterday on concerns about possible disruptions to Middle East supplies and signs of an increase in U.S. demand for fuel. U.S. benchmark oil gained $1.64 to $101.24, its highest close since May 3, 2012. Brent crude, which is used to price oil used by many U.S. refineries to make gasoline, rose $1.76 to finish at $105.76.

TODAY

• U.S. stock and bond market is closed for Independence Day.
• European Central Bank's governing council meets to set monetary policy for the eurozone.

TOMORROW

• Labor Department releases June employment data for June.

THE SHUFFLE

• Cherrytree Group, a diversified real estate services company headquartered in Newton, has named Melina Ambrosino, left, as operations manager/tax credit professional. In this dual role, Ambrosino oversees operations of the company, working with all aspects of the various tax credit incentive programs in Massachusetts. Her primary focus since joining the Cherrytree Group has been on the Massachusetts Brownfields Tax Credit program.

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Upbeat US jobs report buoys Asian stocks

BANGKOK — Encouraging news on the US economy boosted most Asian stock markets Thursday as investors followed Wall Street's lead in shrugging off political turmoil in Egypt and worrying developments in Europe's debt crisis.

Hong Kong's Hang Seng led the modest rally, jumping 1.8 percent to 20,508.02 after reports that fewer Americans sought unemployment benefits last week and ADP, a payrolls processor, said that businesses added more jobs last month than analysts had expected.

China's Shanghai Composite rose 1 percent to 2,013.49. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up 0.9 percent to 4,786.60. Jakarta's JSX was up 1.3 percent to 4,638.11 while South Korea's Kospi edged up 0.3 percent to 1,830.52.

The employment news, added to a muted report on U.S. manufacturing growth, was good enough to restore confidence that the American economic recovery s is on track — but probably not strong enough yet for the Federal Reserve to pull back on its stimulus program.

With Wall Street closed on Thursday for the Independence Day holiday, investors will be watching the U.S. government's jobs report Friday in hopes of figuring out what the Federal Reserve will do next.

Over the past few weeks, markets have sputtered amid speculation that the Fed might taper off its policy of buying $85 billion in bonds every month to keep interest rates low and encourage spending.

"We have had a period of extreme volatility, and now we have some settling going on," said Lorraine Tan, director at Standard & Poor's equity research in Singapore. "I think there's a realization that the reaction may have been overdone."

Tokyo's Nikkei 225 bucked Thursday's trend, edging down 0.1 percent to 14,046.85. Taiwain's TAIEX was also nearly flat, up 0.1 percent to 7,914.35.

Asia's mild rally came after Wall Street also entered positive territory, despite Egypt's political crisis and worries over Europe's dormant debt crisis erupting again.

In Europe, stock markets slumped as Portugal's government teetered on the edge of collapse. Investors worried about the future of the bailed-out country and its efforts to get a handle on its debt after two Cabinet members quit.

Investors around the world were also keeping a close watch on the oil price after Egypt's military overthrew the country's first democratically elected president, Mohammed Morsi, who had defied calls to resign despite the demands of millions of protesters.

Egypt is not an oil producer but its control of the Suez canal — one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, which links the Mediterranean with the Red Sea — gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up 7 cents to $101.31 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The day before it climbed to nearly $102, its highest level in more than a year.

In currencies, the euro rose 0.2 percent to $1.2993. The dollar slipped to 99.75 yen from 99.97 yen.

____

Pan Pylas in London contributed to this report.

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Asia stocks slide as oil jumps on Egypt crisis

BANGKOK — Asian stocks slid on Wednesday as Egypt's unfolding political crisis pushed the price of oil to its highest level in more than a year, adding to an uncertain global economic outlook.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was up $2.20 to $101.80 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest since early May last year.

Japan's Nikkei 225 edged down 0.1 percent to 14,081.35 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng dropped 1.8 percent to 20,281.62. Seoul's Kospi was down 1 percent to 1836.24. In China, the Shanghai Composite lost 1.3 percent to 1,979.98. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 fell by 2.1 percent to 4,732.40.

The sell-off came as embattled Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi vowed not to resign despite the demands of millions of protesters and a threat by military to suspend the constitution, disband parliament and install a new leadership.

Egypt is not an oil producer but its control of the Suez canal — one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, which links the Mediterranean with the Red Sea — gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies.

"Crude oil prices rallied up, and now some airline shares are down quite significantly," said Dickie Wong, executive director of research at Kingston Securities Ltd. in Hong Kong.

Airlines are most immediately affected by changes in energy prices since fuel accounts for a large share of their expenses, but a sustained rise in oil prices could have a ripple effect on the global economy which is already beset by a recession in Europe and a shaky recovery in China.

"It definitely depends on the situation in Egypt now," Wong said.

The Egyptian crisis offset positive signs that the U.S. economy is slowly rebounding, causing American stocks to end slightly lower Tuesday after a morning rally.

