NEW YORK — American International Group Inc. lost a big round yesterday in its court battle against former CEO Maurice "Hank" Greenberg.

In an advisory decision, a federal jury in Manhattan concluded that a private investment firm controlled by Greenberg does not have to reimburse AIG for $4.3 billion in shares taken from a company retirement bonus fund in 2005, shortly after Greenberg was ousted as the insurer's CEO.

U.S. District Judge Jed S. Rakoff said he will issue a ruling in the case by the end of August.

BOEING BUYING PLANT TO GET 787 ON TRACK

Boeing Co. will pay $580 million for a plant that makes large sections of its 787 jetliner, an apparent effort to rein in supplier problems that have led to costly delays of the next-generation aircraft and hurt the company's credibility.

The plant, owned by Vought Aircraft Industries, makes barrel-like sections of the 787's fuselage that fit between its wings and tail and are composed primarily of lightweight materials.

Deliveries of the 787 have been postponed by nearly two years partly because of problems with components made by suppliers and work that suppliers didn't complete.

LEAR CORP. FILES FOR BANKRUPTCY

NEW YORK — Automotive parts supplier Lear Corp. filed for bankruptcy protection yesterday after receiving support from lenders and bondholders to reorganize its struggling business.

It was an expected move by the maker of vehicle seats and electronics, which missed an interest payment on its bond debt last week and revealed its intention to seek Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection from its creditors. The Southfield, Mich.-based company made the filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York.

It listed $1.27 billion in assets and $4.54 billion in liabilities. Subsidiaries outside the U.S. and Canada are not part of the filings.

IRS SUSPENDS ACTION ON TAX SHELTER FINES

WASHINGTON — The IRS has temporarily stopped collecting penalties from some small businesses that have been hit with big fines for not disclosing the use of questionable tax shelters.

The fines, which can reach $300,000 a year, were an unintended consequence of a 2004 law aimed at big corporations that use the shelters to avoid taxes.

Lawmakers asked the Internal Revenue Service last month to suspend collections while they work to change the law.

The IRS agreed to suspend collections through September on cases in which businesses gained less than $200,000 a year from the tax shelters, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said in a letter to lawmakers released yesterday.

CONSUMER LOAN DELINQUENCIES RISE

NEW YORK — Consumer loan delinquencies edged up to another record high in the first quarter, according to data released yesterday by the American Bankers Association.

A continued rise in unemployment has been the main culprit in the continued rise in delinquencies, the trade association said.

The composite delinquency rate among eight types of closed-end installment loans rose to 3.23 percent in the January-March period, according to the ABA's consumer credit delinquency bulletin.

That is the highest since the ABA began tracking the rate in the mid-1970s.