MANCHESTER United's youth brigade, augmented by star names RyanGiggs, Kleberson and Cristiano Ronaldo, were knocked out of theCarling Cup 2-0 by First Division leaders West Brom.
Baggies boss Gary Megson admitted: "Obviously one or two big namesweren't there, but right through they are a quality team.
"United are in the Champions League and going for the Premiershipand I can understand them putting out the team they did.
"I thought we played …
Renowned Green Bay Packers coach Vince Lombardi once stated, "Some people try to find things in this game that don't exist, but football is only two things - blocking and tackling."
Success in investing, much like football, is not about completing the Hail Mary pass. Executing the seemingly minor tasks, like blocking and tackling, lead to victory.
Many investors seek strategies that can very quickly turn a pittance into a fortune. Others look for complicated schemes that they may not fully comprehend, hoping that someone else's genius will result in outsize profits. Over the long term, those people nearly always lose.
Nevertheless, money management firms have …
Dow Chemical says it has agreed to buy specialty chemicals maker Rohm and Haas for $78 per share, or more than $15 billion.
Based on the per-share purchase price and the roughly 196 million shares Rohm and Haas had outstanding as of April 22, the deal would be worth about $15.29 billion.
Dow Chemical Co. values the deal at $18.8 billion including debt.
The …
Los Angeles County officials have acknowledged for the first timethat a woman who died shortly after writhing in pain for nearly anhour on the waiting room floor of Martin Luther King Jr.-HarborMedical Center could have been saved if she had been properlytreated.
Edith Rodriguez was captured on security videotape as a janitormopped around her and a triage nurse dismissed her complaints in theearly morning of May 9, 2007. Her death helped precipitate theclosure of the hospital's emergency room and inpatient care afterfederal regulators determined that staffers had failed to deliver aminimum standard of care.
The 43-year-old woman's boyfriend, who had accompanied her …
PETER DODWELL Brave New Mind: A Thoughtful Inquiry into the Nature Of Mental Life New York: Oxford University Press, 2000, 262 pages (ISBN 0-19-508905-7, C$56.00, Hardcover)
Reviewed by LEENDERT P. MOS
The author poses the major question for cognitive science: "Can mental life be exhaustively studied as a purely natural phenomenon, or must we go beyond the mundane, the merely physical, to grasp its reality?" (p. viii). His answer is, that "absolutely no psychological consequence follows from a model couched in exclusively algorithmic, physical, or physiological terms, which is the way contemporary cognitive science proceeds" (p. 190).
Planned as a history of …
WANTAGH, N.Y. (AP) — After promising in typical Trumpian modesty to replace a restaurant at a landmark New York beach with "the finest dining and banquet facility anywhere in the world," Donald Trump seethes four years later that visitors still must pass what he calls "a rat-infested dump."
When he announced plans in 2006 for "Trump on the Ocean" at Jones Beach, designed by legendary urban planner Robert Moses, the real estate tycoon envisioned a facility with sweeping views of the Atlantic and beachfront dining for as many as 1,400.
What he didn't anticipate was persistent civic opposition, or skeins of bureaucratic red tape.
"The word I'd use is incomprehensible," …
Moving day at the U.S. Open went like this: Get your birdies and eagles early and keep the bogeys and bigger numbers to a minimum as Pebble Beach got more difficult.
Phil Mickelson didn't follow the plan. And very quickly Saturday, Lefty was falling out of contention.
Mickelson struggled on the opening nine and made the turn at 3 over for his round. He bogeyed his first two holes before an adventure at the ninth.
On the long 505-yard par 4 that hugs the Pacific coastline, Mickelson's double bogey left him at 2 over for the tournament. Mickelson drove into a fairway bunker, hit the lip with his second shot and saw his third nestle into a thatch of …
Report card Compiled by Jack Bogaczyk F OFFENSE WVU had 397 yardsagainst Md. Thats in 2 games this season.
F DEFENSE Allowed 13-of-20 3rd-down conversions.
F SPECIAL TEAMS How low can you go? Disorganization reigned.
F COACHING Friedgen and Co. turtle-waxed Coach Rod's braintrust -again.
