Viacom cable sale near
Viacom Inc. is close to announcing the sale of its cable systems to a group that includes Tele-Communications Inc. for more than $2 billion, people close to the talks said yesterday.
The deal for the systems could include $2 billion of cash as well as Tele-Communications stock, one person familiar with the discussions said. Viacom officials could not be reached for comment, and executives of Tele-Communications declined to comment.
Viacom is selling cable systems with 1.1 million subscribers, primarily in San Francisco, Seattle, Nashville and Dayton, Ohio, to a smaller cable operator, RCS Pacific.
Unisys will cut 4,000 jobs
Unisys Corp., one of the nation's leading makers of large computers, said yesterday it will cut 4,000 jobs, or 8.5 percent of its worldwide work force, next year while shifting its focus from mainframes to desktop computers.
Unisys, an 8-year-old, Blue Bell, Pa.-based company that has struggled to be competitive, cited a weak market for mainframes and slow business in Europe as causing the layoffs.
Copper prices hit 6-year high
Copper prices rose to their highest level in six years yesterday with economic recovery in the United States, Japan ++ and Germany fueling a rally that shows no sign of running out of steam.
Copper futures on New York's Commodity Exchange set contract highs on most months, with March delivery closing up 0.15 cent, at 138.05 cents per pound. Since the beginning of the year, copper prices have soared by about 70 percent.
Woodie's asks more time to plan
Woodward & Lothrop Inc., citing a need to redo its business plan because of lower-than-expected earnings, has requested a 60-day extension of its exclusive right to file a bankruptcy plan of reorganization.
The Washington-based company operates 16 department stores under its name in the Washington and Baltimore areas. It also owns 15 John Wanamaker department stores in Philadelphia.
Woodward & Lothrop, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last January, said in the Dec. 22 filing that it faces "a very competitive and difficult retail sales environment."
Orbital Sciences acquires firm
Aerospace company Orbital Sciences Corp. said yesterday it completed its acquisition of Magellan Corp. in a $50 million stock swap.
Dulles, Va.-based Orbital, a maker of space launch vehicles for satellites, exchanged about 2.6 million of its common shares for all of Magellan's outstanding stock. Magellan, based in San Dimas, Calif., makes devices to receive navigational information from global positioning satellites.
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