| Feb 09 | In Toyota mess, lesson for Japan (New York Times) |
| Once a leading symbol of Japan's rise to global economic might, Toyota has become one of the most visible signs of its decline. And even before the recalls, Japan's rivals from South Korea and China had started overtaking Japan in key industries from semiconductors to flat-panel televisions. And Toyota on Tuesday issued another damaging recall, this time of its popular Prius hybrid. |
| Feb 09 | 100 mil. yen offered in successful bid for uninhabited island (AP) |
| An unidentified organization won a contract to purchase a state-owned uninhabited islet in the Seto Inland Sea off Kure, Hiroshima Prefecture, for 100,010,000 yen (about $1.12 million) in public bidding Tuesday, bidding participants said. The island up for bids was one of two islets collectively called Mitsugo Island, located about 1 kilometer off Kure. It measures about 580 meters around and 7,600 square meters in acreage. The Finance Ministry held the bidding as part of efforts to sell idle state properties, ministry officials said. |
| Feb 09 | Japan Airlines rejects Delta, stays with American (CNBC) |
| Japan Airlines, wooed for months by Delta Air Lines with promises of cash and a broad global network, is spurning the world's biggest carrier and opting to keep its alliance with American Airlines. Japan's flagship carrier says it will strengthen its partnership with American and apply to the U.S. government for antitrust immunity on trans-Pacific flights. |
| Feb 09 | Govt looks to block ban on trade in bluefin tuna (Yomiuri) |
| The government is increasingly concerned about a recommendation issued by the Washington Convention's secretariat Friday that urged the treaty's signatories to adopt a proposal by Monaco to ban trade in bluefin tuna in the Atlantic, according to sources. Japan is the world's largest consumer of bluefin tuna and is set to boost diplomatic efforts to urge signatories to the treaty, formally called the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, to reject the proposal at the March 13-25 meeting in Qatar, the sources said. |
| Feb 09 | Deregulation crucial to JAL resuscitation (Yomiuri) |
| Deregulation of the airline industry will be crucial for getting Japan Airlines back on its feet, but the nation should be prepared to accept the ailing airline could be sold to a local rival, according to a former deputy chief of a task force appointed by the government to draw up a plan to rehabilitate the airline. In a recent interview with The Yomiuri Shimbun, Kazuhiko Toyama, who has played a key role in the attempt to revive JAL, also said the clock is against the carrier as it tries to streamline itself under the state-backed Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corporation of Japan. |
| Feb 08 | Japan's Kirin terminates merger talks with Suntory (AFP) |
 Japanese beer and soft drink giant Kirin said on Monday it had terminated months-long merger talks with its smaller rival Suntory that had aimed to create a top industry player in Asia.
"Kirin Holdings Company Limited, which has been in merger negotiations with Suntory Holdings Limited, today announced that the negotiations have been terminated," Kirin said, citing disagreement on whether to list the company.
A combined group would have been be the largest in the Japanese beer and soft drink markets with sales of more than 400 billion dollars -- ahead of Belgium-based Anheuser-Busch InBev and Coca-Cola Co. of the United States.
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| Feb 08 | As Japanese property prices fall, interest rises among Chinese investors (Asahi) |
| Japan's real estate market may be in a slump, but that's not deterring Chinese from scooping up properties. Chinese money--that is from Chinese living in Japan--is making its presence felt in a big way. Businessman Tsuyoshi Tsuyusaki is typical of this new breed of customer. His mantra for all his transactions is to use cash, often involving sums of tens of millions of yen. He picks up properties cheaply, mainly at court-ordered auctions following foreclosure. |
| Feb 07 | Japanese ask: Is US backlash behind Toyota woes? (BusinessWeek) |
| Despite the criticism of Toyota over car safety, Japanese citizens still largely view the world's largest automaker with pride -- so much so that some people here wonder whether pressure on Toyota in the U.S. is a ploy to boost American auto producers and undermine Japan Inc. That notion may seem far-fetched to the millions of Toyota owners in the United States and around the world whose confidence in the company has made it the world leader -- and are now simply worried about the safety of their cars. |
| Feb 06 | Disney Japan to acquire Oriental Land's Disney stores (Bloomberg) |
| Walt Disney Co. (Japan) Ltd. agreed to acquire Retail Networks Co., operator of Disney retail stores in Japan, from Oriental Land Co. The stores will become a wholly owned subsidiary on April 1, Tokyo-based Disney Japan said today in an e-mailed statement. Financial terms and the number of stores weren't disclosed. Disney and Oriental Land, operator of Disneyland Tokyo, had been in talks since last year, according to the statement. The parent Walt Disney Co., based in Burbank, California, previously regained control of 220 retail outlets in North America and 120 in Europe, and plans to modernize the stores. |
| Feb 06 | A crisis made in Japan (Wall Street Journal) |
 In Japan there is a proverb, "If it stinks, put a lid on it." Alas, this seems to have been Toyota's approach to its burgeoning safety crisis, initially denying, minimizing and mitigating the problems involving brakes that don't brake and accelerators that have a mind of their own. President Akio Toyoda, grandson of the founder, was MIA for two weeks and the company has appeared less than forthcoming about critical safety issues, risking the trust of its customers world-wide.
