Cranberry farmers struggle as surplus drops prices

MILWAUKEE — Cranberry growers say they are struggling after many invested in new plants or expanding their farms only to see fruit prices fall.

Tom Lochner is executive director of the Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association. He says cranberry prices are falling because a big harvest in Canada led to a surplus worldwide.

Lochner says cranberry farmers who don't belong to a cooperative are getting $22 to $28 per 100 pounds for their fall crop. But it cost them $25 to $30 per 100 pounds to grow. Lochner says prices could fall more if something isn't done.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has agreed to buy $5 million worth of cranberry juice concentrate for domestic food assistance programs.

Lochner says that will help, but it won't eliminate all the excess.

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HK dockworkers accept pay offer, end 40-day strike

HONG KONG — Hong Kong dockworkers have accepted a 9.8 percent pay increase, ending a 40-day strike that slowed traffic at one of the world's busiest ports.

About 90 percent of the workers voted late Monday in favor of the offer from four middleman contractors that provide staff to a container terminal operator controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing.

The strike was the longest in years in the former British colony, now a semiautonomous Chinese city that retains a reputation as a stronghold of laissez-faire capitalism. It raised questions about the competitiveness of the city's port amid intensifying competition from regional rivals.

About 450 workers went on strike March 28. They originally demanded a raise of up to 23 percent to make up for pay cuts in previous years. They later said they would settle for a double-digit percentage increase.

Lawmaker and union leader Lee Cheuk-yan said the offer was a face-saving compromise but members are happy because the increase is for all workers, not just those who went on strike. The offer also addresses complaints about working conditions, with provisions for lunch and bathroom breaks, he added.

Striking crane operators had complained about being forced to eat and relieve themselves in their control pods because they didn't have enough time to make the long trip to use the facilities. They expressed their anger by camping out in front of a skyscraper in Hong Kong's financial district owned by Li, Asia's richest person.

Li's port operator business, Hutchison Port Holdings, said it can now "focus on restoring the port to its full operational capabilities."

"It's back to work as normal," Lee said, but he added that workers would not stop camping out at Li's tower until 100 crane operators who lost their jobs after contractor Global Stevedoring Service Co. went bust during the strike, are offered work by the other contractors taking up the slack.

The strike delayed cargo being moved on and off ships at the terminal, resulting in a backlog of 80,000-90,000 containers at the port during the strike, according to the Hong Kong Association of Freight Forwarding and Logistics.

Hutchison said last month that it was operating at 80-90 percent of capacity and that 100 ships had reportedly skipped the port because of delays. Some shipping companies chose to bypass Hong Kong in favor of nearby Shenzhen in mainland China or other ports in Asia.

Other vessels berthed at terminals in Hong Kong not controlled by Hutchison. The company operates 12 berths at four of Hong Kong's nine container terminals and two others with a joint venture partner.

Hong Kong is a major transshipment hub for goods moving in and out of mainland China. It was the world's busiest port for years, handling shipments of jeans, shoes and toys manufactured in southern China's Pearl River Delta for export to consumers in the West. But it has been overtaken by Shanghai and Shenzhen in recent years.

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Follow Kelvin Chan on Twitter at twitter.com/chanman

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NY AG: 2 banks violated mortgage accord

ALBANY, N.Y. — New York's attorney general on Monday accused Wells Fargo and Bank of America of violating the terms of last year's national mortgage settlement by failing to process hundreds of refinancing requests promptly.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has notified the national monitoring committee established to enforce the five-bank agreement, citing complaints of 210 prompt-processing violations by Wells Fargo and 129 by Bank of America. If the committee defers taking action, Schneiderman said he will sue for compliance.

Under the settlement, the banks are required to respond to mortgage modification requests within 30 days. Schneiderman said delays put homeowners further into debt from missed payments and penalties, pushing them closer to foreclosure.

Wells Fargo declined to immediately comment. Bank of America did not immediately reply to a request for comment Monday.

"The five mortgage services that signed the national mortgage settlement are legally required to take specific, rigorous and enforceable steps to protect homeowners," Schneiderman said. "Wells Fargo and Bank of America have flagrantly violated those obligations."

The settlement with 49 states, the U.S. Justice Department and the lenders including JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Ally Financial set servicing standards and up to $25 billion in financial relief to homeowners. The standards prohibit the lenders from pursuing foreclosure while negotiating a loan modification. They require the banks to acknowledge in writing a refinancing application within three business days, notify the borrower of any missing documents within five days and make a decision on a complete application within 30 days.