The Standard & Poor's 500 closed down 0.88 point, or 0.1 percent, at 1,614.08 The Dow Jones industrial average fell 42.55 points, or 0.3 percent, to close at 14,932.41. The Nasdaq slipped 1.09 points, a fraction of a percentage point, to 3,433.40

In currencies, the euro fell slightly to $1.3000 from $1.3020 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar slipped to 100.69 yen from 100.77 yen.

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Mitsubishi UFJ to buy Thai bank for $5.6 billion

BANGKOK — Japanese megabank Mitsubishi UFJ said it plans to buy a 75 percent stake in Thailand's Bank of Ayudhya for about $5.6 billion.

Mitsubishi UFJ said in a statement Tuesday it has an agreement with GE Capital to buy its 25 percent stake in Bank of Ayudhya and will make an offer to other shareholders to secure a majority shareholding in the Thai lender.

It said it will work with Ratanarak Group, an existing group of shareholders who own about a quarter of Bank of Ayudhya, on the next stage of its development.

The Japanese financial giant said it wants to expand its commercial banking business in Asia and the investment in Bank of Ayudhya will be a platform for that.

Japanese companies are among the biggest foreign investors in Thailand, which serves as a regional production base for automakers such as Toyota Motor Corp.

Mitsubishi UFJ said the takeover offer is likely to be formally launched in November and is subject to regulatory approvals.

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Officials say 3rd day of strike likely

SAN FRANCISCO — San Francisco Bay area commuters should prepare for a third day of transit disruptions as labor discussions with rail workers have not yet yielded an agreement, transit officials said late Tuesday.

With talks going on throughout evening, the Bay Area Rapid Transit agency said there was no indication striking workers would return Wednesday.

Talks continued late into the evening with no sign of stopping, BART spokesman Rick Rice said.

Negotiations resumed as political pressure mounted for a settlement. In a letter, the state controller, lieutenant governor and insurance commissioner urged both sides to return to the bargaining table.

Evan Westrup, a spokesman for Gov. Jerry Brown, said the state was sending two of its top mediators — the chair of the Public Employment Relations Board and the chief of the State Mediation and Conciliation Service — to facilitate further talks.

Negotiations were scheduled to start at 6 p.m. between the Bay Area Rapid Transit agency and the two largest unions representing train workers. Calls seeking comment from the agency and unions were not immediately returned.

The letter from the Democratic state officials said the strike has caused "widespread personal hardship and severe economic disruption," and it noted they were disappointed "about the lack of productive proposals and counterproposals in the days leading up to the strike."

The Bay Area Council, a business-sponsored public policy advocacy organization, estimated the strike was costing the region $73 million a day in diminished productivity by workers delayed in traffic or forced into longer commutes using other forms of transit.

The figure was based on state and regional data, anecdotal evidence of commute times, and assumptions about how many people telecommute, said Rufus Jeffris, a spokesman for the group.

Stephen Levy, director of the Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy in Palo Alto, countered that the disruption might be annoying but the impact is minimal on the $600 billion a year regional economy.

"There are no permanent losses," he said. "People work from home, people work harder later the next day or make it up later. The money not being spent in San Francisco remains in the pockets of people who can spend it at home."

Commutes in the region were thrown into chaos when the strike began early Monday after talks with management broke down.

BART is the nation's fifth-largest rail system and carries passengers from the furthest reaches of San Francisco's densely populated eastern suburbs to San Francisco International Airport across the bay.

Freeways have choked to a standstill. Lines for ferry service tripled, and boats were crammed to standing-room only.

Buses were stuffed with riders who felt fortunate to be on board as many commuters were literally left in the dust when buses zoomed by without as much as a honk or an explanation.

About a hundred people waited single-file at the downtown Berkeley bus station. Some had watched multiple full buses cruise by for hours.

"It's already starting to wear on people," said Hilary Hartman, who arrived at San Francisco's Transbay Terminal at 6:45 a.m. Her boss sent her home to work an hour later when she was unable to get on a bus.

"You see the buses trickling in from the East Bay, and it's standing-room only, and people's faces are not super happy when they're getting off," Hartman said.

BART, with 44 stations in four counties and 104 miles of lines, handles more than 40 percent of commuters coming from the East Bay to San Francisco, said John Goodwin, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission.

Transit authorities have made accommodations to help during the strike, including longer carpool lane hours and additional ferries and buses. BART doubled the number of buses serving West Oakland to 36 on Tuesday.

The striking unions and management reported being far apart on key issues including salary, pensions, health care and safety.

The unions, which represent nearly 2,400 train operators, station agents, mechanics, maintenance workers and professional staff, want a 5 percent raise each year over the next three years.

BART said union train operators and station agents average about $71,000 in base salary and $11,000 in overtime annually. The workers also pay a flat $92 monthly fee for health insurance.