F OVERALL For 2nd straight year, only large following saved WVUfrom bowl-full of embarrassment.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - A rematch in the 59th Gator Bowl you say? Howabout a replay?
Really, what occurred on a gorgeous New Year's afternoon at AlltelStadium shouldn't have reminded football fans of Maryland's 34-7thumping of West Virginia 103 days …
UPCOMING STORIES FOR TUESDAY, JULY 26:
BOSNIA BULLFIGHT
CEVLJANOVICI, Bosnia-Herzegovina — The bulls used to be beaten to the point of fury before entering the ring, their horns given steel extensions to increase the ferocity. The battles changed three years ago as part of a package of reforms aimed at burnishing Bosnia's credentials for European Union membership. Formats: Text
GERMANY-ISRAEL-PLAYING WAGNER
BERLIN — An Israeli orchestra performa works by Adolf Hitler's favorite composer, Richard Wagner, in a taboo-breaking concert in Germany. Concert starting at 0900 GMT. Formats: Text
BULGARIA NO-CONFIDENCE
Bulgaria's government faces a no-confidence …
The following list describes various musical instruments from ancient Egypt, including the Egyptian name (when known), the modern equivalent, and a brief description.
| Egyptian Name | Modern Equivalent | Description |
| ? | Clappers | Ivory or wood |
| Menat | Rattle | Part of a necklace |
| Sekhem or Sesshet | Sistrum (rattle) | Ritual use |
| ? | Finger Cymbal | Ritual use |
| ? | Barrel Drum | Military use for marching or signaling |
| Ser | Frame drum | Tambourine without shakers |
| ? | Harp | Native Egyptina, arched |
| ? | Harp | Imported from Mesopotamia, angled |
| Gengenty | Lute | Syrian import |
| Djadjaret or kinnarum | Thin Lyre | Syrian import, c. 1900 b.c.e. |
| ? | Thick Lyre | Foreign import |
| ? | Giant Lyre | Canaanite import |
| Mat | Flute | Used for … |
I've been a non-believer for the past 15 years or so. I'm not a fanatic about it. I don't hand out tracts in airports or burn big question-marks on people's lawns* But I don't believe in God.
This past week I had a relatively new experience: debating Glenn Stanton, Focus on the Family employee and frequent opponent of mine, before an authence of people who mostly sided with him.
This has happened perhaps only once before, at a marriage debate at Hampden-Sydney College in Virginia, voted by the Princeton Review as the no. 1 university "where 'alternative lifestyles' are NOT an alternative."
But this past week's experience was different, because we weren't debating …
Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates said Wednesday the company isn't pursuing any other major deals immediately following the withdrawal of its $47.5 billion takeover bid for Yahoo.
He said in Tokyo that the company put "a lot of effort" in the talks with Yahoo and has decided the two should pursue "independent paths."
Over the weekend, Microsoft withdrew its three-month-old unsolicited bid for Yahoo Inc. after seeing the impasse with Yahoo's board over a mutually acceptable sales price.
"Now at this point Microsoft is focused on its independent strategy," Gates told reporters at a news conference in Tokyo.
Those …
The Art Institute of Chicago on Monday sued 12 investment firms,saying they have refused to account for $43 million of the museum'smoney--6 percent of its endowment--leaving officials uncertain of thevalue of the investments.
The suit says that defendants admitted that at least one of twoDallas-based funds in which the Art Institute invested had sufferedlosses of at least 90 percent, but museum officials could not sayhow much had been lost.
"This is exactly what we're trying to find out. The lawsuit istrying to get access to the books," said Edward W. Horner Jr., theinstitute's executive vice president.
"We believe they did not invest the funds as they have promised,"he said.
The suit asks for a restraining order to "prevent the waste ofmillions of dollars."
"We want information," Horner said.
The suit names a dozen related financial limited partnerships,most with Dallas addresses, and three individuals: Conrad Seghers,James Dickey and Samer M. El Bizri (a k a Sam Bizri).
The Art Institute invested in Integral Hedging L.P. and IntegralArbitrage L.P.