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| Feb 06 | Isetan Mitsukoshi to close Paris store (Japan Times) |
| Mitsukoshi department store's Paris outlet will close in September due to sluggish sales amid the global economic downturn, according to Isetan Mitsukoshi Holdings Ltd. Meanwhile, the company said Thursday it plans to open its second Isetan outlet in Tianjin, China, sometime between the end of this year and spring 2011, reflecting the company's plan to expand business in China, where solid economic growth is expected in the future. |
| Feb 05 | Toyota poised to recall Prius in Japan, U.S. (Yomiuri) |
 Toyota Motor Corp. is set to formally announce it will recall and voluntarily repair a new model of its Prius hybrid with brake design flaws in Japan and the United States, it was learned Friday.
The automaker is currently finalizing procedures for such a recall.
Toyota has sold about 300,000 units of the latest Prius in 60 countries and territories. It also is expected to gradually begin voluntary repairs of those cars in countries and territories outside Japan and the United States.
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| Feb 05 | Valentine's chocolate defies recession (Japan Times) |
 As many businesses continue to shake their heads over how tough it is to make sales in these financially difficult times, "cheaper is better" is the strategy of the day, with shops slicing prices for everything from "gyudon" (beef on rice) to jeans. But one thing consumers - especially female ones - will loosen their purse strings for are those little drops of heaven that are sure to melt their darlings' hearts come Feb. 14, say chocolate retailers, whose customer-oriented strategies have seen both luxury brands and affordable sweets fly off the shelves at equal speed.
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| Feb 05 | Suntory prevails in talks with Kirin (Yomiuri) |
| Kirin Holdings Co. and Suntory Holdings Ltd. have agreed that Suntory's founding families will hold a more than one-third stake in a new company to be created by a merger of the two firms, sources close to the deal said Thursday. As a result of the basic agreement, Suntory's founding families will also become the largest shareholder in the merged company. In the merger negotiations, the biggest stumbling block had been how Kirin and Suntory would divvy up the stock. Kirin effectively made a concession on this point. |
| Feb 05 | Is US bullying Toyota on recall? (AFP) |
| The US transportation chief's public rebukes of Toyota's handling of a massive safety recall have raised eyebrows, given the US government's major stake in rivals General Motors and Chrysler. "The optics are terrible because -- and this is what happens when a government owns a company - the two companies that are going to gain the most out of this are General Motors and Chrysler," said Peter Morici, a professor at the University of Maryland's business school. "But their behavior is consistent with the general policy of the US government, whether it's dealing with coffeemakers or cars." |
| Feb 04 | Toyota's U.S. sales dive in Jan. (Yomiuri) |
| New car sales by Toyota Motor Corp., hit by the latest massive recall of its vehicles, dropped 15.8 percent in the United States in January from a year earlier to 98,796 units, falling short of the 100,000 mark in single-month sales for the first time in 11 years, a U.S. research firm said Tuesday. Toyota's sales in the reporting month accounted for 14.1 percent of the U.S. market, overtaken by Ford Motor Co. with a 16.1 percent share, Autodata Corp. said. Toyota was ranked third in the U.S. market share for the first time since June. |
| Feb 04 | Toll-free expressway plan makes slow start (Yomiuri) |
| The smaller-than-planned number of expressways to be made toll-free in fiscal 2010, the first year of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan's drive to make highway services free, reflects a belt-tightening budget for the next fiscal year and concerns for anticipated traffic congestion in urban areas and growth in carbon dioxide emissions. The government's decision to scale back the toll-free highway plan in its initial stage means another promise included in the DPJ's manifesto will not be delivered. It is uncertain whether and to what extent highway users will benefit from the plan. |
| Feb 04 | Sharp records ¥9.1 billion profit (Japan Times) |
