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Page 10A NATION/WORLD East Oregonian Saturday, January 16, 2016 Obama halts new coal leases on federal land Stock market slides; worst ever start to a year Associated Press WASHINGTON — The Obama administration is imposing a moratorium on new coal leases on federal lands, arguing that the $1 billion-a-year program must be modernized to ensure a fair ¿QDQFLDO UHWXUQ WR WD[SD\HUV and address climate change. The program has remained largely unchanged for more than 30 years and requires a comprehensive review, Inte- rior Secretary Sally Jewell said Friday in announcing the halt. The move drew praise from environmental groups and Democrats, but condemnation from Repub- licans who called it another volley in what they assert is a “war on coal” being waged by President Barack Obama. “It is abundantly clear that times are different than they were 30 years ago, and the time for review (of the coal leasing program) is now,” Jewell told reporters in a conference call. She called the morato- rium, effective immediately and expected to last through the remainder of Obama’s ¿QDO\HDULQRI¿FHD³SUXGHQW step to hit pause.” At least 30 mining appli- cations in nine states would be blocked under the direc- tive, according to a Bureau of Land Management list obtained by The Associated Press. Some of the largest projects are in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming and Montana, the nation’s top coal-producing region. The federal program to lease coal-mining rights to a single bidder has remained largely unchanged for decades, despite complaints that low royalty rates and a near-total lack of competition AP Photo/Matthew Brown In this 2013 photo, coal is loaded onto hopper cars at the Spring Creek Mine near Decker, Mont. have cost the government hundreds of millions of dollars a year. More than 40 percent of U.S. coal production, or about 450 million tons a year, comes from public lands in Wyoming, Montana and other Western states, bringing in more than $1 billion in annual revenue. Nearly 90 percent of coal tracts leased by the Interior Department receive just a single bid, and royalty rates have remain unchanged since 1976. The lack of competition and other problems in the program have cost the government as much as $200 million a year in lost revenue, according to a 2014 report by the Government Account- DELOLW\2I¿FH Coal reserves already under lease can continue to be mined, and a limited number of sales will be allowed, Jewell said. It’s unclear what impact the moratorium will have on overall U.S. coal production, given declining domestic demand and the closure of QXPHURXV FRDO¿UHG SRZHU plants around the country. Coal companies have already stockpiled billions of tons of coal on existing leases in Wyoming, Montana, Colo- rado, Utah and New Mexico. Even so, environmental groups cheered the announce- ment. The groups have long said the government’s 12.5 percent royalty rate for coal mining on federal land encouraged production of a “dirty” fuel that contributes to global warming. Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., said taxpayers are being shortchanged on royal- WLHV WKDW GR QRW UHÀHFW WKH true costs of mining, both in terms of its economic value to mining companies and its Wal-Mart to shutter 269 stores Closures hit Portland, Lake Oswego NEW YORK (AP) — Wal-Mart is doing some rare pruning. The world’s largest retailer is closing 269 stores, including 154 in the U.S. that includes all of its locations under its small- est-format concept store called Wal-Mart Express. The other big chunk is in its challenging Brazilian market. The stores being shut- tered account for a fraction of the company’s 11,000 stores worldwide and less than 1 percent of its global revenue. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said the store closures will affect 16,000 workers, 10,000 of them in the U.S. Its global workforce is 2.2 million, 1.4 million in the U.S. alone. The store closures will start at the end of the month. The announcement comes three months after Wal-Mart Stores Inc. CEO Doug McMillon told inves- tors that the world’s largest retailer would review its ÀHHW RI VWRUHV ZLWK WKH JRDO of becoming more nimble in the face of increased competition from all fronts, including from online rival Amazon.com. “Actively managing our portfolio of assets is essen- tial to maintaining a healthy business,” McMillon said in a statement. “Closing stores is never an easy decision. But it is necessary to keep the company strong and positioned for the future.” when they’re uncertain they’re scared.” Crude oil has dropped Never before has Wall below $30 a barrel from a Street gotten off to a worse high of over $100 during the summer of 2014, evis- start to a year. The stock market capped cerating energy company WKH¿UVWWZRZHHNVRI SUR¿WV2Q)ULGD\:LOOLDPV with a steep slide Friday Cos. led a slide among oil, that sent the Dow Jones gas and mining companies, industrial average down falling $2.19, or 12 percent, to $16.10. nearly 400 points. Investors also got some All three major stock economic indexes — the Dow, the discouraging Nasdaq composite and the news on Friday: The Standard & Poor’s 500 — Federal Reserve said U.S. production, are now in what’s known as industrial a correction, or a drop of 10 which includes manufac- percent or more from their turing, mining and utilities, dropped in December for recent peaks. The market has been on the third month in a row. a stomach-churning ride And another government since the start of the year, report indicated U.S. retail wrenched up — but mostly sales dipped last month. Many investors had down — because of alarm over a slowdown in China welcomed the new year and the plunging price of with fairly high hopes. They oil to its lowest level in 12 expected oil prices would years. Investors are already stabilize. After a market seeing damage to U.S. correction in August, few FRUSRUDWH SUR¿WV SDUWLFX- forecast it would happen again so soon. And the larly at energy companies. The Dow slid 390.97 Federal Reserve’s move in points, or 2.4 percent, to December to raise interest 15,988.08. The average had UDWHV IRU WKH ¿UVW WLPH LQ been down more than 500 nearly 10 years signaled to points early in the after- many that the U.S. economy noon. The S&P 500 ended was healthy. “The hope was global down 41.51 points, or 2.2 percent, at 1,880.33. The