Jacksonville-based Rayonier Inc. said Monday its New Zealand joint venture is putting its 343,000 acres of timberland up for sale.

Rayonier owns a 40 percent interest and provides management services to Matariki Forests, which has the fourth largest forest estate in New Zealand. Rayonier said Matariki plans to begin marketing the property within three months and expects to be able to close a sale in 2009.

Mark Basch/ The Times-Union

SMALL SUVS IMPROVE IN ALL CRASH TEST AREAS

Four small sport utility vehicles received top scores in crash tests to be released today by the insurance industry, a sign of improvement compared with SUVs built earlier in the decade.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gave top crash test scores in front-end, side and rear tests to the 2009 Ford Escape, 2009 Volkswagen Tiguan, 2008 Mitsubishi Outlander and the 2008 Nissan Rogue.

Adrian Lund, the institute's president, said the Escape, Tiguan, Outlander and Rogue were all equipped with standard electronic stability control - which guards against rollovers - and side air bags.

The safety equipment helped the vehicles show improvements across the board, including in the side tests.

Associated Press

STOCKS FALL ON INFLATION DATA, FINANCIAL WORRIES

Wall Street fell sharply for a second straight session Tuesday after a hefty jump in wholesale inflation and a drop in new home construction gave investors more reason to believe an economic recovery is far off. The Dow Jones industrial average dropped 130 points.

The Labor Department said its Producer Price Index rose by 1.2 percent in July, more than double the expected rate, and lifting the current annual rate to the loftiest level in 27 years. Even after stripping out food and energy, core prices rose by a higher-than- expected 0.7 percent, the biggest increase since November 2006.

The Commerce Department added to the heap of downbeat news Tuesday, reporting that July housing starts fell to an annual rate of 965,000 units - higher than analysts predicted, but the lowest level in more than 17 years nonetheless.

And the financial sector took another hit after a JP-Morgan Chase & Co. analyst estimated that Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. will have to write down its investments during the third quarter by $4 billion, and a Goldman Sachs analyst advised against buying the stock of American International Group Inc.

The Dow fell 130.84, or 1.14 percent, to 11,348.55, after losing 180 points on Monday. It was the worst two-day performance for the blue-chip index since late June.

Associated Press

OIL RISES ABOVE $114 AFTER DOLLAR WEAKENS

Oil prices rebounded Tuesday, jumping back above $114 barrel after the dollar weakened against the euro and a rally in heating oil pulled new buyers into energy markets.

Light, sweet crude for September delivery rose $1.66 to settle at $114.53 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after alternating between positive and negative territory earlier in the day. The September contract expires today, adding to the volatility.

At the pump, retail gas prices continued their decline, suggesting that cash-strapped Americans are still cutting back on their driving. A gallon of regular slipped another penny overnight to a new national average of $3.73, almost 10 percent lower than record prices of $4.114 a gallon reached July 17, according to auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and Wright Express.

Associated Press

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