| Sharp Corp. said Wednesday it booked its second straight profitable quarter in October-December, its cost-cutting efforts bringing it back from large losses even as sales of flat-screen TVs and other products stayed flat. Sharp booked a net profit of ¥9.1 billion during its third quarter, after a ¥65.8 billion loss a year earlier. The turnaround came despite a tepid uptick in sales, to ¥735.3 billion from ¥735.1 billion. |
| Feb 04 | FSA wary of KDDI's purchase plan (Japan Times) |
| The Financial Services Agency has started a probe into KDDI Corp.'s possibly illegal plan to buy a major stake in cable television operator Jupiter Telecommunications Co., according to sources. The financial watchdog is concerned the mobile phone carrier's planned share purchase method could violate the financial instruments and exchange law, they said. |
| Feb 03 | Uniqlo sales hit by shortage of winter clothes (BBC) |
 Sales at Uniqlo, the casual-clothing chain, fell 7.2% in January after the company sold out of some popular items.
The Japanese company, owned by Fast Retailing, said there was a shortage of its Heattech winter range, made of heat trapping fabric.
T-shirts and leggings made of the material had nearly sold out in December, the company said.
January's sales fall was Uniqlo's first year-on-year decline in six months, and comes after strong trading in 2009.
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| Feb 03 | Toyota on the hard shoulder (Times Online) |
 Japanese public debt is 200 per cent of GDP. Its economy is poised to be overtaken by China. Japan Airlines (JAL) is bankrupt. It is tempting to see Toyota's defective accelerator pedal as part of the same story of failing Japan.
To do so makes several mistakes. The first is to view Toyota as synonymous with corporate Japan, which it is not. It is profit-hungry, expansive and global, qualities that make it different in almost every respect from Japanese companies in general and the complacent, dysfunctional JAL, in particular.
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| Feb 03 | 7-11 offering city services (Japan Times) |
 Seven-Eleven Japan Co. launched a new service Tuesday enabling customers to get residence and personal seal certification at its convenience stores in Tokyo and Chiba Prefecture instead of going to city offices. The issuance of "juminhyo" (residence certificates) and "inkan toroku shomeisho" (registered seal certificates) marks a first for convenience stores and for now is available only to residents of Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, the suburb of Mitaka, and people living in Ichikawa, Chiba Prefecture.
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| Feb 03 | Softbank group profit soars 63% (Japan Times) |
| Softbank Corp. said Tuesday it posted a 63.0 percent rise in group net profit to ¥94.86 billion in the April-December period from a year earlier due to brisk cell phone business. In an earnings statement for the first three quarters of fiscal 2009, Softbank said its group operating profit grew 33.4 percent to ¥366.32 billion and pretax profit rose 61.1 percent to ¥281.19 billion. |
| Feb 02 | Citigroup to expand retail banking in Japan (The Street) |
| Citigroup plans to open four retail branches in Japan in 2010, a report says. The first two locations will open in the second quarter in the central Tokyo districts of Marunouchi and Nihonbashi, Citibank Japan said, the Associated Press reports. Citigroup's move would mark its first expansion in Japan since selling several of its Japanese finance businesses last year to pay back bailout money it received from the U.S. government. |
| Feb 02 | Frozen food makers try to lure frugal consumers (Asahi) |
| Frozen food makers are stepping up efforts to lure customers with new products, drawing on a growing need of belt-tightening amid the stagnant economy. The move comes at a time when sales have not fully recovered after a pesticide found in Chinese-made frozen gyoza dumplings was blamed for sickening 10 Japanese about two years ago. As a rising number of consumers are choosing to make boxed lunches or eat at home to save money, frozen food makers are rolling out products this month and in March that are more affordable and targeted at specific groups. |
| Feb 02 | Toyota to begin fixing faulty gas pedals in U.S., resume production (AP) |