Horner said that about a month ago, the institution's investmentadvisers received a communication from the funds "indicating that oneof our investments in one of the two funds might be in jeopardy."
"At that point in time, we began to ask for much more information,and they consistently refused to provide information on the status ofthese assets," Horner said.
"We think that's pretty outrageous," he said, adding this is thefirst time the Art Institute has had such a problem.
In late 1999 and early 2000, the suit said, Kennedy CapitalAdvisors Inc., the museum's investment consultant, began to getinformation on the two funds, which appear to be ultimatelycontrolled by Seghers and Bizri.
The suit says the defendants' touted their own "so-calledscientific method" and claimed the Art Institute "could not lose anyof their investment, even in a declining market," unless the stocksinvolved fell more than 30 percent.
The Art Institute first invested $23 million and then anadditional $20 million, the suit said.
As the museum was beginning to raise concerns, the FBI contactedofficials, seeking "general information about our investment" withIntegral Hedging and Integral Arbitrage, Horner said.
An offering from the companies characterized "that the funds wouldbe invested in a low-risk fashion, and we believe that they did notdo that," Horner said.
The suit was filed Monday in Dallas County District Court,according to the institute.
The defendants could not be reached for comment Monday. Aspokesman for the FBI also refused to comment on the suit.
Horner emphasized that the Art Institute is "financially sound."He said auditors were at work to provide assurances that the rest ofthe institution's money is "properly and faithfully invested."
Since 1997, the museum's five-year investment return is more than10 percent, he said.
The board of trustees and finance committee of the Art Institutehave begun a review of all financial matters to make sure thefinances are sound, said James N. Wood, president.
NEW YORK - Wall Street fell in early trading Thursday after dealmaking news lifted some sectors, but investors remained jittery about rebounding bond yields and upcoming data on the U.S. service sector.
The Institute for Supply Management's index of service sector activity in June, scheduled to be released at 10 a.m., is expected to slip to 58.1 from 59.7 in May, indicating that non-manufacturing industries saw slower expansion.
A much lower reading could signal some signs of economic weakness, while any signs that inflation is accelerating - such as a index of the prices companies themselves pay - could raise interest rate jitters. Last week, the Federal Reserve said recent data have shown inflation is moderating, but the bank wants to see more evidence.
In the first minutes of trading, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 41.38, or 0.30 percent, to 13,535.92.
Broader stock indicators also declined. The Standard & Poor's 500 index was off 1.71, or 0.11 percent, at 1,523.16, and the Nasdaq composite index fell 1.30, or 0.05 percent, to 2,643.65.
The 10-year Treasury note's yield bounced back to 5.10 percent Thursday from 5.04 percent Tuesday.
---
On the Net:
New York Stock Exchange: http://www.nyse.com
Nasdaq Stock Market: http://www.nasdaq.com
LONDON (AP) — Stocks got a lift Friday by news that the U.S. economy generated more jobs than anticipated over the past three months, reinforcing hopes that the world's largest economy will not be sliding back into recession.
The Labor Department reported that the U.S. added 103,000 jobs in September. That was above expectations for a 60,000 increase. It also revised up the previous two months' figures to show around 90,000 more jobs were created than previously thought.
However, the number of new jobs was not enough to push the 9.1 percent unemployment rate lower. The U.S. economy must create twice as many jobs per month just to keep up with population growth.
"In the big picture, today's reading soothes recessionary fears," said Andrew Wilkinson, chief economic strategist at Miller Tabak & Co.
Given that one of the fears stalking markets over the past couple of months, alongside Europe's debt crisis, was the stalling U.S. economy, investors breathed a muted sigh of relief, limiting the advance.
Though a U.S. recession seems less likely than a month or two back, investors are fully aware that the pace of jobs creation in the U.S. has eased to an average of around 70,000 per month since April from about 160,000 in the seven months beforehand.
In Europe, Germany's DAX was 0.5 percent higher at 5,669 while the CAC-40 in France rose 0.6 percent to 3,092. The FTSE 100 index was up 0.4 percent at 5,312, though Lloyds Banking Group PLC and Royal Bank of Scotland PLC were underperforming in the wake of a downgrade of their credit ratings from Moody's.
