Mark Drabenstott, vice president and director of the Center for the Study of Rural America for the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, will speak on "Competing in the New Global Economic Race" at 1:10 p.m. Thursday at Iowa State University's Howe Hall in Ames. The lecture is free and open to the public.

Lower oil prices and technology news helped stocks rally Monday. News that Microsoft Corp. is in talks to buy a stake in America Online Inc. and a deal involving TiVo Inc. and Yahoo Inc. drove gains in the tech sector. The Dow Jones industrial average gained 55.47 to 10,586.23. Broader stock indicators were also higher.

The Treasury Department auctioned $19 billion in three-month bills at a discount rate of 3.870 percent, down from 3.890 percent last week. Another $17 billion in six-month bills was auctioned at a discount rate of 4.155 percent, up from 4.125 per- cent last week.

Separately, the Federal Reserve said the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for making changes in adjustable-rate mortgages, rose to 4.32 percent last week from 4.26 percent the previous week.

Six unions that represent workers at Delphi Corp. are banding together to fight proposed wage and benefit cuts at the auto supplier, a sign of strained relations that could lead to a strike.

Delphi filed for bankruptcy protection last month. It has asked its unions to accept wage and benefit cuts of up to 60 percent as part of its restructuring.

The unions represent 33,650 active Delphi workers. The vast majority are represented by the United Auto Workers, the International Union of Electrical Workers-Communications Workers of America and the United Steelworkers.

Senior Wal-Mart executives knew cleaning contractors were hiring illegal immigrants, many who were housed in crowded conditions and sometimes slept in the backs of stores, according to a federal agency's affidavit.

The affidavit was part of an investigation of Wal-Mart by federal immigration officials that led to the 2003 raid on 60 Wal-Mart stores in 21 states and the arrests of 245 illegal workers. The retailer agreed to pay $11 million in March to settle the case, but says top executives neither encouraged nor knew of the practice.

Also Monday, a former Wal-Mart vice president pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud. Robert Hey Jr. admitted that he manipulated invoices to embezzle money that was funneled to a senior executive.

Hey had reported to Thomas Coughlin, a former Wal-Mart vice chairman under investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Wal-Mart referred Coughlin to federal prosecutors this year, alleging he had defrauded the company out of $500,000. Coughlin has not been charged.

Credit-card borrowing and other kinds of consumer debt declined for the first time in 10 months in September, reflecting in large part sagging auto sales. The Federal Reserve reported that total borrowing fell at an annual rate of $59.4 million in September after having posted sizable increases of $7.91 billion in August, $9.96 billion in July and $15.04 billion in June.

The recalled Nikon rechargeable lithium ion battery pack, sold with three types of Nikon digital cameras or sold separately, bears the model number EN-EL3. The products were sold nationwide from May 2004 through November 2005. Call (800) 645-6678 or visit www.nikonusa.com .

The Environmental Protection Agency said Monday it would propose regulations to limit people's exposures to lead paint during home remodeling. The agency said staff is working to propose a regulation by Dec. 30.

U.S. property and casualty insurers paid a record $40.8 billion in the third quarter to homeowners and businesses that were hit by Hurricane Katrina and other natural disasters, according to an insurance data group. The Insurance Services Office's Property Claim unit predicts 2005 will be the costliest year ever for catastrophe damages.

Hertz Corp.'s chairman and chief executive, Craig Koch, is retiring as of Jan. 1, 2007, because of a family medical issue. Koch has been chairman of the rental-car company since 2004 and its chief executive officer since 2000.

U.S. textile industry officials expressed support Monday for a plan to limit imports of Chinese textiles and clothing over the next three years. The trade deal was to be announced today by U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman and Chinese Commerce Minister Bo Xilai in London.

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