Goodyear Weathers Strike Announcement

The United Steelworkers of America terminated a day-to-day contract extension Thursday and set up picket lines. A company spokesman said talks would not resume until Saturday at the earliest.

The union represents about 12,000 workers at the Akron, Ohio-based company's 16 plants in the U.S. and Canada.

In morning trading, Goodyear shares inched up 2 cents to $14.26 on the New York Stock Exchange.

JPMorgan analyst Himanshu Patel estimated the strike could cost Goodyear $34 million to $43 million per week.

"We believe the two sides continue to talk, but have no clear way of knowing how long the strike could last," Patel wrote in a note to investors.

"Goodyear shares could see near-term weakness until this situation is resolved, but we remain optimistic about Goodyear's eventual odds of idling North American capacity during these talks given Michelin's earlier success at reducing unionized capacity."

Patel said Goodyear is confident it can handle a short strike with its high inventories and the use of salaried workers, but a longer strike lasting several weeks could hurt the company, the analyst said.

Goodyear said its latest offer would protect jobs and pensions. The company said the union failed to agree to terms in contracts the union has with other tire makers, which the company claims are needed for its survival.

The union said the company's latest proposal would have included two plant closings and other concessions.