In the U.S., the Dow Jones industrial average was up 0.5 percent at 11,180 while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 0.1 percent to 1,166.
The U.S. jobs figures have given stock markets additional impetus following a couple of bumper days, when hopes grew of a Europe-wide plan to fix the banking sector. Thursday's decisions by the Bank of England to launch new monetary stimulus and a big liquidity operation from the European Central Bank have also helped support investor sentiment.
"Hopes that European politicians have a good understanding on the potential need to recapitalise the banking system has been key support to risk appetite in recent sessions," said Jane Foley, an analyst at Rabobank International. "The very nature of the political process is slow, however, suggesting that once again there is room for disappointment and volatility in the markets."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel reinforced hopes Friday by saying Europe's banks should look first to raise money in the private sector before turning to governments to bolster their financial cushions against potential losses from the continent's sovereign debt crisis.
An upcoming summit of the bloc's 27 leaders should send a "signal" regarding a coordinated recapitalization of Europe's banking sector, Merkel said in Berlin.
Helped by the rising investor optimism, the euro traded 0.3 percent higher at $1.3467.
Earlier in Asia, Japan's Nikkei index rose 1 percent to close at 8,605.62 after the country's central bank said the economy is "picking up" and predicted an eventual return to a moderate recovery.
South Korea's Kospi index jumped 2.9 percent to close at 1,759.77 and Hong Kong's Hang Seng ended 3.1 percent higher at 17,707 after surging 5.7 percent the day before.
Markets in mainland China were closed for a weeklong holiday.
Oil prices tracked equities higher — benchmark crude oil for November delivery was up 83 cents at $82.42.
____
Kelvin Chan in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
CHICAGO - Republican president candidate Mitt Romney, who denied every pardon or commutation during his term as Massachusetts governor, said Thursday a pardon for former White House aide I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby deserves a close examination.
"I took a careful review during my term as governor of the people that were brought forward. That doesn't mean I pardoned them, but I took a careful review. I think this deserves a very careful review," Romney told The Associated Press in a brief interview.
Libby, the former chief of staff to Vice President Dick Cheney, was convicted in March of lying to investigators and obstructing Special Prosecutor Patrick Fitzgerald's inquiry into the 2003 leak of a CIA operative's identity. A federal judge said Thursday he will not delay a 2 1/2-year prison sentence for Libby in the case.
Speaking with reporters earlier in Chicago, Romney was asked about the possibility of a pardon.
"I think the prosecutor may well have abused prosecutorial discretion by pursuing the investigation after he had learned that the source of the leak was Richard Armitage," Romney said. "He knew that there was, therefore, not a crime committed and yet, he proceeded with the investigation knowing that there was no crime to pursue.
"That abuse of prosecutorial discretion justifies a very careful look," he said.
Democratic National Committee spokesman Damien LaVera contends Romney is dodging a fundamental question.
"Defending Scooter Libby may be a good applause line for right wing Republicans, but the American people are looking for a strong and decisive leader who can say one way or another whether he would pardon a man who obstructed a national security investigation in a time of war," LaVera said.
On the campaign trail, Romney often cites his record as governor in denying pardons or commutations. During his four years in office, 100 requests for commutations and 172 requests for pardons were filed in the state. All were denied.
Romney has said he refused pardons because he didn't want to overturn a jury.
Asked in last week's debate if he would consider pardoning Libby, Romney said: "It's worth looking at that. I will study it very closely if I'm lucky enough to be president. And I'd keep that option open."
Libby supporters have urged President Bush to grant a pardon. The president has sidestepped questions about the issue, deferring to the legal process.
SAN FRANCISCO
NEW LANGTON ARTS
It would prove useful to consider why and how Tony Labat wasn't included in RoseLee Goldberg's live art festival PERFORMA '05, given that this sharp retrospective closed just weeks before that event kicked off in New York. Labat (along with Chris Burden and Dan Graham, Lucille Ball and Ann Magnuson, Richard Pryor and Johnny Knoxville) should be a key figure in any history of artists using action to negotiate the role of media (television and video, especially) in constructing the various, often ephemeral, aesthetic, sexual, and political narratives producing and produced by bodies or their absence. Memory loss only partly explains it.
