A new Mattel action would mark the latest in a
string of recalled products from China, ranging from faulty tires to
tainted toothpaste. With more than 80 percent of toys sold worldwide
made in China, toy sellers are nervous that shoppers will shy away from
their products.
On Aug. 1, Mattel’s
Fisher-Price division announced the worldwide recall of 1.5 million
Chinese-made preschool toys featuring characters such as Dora the
Explorer, Big Bird and Elmo. About 967,000 of those toys were sold in
the United States between May and August.
Mattel,
based in El Segundo, Calif., apologized to customers for that recall
and said the move would cut pretax operating income by $30 million.
Fisher-Price “fast-tracked” the recall, which allowed the company to
quarantine two-thirds of the tainted toys before they reached store
shelves.
In documents filed Aug. 3 with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, Mattel noted that additional
information became available in July on “other smaller product recalls
and similar charges were recorded.” Those recalls involved design
problems, according to company officials questioned last week.
Read Entire Article