In February, the attorney general's office said 21,535 New York homeowners had received assistance, including $1.2 billion in principal reductions and refinancing that lowered interest rates on their mortgages from the five banks. However, the agency said Monday it has documented 339 violations against Wells Fargo and Bank of America since October following homeowner complaints.

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San Francisco city attorney sues Monster Beverage

NEW YORK — The fight between Monster Beverage and San Francisco's city attorney is intensifying. The city attorney is filing a lawsuit accusing the energy drink maker of marketing to young children.

City Attorney Dennis Herrera said Monday that Monster markets it highly caffeinated drinks to children as young as 6 years old, despite scientific findings that such products can cause health problems including severe cardiac events.

The lawsuit comes after Monster last week sued Herrera over his demands that it reduce the caffeine levels in its drinks and stop marketing to minors

On Monday, Herrera noted that his office had been working with Monster in "good faith to negotiate voluntary changes" when the company abruptly filed its lawsuit.

A spokesman for Monster Beverage Corp. did not immediately have a comment.

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ECB, Germany at odds over banking union set-up

BERLIN — The European Central Bank and Germany, the bloc's biggest economy, are at odds over how to set up the banking union that is meant to stabilize the 17-nation eurozone's financial system.

ECB executive board member Yves Mersch said Monday in Luxembourg that in addition to establishing the agreed joint banking supervisor, the project also requires a centralized authority to unwind failing banks. He insists "one cannot live without the other."

But German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told French newspaper Les Echos that the establishment of such an authority to unwind banks isn't possible without changing the European Union's treaties, which is a complicated and lengthy process.

Schaeuble said European nations should forge better cooperation of their respective bank authorities as a "second-best solution."

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EU: Motorola may have violated antitrust rules

BRUSSELS — The European Commission said Monday that Motorola Mobility may have abused its dominant market position by denying Apple the right to use technology essential for mobile phones.

It is a violation of European Union antitrust rules for a patent holder to deny use to technologically essential patents to companies willing to pay a fair and reasonable price for their use. Motorola Mobility, which Google bought in August 2011, obtained a court injunction preventing Apple from using certain patented technologies considered "standard-essential" for the industry.

"The protection of intellectual property is a cornerstone of innovation and growth. But so is competition," said Joaquin Almunia, the European Union's competition commissioner. "I think that companies should spend their time innovating and competing on the merits of the products they offer — not misusing their intellectual property rights to hold up competitors to the detriment of innovation and consumer choice."

The preliminary finding, while not a conclusion that any wrong has been done, could in the end lead to formal anti-trust charges.

European Commission spokesman Jonathan Todd said that — if it were concluded that Motorola Mobility had misused its market position, and if a fine were to be imposed — any such fine would be paid by Motorola Mobility rather than by Google. He said most of the activity that may have violated antitrust rules took place before Google acquired the company.

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US casino revenue up nearly 5 percent in 2012

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Things are looking up for most of the nation's commercial casinos, as gambling revenue increased by nearly 5 percent last year and jobs held roughly steady.

According to the annual survey of casinos by the American Gaming Association, America's nontribal casinos took in $37.3 billion from gamblers last year, an increase of 4.8 percent over 2011.

It marked the second-highest total ever, second only to 2007 when casinos took in $37.5 billion just before the Great Recession hit.

"By almost all measures, our industry is expanding and growing, which is good news for our employees and the communities where they live and work," said Frank Fahrenkopf, the association's president.

There were 513 commercial casinos last year, up from 492 in 2011. Las Vegas remains the nation's top gambling market, with more than $6.2 billion in revenue last year.

The report found that 15 of the 22 states that had commercial casinos last year saw gambling revenues increase, led by Kansas, Maryland, Maine and New York, each of which opened new casinos in 2012. Ohio became the 23rd state with a commercial casino last year.

New Jersey experienced the largest decline in casino revenue. Despite adding a 12th casino, Atlantic City's revenues fell 8 percent last year to just over $3 billion. The city's casinos continue to fight increased competition in neighboring states and were hurt by the after-effects of Superstorm Sandy, which kept some visitors away for months.

New Jersey has seen its casino revenue fall from a high of $5.2 billion in 2006. It is hoping that Internet gambling, which it legalized this year, will help rejuvenate the market.

