AGRICULTURE

DuPont starts biofuel venture

DuPont executives said Wednesday that a joint venture with a Danish company will enable the production of an alternative fuel that costs less than conventional ethanol and won't drive up food prices. Wilmington, Del.-based DuPont has partnered with Genencor, a division of Danisco, to develop and commercialize cellulosic ethanol, or fuel derived from nonfood sources. The companies plan to invest $140 million in the U.S.-based venture over the next three years and hope to have a commercial-scale demonstration facility by 2012. The venture will focus initially on making fuel from the leaves and stalks of corn and from sugar cane bagasse, the remnants of stalks after they are crushed for juice.

AUTOMOTIVE

Ford recalls 655,000 trucks

Ford Motor Co. is recalling more than 655,000 Ford F-150 and Lincoln Mark LT pickup trucks to fix a hose that could affect the vehicles' braking power. The 2005-06 versions of the trucks with 5.4 liter, 3-valve engines are involved.

DEALS

Analyst skeptical of Icahn's plan

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn may hurt Yahoo Inc.'s prospects if he starts a fight for control of the Internet company's board, according to an analyst at Stifel Nicolaus & Co. Icahn bought 50 million shares of Yahoo this month and may seek to oust its board at the annual meeting July 3, CNBC and The Wall Street Journal have reported. The directors rejected a $47.5 billion takeover offer from Microsoft Corp. on May 3. CNBC said Wednesday that Icahn is leaning toward a proxy fight. "A successful proxy battle is a bit like a scorched-earth policy —- you may win the battle, but what you ultimately win will be so damaged that it wasn't worth fighting for," Stifel analyst George Askew said in a report. "There is only one ultimate buyer of Yahoo —- Microsoft —- and they have walked away from the negotiating table."

Comcast to buy networking site

Comcast Corp., the largest U.S. cable television operator, agreed Wednesday to buy online address book company Plaxo Inc. to expand into social networking and offer more services to its Internet access and video customers. Terms weren't disclosed.

FINANCIAL

Sallie Mae fixes computer glitch

Washington—- Because of a computer error at Sallie Mae, thousands of people with student loans from the company had their credit scores decimated. The problem was fixed Tuesday night. Sallie Mae, the nation's largest student lender, reported erroneous delinquencies for thousands of its customers to credit-reporting agencies. The company erroneously reported graduated or extended repayment plans for student loans as arrangements for partial payment, causing Atlanta-based Equifax to falsely code some borrowers' accounts as delinquent.

FOOD / BEVERAGE

SABMiller to buy rights to Grolsch

Milwaukee —- SABMiller Brewing PLC says it will buy the rights to distribute Grolsch beer in the United States. St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch acquired distribution rights to the Dutch beer, known for its distinctive swivel top, in February 2006, but SABMiller later took over parent company Royal Grolsch NV.

LEGAL

Co-founders of Broadcom charged

Los Angeles —- Federal officials on Wednesday charged Broadcom Corp. co-founders Henry T. Nicholas III and Henry Samueli with falsifying the company's reported income by illegally backdating stock options for five years. A criminal complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission also charges former Chief Financial Officer William J. Ruehle and General Counsel David Dull. The four men are accused of violating federal securities laws by misrepresenting the dates on which stock options were granted to its executives and employees.

Sharper Image to sell all assets

Sharper Image Corp., which previously planned to close half of its stores, won court permission to sell all of its assets at a May 28 auction. U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Kevin Gross approved the auction Wednesday at a hearing in Wilmington, Del.

Accused scammer targeted Georgians

A California woman is facing criminal and civil charges in connection to a real estate scam that targeted African-American investors in three states, bilking hundreds of them out of $18 million, authorities said Wednesday. Jeanetta M. Standefor of Altadena, Calif., was arrested and charged with wire fraud, mail fraud and money laundering, the U.S. attorney's office in Los Angeles said. Authorities claim Standefor, 40, lured investors in California, Nevada and Georgia into investing in her company, which purported to use the funds to help homeowners in default get current on mortgage payments.

MANUFACTURING

Ohio company to open Tifton facility

An aluminum-extrusion company plans to open a facility in Tifton and eventually employ 146 people, the Georgia Department of Economic Development has announced. Niles, Ohio-based BRT Extrusions intends to move this summer into the former Tifton Aluminum building in the Tift County Industrial Park and invest $6 million, the department says. BRT Extrusions will make aluminum products for door and window manufacturers, pool companies and lighting businesses. It expects to create 61 jobs the first year and reach full employment in four years.