| Toyota Motor Corp. said Monday it will begin repairing its recalled vehicles in the United States in the coming few days after announcing a remedy for potentially defective accelerator pedals, in a move it hopes will help to rebuild its tarnished reputation. With the remedy finalized, a company official said the Japanese auto giant may resume suspended production of the affected vehicles as early as Feb. 8, as it looks to put a massive worldwide recall behind it. Sales are expected to be restarted around the same time. |
| Feb 02 | Regional expressway sections to become free from June (Mainichi) |
| The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism has decided to start waiving tolls on regional expressways in June as part of its pilot project to promote free highways, it has emerged. The project will cover about 35 sections -- mainly two-lane sections -- on regional expressways, with the total road length to be around 1,500 kilometers, or one-fifth of the nation's entire expressway length. Highways designated to become toll free are parts of the Hokkaido Odan Expressway, the Nihonkai-Tohoku Expressway, the Sanin Expressway, the Higashi-Kyushu Expressway and the Okinawa Expressway, among other routes. |
| Feb 01 | Alleged murder case feared to put damper on marriage counseling business (AP) |
| The operators of marriage counseling services fear that Monday's arrest of a Tokyo woman for allegedly murdering her boyfriend may put a damper on their business that has been booming with a growing trend of people relying on professional help and the Internet for finding a spouse. In the high-profile case, 35-year-old Kanae Kijima, who has been arrested for allegedly defrauding men she dated out of millions of yen and promised to marry after meeting them through online marriage counseling sites, was served with a fresh arrest warrant on suspicion of murdering one of the men. |
| Feb 01 | Japan Airlines 'up in the air' (with apologies to George Clooney) (East Asia Forum) |
| Readers who are members of the JAL Mileage Bank (JMB) are probably wondering now what will happen with their bank of points. The reconstruction of JAL certainly raises this question but also highlights some even bigger challenges in air transport today. The international system of the regulation of air transport has tried to suppress a set of highly competitive processes. Market access rights are negotiated bilaterally, and routes limited mostly to carriers identified with the countries involved. Meanwhile, greater network densities and new routes based on connections between relatively small cities eat away at the position of carriers established under these rules. They are not immune from competition. Smart carriers can thrive within this system, finding new markets for growth. |
| Feb 01 | No-logo JAL jumbo spotted (Asahi) |
| A Japan Airlines jumbo painted completely white has been spotted at Tokyo's Haneda Airport, apparently in preparation for resale as part of the bankrupt airline's plan for rehabilitation. When the rehabilitation plan is approved by the court, JAL will retire all 37 jumbo jets from its fleet, replacing them with smaller, more fuel-efficient aircraft. |
| Feb 01 | Cheaper brews await Japanese beer fans (independent.co.uk) |
 Japanese brewers are launching a range of new beers that tap into a growing taste for "third-category" beers, which are conveniently cheaper than conventional beers because they get around government tax laws by containing no malt.
Kirin plans to launch a new brew, called 1000, that uses hard water and contains elevated amounts of calcium and magnesium to give it a distinctive flavor.
Asahi Breweries is to release Strong Off, which has a relatively high alcohol content of 7 percent and 60 percent less carbohydrates, whilst Suntory is using seven different types of hops into its new Relax beer-like drink.
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| Feb 01 | Woes at Toyota, JAL, Sony bruise Japan Inc.'s stellar reputation (Canadian Press) |
 Toyota is the latest Japanese corporate icon making headlines for all the wrong reasons.
News of the automaker's massive vehicle recalls over faulty gas pedals came just days after Japan Airlines, a once proud flag carrier, filed for bankruptcy, saddled with billions in debt.
Sony has lost its lead in consumer gadgets to the likes of Apple Inc. and has suffered its own quality mishaps. Honda, Japan's No. 2 automaker, is recalling 646,000 cars worldwide because of a faulty window switch.
Taken together, Japan Inc.'s stellar reputation for quality has taken a hit - just as China is about to overtake it as the world's No. 2 economy and rising South Korean companies compete ever more aggressively.