___

Associated Press writers Lisa Leff and Martha Mendoza contributed to this report.

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Markets roiled by oil prices spike, Portugal woes

LONDON — Financial markets were roiled Wednesday as Egypt's unfolding political crisis pushed the price of oil to its highest level in more than a year and Portugal's government teetered on the edge of collapse.

While the benchmark New York oil price rose above $100 a barrel for the first time since last May, stocks around the world were piling up the losses, particularly in Portugal where the main PSI stock index was trading 5.4 percent lower after two leading Cabinet members quit the government.

The interest yield on the country's benchmark 10-year bond also spiked nearly a percentage point higher to 7.36 percent, a clear signal that investors are fretting about the future of the bailed-out country and its efforts to get a handle on its debts. There are fears that other Cabinet members will quit over the government's austerity program and that may signal early elections and ensuing uncertainty.

"It looks as if we could be headed for another summertime crisis in the eurozone, as Portugal's government crumbles and bond yields spike," said David Madden, market analyst at IG.

In Europe, stock markets everywhere were down sharply. The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was down 1.7 percent at 6,199 while Germany's DAX fell the same rate to 7,775. The CAC-40 in France was 1.6 percent lower at 3,682.

Wall Street was poised for a weak opening, with Dow futures and the broader S&P 500 futures 0.6 percent lower. U.S. stock markets will close at 1 p.m. on Wednesday ahead of the Independence Day holiday on Thursday and will re-open Friday.

The main focus of interest later will be on the monthly report from private payrolls firm ADP for any clues ahead of Friday's official nonfarm payrolls data.

"This could well exacerbate the volatility but ultimately with so much uncertainty in play it's going to be difficult to avoid the temptation to keep taking money off the table," said Mike McCudden, head of derivatives at Interactive Investor.

Ahead of the ADP figures, the dollar was trading steadily against the euro, which was 0.1 percent lower at $1.2962.

Earlier, Asian markets also closed lower with Japan's Nikkei 225 down 0.3 percent to 14,055.56 as the yen rallied against the dollar — a rising yen is a sign investors are wary but it makes Japanese goods more expensive in export markets. The dollar was 1.1 percent lower at 99.72 yen.

Elsewhere in Asia, Hong Kong's Hang Seng shed 2.5 percent to 20,147.31 while Seoul's Kospi fell 1.6 percent to 1824.66. In China, the Shanghai Composite lost 0.6 percent to 1,994.27 following disappointing manufacturing data.

The sell-off came as embattled Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi vowed not to resign despite the demands of millions of protesters and a threat by military to suspend the constitution, disband parliament and install a new leadership.

Egypt is not an oil producer but its control of the Suez canal — one of the world's busiest shipping lanes, which links the Mediterranean with the Red Sea — gives it a crucial role in maintaining global energy supplies.

The benchmark New York rate was up $1.47 at $101.05 a barrel.

____

Kay Johnson in Bangkok contributed to this report.

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Fenway plays defense

The Red Sox are beefing up perimeter security at Fenway Park to defend the historic ball field from terrorist car-bomb attacks.

Fifty-four security bollards will be installed in front of Gates B and C to prevent explosive-laden vehicles from being driven into the park during events.

"The weapon of choice for terrorists is still … to (take) a vehicle laden with explosives and drive it into a building," said Charlie Cellucci, Fenway's director of security and emergency services. "That happens quite frequently in other parts of the world. It's just steps to prevent that at Fenway Park."

The concrete-encased steel barriers, in the planning stages before April's Boston Marathon bombings, were among recommendations that emerged from a December security assessment of Fenway conducted with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

Gates B and C are considered Fenway's most vulnerable areas for threats, according to Cellucci. Car traffic on Ipswich Street, for example, flows directly at Gate B. "(It) could continue on a straight path right into that gate," he said. "Gate C was selected because of the large number of fans that would be affected by an incident at that ... gate."

While the Red Sox conduct yearly risk assessments of Fenway, December's DHS assessment was a first. Major League Baseball has asked all clubs to obtain SAFETY (Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies) Act certification from the DHS, Cellucci noted.

The Red Sox, which are paying for the bollards, are going through city permitting with the goal of completing the first-phase installation by Aug. 15.

"We'll be looking at other vulnerable areas around the perimeter of the ballpark," Cellucci said.

Fenway also beefed up security after the Boston Marathon bombings, a Red Sox spokeswoman said. The Boston Police Department Bomb Squad sweeps the park before every home game and remains on hand with an explosives-sniffing dog.

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Apple thinks it’s time for Web-connected iWatch

Apple has applied for a trademark for the name "iWatch" in Japan, fueling speculation that the company may debut a long-awaited Internet-linked wristwatch in the months ahead.

Apple declined to comment yesterday on the application, which was submitted June 3 and posted on the Japan Patent Office website June 27.

