August 14, 1988 BUSINESS Peroxide plant gets go ahead PRINCE GEORGE (CP) — FMC of Canada will build a $65-million hydrogen peroxide plant in this central British Columbia city to serve the pulp industry, the company said Contractors are working on site surveys and construction will begin in the spring, said Thomas Coverdale, vice-presi- dent in charge of manufacturing. About 100 workers will be em- ployed during the engineering phase, with 400 used during construction, he told a news con- ference The plant will combine hydro: gen and oxygen to form hy drogen peroxide. The hydrogen for the process is already pro- duced as a byproduct at B.C Chemicals Ltd. which makes sodium chloride for local pulp mills The 32,000-tonne-a-year plant will employ 50 to 60 workers NEW PLANT . . . Prince George will be the site of FMC Canada's new $65-million hydrogen when it goes into operation in 1990. The plant will inject about $12 million in salaries and local pur- chases into the city’s economy, said Dale McMann, manager of the Prince George Region Devel- opment Corp. Hydrogen peroxide is used by thermal mechanical pulp mills to bleach their products. Tradition- al pulp mills in British Columbia producing long-fibre kraft pulp use chlorine bleach. FMC of Canada is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chicago- based FMC Corp., which has 89 peroxide plant. The plant will serve the provin- ce’s pulp industry. manufacturing and mine facil- ities in 25 countries. FMC’s total sales are about $3.5 billion US. As an incentive to build the plant in Prince George, the com- pany will receive a 40-per-cent discount on its electric bill for r rnings for half year Citing continued strong pulp mar- ket, increased lumber prices ahd re- duced financial éxpenses, Crestbrook Forest Industries Ltd. reports record earnings for the second quarter of this year. Net sales of $63.2 million resulted in earnings of $7.7 million in the second quarter of 1988 compared to sales of $64.4 million and earnings of $6.9 million in 1987. “The increase in earnings reflects the continuation of a strong pulp market and reduced financial ex- penses,”” chairman Sakae Hosaka and president Stuart Lang said in a report to shareholders. “Lumber prices also increased during the latter part of the second quarter, reflecting labor disruptions that have occurred recently in the northwest United States lumber in- dustry. This has allowed a returi\to P in the company’s Solid wood facilities, but it is expected that market prices will decline once the United States mills have resumed their normal pro- duction levels." Hosaka apd Lang also report that the strengthening of the Canadian dollar has moderated the effect of in- creased pulp prices and has reduced Crestbook’s pre-tax earnings by $3.9 million. ‘Demand for all of our products remains good,” said Hosaka and Lang. ‘‘World inventories of pulp continue at very low levels and this, coupled with high demand, enables current price levels to be maintained. Lumber demand is good, but pro- duction continues at very high levels. This, combined with rising interest rates, could see demand slacken, re- sulting in a decline in selling prices.” Hosaka and Lang added: ‘We are particularly pleased to announce that a three-year agreement has been reached with the pulp and paper unins which will provide stability at a time when it is critically needed.” five years, and a low-interest, $3-million loan. Sweet tooth war growing BOSTON (AP) — The battle for America’s sweet tooth isn’t kids’ stuff: Nestle spent $4.5 billion US to get Kit Kat, and Hershey paid $300 million for Almond Joy and Mounds this summer. Mergers and acquisitions in the global candy industry have surged in the last two years, as U.S. firms try to expand their product base and Europeans look ahead to free trade throughout the Common Market in 1992 . Companies are buying each other's familiar brand names — from O! Henry to Butterfinger to Milk Duds — like boys trading baseball cards The stakes are high: Americans will spend about $12 billion this year on chocolate and candy, about 10 kilograms a person. Business has grown three per cent to six per cent annually the last five years after a stagnant stretch in the late 1970s and early ‘80s The recent takeovers and consoli- dations have put the squeeze on independent candy makers, analysts said. The top-two U.S. companies, M and M maker Mars Inc. and Hershey Foods Corp. account for 70 per cent of the country’s chocolate market. In major takeover action: © Hershey last month acquired the U.S. operations of Cadbury Schwe- ppes PLC, the British chocolate ma- ker, for $300 million, gaining the popular Peter Paul Mounds and Almond Joy bars Hershey bought Dietrich Corp. of Reading, Pa., maker of Ludens cough drops, the Fifth Avenue bar and Queen Anne chocolate-covered cher- ries, for $100 million last year. It also paid $162 million for the Canadian subsidiary of RJR Nabisco, which makes Baby Ruth and Butterfinger. © Nestle SA, the Swiss food giant, in June won a battle with rival Swiss company Jacobs Suchard AG, acquir- ing British confectiéner Rowntree PLC for $4.5 billion US. The deal catapulted Nestle past Suchar4 as the world’s second-largest candy com- pany behind Mars and boosted its share of the global confectionery market to 11 per cent from four per cent. Jacobs Suchard, whose brand names include Toblerone, Adnes mints and Van Houten, in 1987 acquired E.J. Brach Corp. of Chicago in a deal said to be worth about $725 million. Analysts said European candy ma- kers are aggressively battling for position on the continent before the 12-country European Community opens its borders in 1992 and alters tariffs, embargoes and import duties. Candy bars change corporate hands, but few new products are being introduced because of diffi- culties penetrating a market already saturated with 750 brands. “It's very expensive to build a base from scratch,”’ said Janet Man- gano, who follows the food industry for Josephthal and Co., a regional brokerage house in New York. ‘‘It's much easier to buy it by doing an acquisition."’ Our Action Ad Number is 365-2212 Weekly stocks TORONTO (CP) — To make an unhappy story short — interest rates went up this week and the stock markets went down. The U.S. Federal Reserve Board’s surprise discount rate hike announ- ced Tuesday sent the stock markets, which were already worried about the possibility of higher interest rates, into depression. come back."” The market had been expecting interest rates to go up but the dis- count rate hike still hit the market hard, said Don Dillistone, of Richard- son Greenshields. The size of market drop was more than he expected, but part of that can be attributed to the low trading vol- umes, Dillistone said. He dismi: i be- The Toronto Stock com- posite 300 index lost 60.24 points during the week but turned the trend around Friday when it gained 7.22 points to close at 3,285.15. It's high for the year was 3,465.37 on July S. In New York, the Dow Jones in- dustrial average slipped 1.78 points Friday to close the week at 2,037.52, 81.61 points lower than it started. "The market doesn’t like expen- sive money,”’ said Leon Tuey, an in- dependent analyst. ‘Until we start seeing some rotten economic num- bers — maybe later this year or next spring — the market’s not going to tween this discount rate increase and the last one — last September — which some analysts have blamed for the October stock market crash. “This is quite a different time,” Dillistone said. ‘‘This is not a market of wild enthusiasm and optimism.” Analysts seem divided on whether more interest rate increases will fol- low. But Sherry Atkinson, chief econ- omist with Burns Fry and a former Federal Reserve Board employee, is convinced more are coming. WY. KS ustomers are looking for you We get their attention, and your ad does the rest Where do Crossroads Country buyers look for the mer- chandise and services they want and need? In the same place they look for the local news that's important to them — in the Castlegar News. Wherever you live in Crossroads Country, there's your award-winning hometown newspaper that keeps you informed about local issues and the people behind the news — people you meet every day in your neighborhood, your schools, your com- munity organizations. Your hometown paper — the Castlegar News — brings you the best local bargains in advertised goods and services, as well as the news you can use every day. If you have something #6 sell, call our classified department today. Just dial one of the numbers below, and let us do the rest. LN) », Castlegar News Circulation 365-7266 Display Advertising 365-5210 Classified Advertising 365-2212 News Department 365-3517 D Kootenay Saving Gretzky deal still has fans fuming EDMONTON (CP) — Fans of hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky are showing their dissatisfaction with Edmonton Oilers’ owner Peter Pocklington through boycotts and newspaper messages to their hero. Meanwhile, the backlash over the trade which sent Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings has escalated calls for community ownership of the National Hockey League team. Edmonton Ald. Ken Kozak said boycotting pro- ducts from Pocklington-owned companies may have an impact on the ownership drive “*If that would also result in a big boycott on season tickets, then I think that would have to give him some consideration to possibly sell,"’ said Kozak, adding his name to the growing list of people who don't want Pocklington to continue owning the Stanley Cup cham- pions POST SIGNS Maxwell Taylor's Restaurants have posted signs at their five outlets saying they ‘‘proudly do not serve Peter Pocklington’s meat and dairy products,"’ effective Friday. Gretzky and his bride Janet Jones regularly ate at the restaurants’ downtown Eemonton location before they were married. The chain, which has two Edmonton outlets and another three in Calgary, decided to voice its unhappi- ness with the trade, said Willie Meador, one of the restaurants’ five owners. ‘Wayne Gretzky supported our operation. We're still avid supporters of the Oilers, but not of Peter Pock lington,”” said Meador. His chain serves about 2,400 Edmonton customers. Other fans are considering boycotting Oilers’ games and products from Pocklington-owned compan ies. The sentiment has caused one local businessman to take out a half-page newspaper advertisement entitled People Against Pocklington. The ad urges Oiler fans to withhold the balance of money oweing on their season tickets, due Monday, and boycott the Oilers’ first home game. WITHHOLD