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| Jan 30 | Honda recall deals fresh blow to Japanese makers (AFP) |
| Honda said Friday it was recalling 646,000 vehicles worldwide due to a window problem, dealing a fresh blow to Japanese automakers' reputation for quality as Toyota expanded its own massive recall. Honda said the move covers Fit/Jazz cars made between 2002 and 2008 in Japan, China, Brazil, Thailand, Malaysia and India. Honda said that about 10 percent of the cars recalled would need a replacement switch, with the remainder requiring installation of a waterproof skirt to prevent further water entry. |
| Jan 30 | Fujitsu weighs iPad name challenge (Japan Times) |
 Apple Inc. has caused a stir with its iPad tablet-computer, which could change the face of the publishing industry and how information is gained from the Internet. But one thing may not be revolutionary: the product name. Tokyo-based Fujitsu Ltd. applied to trademark a similar name, iPAD, with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office in 2003, a company spokesman in Tokyo said Friday.
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| Jan 30 | Why are Toyota gas pedals sticking? It's complicated (Japan Times) |
| For a century, the basic idea behind pressing the accelerator on a car has been pretty straightforward. What's going wrong with some Toyotas isn't simple. Experts say the sudden acceleration problem that has put the brakes on Toyota sales and production is likely not a single problem but an alignment of complicated interconnected conditions. |
| Jan 29 | Yakult to build U.S. plant to produce lactic acid bacteria beverage (AP) |
| Yakult U.S.A. Co. said Thursday it will build its first U.S. plant to produce its "Yakult" lactic acid bacteria beverage by 2012 and expand its U.S. sales network from the West to the Midwest and East. No specific plant site has been decided on, said the U.S. unit of Japan's Yakulto Honsha Co. |
| Jan 29 | Sony to shadow Apple store strategy in Japan (electronista.com) |
 Sony this week outlined a plan to fight back against Apple by opening its own flagship retail stores. Starting with Sony Store Nagoya, the stores will imitate the multi-floor design of Apple flagships like Ginza and use large, spacious display areas divided by category. The first floor of the Nagoya store will focus on portable devices like Cyber-shot and Handycam cameras, the PSP, Sony-Ericsson phones, Walkman players and VAIO PCs; a second floor will focus on home theater equipment such as Blu-ray players and TVs.
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| Jan 29 | Toyota dealers flooded with driver angst (Japan Times) |
 Toyota dealers across America were swamped with calls Wednesday from concerned drivers but had few answers a day after the company announced it would stop selling and building eight models because of faulty gas pedals.
Toyota insisted the problem -- sudden, uncontrolled acceleration -- was "rare and infrequent" and said dealers should deal with customers "on a case-by-case basis." But drivers of Toyotas and those who share the road with them were left with uncertainty.
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| Jan 28 | JR East to acquire Kinokuniya (Asahi) |
| Seeking increased sales from non-railway businesses, East Japan Railway Co. plans to acquire in April the Kinokuniya group, which runs high-end supermarkets in the Tokyo area. JR East officials said Tuesday that the railway operator would buy all of the group's shares from Kinokuniya's founding family, who opened Japan's first supermarket in Tokyo's Aoyama district in 1953. |
| Jan 28 | Store chains dump unprofitable outlets (Asahi) |
| Hit by the economic downturn and sagging sales, department store operators are pulling out of money-losing locations to focus on key outlets in their struggle for survival. Seven & I Holdings Co. announced Wednesday it will close on Dec. 25 the Seibu Yurakucho outlet in central Tokyo, where sales have almost halved from peak levels. Seibu Yurakucho is the eighth department store set for closure in 2010, compared with the past decade's peak of 11 closures in 2000. |
| Jan 28 | ANA to promote international operations (Japan Times) |
 All Nippon Airways Co. said Wednesday it will promote its international flights as the "pillar" of its growth in fiscal 2010 by capitalizing on the "biggest business opportunity" to be created by the expansion of two core airports in the Tokyo metropolitan area.
But the plan calls for closing or cutting back on operations on unprofitable routes, including between Kansai International Airport in Osaka Prefecture and Seoul's Gimpo airport, to reduce costs and improve profitability.
