PLANT EXPANSION will stay at high levels during the third quarter of 1954, predicted the Commerce Department. Business outlays for new plants and equipment in the second and third quarters will drop only slightly from the first quarter rate of $27.5 billion a year, will probably total $27.2 billion for all of 1954 v. 1953's alltime record of $28.4 billion.

U.S. RUBBER and Britain's Dunlop Rubber Co. Ltd. have made peace with the Justice Department after six years of fighting a suit charging them with a cartel to divide up world markets in natural latex, rubber thread and elastic yarn. Though U.S. Rubber denies violating the antitrust laws, it has signed a consent decree promising to make its patents available to competitors at reasonable fees, and to manage separately companies jointly owned with Dunlop.

TRANSPOLAR FLIGHTS between California and Scandinavia may be operating by fall. Following successful trail-blazing flights by Scandinavian Airlines' DC-6Bs, the State Department and CAB have offered approval for the service provided that a U.S. airline is granted the same right.

NATURAL-GAS CONTROL by the Government will become broader under a U.S. Supreme Court ruling. The Court this week ruled (5 to 3) that the FPC has the authority to regulate prices of natural gas produced, gathered and sold by the Phillips Petroleum Co. to interstate pipeline companies. The decision upset the FPC's own ruling (TIME, Dec. 14) that, since Phillips was an "independent" producer, i.e., not affiliated with the pipeline companies, it did not come under the Natural Gas Act.

GENERAL FOODS chalked up its best record in history for the fiscal year ended March 31, 1954: net sales of $783 million and profits of $27.9 million, a 12% gain over 1953.

TEXTRON, which lost the early rounds in its fight to take over the American Woolen Co. (TIME, March 22), has been busy buying up stock, now owns 45% (445,000 shares) of American Woolen's common and a block of voting preferred, and apparently has control. Prospects are for a three-way deal to merge the two companies with New England's Bachmann Uxbridge Worsted Corp.

WORLD'S BIGGEST TANKER, the 47,000-ton Al-Malik Saud Al-Awal, has been launched in Hamburg, Germany for Greek Shipping Tycoon Aristotle Socrates Onassis, who recently made a deal with Arabia's King Saud to transport about 10% of the country's oil in his tankers (TIME, Feb. 22). Though world shippers have protested that the deal will eventually give Onassis a monopoly in carrying Arabian oil, Onassis plans to go ahead, will use his $6,000,000 giant to ship oil to European markets.

STEELWORKERS' FINANCES are in the best shape ever, as the union negotiates with the steel companies. Semi-annual audit shows an increase of almost $2,000,000 in the kitty as of Dec. 31, and a new total net worth of $15.8 million.

SYNTHETIC RUBBER PLANTS put up for sale to private industry have proved far more popular than anyone expected. The Government last week closed the bidding for 27 wartime plants after getting a total of 74 bids from 34 companies, including most of the U.S. oil, chemical and rubber giants. A special three-man commission will winnow the bids through secret negotiations, announce its choices to Congress by Jan. 27.

NONSTOP FLIGHTS across the continent by American Airlines will be stopped if the Civil Aeronautics Administration has its way. The CAA, in effect, has charged American with violating crew regulations by keeping pilots aloft for more than the eight-hour maximum on better than half its flights (headwinds frequently slow westbound runs to more than nine hours), has petitioned the Civil Aeronautics Board to discontinue the nonstop flights.

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