REAL ESTATE

Lawmaker wants Countrywide probe

Washington —- A Democratic lawmaker on Wednesday urged federal regulators to investigate alleged mistreatment by Countrywide Financial Corp. of homeowners in bankruptcy. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a letter to Federal Trade Commission Chairman William Kovacic that Countrywide has sought to improperly use the bankruptcy process to foreclose on borrowers' homes. Bankruptcy judges have criticized the company for arguing in court that borrowers were delinquent on their payments even when they were not, Schumer said in his letter. Debtors who declare bankruptcy under Chapter 13 are generally allowed to keep their homes while paying off their debts under a court-approved bankruptcy plan.

Foreclosures up 65% in a year

Los Angeles —- More U.S. homeowners fell behind on mortgage payments last month, driving the number of homes facing foreclosure up 65 percent vs. the same month last year and contributing to a deepening slide in home values, a research company said Tuesday. Nationwide, 243,353 homes received at least one foreclosure-related notice in April, up from 147,708 in the same month last year and up 4 percent since March, RealtyTrac Inc. said. Nevada, Arizona, California and Florida were among the hardest-hit states.

REGULATORY

Audit criticizes USDA practices

Washington —- The Agriculture Department has issued misleading and inaccurate reports about discrimination complaints and still can't say how many minority applicants are getting federal farm assistance, according to a federal audit. Suggesting that some of the misinformation was intentional, the report said the department's civil rights office claimed last July that it had cut a 2004 backlog of nearly 700 unresolved complaints when officials "were well aware" that the caseload would actually grow to nearly 900. The agency's failure to manage the complaints —- despite similar findings in previous audits —- raises questions about whether USDA takes them seriously, the report said.

RETAILING

FedEx Kinko's appoints CEO

FedEx Corp. has named Brian Philips CEO of its FedEx Kinko's office supply and copy centers, about a month after he took the post on an interim basis. Previously, Philips was vice president of U.S. marketing at FedEx Services, where he oversaw retail strategy, ads and sponsorships.

Havertys declares quarterly dividend

Havertys Furniture announced Wednesday at its annual meeting that shareholders will get a dividend for the second quarter. Common stock holders will get 6.75 cents a share, while Class A common stock holders will get 6.25 cents a share, payable June 13. The company also promoted Steven Burdette to executive vice president of sales, J. Edward Clary to chief information officer and senior vice president of distribution, and Scott Miles to vice president of stores. In April, the company said same-store sales had fallen. For the first four months of 2008, same-store sales dipped 5.5 percent, while total sales declined 2.2 percent to $239.2 million.

TECHNOLOGY

Samsung names chief executive

Seoul, South Korea —- Samsung Electronics named a new chief executive Wednesday, less than a month after the resignation of Chairman Lee Kun-hee following his indictment on tax evasion charges. External relations chief Lee Yoon-woo, who has worked with the company for 40 years, is expected to ease the transition for the world's largest maker of computer memory chips.

TELECOM

Embarq may leave wireless

Embarq Corp. will keep its wireless customer base for the time being but could hand it over to another carrier next year, the company's chief financial officer said Wednesday. Speaking in Washington at an analyst conference, Gene Betts said the company would continue serving those customers until at least 2009. "After that, we may decide to transition them to a carrier," he said. Embarq, the nation's fourth-largest landline company, sold wireless services in its 18-state market through a partnership with Sprint Nextel Corp., which spun off the Overland Park, Kan.-based company in 2006. Embarq stopped marketing the service after the first of the year, however, because sales weren't meeting expectations.

TRANSPORTATION

Report: 2 airlines discuss alliance

Chicago —- United Airlines and Continental Airlines are talking about forming an alliance without going through a merger, which Continental rejected last month, The Associated Press reported Wednesday night, citing a person close to the situation. United is still pushing ahead with negotiations aimed at a combination with US Airways Group Inc. but would not pursue both deals, the report said. United, the nation's second-largest carrier, is expected to take up the matter today at a meeting of parent UAL Corp.'s board of directors. The report said United is considering three options: consolidating with US Airways, forming an alliance with Continental or remaining a stand-alone carrier. United had been close to combining forces with Continental until the Houston-based carrier said April 27 that it would not seek a merger. But Continental left the door open to an alliance.