Delaware, which also is battling a glut of casinos in the mid-Atlantic region, saw its casino revenue fall 4.7 percent to $526.6 million last year. It, too, will offer Internet gambling this year. Indiana was down 4 percent, to $2.61 billion.

Casinos paid $8.6 billion in taxes to state and local governments last year, an increase of 8.5 percent.

Employment at the casinos was down less than 1 percent, with about 332,000 people holding jobs.

The AGA's figures do not include Indian casinos, which took in $26.1 billion in 2011, the last year for which figures are available, according to the National Indian Gaming Commission. It said last year's figures will not be available until early summer.

Other states that had significant casino revenue increases included Florida, Illinois and South Dakota. Pennsylvania saw a 4.6 percent increase, and surpassed New Jersey to become the second-largest casino market in the nation after Nevada.

"Pennsylvania has been one of the great success stories of our industry in the last few years," Fahrenkopf said. "There's a price for that, and unfortunately Atlantic City has gotten hit with the price for that. If you live in Pennsylvania you no longer have to drive an hour and 15 minutes to Atlantic City to play the slots."

There were more than 853,000 slot machines in use at U.S. casinos last year, and casinos in Iowa and South Dakota derived more than 90 percent of their gambling revenue from slots last year.

Among casino table games, blackjack is the most popular, followed by roulette, poker and craps.

The report also included detailed surveys of gamblers that showed their habits and preferences.

More than 76 million Americans visited a casino last year, and about one third percent of all Americans gambled at one. Fine dining is the most popular nongambling attraction for casino patrons, while more than a quarter of all casino patrons never or rarely gamble when they visit a casino.

Playing the lottery remains the most popular form of gambling in America, with just over half of respondents saying they bought a ticket last year. Internet gambling represented only 3 percent of U.S. gambling activity.

That figure is certain to increase this year and in the years to come as states begin to offer online gambling. Nevada began doing so last week, New Jersey and Delaware have legalized it but have yet to begin taking bets, and at least 10 other states are considering adding Internet gambling.

Philadelphia remained the nation's top racetrack casino market at $835.3 million. Resorts World at the Aqueduct Racetrack in New York City took in $672.5 million, and Empire City in Yonkers N.Y. took in $544.7 million.

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Wayne Parry can be reached at http://twitter.com/WayneParryAC

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Adidas: Asia laborers can file complaints by SMS

BERLIN — German sports gear maker Adidas says it is encouraging workers in factories of its Asian suppliers to anonymously share possible grievances directly with the company via text message.

Adidas AG, which also owns the Reebok brand, said Monday the SMS hotline will help bridge the communication gap between management and workers, enabling employees to "simply send an SMS when they feel their rights are breached."

It says the initiative was successfully tested at an Indonesian supplier's factory and will now be rolled out to four other plants in the country and one in Vietnam.

Adidas' efforts to improve control of labor conditions coincide with a renewed debate on working conditions at the suppliers of western firms in the wake of deadly incidents in Bangladesh's garment industry.

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Senate bill lets states tax Internet purchases

WASHINGTON — Attention online shoppers: The days of tax-free shopping on the Internet may soon end for many of you.

The Senate is scheduled to vote Monday on a bill that would empower states to collect sales taxes for purchases made over the Internet. The measure is expected to pass because it has already survived three procedural votes. But it faces opposition in the House, where some Republicans regard it as a tax increase. A broad coalition of retailers is lobbying in favor of it.

Under current law, states can only require retailers to collect sales taxes if the store has a physical presence in the state.

That means big retailers with stores all over the country like Wal-Mart, Best Buy and Target collect sales taxes when they sell goods over the Internet. But online retailers like eBay and Amazon don't have to collect sales taxes, except in states where they have offices or distribution centers.

As a result, many online sales are tax-free, giving Internet retailers an advantage over brick-and-mortar stores.

The bill would empower states to require businesses to collect taxes for products they sell on the Internet, in catalogs and through radio and TV ads. Under the legislation, the sales taxes would be sent to the states where a shopper lives.

The measure pits brick-and-mortar stores against online services.

As Internet sales have grown, "It's putting pressure on the brick-and-mortar competitors and it's putting pressure on state and local sales tax revenues," said David French, senior vice president of government relations for the National Retail Federation. "It's time for Congress to create a level playing field so that all retailers are treated fairly."

Some states have sales taxes as high as 7 percent, plus city and county taxes that can push the combined rate even higher. For example, the combined state and local sales tax is 9 percent in Los Angeles and 9.25 percent in Chicago. In New York City, it's 8.5 percent and in Richmond, Va., it's 5 percent.