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| Jan 28 | Rentals, even for underwear, thrive (Japan Times) |
| Rental businesses dealing with such items as high-end undergarments for women, pets and motorcycles have grown popular among consumers keeping a tight hold on their purse strings in these trying economic times. Kyoto undergarment maker Embelline Marketing Co. has long supplied beauty salons across the country with what it calls Body Make Inner underclothes and lingerie to go with bridal gowns. Now it is renting out its products over the Internet. |
| Jan 27 | Rakuten to form joint venture with Baidu to launch online mall in China (AP) |
| Japan's largest Internet mall operator Rakuten Inc. said Wednesday it has agreed with China's top Internet search engine Baidu Inc. to form a joint venture to launch an online mall in China in the second half of this year. The two firms will invest 4.3 billion yen over three years in the joint venture that will be 51 percent owned by Rakuten and 49 percent by Baidu. |
| Jan 27 | Toyota to suspends sales, production of 8 models with accelerator issues (mercurynews.com) |
 In what was described as the largest such move ever by an automaker in the United States, Toyota said Tuesday that it had halted sales of eight models of its cars and trucks that account for more than half its U.S. sales until it could find a fix for sticking accelerator pedals under a safety recall.
The move, which will cut production starting Monday for at least a week at seven Toyota plants in North America, comes six days after the Japanese automaker announced the recall of 2.3 million vehicles due to the accelerator problem that it first encountered in 2007.
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| Jan 27 | Seibu Yurakucho department store to be closed down by year-end (Mainichi) |
 Leading retailer Seven & i Holdings Co. plans to close down its Seibu Yurakucho department store in Tokyo's Yurakucho shopping district later this year, it has emerged.
As personal consumption remains weak amid the lingering recession, the company has decided that it will be impossible to heal the wounds of the hemorrhaging department store. As sluggish sales weigh heavily on the entire retail industry following the outbreak of the financial crisis in 2008, department store operators are likely to accelerate the culling of loss-making outlets.
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| Jan 27 | JAL's bankruptcy busts a warped civil aviation industry (The Australian) |
| On March 11, Japan's newest civil airport, Ibaraki, a Y22 billion public-funded project, will launch with just one regular service, an Asiana Airlines daily turnaround to Incheon, South Korea. No domestic carrier has been persuaded to use the new two-runway airport, 80km northeast of central Tokyo. Nor is there any immediate plan to create a direct public transport link between Ibaraki and Tokyo, although the project was approved in 1996. On current indications, however, that will not be a serious difficulty for the time being. |
| Jan 27 | 'Feminized' Japanese men boost Kao sales as women pamper less (BusinessWeek) |
| Mitsuru Yonekawa, named one of Tokyo's most-handsome men by a local lifestyle magazine, added a step to his morning grooming ritual to combat flaky skin. Yonekawa, 32, a spokesman for Nissan Motor Co., Japan's third-largest automaker, uses a $20 bottle of Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co.'s UL-OS skin milk before heading to the office. He's not alone. The company sold 1 billion yen ($11.1 million) of UL-OS in the first six months it was on the shelves. |
| Jan 27 | Bluefin ban could put Japan in bind (Japan Times) |
 Seafood-loving Japan - having faced years of international pressure to stop whaling - finds itself with a potentially bigger fight over a highly prized type of tuna that conservation groups say is being fished to extinction. A proposal to ban the export of Atlantic bluefin tuna - vaunted for its succulent red and pink meat - could slash supplies and drive up prices in Japan, the world's biggest consumer and importer of the fish.
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| Jan 27 | Niigata maker of film for 3-D displays pinning its hopes on 'Avatar' (Japan Times) |
| Arisawa Manufacturing Co., the maker of display film, expects the success of James Cameron's "Avatar" to spur adoption of 3-D and help end losses at the company next year, its chief executive said. "The 'Avatar' effect is giving the industry a push," Chief Executive Officer Sanji Arisawa, 67, said Monday in an interview in Tokyo. The company's 3-D business should generate sales of about ¥2.5 billion in the year starting April 1 and help Arisawa break even, he said. |
| Jan 26 | KDDI to purchase 38% stake in Jupiter (Japan Times) |
| KDDI Corp. said Monday it has agreed to pay $4 billion for U.S.-based Liberty Global Inc.'s 38 percent stake in Japanese cable television operator Jupiter Telecommunications Co. to gain subscribers and get access to a fiber network. The mobile phone operator agreed to pay Liberty Global ¥362 billion for 2.59 million Jupiter shares, the companies said in separate statements. That would be about 44 percent more than Jupiter's closing share price Monday. |