China Mobile agrees to carry iPhones

NEW YORK » Apple says it has reached a deal to bring the iPhone to China Mobile, the world’s biggest phone carrier.

The deal ends a lengthy courtship and could boost sales of the iPhone in China. The iPhone, once hugely popular in China, has been eclipsed by the rise of lower-priced rival smartphones from Samsung and Chinese companies.

The iPhone 5S and 5C will go on sale in Apple stores and China Mobile stores beginning Jan. 17. China Mobile customers can register for phones starting Wednesday.

The companies didn’t announce pricing or the terms of the agreement.

The iPhone, while popular around the world, has faced tough competition in recent years from cheaper smartphones running Google’s Android software. Collectively, Android phones far outsell Apple’s iPhone.

Analysts speculate that Apple could sell another 10 million to 40 million more phones if it reached a deal with China Mobile.

Apple CEO Tim Cook told the official Xinhua News Agency in January that he expects China to surpass the United States as its biggest market. Some 50 million iPhones have been sold in China in the past 21⁄2 years, according to analyst estimates.

Ally Financial settles bias claims

WASHINGTON » Ally Financial Inc. is paying $98 million to resolve U.S. government claims that minority borrowers were charged higher rates on its auto loans than whiteswith similar credit histories.

The agreement announced Friday by the Justice Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is the government’s biggest auto loan discrimination settlement to date.

Ally is paying $80 million in damages to about 235,000 African-American, Hispanic and Asian and Pacific Islander borrowers, and $18 million in penalties. The higher rates were charged on auto loans between April 2011 and December 2013, according to the government.

Detroit-based Ally is one of the largest indirect auto lenders in the U.S. Ally doesn’t make auto loans directly to consumers; it buys the loan contracts made by auto dealers. Ally sets an interest rate for the loans and allows dealers to charge customers a higher rate, or dealer markup.

The government says the system gives Ally an incentive to allow auto dealers to charge higher markups. Ally failed to adequately monitor rate-setting by dealers, the government said.

Ally says it sets rates based only on borrowers’ credit profiles and that it doesn’t practice or condone discrimination.

Charity gets $1B of Facebook stock

Facebook Inc. CEO Mark Zuckerberg is donating another $1 billion worth of stock to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, in the latest installment of the 29-year-old Internet mogul’s pledge to spend more than half his wealth on philanthropy.

The donation is "by far the largest gift in our history," said Emmett Carson, CEO of the Mountain View, Calif.-based foundation, which will help Zuckerberg allocate the donated assets in coming years. Carson declined to say how the money will be used, but added, "We believe this gift will immensely improve the lives of people here and elsewhere."

Whole Foods drops Chobani yogurt

Together, Whole Foods and Chobani have become two of the biggest success stories in the food business in the past decade, but now they are parting ways.

Whole Foods said last week that as of early next year its stores would no longer stock Cho­bani, primarily because the explosion of Greek yogurt brands has made the chain more selective in how it allocates its refrigerated shelf space.

Chobani, which was founded in 2005 by Hamdi Ulu­kaya, a Turkish immigrant, and has grown to more than $1 billion in annual sales, helped propel the Greek-yogurt craze. Now Greek yogurt is made by companies like Dannon and PepsiCo, and retailers are struggling to keep up with the increasing number of brands.

Whole Foods attributed its decision to drop Cho­bani to the yogurt maker’s use of milk from cows whose feed is derived from genetically engineered crops, or GMOs, like corn and soybeans, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Many retailers detain, fine consumers suspected of theft

NEW YORK » Away from the eyes of paying customers, people accused of shoplifting at Macy’s huge flagship store are escorted by security guards to cells in "Room 140," where they can be held for hours, asked to sign an admission of guilt and pay hundreds in fines, sometimes without any conclusive proof they stole anything.

As shoppers jam stores ahead of the December holidays, claims of racial profiling at department stores in New York have helped expose the wide latitude that laws in at least 27 states give retailers to hold and fine shoplifting suspects, even if a person hasn’t yet technically stolen anything, is wrongly accused or criminal charges are dropped.

"You must remember, these people are not police officers; they are store employees," said Faruk Usar, the attorney for a 62-year-old Turkish woman who sued Macy’s, which some customers say bullied them into paying fines on the spot or harassed them with letters demanding payment. "When they are detained, they are not yet even in a real jail."

Industrywide, more than $12 billion is lost to shoplifting each year. The laws, which vary on severity and fines, allow stores to try to recoup some losses. Under New York’s long-standing law, retailers may collect a penalty of five times the cost of the stolen merchandise, up to $500 per item, plus as much as $1,500 if the merchandise isn’t in a condition to be sold. A conviction is not necessary to bring a civil claim.

Some customers say stores harassed them into signing admissions of guilt to turn a profit, not just recoup a loss.

Retailers don’t divulge how much money they recover, but use it in part to offset security costs, said Barbara Staib, spokes­woman for the National Association for Shoplifting Prevention. The total is a fraction of what they lose, she said.

TOTAL RECALL

About 305,000 Playtex Hip Hammock infant carriers designed to strap a baby against the bearer’s hip are being recalled because buckles on the product can crack or break.

The carriers are made of a soft, quilted fabric and intended for babies that are from 15 to 35 pounds. The child seat is attached with straps that wrap around the bearer’s hips and shoulder. "Playtex Hip Hammock" is printed on a label sewn into the front of the carrier.

All model numbers are being recalled. Faulty buckles on the waist and shoulder straps pose a fall hazard for the infant.

Call Playtex at 800-522-8230 or visit www.playtexproducts.com and click on Recall.

COMING UP

» Today: Commerce Department releases personal income and spending for November.

» Tuesday: Commerce Department releases durable goods for November. Commerce Department releases new home sales for November.

» Wednesday: Stock and bond markets are closed for Christmas Day.

» Thursday: Labor Department releases weekly jobless claims. Freddie Mac, the mortgage company, releases weekly mortgage rates.

SHIP AHOY!

Today’s ship arrivals and departures: