The Consumer Memo, 11/23: Vampire flick posts biggest opening weekend of 2009

Movie based on best-selling book“The Twilight Saga: New Moon,” the vampire love story based on best-selling novels, recorded the third-biggest opening weekend in box-office history with $140.7 million in ticket sales for Summit Entertainment LLC.

The film reported the biggest opening weekend take of the year.

“New Moon,” a sequel to last year’s “Twilight,” also set records for a single-day performance ($72.7 million) and midnight showings ($26.3 million), researcher Hollywood.com Box- Office said.

“New Moon” doubled the opening-weekend sales of “Twilight” a year ago.

The series, based on books by Stephenie Meyer, is the story of a teenage girl named Bella who falls in love with a vampire. The success of “Twilight,” which earned $384 million in global ticket sales, has enabled Summit to expand its film slate while other studios cut back. “New Moon” is expected to earn $600 million worldwide, said David Davis of Arpeggio Partners LLC, a California-based consultant to studios. The movie topped the box office even after many critics panned the film.

Chinese drywall concerns mount

Sulfur emissions from imported Chinese drywall are corroding metal and wires in U.S. homes, federal safety investigators said.

A study of 51 homes built or repaired using the Chinese- made drywall found corrosion in the initial samples tested, including on copper air conditioner coils, the Consumer Product Safety Commission said in a report Monday.

U.S. safety officials said they have banned further imports of the drywall, which has prompted 2,100 complaints. Most of the homeowners who complained were from Florida and Louisiana, where the imported drywall was used to rebuild after hurricanes in 2004 and 2005.

No new drywall from China has been imported this year, the safety agency said.

Chrysler incentives
Chrysler will offer zero-percent financing or as much as $4,000 cash back on 2010 vehicles in an effort to remain competitive and to lure more consumers into the showrooms.

Buyers can choose between zero-percent financing for 60 months or the cash rebate on all Chrysler products through Jan. 4.

The automaker is also offering free equipment upgrades on some models.

Credit card late payments decline
For the first time in a decade, more people paid their credit card bills on time in the third quarter this year than in the second quarter.

The delinquency rate on bank-issued cards like those bearing MasterCard and Visa logos fell to 1.1 percent for the June-to-September period, from a rate of 1.17 percent in the prior three months, according to credit reporting agency TransUnion.

The 6 percent drop is significant not just for its size but also for its timing, since delinquency rates usually rise in the third quarter from the prior period, said Ezra Becker of TransUnion’s financial services group. Taken together with the more than 11 percent decline seen between the first and second quarters, the results indicate that consumers are getting better at handling their debt.

Airport bottlenecks
Fewer people are expected to fly this holiday season. But travelers shouldn’t expect a full reprieve from the horrid flight delays of Thanksgivings past, especially if they are headed to New York City.

Despite some recent improvements, the Big Apple’s three major airports continue to make up the worst air travel bottleneck in the country.

Newark, LaGuardia and Kennedy ranked first, second and third worst in on-time arrivals among major U.S. airports for the first nine months of the year.

Crock side dishes recalled

Unilever United States Inc. is recalling select units of two Shedd’s Country Crock chilled side-dish products because they might contain sulfites not declared on the products’ labels. The recall involves certain units of Shedd’s Country Crock Side Dishes DELUXE Cheddar Broccoli Rice and certain units of Shedd’s Country Crock Side Dishes DELUXE Four Cheese Pasta. Those who have allergies or severe sensitivities to sulfites run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reactions if they eat the products.

For more information, consumers can call 800-457-7086.