In 1978, while still an undergraduate at the San Francisco Art Institute, Labat made his first proposal to New Langton Arts, a local alternative space founded thirty years ago. As Susan Miller, editor of the cogent catalogue accompanying the show, writes: "Knowing full well the requirements of the review and selection process, he had a bouquet of a dozen roses delivered to the panel instead of the usual packet of materials. Inscribed on the attached note card was a simple phrase, 'Trust me.' With this small and provocative action, Labat sidestepped (possibly even derailed) standard review procedure ... In the end, the roses were well received and the artist was awarded an exhibition." Three other early multifanged actions were similarly crucial: his gonged appearance (with Bruce Pollack) on The Gong Show in 1978; his drive-by kidnapping of artist-turned-politician Lowell Darling (Kidnap Attempt, 1978); and his own little bravura ring cycle, a critique, in part, of purist art sensibilities for which Labat turned his studio into a training facility (Terminal Gym, 1980-81). After months of training, he duked it out at Kezar Pavilion with rival artist Tom Chapman in a regulation boxing match, with burlesque legend Carol Doda as the round-count-card girl (Fight, 1981). The complex trajectories that intersect in these works include trust and mistrust, male camaraderie and aggression, a blurring of aesthetic and political risk-taking, as well as the sheer physicality of identity. The tape of Gong Show, 1978, and the complex local-news-cum-"documentary" video of Fight, P.O.V. (Point of View), 1981, were paired as part of a screening of much of the best of Labat's nearly three decades of video work.
The head shot that Labat used to publicize Fight wasn't a photograph but a messy commisioned portrait painting by Katherine Sherwood, a shrewd and funny critique of performance's reliance on photographic documentation and other "relics," a tendency that this show perpetuated but tempered with Labat's own paintings and "Body Drawings," 1977, a series of moving and amusing drawings with typewritten descriptions. Much of the early video "documentation" seen here includes news breaks and commercials. These interruptions become thematized in Labat's economical yet choreographed editing techniques, packing a metaphorical punch. In many of the later videos, the disruption goes even further, producing counternarratives that break apart any sense of linearity, identity, or identification (i.e., Kikiriki, 1983; Mayami: Between Cut and Action, 1986). One could read Labat's oeuvre as one of the most complex explorations ever attempted of the schizoid relations between Cuba, his birthplace, and the US, where he immigrated at age fifteen.
Of course, by quickly describing these early works, most executed over twenty-five years ago, I have limited myself to recounting foundational sites of Labat's artistic energy in order to reckon with his ongoing critique of "performance"-its dependence on photographic documentation and search for original sites and actions-rather than interrogating how he has built upon such concerns in his later work. The flowers that Labat sent in lieu of a portfolio years ago might be a starting point for such interrogation: The red roses on a pedestal at the exhibition's entrance were plastic. While I didn't chalk the alteration up to any kind of embitterment, I also didn't read it as meaningless. In fact, it seemed a rather provocative commentary on the current state of the performative.
-Bruce Hainley
[Sidebar]
Tony Labat, On the Air,
2005, light box and vinyl lettering, dimensions variable.
Turkish police arrested two retired military generals suspected of plotting to topple the Islamic-rooted government and the top prosecutor laid out evidence against the ruling party as rifts in Turkish politics appeared to widen Tuesday.
The country's senior prosecutor has brought a case against the Islamic-leaning Justice and Development Party of Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan accusing it of undermining the secular principles of the Turkish constitution.
The party denies the claims that it is trying to impose religion on politics and society, and accuses its opponents of undermining democracy by plotting to overthrow the legitimately elected government.
Dozens of people, including retired military officers, have previously been detained during the investigation against an alleged network of extreme nationalists called "Ergenekon."
But former generals Hursit Tolon and Sener Eruygur, who were detained Tuesday, were the highest-ranking ex-soldiers to be arrested so far, private CNN-Turk television said. Eruygur was a major organizer in anti-government rallies last year, when hundreds of thousands protested what they considered government attempts to undermine secularism.
