Business Briefs – December 25, 2016

Fiat Chrysler to Recall 50K SUVs; Engines Could Stall

DETROIT (AP) – Fiat Chrysler is recalling nearly 50,000 small SUVs worldwide because the engines could stall while being driven.

The recall covers the Dodge Journey and Jeep Compass and Patriot from the 2016 model year. All have 2-liter or 2.4-liter four-cylinder engines. The company says a sensor connector in the engine can malfunction. That can cause the SUVs to either stall or fail to start.

Fiat Chrysler says it doesn’t know of any crashes or injuries due to the problem.

Fred’s, a Small Drugstore Chain, May Become National Player

NEW YORK (AP) – Fred’s, a small regional drugstore chain from Tennessee, has had a very good week.

It all started Tuesday, when Fred’s said it would pay $950 million to buy 865 stores that Rite Aid needed to sell in order to appease anti-trust regulators and close its $9.4 billion buyout deal with Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc.

The deal will more than double Fred’s current store count of 650. Fred’s stock has soared since, rising about 75 percent this week, its biggest one-week gain since its shares began trading nearly 25 years ago.

Deutsche, Credit Suisse to Compensate Consumers Post-Crisis

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) – Nine years after the collapse of the U.S. housing market sent shockwaves through the global economy, two European banks have agreed to offer American homeowners and borrowers billions of dollars’ worth of help under a settlement related to the sale of risky securities that helped spark the 2008 crisis.

Deutsche Bank and Credit Suisse said Friday they agreed to the tentative settlements with the U.S. Justice Department over their dealings in mortgage-backed bonds.

Deutsche Bank, Germany’s biggest, agreed to pay $7.2 billion — $3.1 billion in fines and $4.1 billion in consumer relief. That relief could include easier terms on loan repayments terms for homeowners and borrowers.

Neither Deutsche nor Credit Suisse, which agreed to a similar settlement under which it would pay $5.3 billion, including $2.8 billion in consumer relief, provided details on what the consumer compensation would entail.

Railroad in Fiery Derailment Agrees to Changes

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — The nation’s largest freight railroad has agreed to more thorough inspections and maintenance improvements after a fiery oil train derailment in Oregon and the discovery of more than 800 potential safety violations across its sprawling network.

Details on the agreement between the Federal Railroad Administration and Union Pacific Railroad were obtained by The Associated Press.

Sixteen tank cars from a Union Pacific train hauling North Dakota crude through the Columbia River Gorge derailed in early June along a curve in the tracks near Mosier, Oregon. The accident sparked a massive fire that burned for 14 hours and prompted the evacuation of nearby areas.