Roger Kay, founder and president of Endpoint Technologies Associates in Wayland, predicted that in the coming months, Apple will debut a watch that will operate on the same iOS platform as the iPhone and iPad, and that offers smartphone functionality and information at a glance.

"This will be just part of a roll-out of a number of new gadgets for the company," Kay said. "Apple fans have been across a long desert in the first half of 2013, with no hardware announcements, but it may be coming to an oasis in the second half where there will be a bunch of them."

Pressure to do that is rising because of the excitement over Google Glass and rumors that Samsung is working on its own Web-enabled watch, said Max Wolff, senior analyst at Greencrest Capital.

"If you're Apple, you certainly don't want to see them go first," Wolff said. "Apple has a chance to reseize the lead."

Carl Howe, vice president of research at Yankee Group, said the company may have registered the name defensively, or it may have a watch-like device to unveil in the future.

"They undoubtedly have a group of people working on something along these lines," Howe said. "But they themselves often don't know whether they have a new product until it's done."

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Oil near $98 as protests rock Egypt government

BANGKOK — Oil hovered near $98 a barrel Tuesday, underpinned by political unrest in Egypt that raised fears of disruption to global crude supplies.

Benchmark crude for August delivery was down 3 cents to $97.96 a barrel at early afternoon Bangkok time in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract jumped $1.43 to close at $97.99 in New York on Monday.

After massive weekend protests in Egypt that continued Monday, the country's military issued an ultimatum to President Mohammed Morsi that gives him 48 hours to meet the demands of the millions who have taken to the streets seeking his ouster.

The ultimatum, rebuffed by Morsi, raised worries on both sides the military could outright take over, as it did after the 2011 ouster of autocrat Hosni Mubarak. It also raised the risk of a backlash from Morsi's Islamist backers, including his powerful Muslim Brotherhood and hard-liners, some of whom once belonged to armed militant groups.

Traders were concerned that the protests in Egypt and the civil war in Syria could affect the production and transport of oil supplies in the Middle East and North Africa.

"Egypt may not be an oil producer, but they are an important passageway for everything from the Middle East to the rest of the world," said Carl Larry of Oil Outlooks in a commentary.

Brent crude was up 12 cents at $103.12 a barrel on the ICE futures exchange in London.

In other energy futures trading on Nymex:

— Natural gas was up 0.2 cent at $3.579 per 1,000 cubic feet.

— Heating oil added 0.3 cent to $2.876 per gallon.

— Wholesale gasoline rose 1.1 cent to $2.745 per gallon.

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Global shares directionless amid poor Europe data

PARIS — Global shares struggled to find direction Tuesday as indications Europe's economy is still in trouble competed with hopes that the U.S. central bank wasn't quite finished with its stimulus.

Industrial producer prices fell 0.3 percent in May in the 17 European Union countries that use the euro, Eurostat reported Tuesday. While that shows costs are falling, it also indicates manufacturing activity remains weak.

Meanwhile, Spain announced Tuesday that the number of people registered as unemployed dropped for a fourth consecutive month in June — but the country has a long way to go to bring its jobless rate down to normal levels. It currently stands at 27.2 percent.

A separate report on Monday showed the unemployment rate in the eurozone was at 12.1 percent in May, its highest level ever.

"While the European economy appears to be starting to show flickers of recovery particularly in Spain and Italy where the manufacturing sector appears to be showing signs of coming off life support, the unemployment picture remains disturbingly high," said Michael Hewson, a market analyst at CMC Markets UK.

By midday in Europe, France's CAC-40 was down 0.9 percent to 3,735 while the DAX in Germany was off 1.2 percent to 7,885. The FTSE index of British shares dropped 0.6 percent at 6,269.

By contrast, lackluster data in the U.S. comforted American and many Asian markets over the past day — since it indicated the U.S. Federal Reserve would move slowly to reduce its purchases of financial assets that have buoyed markets by pushing down interest rates.

On Monday, Wall Street rallied after an ISM manufacturing survey for the U.S. that showed a weak rebound in June thanks to new orders and higher production. The survey boosted stock markets as investors estimated it was strong enough to show the recovery is on track, but not so strong as to encourage the Fed to start ending its monetary stimulus program ahead of time.

U.S. markets were expected to open higher Tuesday. Dow and S&P futures were both up 0.2 percent, at 14,914 1,610.20 respectively.

Many Asian stocks rose earlier in the day. Tokyo's Nikkei 225, the region's heavyweight index, jumped 1.8 percent to 14,098.74. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was up 2.6 percent at 4,834.00 after the country's central bank left interest rates unchanged and said the Australian dollar is likely to continue falling, easing pressure on exports.

In China, the Shanghai Composite Index reversed early losses to rise 0.6 percent to 2,006.56 after reports on Monday that Chinese manufacturing weakened in June amid a credit crunch. Hong Kong's Hang Seng fell 0.7 percent to 20,658.65, led by Chinese banks, which are facing central bank credit restrictions.