Others detained Tuesday included the head of the chamber of trade in the Turkish capital, Ankara, and a journalist known to be a fierce critic of the government, CNN-Turk said.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan said a total of 20 people were arrested and police were looking for four others.
He denied that the police operation was politically motivated or designed to silence government critics, even though it came just before top prosecutor Abdurrahman Yalcinkaya discussed his case against Erdogan's party.
"I think this was a step toward completion of the indictment. It's a step taken upon a decision by prosecutors," Erdogan said.
The Justice and Development Party holds a comfortable majority in the Parliament, winning its second mandate last year after a monthslong confrontation with the secularist opposition backed by the judiciary and the military.
In March, prosecutor Yalcinkaya asked the Constitutional Court to shut down the party and bar 71 people from politics for five years, including Erdogan and President Abdullah Gul. Erdogan and other party members have denied they have an Islamic agenda, citing reforms designed for entry into the European Union as proof.
But Yalcinkaya reaffirmed his position on Tuesday that the ruling party is trying to corrode the secularist principles enshrined in the Constitution, Anatolia news agency reported. He appeared before the top court in a private session, arguing that there was a "clear and present" danger that the ruling party was seeking to impose Islamic law on Turkey.
Turkish police launched simultaneous raids in at least three provinces hours before Yalcinkaya appeared in court, private Dogan news agency said.
"It may not be a coincidence. Every time there is a development concerning the closure case, there is often a development concerning the Ergenekon case," said Volkan Aytar, an analyst with an Istanbul-based research center, TESEV.
In January, a court charged eight people with trying to provoke an armed rebellion against the government. News reports said they were members of "Ergenekon" and were accused of plotting a series of bomb attacks and assassinations.
The Ergenekon hit list reportedly included Nobel prize-winning novelist Orhan Pamuk, who has angered nationalists with his comments about the World War I-era killing of ethnic Armenians, and Kurdish leaders _ seen by many Turks as a threat to national sovereignty.
_____
Associated Press reporter Suzan Fraser in Ankara contributed to this report.
Twenty-three Taliban militants were killed during a U.S.-led coalition operation aimed at disrupting a weapons transfer in southern Afghanistan, the coalition said Saturday. At least four police officers died in a separate clash.
A truck apparently full of Taliban weapons exploded during the operation in Helmand province's Garmsir district. The coalition said it did not know what caused the truck to explode.
Coalition troops detained 11 people suspected of being part of a weapons running operation.
In the western province of Ghor, meanwhile, between four and nine police were killed Friday after militants attacked them during a police operation in Shahark district, Gen. Shah Jahon Noori, the provincial police chief, said Saturday.
Noori said an unknown number of police were missing after the attack and that five were wounded.
Afghanistan has seen record levels of violence this year. More than 5,800 people have been killed in insurgency-related violence in 2007, according to an Associated Press count based on figures from Western and Afghan officials.
GM seems to have heeded 1898': warning signs, but it's still a Wing way from being buff.
After the turmoil of 1998, General Motors had nowhere to go but up.
The automaker was smarting from the body blows of a pair of strikes in Flint, Mich., and upheaval in the board mom at Adam Opel AG. And while GM was focused on fixing its own problems, arch-rival Ford Motor Co. was gobbling up Volvo Cars and scouting for more acquisitions, inching ever closer to the top rung of the international automotive ladder.
Although stunned, GM has made significant steps toward recovery It also helped that consumers went on an unprecedented vehicle buying spree in 1999. The result: GM posted automotive operating profits of $7.548 billion in 1999.
GM didn't let the Internet blow past - pushing its gmbuypower.com shopping site to consumers; running neck and neck with Ford in harnessing the Internet to work with suppliers and cut costs; and using OnStar as the cornerstone for delivering the Intemet into vehicles.
But plenty of work remains. "ff GM gets the products right, they can really take off," says Ron Harbour, president of Harbour and Associates in troy, Mich.
The improvements are enough to pull GM's overall grade up to B-.