MONEY “The only thing that Peter Pocklington understands is money and if we can withhold the money we're hitting him where it hurts and that’s in the pocket, because he doesn’t have much of a heart,’’ said Dean Campbell Pocklington is fishing until Aug. 18, and was not available for comment. Spokesmen for two Pockling- ton-owned companies, Palm Dairies and meat-packing Gainers Inc., said they received only a few irate calls. But fans flooded phone lines at the Edmonton Journal and Edmonton Sun to voice their opinins on the trade. The Journal published a special eight-page section Saturday with 1,500 messages that will be sent to Gretzky. The Sun received hundreds of calls and printed three pages of comments earlier in the week Many expressed good wishes to Gretzky and thanked him for his 10 yars in Edmonton. But others used the forum to vent their frustration with Pock- lington “It’s too bad you're treated like a horse at the Kentucky Derby. If Pocklington could put you out to stud he would, to make a buck,” said one irate Journal reader Still another fan sent a message that expressed the dream of most Oiler fans “Save your pennies owner of the Oilers.”” You'll be back... as SKALBANIA BLASTS FANS Pocklingon backed CHIP SHOT . . . Marg Salmon makes an approach shot at the 18th hole yesterday at the Castlegar Golf Club. It was Salmon’s first day on the track at Ootischenia CasNews photo by Brendan Nogie ‘Rumor mill ablaze I guess you heard about the blockbuster NHL trade of the century that wasn’t ever supposed to happen. You know — the deal on Tuesday that sent c Sergio and Vincent Riendeau to St. Louis for Jocelyn Lemieux, Darrell May and a 1989 second-round draft choice . don't I wish I'm sitting here still wiping the egg off my face as the smoke has yet to clear on the continuing Wayne Gretzky soap saga. Since I wrote of the “unfounded rumor,”’ the story has taken on epic proportions rivalling Ben Hurr and even Moby Dick. The final chapter is a long way off in this one The trade that was an impossibility according to Edmonton and Los Angeles spokesmen just last week has now become a reality as Canada’s Hockey Treasure will now be billed as the All-American Hockey Hero But the reality of the trade has fuelled an international gossip-speculation scandal that is the hottest topic of the week Did Gretzky ask to go? Did he succumb to the wishes of some blonde B-movie bimbo with thin lips? Did Peter ‘*Puck’’ Pocklington deal him like a side of beef out the back door of the Gainers plant? I don't know for sure and I’m not about to make any guesses after last week’s mistake. There are too many versions of too many stories to choose from. The initial reaction of Canadian hockey fans — particularly in Edmonton — was severe shock and disbelief. A teary-eyed Great One delivered the “‘charlatan’”’ Janet Jones running roughshod over the Great One, forcing him to take up residence in Tinsel Town. Puck was close behind as numerous skeletons came tumbling from his closet following the deal he said was Gretzky's idea. The Vancouver Canuck organization — which was never mentioned before in this saga — was apparently used as a pawn in Pocklington’s bid to deal the eight-time NHL most valuable player Puck's pal — one-time entrepreneur Nelson Skalbania — had some half-baked scheme cooked up to get Gretzky to the Canucks for an astronomical sum. It was nothing more than a false bargaining ploy to get Kings owner Bruce McNall to up the ante Even Arthur Griffiths — assistant to the chairman of the Canucks — knew the price for Gretzky was too unrealistic _ Hut it didn’t stop there. Two days after the trade, Puck accused Gretzky of having an ego the size of Manhattan and said the Great One's tears were the result of a clever acting job. If that was acting, Gretzky should be taking his wife's place on the silver screen any time now By Friday, Gretzky's wife called an Edmonton newspaper to say Puck was lying like a cheap rug. She outright accused Puck of being a spineless businessman who didn’t even have the guts to call his franchise player and let him know he was hanging in the breeze. According to Jones, Gretzky got a call on the fifth day of his honeymoon from L.A. owner McNall Jones said McNall was given permission by Puck to call the honeymooning Great One and ask him about playing for the Kings More dirt surfaced, this time out of New York, which may prove that Puck is the man who requested the deal with the Kings. New York Ranger general manager Phil Espo sito said Puck approached him in June of last year with a Gretzky trade proposition. Espo said the price was too high and turned the deal down If it took more than a year for that little item to appear, I can only imagine how long it will take to get the truth on the Gretzky deal No doubt there will be more and! more impossible words at a h tily-called news e Tuesday: ‘I decided that for the benefit of Wayne Gretzky, my wife and our expected child in the new year, it would be beneficial for everyone involved to let me play in Los Angeles."’ In Edmonton the shock quickly turned to wrath as incensed Oiler fans went on a witch hunt to find out who was ps for this offence The two most likely targets were, of course, Gretzky's new wife and Oiler owner Peter Puck Edmonton radio talk show lines were sizzling with acerbic accusations of the “‘harlot’’ and g with each day as the trade of the century provides speculative conversation fodder for weeks to come. But what of Gretzky himself? He refuses to get into a war of words with Puck over the ego and false-tear accusations. He is now in Los Angeles with his wife and a child on the way. And while the cesspool of speculation and gossip will continue to swirl around the Great One, he will sit patiently and quietly because one thing is certain: once the season begins, you can bank on Gretzky doing what he does best playing the game like no other has played it before VANCOUVER (CP) — The man who first signed Wayne Gretzky to a professional hockey contract took credit Friday for his trade to Los Angeles and blasted the ‘‘ungrate- ful’’ people of Edmonton for turning on Oilers’ owner Peter Pocklington. “I know whose idea it was (to trade Gretzky),’’ said Vancouver bus- inessman Nelson Skalban “*Prob- ably me. I brought the offer to Peter six months ago."” Skalbania, who as owner of the World Hockey Association Indiana- polis Racers signed the 17-year-old Gretzky to a personal services con- tract in 1978, then sold him to Edmonton, confirmed earlier reports he approached Pocklington about a trade that would have brought Gretz- ky to Vancouver. “I think that we did have a deal to bring Wayne to Vancouver,"’ Skal- bania said in an interview, adding that Pocklington backed out of the deal Skalbania indicated Gretzky ex- pressed some reservations about coming to Vancouver “‘It’s not like you're dealing with real estate, cars or a business. You're dealing with a human being,” he said. ‘You can spend a lot of dollars and buy Wayne, but he doesn't have to play. He could decide not to play next year."" Skalbania, a former deal-maker ex traordinaire who performed some fancy financial footwork in the early 1980s, to stave-off bankruptcy as a result of the real estate collapse, re- fused to give any more details except to ‘half-and-half’ confirm previously published reports. Those reports had him approach- ing Pocklington in December of 1987 with a deal that would have cost $35 million — $15 million to buy Gretzky, $2 million to Gretzky, and $18 million to Canucks’ majority shareholder Frank Griffiths. Skalbania said Pocklington de- serves the cash he received from the Los Angeles Kings for Gretzky and should be praised by Edmontonians “Edmonton should be very grate- ful for the gambling dollars that Messier about EDMONTON (CP) — Amid rumb- lings of discontent from Edmonton Oiler ranks_over the trade of Wayne Gretzky, forward Mark Messier call- ed and then abruptly cancelled a news conference for today The Toronto Globe and Mall news- paper has reported some Oilers are considering some form of protest — possibly a strike — to display their anger about the trade last Tuesday of Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings. The newspaper said a person close to the team says that without ex- ception the players want owner Peter Pocklington to sell the National Hoc- key League team Peter has put up and for the lucky stroke, the absolute lucky'stroke, that Wayne ended up there,”’ said Skal- bania. ‘“‘It was only because Peter put up the cheque when 1 had the difficulties in Indianapolis.”” He said there’s ‘no earthly way’’ fans in Edmonton should be criti- ing Pocklington ‘I don’t believe anybody is ser- iously mad in Edmonton. Otherwise they should be in a straitjacket. They should be_yery gtateful Wayne has finally got his due reward. Wayne, I think, has been wasted in Edmon- ton."’ unhappy trade Messier, the most likely candidate to succeed Gretzky as team leader and captain, would not disclose the topic of the news conference or the reason for the sudden cancellation An Edmonton Journal report sug- gested he might not be at training camp in mid-September because of his anger over the trade Since defenceman Paul Coffey was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins last year and with Gretzky now gone, the newspaper said Messier is dis- tressed that the nucleus of the team from its early days is coming apart. “| thought Gretz would always be an Oiler,’’ he said in a Journal inter- view Friday. “I'm analysing the events of the last few days." The 27-year-old forward is one of the few remaining Oilers from the team’s first NHL season in 1979. Messier missed part of last year's training camp when he held out for a new contract He secured a new six-year con- tract, but the Journal reported that it has never been signed. Messier’s old contract, which was to run out at the end of the 1988-89 season, is registered with the NHL so he can legally play, the newspaper said Meanwhile, the agent for Oiler goalie Grant Fuhr said he would block any attempt to trade his client. Rick Winter said he's taken steps to ensure the goaltender will remain in Edmonton The agent said Fuhr is worried that he might also be sold ‘*In light of the Gretzky trade, we believe there is a risk Grant could be moved,"’ Winter said. ‘I've had dis- cussions with half a dozen to a dozen companies about paying Grant to be vice-president of marketing “He'd get the same money he’s making from the Oilers. He would retire and take this money if he were sold." But he said Fuhr would consider a trade involving only players.