Meanwhile, benchmark oil for August delivery rose 16 cents to $98.15 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.43 to close at $97.99 a barrel on Monday.

The euro fell to $1.3030 from $1.3065 late Monday in New York.

___

Associated Press writer Kay Johnson in Bangkok contributed to this report.

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The Ticker

Yahoo to close Maynard's AltaVista search engine

Yahoo is shuttering a dozen of its products and services, including the once-popular search engine AltaVista.
AltaVista was one of the Web's earliest search engines, having launched in 1995 in Maynard, but it lost ground to then-chief rival Yahoo and later Google after the burst of the dotcom bubble.
Yahoo bought AltaVista when purchasing the search engine's parent company, Overture.
AltaVista is slated to be closed on July 8.

Onyx rejects Amgen's buyout bid

Onyx Pharmaceuticals said yesterday it rejected an unsolicited takeover bid from Amgen for $120 per share, saying the offer "significantly undervalued" the company. Onyx also said that other companies have expressed interest in a buyout, and that its board authorized its financial adviser, Centerview Partners, to contact potential suitors. The company's Nexavar, which treats liver and kidney cancer, is approved in more than 100 countries, and injection medication Kyprolis is used as a treatment for multiple myeloma.

TODAY

• Institute for Supply Management releases its manufacturing index for June.
• Commerce Department releases construction spending for May.

TOMORROW

• Commerce Department releases factory orders for May.
• Automakers release vehicle sales for June.

WEDNESDAY

• Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims.
• Freddie Mac releases weekly mortgage rates
• Institute for Supply Management releases its service sector index for June.

THURSDAY

• U.S. stock and bond market is closed for Independence Day.
• European Central Bank's governing council meets to set monetary policy for the eurozone.

FRIDAY

• Labor Department releases June employment data.

Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in New England has announced that Katherine McKnight has been appointed sales manager of the company's Salem office. McKnight will be responsible for the day-to-day sales and operations of approximately 20 sales associates serving Salem, Danvers, Peabody and the surrounding North Shore communities.

Fenway Sports Management, the sports marketing agency of Fenway Sports Group, announced that Jennifer Flynn has been named general counsel. She will continue to serve the Boston Red Sox as senior vice president and assistant general counsel. Flynn will oversee FSM's strategic legal initiatives.

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China's manufacturing weakens in credit crunch

BEIJING — China's manufacturing weakened again in June amid a credit crunch and slower U.S. and European orders, two surveys showed Monday, adding to signs that growth in the world's second-largest economy is decelerating.

HSBC's purchasing managers' index declined to 48.2 from May's 49.2 on a 50-point scale on which numbers below 50 show a contraction. A separate measure by an industry group, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing, showed activity declined to 50.1 from May's 50.8.

The numbers follow data showing May export growth weakened while retail sales growth failed to meet government projections.

The slowdown in Chinese manufacturing could have global repercussions, depressing demand for iron ore and other commodities from Australia and Brazil and for industrial components from Southeast Asia, Taiwan and South Korea.

Manufacturers were hurt by falling orders and a shortage of credit in June as Chinese regulators try to cool a lending boom they worry could race out of control. A shortage of cash in financial markets caused interest rates paid by banks for loans from other banks to spike to a record high.

"As Beijing refrains from using stimulus, the ongoing growth slowdown is likely to continue in the coming months," said HSBC Corp. economist Hongbin Qu in a statement.

New export orders suffered their sharpest decline in nine months, and manufacturers shed jobs at their fastest rate in 10 months, according to HSBC. Its measure is based on a survey of 420 manufacturing companies.

The logistics federation said its survey also showed production and new export orders declined.

"The June PMI declined, mostly in the main index, indicating the economy in the future will face downward pressure," said economist Zhang Liqun in a statement issued by the federation.

China's economic growth decelerated to 7.7 percent in the first quarter from 7.9 percent the previous quarter. Forecasters have said the clampdown on bank lending could cause growth to dip below 7 percent in coming quarters. That would be China's weakest performance since the early 1990s.

Beijing is in the midst of a marathon campaign to build up self-sustaining economic growth based on domestic consumption instead of investment and exports.

Chinese President Xi Jinping was quoted by state media on Saturday as saying officials should not be judged just by increases in economic output, an indication that China's Communist leaders are prepared to tolerate slower growth.

China's vast industry of privately owned small manufacturers could be hit especially hard by credit controls. Regulators want banks to reduce profitable but risky unreported lending, much of which goes to entrepreneurs who cannot qualify for formal loans.

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SF transit agency warns riders of possible strike

OAKLAND, Calif. — San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit warned that passenger trains may not run Monday after contract talks with its two biggest unions apparently stalled as a midnight deadline approached.

