BUSINESS BRIEFS
International Paper paying $6B for Weyerhaeuser
Associated Press
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — International Paper, a global supplier of packaging materials and uncoated paper, announced yesterday it is buying the containerboard unit of Weyerhaeuser Co. for $6 billion in cash.
Not included in the deal is Weyerhaeuser's Honolulu box production plant, which is closing in May. Weyerhaeuser said last week it will lay off the plant's 85 employees and sell the 3.6-acre site at the corner of Nimitz Highway and Alakawa Street near Best Buy and Home Depot.
Memphis, Tenn.-based International Paper said it will pay for the purchase through increased debt.
The company has greatly cut its debt and improved cash flow since launching a major reorganization in 2005 to move away from forest products and focus on producing uncoated paper and containerboard.
NO AGREEMENT FOR DELTA, NORTHWEST
ATLANTA — Delta Air Lines' pilots union has told company executives it has been unable to agree on seniority issues with its counterpart at Northwest Airlines, raising serious doubts about the prospect of a combination of the two companies.
The disclosure was made yesterday in a letter from the head of the pilots union at Delta, Lee Moak, to rank-and-file Delta pilots.
The letter does not mention Northwest, but describes the union that Delta's pilots had been negotiating with as the only one they were focused on talking with. Multiple officials close to the talks have said in recent months that the other company was Northwest Airlines Corp.
The letter talks about the discussions with the other carrier in the past tense, suggesting at least for now there won't be further talks.
INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT PLUMMETS IN FEB.
WASHINGTON — Industrial output fell in February by the biggest amount in four months, providing yet another gloomy assessment of the economy's health.
The Federal Reserve said yesterday that output at the nation's factories, mines and utilities dropped by 0.5 percent in February, the biggest decline since a 0.6 percent fall last October.
It was a far weaker reading than the slight increase of 0.1 percent that many analysts had been expecting. It served to underscore the severity of the current economic slowdown.
EX-QWEST CEO GETS NEW TRIAL
DENVER — A federal appeals court ordered a new trial yesterday for former Qwest CEO Joe Nacchio, saying the trial judge wrongly excluded expert testimony important to Nacchio's defense in his insider trading case.
The court also ordered a new judge to hear Nacchio's case.
Nacchio was convicted in April on 19 counts involving the sale of $52 million worth of Qwest stock in 2001. He was sentenced to six years in prison but remained free on appeal. Jurors acquitted Nacchio of 23 counts.
Prosecutors argued Nacchio sold the stock when he knew Denver-based Qwest Communications International Inc. was at financial risk but didn't tell investors. U.S. Attorney Troy Eid had called the case the largest insider trading prosecution in the nation based on the number of counts, the amount of money involved and the length of the prison term.
SHIPPING LINES, UNION START TALKS
LOS ANGELES — The West Coast dockworkers union sat down yesterday with the association representing giant shipping companies for early contract talks aimed at avoiding a replay of a damaging 10-day lockout in 2002.
The initial meeting took place in San Francisco between the heads of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, which has 14,800 registered members, and the Pacific Maritime Association, representing 72 shipping companies.
The talks cover a contract that expires July 1 and would apply to workers at 29 West Coast ports from San Diego to Bellingham, Wash.
