Dow at 11,006, down 46 points.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are finishing November on a down note as investors worry that Europe’s debt crisis will continue to spread.
Major indexes pared their losses Tuesday after President Barack Obama and Republican leaders said they would try to find a way to extend Bush-era tax cuts.
According to preliminary calculations, the Dow Jones industrial average fell 47, or 0.4 percent, to 11,006.
The S&P 500 fell 7, or 0.6 percent, to 1,181. The Nasdaq composite index fell 27, or 1.1 percent, to 2,498. All three indexes are down for the month.
Two shares fell for every one that rose on the New York Stock Exchange. Trading volume came to 1.5 billion shares.

lll Call me this morning, Wednesday, at (206) 498-0920 until I get over some phone difficulties with my regular number. Rachel Pritchett

Hello Bloggers,

Some of you have called asking how the estate sale of two historic Bremerton families went. The sale for the King and Benbennick families took place in the family home on Burwell Nov. 5 to 7.

I wrote about it here:

http://www.kitsapsun.com/news/2010/oct/29/prominent-families-belongings-offer-glimpse-at/

Contained in the sale is an almost untouched collection of burnished mahogany furniture, silver, jewelry, Persian rugs, delicate linens, a Native American basket collection and hand-painted china.

Mike Wall, the appraiser handling the sale, got back to me since and reported the event was nearly a sell-out, and that the estate will be delighted. There is only one niece remaining, in Tennessee, and some various and sundry extended relatives.

I had my doubts about the sale, I admit. Parking is almost impossible there,

And so, the final chapter, complete.

Rachel Pritchett, reporter

Kitsap Mall stores all open at 4 a.m., except Kohl’s, which will open at 3. Rachel Pritchett

Dow now down 89 points at midday, to 11,113.

NEW YORK (AP) — Broad stock indexes are down sharply in midday trading as concerns grow that the European financial crisis will spread.
Ireland requested financial assistance Sunday from the European Union and International Monetary Fund.
It was the second time that the EU has come to the rescue of one of the 16 countries that use the euro. Traders worry that Portugal and Spain may also need bailouts in order to repay their debts, which would could cause the value of the euro to fall. The euro is down 0.7 percent against the dollar.
The Dow Jones industrial average is down 86, or 0.8 percent, to 11,118. The S&P 500 is down 7, or 0.6 percent, to 1,192.
The Nasdaq composite index is up 1, or less than 0.1 percent, to 2,518.

Today, an average gallon of unleaded is going for $3.10, up three cents from a month ago and up 25 cents from a year ago, according to the auto club AAA.

Midday Dow at 11,269, up 77 points.

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks rose Monday following a spike in corporate dealmaking and news that retail sales jumped to the highest level in seven months in October.
Consumer spending rose 1.2 percent last month thanks to higher demand for automobiles, the Commerce Department reported. The gain was nearly double what analysts were expecting. Shares of Ford Motor Co. rose 5.5 percent following the annoucement.
Caterpillar, the world’s largest construction machinery maker, said it would buy mining equipment maker Bucyrus International Inc. for $7.6 billion in cash, a 32 percent premium over the company’s closing price on Friday. Shares of Caterpillar rose 2.7 percent.
Data storage company EMC Corp. also announced that it had reached a deal to buy competitor Isilon Systems Inc. for $2.2 billion in cash. It is offering $33.85 per share, a 29 percent premium over its closing price on Friday.
The push for mergers and acquisitions is a good sign for investors, said Uri Landesman, the president of Platinum Partners, a hedge fund in New York City. “It’s a statement that companies are moving out from under the bombshells of 2008 and 2009 and that they don’t think there will be another disaster,” he said.
Corporations are holding records amount of cash on their balance sheets. Using that cash to buy rivals or to expand into new areas could be a sign that companies are less concerned about the possiblity that that economy will slide into another recession soon.
The Dow Jones industrial average rose 66.07, or 0.6 percent, to 11,258.65 in afternoon trading.

http://www.bizjournals.com/seattle/morning_call/2010/11/trump-threatens-to-sue-poulsbo-woman.html

By Rachel Pritchett
rpritchett@kitsapsun.com

The two sides in protracted grocery-store labor negotiations will return to the bargaining table.
According to a statement issued Friday from the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 21, their negotiators and those from Allied Employers, which represents Albertsons, Fred Meyer, QFC and Safeway, will begin a new round of talks next Thursday and Friday.
The decision was made Friday morning.
This week, 94 percent of the thousands of grocery-store workers throughout Western Washington voted to authorize a strike. Many hundreds participated in two voting opportunities in Bremerton.
The strike-authorization vote followed months of contract extensions affecting a core 15,000 workers after their contracts expired beginning in May. It remains in effect.
Issues centered on pay for all days workers were sick, and new wage, hour and benefit levels in a recessionary economy.

Readers,

I have just learned that UFCW 21 and Allied Employers, representative of the “Big Four” grocery stores, are heading back to the table. A new set of labor negotiations will be on Thursday and Friday, Nov. 18 and 19. Look for my story soon.

Rachel Pritchett, reporter