Reported by Star-Bulletin staff & wire
More cuts to come at American Air
DALLAS » American Airlines, struggling to compete with lower-overhead carriers, will cut more jobs to reduce costs, chief executive Gerard Arpey said yesterday.The company had already disclosed that it would lay off up to 650 mechanics and 450 pilots, as CEO Gerard Arpey reminded investors during a meeting in Fort Worth.
"We will see more cuts across the board, all workers, in the months ahead," Arpey added.
AOL spammers face prison, fine
LEESBURG, Va. » A brother and sister who sent junk e-mail to millions of America Online customers were convicted yesterday in the nation's first felony prosecution of Internet spam distributors.Jurors recommended that Jeremy Jaynes, 30, be sentenced to nine years in prison and fined Jessica DeGroot, 28, $7,500 after convicting them of three counts each of sending e-mails with fraudulent and untraceable routing information.
A third defendant, Richard Rutkowski, 30, was acquitted after deliberations of 1 1/2 days. All three defendants live in the Raleigh, N.C., area.
Robert Mondavi sold for $1 billion
SAN JOSE, Calif. » The Robert Mondavi Corp. is being acquired by alcoholic beverage giant Constellation Brands Inc. in a $1.03 billion cash deal, ending a plan to split apart the brands of one of California's most storied winemakers.The announcement yesterday came roughly two weeks after Constellation, the world's largest wine producer whose portfolio also includes Corona Extra and St. Pauli Girl beers, offered to buy the entire Mondavi company for $970 million.
Mondavi executives, who had only wanted to sell off the luxury side of business, initially reacted coolly to the proposal. They changed their minds after Constellation sweetened its offer.
Tommy Hilfiger delays report
Tommy Hilfiger Corp. said yesterday it would delay the filing of its quarterly report while it reviews issues related to a government investigation.The clothing company also reported weaker pretax results for its second quarter.
The stock closed the day at $8.94, down 51 cents, or 5.4 percent, on heavy volume on the New York Stock Exchange.
Tommy Hilfiger disclosed in September that the Justice Department was probing whether some of its units inappropriately paid commissions to Hilfiger's British Virgin Islands unit, as well as other tax matters.
Asian automakers grab U.S. share
Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. led Asian automakers to a record share of the U.S. market in October as improved quality and fuel efficiency bolstered demand for their newest car and light-truck models.Toyota, Japan's largest automaker, said demand for its Prius gasoline-electric car helped boost sales 13 percent from last year. Nissan, maker of the Titan pickup truck, had a 27 percent gain. Honda Motor Co.'s sales rose 10 percent and Hyundai Motor Co. had a 15 percent gain. Asian carmakers' market share rose to 35.9 percent, according to Bloomberg data.
Toyota, Nissan and Hyundai Motor won record market share in the world's largest vehicles market because of their dominance in quality surveys. Vehicles like the Prius also drew buyers as gasoline prices surged.
