Huntway Partners Expects 4th-Quarter Loss

Huntway Partners L.P., a Newhall producer of liquid asphalt from crude oil, said it expects to report a fourth-quarter loss of between $900,000 and $1.2 million.

Huntway blamed the anticipated loss for the period ended Dec. 31 on weak prices. The company said that weak wholesale prices for certain products is due to excess inventory of finished gasoline and diesel fuel on the West Coast. It said also that asphalt prices are soft and that asphalt sales have remained slow in Southern California since the Jan. 17 Northridge earthquake.

Nevertheless, Huntway said it continues to pay down debt and contain costs by trimming benefit costs and freezing salaries temporarily.

In the fourth quarter of 1993, Huntway earned $1.09 million.