BART has not received official word from the unions about a strike, but it began posting electronic signs at stations and on its social media sites that a strike may begin after the end of Sunday's regularly scheduled service. The move came as BART accused union negotiators of walking away from bargaining table while union negotiators countered that were taking a break.

Representatives for Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555 and Service Employees International Union Local 1021 said the unions told management they had until midnight, when the unions' contracts are set to expire, to offer a new proposal for them to consider.

"If there are no new proposals by midnight, then workers will walk off the job as soon as the trains are safely put to bed," Josie Mooney, a negotiator for the SEIU, told the Associated Press.

BART spokesman Rick Rice declined to comment further.

A strike would cripple the region's Monday morning commute. Transportation officials say another 60,000 vehicles could be on the road, clogging highways and bridges throughout the Bay Area.

As the deadline neared, both sides made an 11th-hour attempt to resume talks Sunday afternoon though they said they were far apart on key sticking points including salary, pensions, health care and safety. Anticipated around-the-clock negotiations had fallen apart Saturday as the unions packed up and left after talks stalled amid claims that the parties met face-to-face once in 36 hours.

Sunday's last-ditch talks also came after Gov. Jerry Brown's secretary of the Labor and Workforce Development Agency, Marty Morgenstern, requested the parties continue negotiating to prevent a work stoppage of the nation's fifth-largest rail system.

"Our team is not encouraged by BART's proposal, but we are going to bargain at the request of the labor secretary in good faith as we have all along," said Josie Mooney, an SEIU chief negotiator. "But if BART continues to do 'surface bargaining,' then we will not come to an agreement."

Brown spokesman Evan Westrup said Sunday that the governor will not call for a "cooling off period at this time" as state mediators will continue assisting the negotiating parties.

"BART and its labor unions owe the public a swift resolution of their differences," Westrup said. "All parties should be at the table doing their best to find common ground."

The two unions, which represent nearly 2,400 train operators, station agents, mechanics, maintenance workers and professional staff, want a 5 percent raise each year over the next three years.

BART said that train operators and station agents in the unions average about $71,000 in base salary and $11,000 in overtime annually. The workers also pay a flat $92 monthly fee for health insurance.

Rice said BART's latest proposal offered a total of an 8 percent salary raise over the next four years, instead of its original offer of a total of 4 percent over the same period. The proposed salary increase is on top of a 1 percent raise employees were scheduled to receive Monday, Rice added.

The transit agency also said it offered to reduce the contribution employees would have to make to their pensions, and lower the costs of health care premiums they would have to pay.

Rice said Sunday that BART's latest proposal may not be its best last offer.

"We need to have some substantial discussions," Rice said. "I hope we can make some progress."

BART's last strike lasted six days in 1997. The transit agency handles more than 40 percent of commuters coming from the East Bay to San Francisco with the Bay Bridge handling another 50 percent said John Goodwin, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Transportation Commission.

Goodwin said commuters should consider carpooling, taking extra buses or ferries available and working from home if the trains stop. And, if commuters must drive to work, leave earlier or even later than usual, he said.

"We simply don't know what the status is," Goodwin said. "Unfortunately, we have to go with the assumption that BART will not be in operation."

Meanwhile, commuters such as Richard Graham, 43, of Pleasant Hill who works as a hotel banquet manager in downtown San Francisco, is left pondering his options, including a three-hour drive to work.

"I can't stop thinking about it," Graham said Sunday as he got off a train. "It would make take me 2 ½ to 3 hours if I drive in to work. Then I've got to find parking, and that might cost me another 40 bucks, if there are any spots left."

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Nokia buys network operations from Siemens

HELSINKI — Nokia said Monday that it will buy Siemens' half of their joint network operations in a 1.7 billion euro ($2.22 billion) deal, sending its shares surging more than 7 percent.

The transaction, to be completed during the third quarter this year, will mean that the joint venture between Nokia Corp. and Germany's Siemens AG will become a wholly owned subsidiary of the Finland-based company. The two companies formed the joint venture in 2007.

Nokia's share price jumped more than 7 percent to 3.04 euros in morning trading in Helsinki, while Siemens stock was up 1.4 percent at 78.77 euros.

Nokia Siemens Networks had been lossmaking for several years amid speculation and rumors that it was an acquisition target. Meanwhile, Nokia also began to struggle with its core production of cellphones, losing its dominant market position.

Nokia's German giant partner, with 370,000 employees worldwide, also has been looking to cut costs.

In November it launched a program aimed at saving 6 billion euros by 2014. It has announced plans to restructure its water business and sell its solar energy business.

In May, the Munich-based industrial conglomerate warned that earnings for its 2013 financial year, which ends in September, would come in at the "low end" of forecasts due to numerous one-time charges and restructuring costs.

Recently, however, Nokia Siemens Networks has shown signs of improvement after restructuring and substantial job cuts, with a small first-quarter operating profit this year compared to a 1 billion euros loss in the same period in 2012.