On the other side, eBay says the bill doesn't do enough to protect small businesses. Businesses with less than $1 million in online sales would be exempt. EBay wants to exempt businesses with up to $10 million in sales or fewer than 50 employees.

"Complying and living under the tax laws of 50 states is a major undertaking because the process of complying with tax law goes far beyond just filling out the right forms," said Brian Bieron, eBay's senior director of global public policy.

"You have to deal with the fact that all of these government agencies can audit you and can question you and can actually take you into court and sue you if they think you are doing something wrong," Bieron said.

Supporters say the bill makes it relatively easy for Internet retailers to comply. States must provide free computer software to help retailers calculate sales taxes, based on where shoppers live. States must also establish a single entity to receive Internet sales tax revenue, so retailers don't have to send them to individual counties or cities.

Opponents say online businesses would still have to use resources to account for the taxes they collect and to periodically send the money to each state.

Support for the legislation crosses party lines: The main sponsor, Sen. Mike Enzi, is a conservative Republican from Wyoming. He has worked closely with Sen. Dick Durbin, a liberal Democrat from Illinois.

Supporters say the bill is not a tax increase. In many states, shoppers are required to pay unpaid sales tax when they file their state income tax returns. However, states complain that few taxpayers comply.

In the Senate, lawmakers from three states without income taxes are leading the opposition. They argue that businesses based in their states should not have to collect taxes for other states.

Montana, New Hampshire, Oregon and Delaware have no state or local sales taxes, though Delaware's two senators support the bill.

Delaware has long benefited from shoppers in neighboring states visiting Delaware to take advantage of the tax-free shopping, said Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del. Tax-free Internet shopping threatens Delaware's advantage, he said.

Many governors — Republicans and Democrats — have been lobbying the federal government for years for the authority to collect sales taxes from online sales.

The issue is getting bigger for states as more people make purchases online. Last year, Internet sales in the U.S. totaled $226 billion, up nearly 16 percent from the previous year, according to Commerce Department estimates.

States lost a total of $23 billion last year because they couldn't collect taxes on out-of-state sales, according to a study by three business professors at the University of Tennessee. About $11.4 billion was lost from Internet sales; the rest was from purchases made through catalogs, mail orders and telephone orders, the study said.

The study was done for the National Conference of State Legislatures.

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Follow Stephen Ohlemacher on Twitter: http://twitter.com/stephenatap

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Court: California cities can ban pot shops

SAN FRANCISCO — Local governments in California's have legal authority to ban storefront pot shops within their borders, California's highest court ruled on Monday in an opinion likely to further diminish the state's once-robust medical marijuana industry.

Nearly 17 years after voters in the state legalized medical marijuana, the court ruled unanimously in a legal challenge to a ban the city of Riverside enacted in 2010.

The advocacy group Americans for Safe Access estimates that another 200 jurisdictions statewide have similar prohibitions on retail pot sales. Many were enacted after the number of retail medical marijuana outlets boomed in Southern California after a 2009 memo from the U.S. Justice Department said prosecuting pot sales would be a low priority.

However, the rush to outlaw pot shops has slowed in the 21 months since the four federal prosecutors in California launched a coordinated crackdown on dispensaries by threatening to seize the property of landlords who lease space to the shops. Hundreds of dispensary operators have since been evicted or closed voluntarily.

Marijuana advocates have argued that allowing local government to bar dispensaries thwarts the intent of the state's medical marijuana law — the nation's first — to make the drug accessible to residents with doctor's recommendations to use it.

The ruling came in the case filed after Riverside city lawmakers used zoning powers to declare storefront pot shops as public nuisances and ban the operations in 2010. The Inland Empire Patient's Health and Wellness Center, part of the explosion of retail medical marijuana outlets, sued to stop the city from shutting it down.

A number of counties and cities were awaiting the Supreme Court ruling before moving forward with bans of their own.

A mid-level appeals court previously sided with the city of Riverside, but other courts have come to opposite conclusions. Last summer, a trial judge ruled that Riverside County could not close medical marijuana dispensaries in unincorporated areas because the move did not give the shops any room to operate legally under state law.

Meanwhile, an appeals court in Southern California struck down Los Angeles County's 2-year-old ban on dispensaries, ruling state law allows cooperatives and collectives to grow, store and distribute pot.

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