Caterpillar Inc

On the picket line outside Caterpillar's sprawling tractor plant, John McCoy uses his head to display his disdain for his employer of 29 years: He wears a John Deere cap. Just up the street, a union billboard painted in Caterpillar's bold yellow colors announces: "You are entering a war zone. Caterpillar vs. its UAW employees." Such are the symbols of the nation's longest ongoing labor confrontation.

Even before the stimulus deal was complete in Congress, President Obama said Wednesday that evidence already showed his economic rescue plan would improve the lives of American workers. The White House asserted three times Wednesday that Caterpillar Inc., which has laid off workers recently, would be able to rehire employees if Congress approved the stimulus bill. But as the president prepared for a trip today to visit a Caterpillar plant in East Peoria, Ill., it was unclear whether the world's biggest maker of earth-moving equipment could provide an example of the stimulus bill's job-creating powers.

In a two-pronged legal attack, the parents of a young American activist killed two years ago while trying to block the demolition of a home in a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip have filed lawsuits in Seattle and Israel, seeking compensation for their daughter's death. The suit filed in Israeli District Court in Haifa last week seeks damages against the state of Israel, the Defense Ministry and the Israel Defense Forces, whose bulldozer crushed Rachel Corrie to death.

Caterpillar Inc., the world's largest maker of bulldozers and excavators, said fourth-quarter earnings rose 11% as demand from China, Russia and South Africa helped overcome slower sales in the U.S., where recession is "a definite threat." Net income increased to $975 million, or $1.50 a share, from $882 million, or $1.32, a year earlier, the Peoria, Ill.-based company said. Sales gained 10% to $12.1 billion. Overseas sales accounted for about 56% of the year's $45 billion in revenue.

Caterpillar Inc. stockholders defeated a proposal Wednesday that aimed at forcing the company to withdraw from South Africa to protest that government's official policy of racial segregation. More than 98.8 million shares of common stock were voted on the issue during Caterpillar's annual meeting, held in San Francisco.

Caterpillar Inc. Expects 4th-Quarter Loss: Caterpillar Inc. said it expects to suffer a modest loss in the fourth quarter because of slumping European sales and losses in its Brazilian operations. The forecast revises the company's earlier projection of a "marginally profitable" quarter, and comes despite a pretax gain of $50 million to $65 million from the sale of its lift-truck assets. Caterpillar said it has been hurt by foreign exchange rates and the adverse effect from income taxes.

Unfair Labor Practice Charges Settled at Caterpillar: The United Auto Workers union said it settled unfair labor practice charges involving its strike against Caterpillar Inc. Under the settlement, the company, the international union and Caterpillar local unions will be required to post notices advising members of their rights and responsibilities in future picket-line situations. Neither the company nor the union admitted to violations of the law.

Using two huge yellow earthmovers as his backdrop, and giddy over driving a third, President Bush sought Tuesday to calm fears about globalization, the nation's economic future and the risks of easing trade barriers, arguing that free trade benefits U.S. workers. "The temptation is to say, 'Well, trade may not be worth it, let's isolate ourselves, let's protect ourselves,' " Bush said, adding: "It's a bad mistake for the country to lose our confidence and not compete."

Caterpillar Inc. reported disappointing quarterly earnings and cut its 2006 and 2007 forecast on slowing demand for its earth-moving equipment and rising raw material prices that are eroding margins. Caterpillar said a number of factors weighed on third-quarter results, including costs related to settling a dispute with Navistar International Corp. that reduced earnings per share by 8 cents. But the chief culprits were slowing machinery sales, as the slowdown in the U.S.

Shareholders of Caterpillar Inc. have rejected a proposal that the company review its sale of bulldozers used to demolish houses and other property by Israel. The proposal was rejected by parties holding 97% of the company's shares, the firm announced at the heavy-equipment manufacturer's annual meeting in Chicago.

Targeting a Caterpillar Inc. shareholder resolution set for a vote today, many California Jewish leaders are intensely mobilizing against efforts to use stock market pressure as a tool against Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories. California Jews representing such organizations as the American Jewish Congress and StandWithUs plan to attend a meeting at Caterpillar Inc.'s corporate headquarters in Peoria, Ill.

In a two-pronged legal attack, the parents of a young American activist killed two years ago while trying to block the demolition of a home in a refugee camp in the Gaza Strip have filed lawsuits in Seattle and Israel, seeking compensation for their daughter's death. The suit filed in Israeli District Court in Haifa last week seeks damages against the state of Israel, the Defense Ministry and the Israel Defense Forces, whose bulldozer crushed Rachel Corrie to death.

A federal judge refused to block today's U.S. release of a Walt Disney Co. comedy that Caterpillar Inc. contends will hurt its image and sales of children's products. Chief U.S. District Judge Joe B. McDade on Monday denied Caterpillar's request for a temporary restraining order to halt sales of Disney's "George of the Jungle 2," a direct-to-DVD product. The Peoria, Ill.

Caterpillar Inc. has sued to block next week's U.S. release of Disney's "George of the Jungle 2," alleging that the direct-to-DVD movie damages the heavy equipment maker's reputation. The Peoria-based company's trademark infringement lawsuit contends the movie ties Caterpillar to an "evil attacking army" of industrialists seeking to destroy the jungle, a central theme of the Disney sequel.