Nokia chief executive Stephen Elop was upbeat about the company's operational and financial performance and said that the company had also made strides in developing LTE, or long-term evolution, high-speed data.

"Nokia Siemens Networks has established a clear leadership position in LTE, which provides an attractive growth opportunity," Elop said. "Nokia is pleased with these developments and looks forward to continue supporting these efforts to create more shareholder value for the Nokia group."

Nokia, once the dominant cellphone maker, is struggling in the smartphone market against Samsung, Apple's iPhone and handsets that use Google's Android software. It is also being squeezed at the lower end against Asian manufacturers making cheaper handsets.

Nokia said that the operational headquarters of the networks sector will remain in Espoo, near the Finnish capital of Helsinki. But Nokia said, it "will continue to have a strong regional presence in Germany."

The Siemens name will be phased out from Nokia Siemens Networks' company name and branding, with the company's new name to be announced at the closing of the transaction.

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FDA to detain import of firm's pomegranate seeds

WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration plans to detain shipments of pomegranate seeds from a Turkish company when they are offered for import into the U.S. because of a multistate outbreak of hepatitis A illnesses associated with a frozen-food blend containing pomegranate seed mix. Products linked to the illnesses have already been recalled.

The FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have determined that the most likely vehicle for the hepatitis A virus appears to be a common shipment of pomegranate seeds from the Turkish company, Goknur Foodstuffs Import Export Trading, the FDA said in a statement Saturday.

The food company Townsend Farms of Fairview, Ore., used those pomegranate seeds to make the Townsend Farms and Harris Teeter Organic Antioxidant Blends that were recalled in June, the FDA said. Those seeds were also used by Scenic Fruit Co. of Gresham, Ore., to make their recently recalled Woodstock Frozen Organic Pomegranate Kernels, according to the federal agency.

As of Thursday, 127 people in eight states — Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah, and Wisconsin — were reported to have been exposed to Townsend Farms Organic Antioxidant Blend, the FDA said. Those reported ill in Wisconsin were exposed to the product in California.

The illnesses date back to mid-March, the CDC has reported. In early June, Townsend Farms recalled its frozen Organic Antioxidant Blend, packaged under the Townsend Farms label at Costco and under the Harris Teeter brand at those stores.

The outbreak strain of hepatitis A virus, belonging to genotype 1B, was found in clinical specimens of 56 people in seven states, according to a CDC report. That strain is rarely seen in the Americas but circulates in North Africa and the Middle East.

"This outbreak highlights the food safety challenge posed by today's global food system," said Michael R. Taylor, deputy commissioner for foods and veterinary medicine.

"The presence in a single product of multiple ingredients from multiple countries compounds the difficulty of finding the cause of an illness outbreak. The Hepatitis A outbreak shows how we have improved our ability to investigate and respond to outbreaks, but also why we are working to build a food safety system that more effectively prevents them," Taylor said.

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New rule targets drug shortages

Federal regulators, trying to head off drug shortages, are poised to release a proposed rule that would require manufacturers to notify them if they stop or delay production of critical drugs.

The rule would require manufacturers to give the Food and Drug Administration six months' notice before discontinuing or interrupting the production of drugs that are life-sustaining, or that treat or prevent debilitating diseases.

"Early notification of supply disruptions or other potential problems that could lead to a shortage will enable the FDA to work with manufacturers and stakeholders to prevent a shortage or mitigate its impact," said FDA spokesman Christopher C. Kelly.

The FDA will consider public comments before finalizing the rule by Jan. 9.

Last year, there were 117 drug shortages, Kelly said, and the FDA was able to prevent another 282, up from 195 in 2011.

Shortages can be agonizing for patients whose lives hang in the balance.

"For many patients, these drugs are life-saving, so the impact (of a shortage) can be tremendous," said Dr. Jack Erban, clinical director of the Tufts Medical Center Cancer Center and professor of medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine. "We don't have the luxury of delaying. It's already extremely stressful to go through chemotherapy. Any deviation is a major source of anxiety and distress for the patient. Occasionally, drugs have to be substituted, sometimes with ones that are not as effective or that have more side effects."

About two years ago, there was a nationwide shortage of Doxil, which is used to treat ovarian, breast and endometrial cancer.

"It affected a lot of women," said Dr. Michael Birrer, director of gynecologic medical oncology at Massachusetts General Hospital and professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "We switched to prescribing a parent compound, which is more toxic and not as effective."

Birrer doesn't believe the proposed FDA rule goes far enough.

"Why do we have only one company producing a drug?" he said. "Either we need to stimulate the market by providing a bigger profit margin on generic drugs, or the federal government gets into the drug-making business, which I don't think is smart."

Marjorie Moeling, a spokeswoman for Bedford Laboratories, which makes generic injectable drugs, said, "I can tell you that we understand the urgent need for critical medicines and, in partnership with the FDA, are committed to addressing drug shortage and ensuring our products are safe, effective and reach the people who need them."