growth would stabilize, Nasdaq dropped 126.59 and early in 2016 here, that points, or 2.7 percent, to has been a disappointment, too,” said David Chalupnik, 4,488.42. The Dow and S&P 500 head of equities at Nuveen have now fallen about 8 Asset Management. Despite the rough start percent this year, while the Nasdaq is off about 10 to the year, Wall Street watchers are not ready to percent. “Oil is the root cause say the bull market is over. “We don’t believe we’re of today,” said Dan Farley, regional investment strat- going into a bear market,” egist at the Private Client Chalupnik said. “The Reserve at U.S. Bank. reason for that is the U.S. “People are uncertain, and economy is sound.” By ALEX VEIGA AP Business Writer Andy Jacobsohn/The Dallas Morning News via AP Richard Gutierrez loads groceries after shopping with his mother at Wal-Mart in Dallas, Friday. Michael Exstein, an analyst at Credit Suisse, described the moves as “baby steps” in his report published Friday, but he believes they are positive ones. He noted that this is WKH ¿UVW PDVV FORVLQJ WKDW Wal-Mart has announced in at least two decades. “It is a sign that Wal-Mart has begun the process of dealing with unproductive locations in a much more tangible and coherent way,” he wrote. “But we continue to believe that Wal-Mart needs a much larger restructuring of its store base in order to narrow its focus as it seeks to improve its sales and returns, especially internationally.” Wal-Mart has seen sales perk up for a key revenue measure for the last few quarters in its U.S. business. But it warned last October WKDWLWVHDUQLQJVIRUWKH¿VFDO year starting next month will be down as much as 12 percent as it invests further in online operations and pours money into improving customers’ experience in the stores. The company has been building bigger IXO¿OOPHQW FHQWHUV GHYRWHG to e-commerce orders and expanding online services. Of the 154 store closures in the U.S., 102 of them are under the Wal-Mart Express name, which were opened as a test in 2011. The company operates more than 5,000 stores overall in the U.S. Wal-Mart Express PDUNHG WKH UHWDLOHU¶V ¿UVW entry into the convenience store arena. The stores, which sold essentials like toothpaste, were meant to be a solution to the threat of the fast-growing dollar stores. Wal-Mart Express intended to be a two-pronged strategy: stores in small towns that aren’t big enough to support a full-size Wal-Mart and stores in big cities where building a supercenter was impractical. But the concept never caught on as the stores served the same purpose as Wal-Mart’s larger Neighbor- hood Markets. DISNEY DAYS impact on the environment. Getting royalty rates right is especially important “given how much coal comes off federal land,” said Cantwell, the top Democrat on the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee. “I’m glad to see the president take this action. We need to stop the sweet deal (mining companies) have been getting,” Cantwell said. But Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., called the announce- ment “just the latest front in an ideological war on coal” that has contributed to the loss of thousands of jobs in coal-producing states. “Americans want this administration to focus on building opportunity for them, not advancing some regressive war that attacks middle-class jobs and punishes the poor,” McCon- nell said. Burkina Faso hotel attacked by al-Qaida OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AP) — Al-Qaida militants struck an upscale hotel and nearby cafe late Friday that are popular with Westerners in Burkina Faso’s capital, taking an unknown number of hostages and IRUFLQJRWKHUVWRKLGHIRUWKHLUOLYHVDVJXQ¿UH and explosions rang out. Commandos used H[SORVLYHV WR VWRUP WKH EXLOGLQJ ¿YH KRXUV ODWHUDFFLGHQWDOO\VHWWLQJ¿UHWRWKHKRWHO Burkina Faso’s communications minister says about 30 hostages have been freed from the upscale hotel. The hostages were freed by Burkina Faso security forces backed by French troops who are trying to secure the four-story hotel. It was not immediately known how many people may have been killed during the siege, though one survivor estimated as many as 20 people were dead inside, according to KRVSLWDORI¿FLDOV It was not immediately known how many people may have been killed during the siege, though a survivor told hospital director Robert Sangare he estimated the toll could be as high as 20. At least 15 other people were seriously wounded by bullets and undergoing treatment at the Yalgado Ouedraogo hospital, he said. 7KH ORFDO DO4DLGD DI¿OLDWH NQRZQ DV AQIM claimed responsibility online as the attack was ongoing, according to SITE Intelligence Group. In a message posted in Arabic on the militants’ “Muslim Africa” Telegram DFFRXQW LW VDLG ¿JKWHUV KDG ³EURNH LQWR D restaurant of one of the biggest hotels in the capital of Burkina Faso, and are now entrenched and the clashes are continuing with the enemies of the religion.” Fighters who spoke by phone later “asserted the fall of many dead Crusaders,” AQIM said, according to SITE. Witness Vital Nounagnon told the AP that he saw four men wearing turbans attack the hotel and neighboring Cappuccino Cafe about 7:30 p.m. Another witness who gave RQO\ KLV ¿UVW QDPH *LOEHUW VDLG WKDW ZKHQ %XUNLQDEH VHFXULW\ IRUFHV ¿UVW DUULYHG they turned around rather than confront the attackers. 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Equal Housing Opportunity. * The current Annual Percentage Rate of 2.50% applies to a ixed rate advance made under the home equity line of credit agreement (“HELOC”) with a maximum 15-year repayment term, 60% loan-to-value (“LT V ”) ratio and minimum FICO score of 740. These terms apply only to HELOCs secured by a senior lien trust deed. This HELOC has a ixed rate conversion option. Borrowers may conver t all or par t of their variable rate (“revolving”) balance to a ixed rate with repayment terms up to 25 years. The APR on any revolving balance por tion is variable and is currently as low as 3.125%. The maximum variable rate adjustment is 2% annually and 5% for the life of the loan. The ixed and variable APR each member pays will var y based on lien position, LT V and FICO score. Third par ty fees range from $260-$1,300 for credit limits of $50,000. Rates and terms are available for LT V ratios up to 80%. Rates are subject to change without notice. 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