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Philadelphia Electric Co. received improved marks from the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission for its operations at the Limerick nuclear power plant. The NRC raised PE's rating for emergency preparedness from 3 (not significantly above minimum requirements) to 2 (above regulatory requirements) and "improving." PE got a "2, improving" mark for engineering technical support and received ratings of 1 (substantially above requirements) for plant operations, radiological controls, maintenance/surveillance, security and safeguards and safety assessment/quality verification.
Yields on two-year Treasury notes fell in yesterday's auction to the lowest level since February 1988. The average yield was 7.32 percent, down from 7.49 percent at the last auction of two-year notes, on Nov. 27. The notes will carry a coupon interest rate of 7.25 percent, with each $10,000 in face value selling for $9,987.20.
The Federal Reserve said the yield on one-year Treasury bills in the secondary market, the most popular index for making changes in adjustable-rate mortgages, averaged 6.96 percent last week, a drop from an average of 7.08 percent the week before. The average for all of November was 7.31 percent. The Fed's report on selected interest rates is normally released on Monday but was delayed by the Christmas holiday.
Eastern Airlines said it had been designated the official carrier of the federal government in 1991, a contract covering 345 routes and valued at between $82 million and $100 million. In 1990, Eastern had a contract for 220 routes. The designation means federal employees will use Eastern on the 345 routes when they are traveling on official business.
American Airlines threatened to sue its pilots because so many have been calling in sick this week. As a result, the carrier has canceled dozens of flights. Tim Smith, an American spokesman, said about 530 of American's 8,700 pilots have called in sick daily since Sunday. Normally, about 300 pilots call in sick at this season, he said. The pilots' union, which has been in contract negotiations with American for 14 months, denies there is any organized protest. Contract talks are set to resume next month with a federal mediator.
Columbia Gas System Inc. (NYSE) and Consolidated Natural Gas Corp. (NYSE) have been authorized by the Securities and Exchange Commission to form a new venture, EnerTek Partners L.P., which will invest in small companies that develop new supply, transportation and utilization technologies for natural gas. The joint venture will have capital of $4 million. Columbia Gas is a natural-gas provider based in Wilmington.
Berger Holdings Ltd., of Feasterville, said it had raised more than $3 million in equity in a recently completed public offering of preferred stock and warrants. The sale enabled Berger (OTC) to restructure its loans with banks to get more favorable terms. Theodore A. Schwartz, chief executive officer, said Berger would report revenue growth of 14 percent to 18 percent in 1990. Berger reported revenue of $17.3 million in 1989.
Mazda Motor Corp., of Japan, said it would cut the pay of its chairman and 17 other top executives by up to 10 percent for three months in connection with a recall of 3,498 cars with defective switches in stoplights and cruise- control units. The pay cuts for chairman Kenichi Yamamoto and the other executives were decided a day after Japan's Transport Ministry warned Mazda to pay stricter attention to the safety of its cars.
Sales of beer are projected to rise 2.3 percent to a record 190 million barrels this year, Impact, a trade journal, said.
Britain's financial markets and banks were closed yesterday for the Boxing Day holiday.
Mobil Corp. said it was discussing the possibility of a three-way oil- exploration and oil-production venture with the Soviet Union in Vietnam. The project would be Mobil's first exploration and production venture with Moscow, Mobil (NYSE) said. Because of a trade embargo the United States imposed on Vietnam, the discussions remain at a preliminary stage, a Mobil spokesman said.