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A taste of the real world

Faced with a difficult job market and employers demanding more than a traditional skill set, entrepreneurial programs at colleges and universities have more value than ever, students, professors and officials say.

Dozens of student-founded companies take part in business incubators, accelerators and challenges organized by schools, including Harvard University, Emerson College and Babson College.

"I know I would not be this far without the program," said Emerson College senior Jon Allen, winner of this year's E3 Expo at Emerson. Allen is getting ready to launch his line of natural Shirley Temples.

Allen, like many who go through accelerator programs, started with an idea for a business and spent the next two semesters fine-tuning and perfecting it. While improving the business plan, the budding entrepreneurs get exposure to professionals who are able to offer advice about key business skills, such as marketing, presenting to investors and legal issues.

For many involved in these programs, the skills learned are just as important as any potential money students can win.

"It's this concept of getting direct and relatively easy access to resources they need," said Andrew Corbett, faculty director of John E. & Alice L. Butler Venture Accelerator program at Babson College.

"Even people that don't win end up doing great things," said Paul Bottino, founder and executive director of Harvard's I3 challenge.

James DiSabatino, owner of the Roxy's Grilled Cheese food truck in Boston, went through the E3 program when he was an Emerson student, but with a different business idea. Through the program, he figured out that his idea — an environmentally focused shuttle company — was not viable.

"That was the learning experience I needed," he said. "It helped me make those really essential mistakes first."

Sara Gragnolati of Boston was in Babson's accelerator program while pursuing her MBA and launched her soon-to-expand gluten-free food company Cocomama thanks to the program. She said the best part of the program was being surrounded by others who were also trying to start a business.

"When you're looking at and evaluating other business, it also teaches you about your own" she said. "You know people are giving you feedback because they want to help you."

Many students and professors recognize that a new kind of skill set is necessary post-graduation, regardless of the kind of job.

"The reality of working has changed," said Karl Baehr, director of the E3 program. "If you're going to prepare a student for a career today, they have to learn how to think entrepreneurially about their career."

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SF rapid transit talks break down; strike possible

OAKLAND, Calif. — Negotiators for San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit said they planned to show up for contract talks Sunday as union leaders warned workers will likely go on strike, which threatens to cripple the region's Monday morning commute.

Josie Mooney, a negotiator for the Service Employees International Union Local 1021, said there was "a 95 percent chance" that her union and members of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1555 would strike, after contract talks stalled Saturday.

"I'm afraid I don't see a way we will avoid a strike," she said after union leaders left the negotiating table Saturday, claiming they have met with BART's management for only 10 minutes in the past 36 hours. The two unions represent nearly 2,400 train operators, station agents, mechanics, maintenance workers and professional staff.

A walkout could derail the more than 400,000 riders who use the nation's fifth-largest rail system and affect every mode of transportation, clogging highways and bridges throughout the Bay Area. Such a strike could begin Monday after contracts expire at midnight Sunday.

BART spokesman Rick Rice said Saturday says that the agency planned to attend talks scheduled for 11 a.m. Sunday and hoped union representatives will be there.

"The Bay Area is counting on us to come together and meet reasonably in the middle," he said in a statement issued late Saturday. "There is still time. Let's get it done."

Mooney said earlier that the unions have no plans to meet with BART.

Negotiations between BART and the unions had intensified as Sunday night's deadline loomed. Two state mediators were facilitating the negotiations, with each side seated in separate rooms.

As the parties went back to the bargaining table Saturday in Oakland for anticipated around-the-clock sessions, both sides said they were far apart on key sticking points including salary, pensions, health care and safety.

The unions want a 5 percent annual raise over the next three years. BART said Saturday that train operators and station agents in the unions average about $71,000 in base salary and $11,000 in overtime annually. The workers also pay a flat $92 monthly fee for health insurance.

Rice said the latest proposal offered a 4- to 8 percent salary raise over the next four years, on top of a 1 percent raise employees were scheduled to receive Monday. The transit agency also said it offered to reduce the contribution employees would have to make to their pensions, and lower the costs of health care premiums they would have to pay.

On Friday, the ATU asked California Gov. Jerry Brown to issue a 60-day "cooling off" period if no deal can be reached by Sunday's deadline, but the SEIU and BART officials have urged Brown not to issue such an order.

The governor's office has declined to comment.

BART's last strike lasted six days in 1997. On Friday, other area transit agencies urged commuters to consider carpooling, taking buses or ferries, working from home and, if they must drive to work, to leave earlier or even later than usual.

"The bottom line is that a BART strike will be an absolute nightmare for everyone," said Jim Wunderman, president and CEO of the Bay Area Council, a business advocacy organization. "Our transportation system simply does not have the capacity to absorb the more than 400,000 BART riders who will be left at the station. There will be serious pain."

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