Quality: Strong performances by Buick and Cadillac pulled the average score of all eight GM divisions, including Saab, up to just under the industry average of 167 in last year's J.D. Power & Associates' Initial Quality Survey 2. The 1999 quality scores can be compared directly to the 1998 numbers, but comparisons to previous years are not valid because J.D. Power changed the way it calculated quality scores.
But the reality is that six of GM's divisions were still below industry average. That argues for maintaining a B grade.
Profit Per Unit: With production of high-margin full-size pickups reaching full levels, GM more than doubled its vehicle profit from strikeaddled 1998, putting it back on par where the company stood in 1997. The dramatic turnaround earns it an A this year.
Market Share: In the United States it maintained its pace from the previous year, but that marked GM's lowest share for a nonstrike year in 70 years. The global picture was better, however, where it gained 0.8 points of market share. Products such as the Opel Zafira minivan making a splash in the European market helped.
Its U.S. performance earns a C, while worldwide market share gains give GM a B.
Return on Sales: Return on sales climbed to 3.496 from 1998's dismal 2.11/a But that's still below GM's goal of 59 Continued consolidation holds more promise for the future. The turnaround earns GM a B.
Productivity: The gains GM is making on the factory floor haven't really started to show up yet on the benchmark Harbour Report, Ron Harbour says. GM continues to use too much unscheduled overtime to meet production schedules, Harbour notes.
Nonetheless, GM's performance last year was impressive. It boosted factory sales more than 600,000 units while dropping automotive employment by more than 12,000 people. The result: GM built 3.4 more vehicles per worker than the year before. That warrants an A.
Management: GM made a number of positive moves, notes analyst John Casesa. It strengthened ties to Isuzu and Suzuki, as well as moving to take a 20% stake in Fuji Heavy Industries, maker of Subaru. Early this year, it took a stake in Fiat Auto in what could be a first step in eventually acquiring all of the Italian automaker.
But GM took a huge step backward in relations with its dealers by floating a plan to buy 1096 of the dealerships to turn them into company stores. Dealers went ballistic, and Chairman Jack Smith was forced to publicly back off the plan. This was on top of problems with a computerized ordering system that starved dealers of popularly equipped models in a hot market.
Management has improved, but has more work to do. So the grade is C+.
Engineering: In a positive move, GM early this year said it would merge its car and truck engineering groups into a single unit in North America. "That's a big step," says Harbour. "Now they'll have more resources to put where the needs are." We give GM a B+.
Design: "GM has started acting like a home-run hitter," says Harbour. "Now when it swings, it's either going to hit it out of the park, or strike out. I give them credit for that, but they're still up against Chrysler, which is batting .600."
But the mid-size Saturn LS landed in showrooms with a resounding thud. Such inconsistency keeps the grade at C+. Manufacturing: Harbour says GM has been making great gains
in the manufacturing arena, albeit quietly. "GM's application of lean manufacturing processes has been stronger than either Ford or DaimlerChrysler's," he says.
GM has been using plants in Europe and South America to introduce laborsaving assembly techniques. Some of these advances are bound to make their way to the new luxury car plant in Lansing, Mich
Yet, GM's ramp up speeds are still painfully slow, notes analyst Scott Upham, and the automaker still takes too long to make decisions. For this GM gets a B+.
Mark '_etm anding: Last year we noted that customers are con fused and that GM has no corporate brand image. That hasn't changed GM gets credit for not shying away from the Internet, partic
ularly in the United Kingdom where Vauxhall launched a Web site that allows consumers to shop, order and buy cars online. GM gets a C.
Labor Relations: GM pulled off a miracle by hashing out a new contract with the UAW without a strike. The credit rests squarely on Gary Cowger, the executive yanked out of Opel AG after only five months on the job in 1998 to head GM's labor relations.
"Gary Cowger is my favorite guy," says Sandy Munro. "He's the unsung hero. The guy shows up, walks in when the world is coming to an end, and it just works out." Cowger's effort gives GM an A
Environmental Stewardship: GM stood along with the rest of the industry in prodding the petroleum industry to provide low-sulfur fuel nationwide. It was also the first to ban the use of hard-torecycle PVC plastics from its interiors. GM earns a B.
