Toyota recalls vehicles to fix air bag problem
Toyota is recalling just over 1 million vehicles worldwide because the air bags could inflate without a crash or fail to work if there is one.
The recall covers about 17,000 Scion xA vehicles in the U.S. from 2004 through 2006. Also affected in Japan, Europe and elsewhere are the Isis, Avensis, Avensis Wagon, Allex, ist, Wish, Corolla, Corolla Spacio, Corollo Verso, Corolla Fielder, Corolla Runx, and Sienta. The vehicles were built from July 2002 to June 2015.
Toyota said Thursday an electrical short can damage circuits. That could deactivate the air bags and seat belt pretensioners or cause those systems to deploy inadvertently.
Dealers will replace the air bag control unit. Owners will be notified in December.
Toyota wouldn’t say if the problem has caused any crashes or injuries.
Food City opening new Rossville store
Food City will open its newest Chattanooga area store on Wednesday in Rossville.
The grocer plans to unveil the store at 820 Mission Ridge Road at 8 a.m., according to the Abingdon, Va.-based company.
Earlier this year, Food City started building a replacement for the Rossville store that it said will offer patrons a state-of-the-art unit when finished.
“It was an older store we bought that’s completely outdated,” said Food City CEO Steven C. Smith about the Mission Ridge Road site at the time.
The larger, 38,100-square-foot store is at the same location as the old facility.
On Tuesday, Food City will host a “Business After Hours Reception” from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Ribbon-cutting and flag-raising ceremonies are slated to begin at 5:15 p.m.
Productivity growth slows to 2.2 percent
U.S. productivity grew at an annual rate of 2.2 percent in the third quarter, a slowdown from the previous quarter but still better than the lackluster gains of the last decade. Labor costs accelerated but remained at a low level.
The rise in productivity in the July-September period followed a 3 percent rate of increase in the second quarter, which had been the strongest figure in three years. Labor costs rose at a 1.2 percent rate after having fallen at a 1 percent rate in the second quarter.
Productivity, the amount of output per hour of work, has been weak throughout the current recovery that began in June 2009. Analysts have been unable to come up with definitive reasons for the slowdown.
Productivity last year rose by just 1.1 percent. Over the past decade, productivity has been up at an average annual rate of 1.3 percent, just about half the 2.1 percent gains seen in the seven decades starting in 1947. The period from 2000 to 2007 saw even stronger annual gains of 2.7 percent, a burst that was credited to efficiency improvements achieved with the introduction of high-tech computers and other devices to the workplace.
Mortgage rates ease; 30-year at 4.83 percent
Long-term U.S. mortgage rates declined this week, in a quiet pause after weeks of market anxiety over rising interest rates.
Home borrowing rates still remain at their highest levels in more than seven years, dampening the outlook for prospective home buyers. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the rate on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages eased to an average 4.83 percent this week from 4.86 percent last week. A year ago, it stood at 3.94 percent.
The average rate on 15-year, fixed-rate loans slipped to 4.23 percent this week from 4.29 percent last week.