BUSINESS BRIEFS
Pentagon kicks air tanker deal to next president
Associated Press
WASHINGTON — The Defense Department has again delayed plans to award a $35 billion contract for Air Force refueling planes, handing a victory to defense contractor Boeing Co. and leaving the politically charged decision for the next president.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates told lawmakers yesterday that he ended the current round of bidding on the tankers because the Pentagon's plan to pick a winner by the end of the year no longer seemed possible given the complexity of the project and the rancor between Boeing and rival Northrop Grumman Corp.
The decision represents a major win for Boeing in its lengthy and bitter struggle with Northrop.
OPEC SAYS IT WILL TRIM OIL OUTPUT
VIENNA, Austria — OPEC said yesterday it would trim overall output by more than 500,000 barrels of oil a day by adhering closer to production quotas — a compromise meant to avoid a backlash from the biggest petroleum consuming nations and stop the rapid decline in oil prices.
Also coming out of the meeting in Vienna was a new agreement between Russia and OPEC intended to improve bilateral cooperation in energy issues.
BOFA SETTLES CASE WITH $4B BUYBACK
BOSTON — Bank of America Corp. said yesterday it will buy back about $4.5 billion worth of auction-rate securities held by roughly 5,500 customers nationwide as part of a settlement agreement with Massachusetts regulators.
The auction-rate securities market involved investors buying and selling instruments that resembled corporate debt, except the interest rates were reset at regular auctions, some as frequently as once a week. The market for the securities collapsed in February.
The Charlotte, N.C.-based bank said it continues to cooperate fully with ongoing investigations by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the New York Attorney General's Office.
CRUDE PRICES DIP IN JITTERY TRADING
NEW YORK — Oil prices closed slightly lower in jittery trading yesterday, as the strengthening dollar and signs of a slowing economy outweighed inventory drops and word that OPEC would cut production.
The Energy Department's Energy Information Administration said that crude inventories fell by 5.9 million barrels last week compared to the previous week, and that gasoline inventories fell by 6.5 million barrels.
IMCLONE STUDIES $70/SHARE BUYOUT
TRENTON, N.J. — Biotechnology company ImClone Systems Inc. said yesterday it is considering a buyout offer worth $70 per share from an unidentified large pharmaceutical company, and rejected a $60-per-share bid from partner Bristol-Myers Squibb Co.
ImClone said Chairman Carl Icahn has been in talks with the chief executive of the pharmaceutical company that made the new offer, which would be worth about $6.1 billion.
The new offer would be a premium of 10 percent to ImClone's Tuesday closing price of $63.65. Yesterday, ImClone stock jumped $4.29, or 6.7 percent, to $67.94.
FORD TO CUT FORCE AT CANADA PLANT
NEW YORK — Ford Motor Co. said yesterday it will eliminate 500 employees at its crossover assembly plant in Oakville, Ontario, as sales of the vehicles designed to woo SUV and truck buyers continue to slump.
Ford of Canada spokeswoman Lauren More said the company will phase out the third shift in the plant's body and paint work areas over the next several weeks.
Ford is offering additional retirement incentives to eligible workers at the plant as a way to achieve the cuts.
