Monday morning headlines

Stocks open higher: China's pledge to make its exchange rate more flexible has gotten the market going. Dow is up about 90 points.

About the yuan appreciation: The Chinese currency rose to its highest level against the dollar after the government's announcement about exchange rates. It's potentially a big deal, though opinion was divided on how significant a move it actually was. (AP)

Ups and down of Michael Jackson estate: The late singer's finances have been stabilized, but there's still a $300 million loan due at the end of this year. From the WSJ:

Mr. Jackson's absence from the equation has eliminated the chaos and out-of-control spending that reigned during his life. Using income from past music sales and advances against future ones, music-publishing royalties, a film-rights sale and various other licensing deals, the estate has paid off nearly $200 million of the $500 million debt the singer had used to fund his extravagant spending in his final years.

Huge weekend for "Toy Story 3": The Disney/Pixar sequel racked up $109 million at the box office. That helped boost overall ticket sales this weekend. (The Wrap)

Another boycott complication: This time it's the Arizona company that operates red light cameras for the city of L.A. The council will consider an exemption. (LAT)

Sam Nazarian takes over hotel: The abandoned Vine Street property was to be known as Palihouse Hollywood before its developer ran into financial problems. No name or concept yet, but Nazarian says he's working on it. (LAT)

Royal Caribbean gives up on L.A.: The cruise line will relocate its 3,835-passenger Mariner of the Seas to Galveston, Texas, for trips to Europe and the Caribbean. The ship has been offering weekly seven-day cruises to Mexico. From the LABJ:

In a blog addressing the issue, company Chief Executive Adam Goldstein explained further. "There is no question that there are tens of thousands of loyal Royal Caribbean cruisers who live in the Western U.S. and cruise on Mariner of the Seas," Goldstein wrote. "Yet the ship does not perform at an acceptable level to be able to remain in California." Of Los Angeles, he said, the company "hopes to return in the not-too-distant future" but has no immediate plans to do so.

State workers piling up overtime: A stunning 75.5 million hours on the books, the Sacramento Bee reports. That's nearly 11 weeks of paid time off for each of 176,000 state workers.

The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, with about 60,000 staff who run the state's prison and parole systems, accounted for more than a third of the leave liability. The department averaged 450 banked hours per person with a total tab of slightly more than $1 billion. The state Transportation Department ranked second, with $353.5 million worth of leave on the books. The California Highway Patrol registered the highest per-person average among large departments, 725 hours, and the third-highest liability, $313.8 million.