S-B expert's fund selection closing to new investors

The Buffalo Small Cap Fund, recommended at the start of the year by a local stock expert in the Star-Bulletin's 2002 forecasting story, announced this week that it will close its fund to new investors on April 15.

The fund (ticker: BUFSX) was chosen by Gordon Ching, president of the National Association of Investors Corp. Aloha Hawaii Chapter.

Buffalo Small Cap Fund's closure comes four months after a soft close to new retail and adviser investors who are using distribution platforms such as Charles Schwab or Fidelity.

"To assure that case levels remain manageable and that our strict valuation criteria is maintained, we feel it's necessary to close the Buffalo Small Cap Fund at this time," said Kent Gasaway, lead portfolio manager of the fund.

The fund, which currently holds approximately $1.18 billion in assets, was up 34.8 percent in 1999, 33.7 percent in 2000, 31.2 percent in 2001 and is up 4.5 percent this year through Thursday. The fund focuses on companies with market capitalizations of $2 billion or less at the time of purchase.

California jobless rate declines to 6.1 percent

LOS ANGELES >> California's jobless rate declined modestly in February, thanks to gains in construction and trade jobs, officials said yesterday.

But the state bucked the national trend of job growth, showing a net loss of 4,700 payroll jobs, after posting strong gains in January.

California's unemployment rate was 6.1 percent last month, down from a revised 6.4 percent in January, the Employment Development Department said. A year ago, the state's jobless rate was 4.7 percent.

Despite the positive uptick in February, key sectors of the economy, including manufacturing and services, continued to show weakness, and job seekers said employers continued to hire selectively.

Kraft to cut 7,500 jobs, shut down 16 plants

NORTHFIELD, Ill. >> Foods giant Kraft Foods Inc. said its continuing integration of Nabisco Holdings Corp. will result in the closure of 16 plants worldwide and the loss of 7,500 jobs.

Some of the cuts and closures were announced previously, and Kraft expects the rest to be "substantially" completed by the end of the year, company spokeswoman Kathy Knuth said yesterday.

Knuth said some cuts and closures were completed in 2001, but declined to say how many remained. The job cuts come from plant closures, a voluntary retirement program and a consolidation of operations in several areas, she said.

Northfield-based Kraft, the world's second-largest food company, completed its acquisition of Nabisco in December 2000 and is absorbing its operations.

Microsoft reduces pay for Silicon Valley workers

PALO ALTO, Calif. >> Microsoft Corp. said it will reduce take-home pay for 1,600 workers in Silicon Valley later this year because it has determined that a "geographic differential" it had put in place two years ago is no longer needed to retain employees.

Under the new pay system, which will take effect in August, San Francisco and Silicon Valley workers will receive a 15 percent differential or bonus, on top of their regular salaries, instead of the current 25 percent premium.

While the changes will amount to a pay cut for these workers, Microsoft stressed that the differential was never presented as a permanent salary increase.

In other news

Lexington, Mass. >> Ray- theon Co., the third-largest U.S. defense contractor by sales, plans to fire about 490 workers at five Massachusetts plants because of a delay of a Patriot missile systems sale to South Korea. The cuts represent 4.3 percent of Raytheon's work force in Massachusetts and are expected to be completed April 5, said spokesman Steve Brecken.