AUTOMOTIVE: UAW chief: Many to take GM buyout

Dearborn, Mich. —- United Auto Workers President Ron Gettelfinger says he expects 15,000 to 20,000 General Motors Corp. workers to take the company's latest round of buyouts. GM is offering buyout or early retirement packages to all 74,000 of its UAW-represented work force. Many of the replacements will be paid about half the wages of current UAW workers.

FINANCIAL

Marriott lowers outlook for 2008

Hotel operator Marriott International Inc. said Thursday that its fourth-quarter earnings fell 20 percent as it took a hit from the closure of its synthetic fuel business, offsetting overseas gains. The Bethesda, Md.-based company also lowered its yearly outlook based on more modest calculations for its core lodging division, a forecast that fell below Wall Street expectations. Marriott said it earned $176 million, or 46 cents per share, down from $220 million, or 52 cents per share, in the same quarter of 2006.

Quarterly loss widens at Visteon

Detroit —- Auto parts supplier Visteon Corp. on Thursday reported a wider loss for the fourth quarter because of restructuring charges and write-downs. The company, which once was part of Ford Motor Co., posted a loss of $43 million, or 33 cents per share, for the three months ended Dec. 31. That compares with a loss of $39 million, or 30 cents per share, in the year-ago period. Revenue rose almost 2 percent to $2.86 billion.

Bond insurer says no bailout needed

Washington —- A major U.S. bond insurer told Congress on Thursday that neither a bailout nor tighter federal regulation is needed. New York regulators are working with bond insurers and banks to ease financial strains. But an official of MBIA Inc., one of the biggest bond insurers, said in testimony to a House panel that a rescue plan is unnecessary. "The notion of a 'bailout' of highly creditworthy companies who, at most, are at risk of losing the very highest [credit] ratings available, is misplaced," MBIA Chief Financial Officer Charles Chaplin said in prepared testimony. "The company believes that MBIA is more than adequately capitalized to meet obligations to policyholders."

Earnings rise 52% at Clear Channel

San Antonio —- Radio and billboard giant Clear Channel Communications Inc. says its fourth-quarter profit rose 52 percent to $321 million. Net income increased to 65 cents per share from $211 million, or 43 cents a share, in the year-earlier quarter. Excluding special items, the company's earnings came out to 45 cents per share, 2 cents less than Wall Street had expected.

LEGAL

Judge tosses suit against Tyson

A federal judge has thrown out a long-running lawsuit that accused Tyson Foods Inc., the world's largest meat producer, of hiring illegal immigrants to depress wages. U.S. District Judge Curtis L. Collier of Chattanooga, in an order late Wednesday, granted the Springdale, Ark.-based company's motion for a summary judgment in the 2002 damage suit. The lawsuit by four employees sought compensation, contending the company violated the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act by knowingly hiring illegal immigrants who were willing to work for wages below those acceptable to Americans.

Mortgage fraud brings 7-year term

An Atlanta man on Thursday was sentenced to seven years in prison for his role in a mortgage fraud scheme that racked up $112 million in fraudulent loans. Leslie Rector, 35, also was ordered by U.S. District Judge Thomas Thrash to pay $40 million in restitution. Last year, Rector was convicted of the massive fraud scheme that targeted the metro Atlanta housing and condo market from 2000 through part of 2003. Also convicted during the March 2007 trial was the mastermind of the scheme, Phillip Hill, 51, of Sumatra, Fla., who was sentenced last September to 28 years in prison.

REAL ESTATE: Existing home sales decline

Washington —- Sales of existing homes fell in all but one state reporting during the October-December quarter, with metropolitan areas showing growing weakness. The fourth-quarter data from the National Association of Realtors said South Dakota was the lone state to show a sales increase. Median home prices fell in more than half of the 150 metropolitan areas surveyed.

REGULATORY: Caremark settles with 28 states

Harrisburg Pa. —- Pennsylvania's attorney general says pharmacy benefits manager Caremark has agreed to pay $38.5 million to 28 states and Washington, D.C., to settle a complaint about deceptive business practices. Attorney General Tom Corbett said Thursday that the settlement requires Caremark to change its business practices. In addition, it must pay as much as $2.5 million more to reimburse patients for the cost to switch cholesterol-controlling drugs. The states accused Caremark of encouraging doctors to switch patients to different drugs under the guise of saving money. The settlement does not include Georgia.

RETAILING: Sharper Image names new CEO

San Francisco —- Sharper Image Corp. named a crisis management expert as its chief executive Thursday, marking the third time in 17 months the struggling specialty retailer has ushered in a new leader. The company brought in Ron Conway, who runs a New York-based turnaround firm, as its CEO less than a year after hiring direct-marketing veteran Steven Lightman to steer Sharper Image's 183-store chain. Lightman replaced Sharper Image Chairman Jerry Levin, who temporarily stepped in as CEO after the company ousted founder Richard Thalheimer.

TRADE: U.S. trade deficit declined in 2007

Washington —- Despite a soaring foreign oil bill and another record deficit with China, the overall U.S. trade deficit declined in 2007 after setting records for five consecutive years. The Commerce Department reported Thursday that the deficit dropped to $711.6 billion last year, a decline of 6.2 percent. The trade deficit with China continued to rise, jumping by 10.2 percent to $256.3 billion, the largest gap ever recorded with a single country.

TRANSPORTATION

Passenger load down in November

Washington —-U.S. airlines carried fewer passengers in November, the first time in 2007 that traffic declined compared with the same month a year earlier. The airlines carried 59.9 million domestic and international passengers in November, down from 60.3 million in the same month in 2006 and 64.2 million in October, according to data released Thursday by the Transportation Department's Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Through October, traffic had risen every month last year compared with 2006. Still, domestic carriers served 706.6 million passengers in the first 11 months of last year, a 3.2 percent increase from the same period in 2006, and remained on pace to carry a record number of passengers for the year.

Short-hop fliers to get fewer miles

As airlines look for ways to cut costs and increase revenue, US Airways said Thursday that it will make it harder for passengers to earn frequent-flier miles that can be used for free plane tickets and seat upgrades. The airline will no longer award a minimum of 500 miles for a flight, eliminating a long-held industry practice that has allowed frequent fliers to accumulate miles for award travel even on short trips.

AMR, pilots set timeline for talks

AMR Corp.'s American Airlines and its pilot union agreed Thursday to a timeline for talks on a new contract. The plan doesn't include a deadline for an agreement. The two sides reached the compromise after offering different proposals. The accord allows for five straight weeks of negotiations starting March 10, after which either side could seek a federal mediator, according to information on an American Web site.