AGRICULTURE

DuPont to modify wheat, rice

DuPont Co. plans to engineer wheat and rice to boost yields, using similar technology developed for gene-altered corn and soybeans.

AUTOMOTIVE

Ford to trim white-collar jobs

Ford Motor Co. told salaried workers in an e-mail Thursday that it would delay merit raises and cut some benefits —- in addition to reducing costs related to salaried employees by 15 percent, a move that will result in a still-unknown number of involuntary layoffs. Ford also has sent letters to an unknown number of recent college graduates who had been offered jobs, telling them that their hiring would be deferred indefinitely. Ford is offering the would-be employees $5,000 to compensate them for their trouble.

DEALS

France Telecom plots takeover

Paris —- France Telecom said Thursday that it opened talks on a $42 billion takeover bid for TeliaSonera to create Europe's largest telecommunications company. The Swedish telecom immediately dismissed the bid as too low.

Corporate Express open to talks

Corporate Express NV on Thursday invited Staples Inc. to talk about a deal, a reversal after the Netherlands-based office products supplier rebuffed two previous buyout offers from Staples and reacted cautiously earlier this week to a third offer of $2.6 billion. In agreeing to talk, Corporate Express signaled it could potentially scuttle an alternative proposal it reached May 21 to acquire French-based rival Lyreco SAS for $2.7 billion in cash and shares.

ECONOMY

European bankers hold rates steady

Frankfurt, Germany —- The European Central Bank and the Bank of England left their key interest rates unchanged on Thursday amid inflation worries, and ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said his bank's rates could go up by "a small amount" at the next meeting. Trichet's hawkish message after the bank's meeting in Frankfurt sent the euro higher against the dollar.

Fed official wants limits on aid

Richmond Federal Reserve Bank President Jeffrey Lacker said Thursday that the lending to securities firms the central bank introduced in March may lay the seeds of further financial crises. "The danger is that the effect of the recent credit extension on the incentives of financial market participants might induce greater risk-taking," Lacker said in a speech to the European Economics and Financial Centre in London. That, "in turn, could give rise to more frequent crises," he said. Lacker urged that the central bank now "clearly" set boundaries for its help to financial markets. In an interview on the themes of his speech, Lacker said even those new boundaries may not be believed by investors unless a financial firm fails "in a costly way."

FINANCIAL

S&P downgrades bond insurers

New York —- Credit rating agency Standard & Poor's said Thursday that it cut the financial strength rating on bond insurers MBIA and Ambac Financial Group to "AA" from "AAA," a day after Moody's said it was considering doing the same thing. Fitch Ratings has already downgraded both MBIA and Ambac to "AA." Some analysts suspect that without a "AAA" rating from at least two of the ratings agencies, the bond insurers will go into a status known as run-off —- collecting payments and making claims on existing policies but writing no new business.

SunTrust offers retirement advice

SunTrust Banks' investment arm said Thursday it has launched a new retirement planning service that aims to provide advice to customers through several channels, including an online site, a dedicated call center and referrals for consultations with licensed financial advisers. SunTrust Investment Services said the service, called "Retirement GamePlan," seeks to answer basic questions such as when a client can afford to retire or how much money he or she will need. The online site, at www.suntrust.com/retirement, has calculators, quizzes and articles on retirement planning.

LEGAL

Drug allegations tied to Broadcom

Santa Ana, Calif. —- Federal officials unsealed one indictment Thursday alleging co-founder Henry T. Nicholas III of chip maker Broadcom Corp. spiked the drinks of technology executives and customer representatives with ecstasy and maintained a warehouse for ecstasy, cocaine and methamphetamine. A second indictment unsealed Thursday accuses him of conspiracy, securities fraud and other violations relating to stock options backdating while he was CEO. That indictment also names Broadcom's former chief financial officer, William J. Ruehle, in connection with conspiracy and securities fraud charges but no drug violations.

Scrushy fights return to Alabama

Birmingham —- A federal judge ordered fired HealthSouth Corp. CEO Richard Scrushy returned to Alabama from prison to testify in civil lawsuits concerning the huge fraud that nearly bankrupted the rehabilitation chain he founded. Scrushy's attorney said Thursday that he will fight the order because Scrushy doesn't want to leave his fenceless federal prison in Beaumont, Texas, for a brief stay in a county lockup near Birmingham. "It's just an objection to travel," said Martin Adams, a Scrushy son-in-law who also represents him. He said Scrushy otherwise is "happy to tell his side of the story."

MEDIA

Meredith to cut 3% of staff

Des Moines —- Media company Meredith Corp. said Thursday it will eliminate 120 jobs and take a special charge of $16 million in the fourth quarter as advertising revenue and book sales fall. The company, which owns Atlanta TV station WGCL, said it is further trimming its book operations to focus on titles with the Better Homes and Gardens imprint as well as other licensed brands centered on cooking, gardening, building and remodeling. The company said in a statement that it will eliminate about 60 currently filled and 60 open positions. That is about 3 percent of the company's 3,600 workers.

Time Warner to be 'disciplined' bidder

Time Warner Inc. said Thursday it will be "extremely price-disciplined" in bidding for the Weather Channel. A combined Weather Channel and CNN "would give us a very, very interesting cross-platform play and an online play," Chief Financial Officer John Martin said at the Merrill Lynch U.S. Media Conference in London. "I have no idea how to handicap the outcome of the auction." General Electric Co.'s NBC Universal, which is working with buyout firms Blackstone Group and Bain Capital, is also bidding for the Atlanta-based Weather Channel, which is owned by Landmark Communications.

REAL ESTATE

Mortgage rates increase slightly

Washington —- Rates on 30-year mortgages edged up this week to the highest level since March as investors worried about inflation threats. Freddie Mac reported Thursday that 30-year fixed-rate mortgages averaged 6.09 percent, compared with 6.08 percent last week. Rates on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages were at 5.65 percent, compared with 5.66 percent last week. The five-year adjustable-rate mortgage dipped to 5.51 percent from 5.62 percent. The rate on a one-year adjustable-rate mortgage stood at 5.06 percent, compared with 5.22 percent.

REGULATORY

S. Korea orders Intel to pay

Seoul, South Korea —- South Korea's antitrust regulator on Thursday ordered Intel Corp. to pay 26 billion won ($25.4 million) for violating fair trade rules. The Korea Fair Trade Commission said in a statement that the semiconductor giant offered rebates to South Korean computer companies to undercut competitor Advanced Micro Devices Inc. Intel immediately criticized the ruling and said it would consider its options, including a possible appeal.

Molson-Miller venture approved

Milwaukee —- The Department of Justice ended its investigation of a proposed joint venture between Molson Coors Brewing Co. and Miller Brewing Co. on Thursday, clearing the way for the brewers to combine their U.S. operations.

RETAILING

Talbots to trim corporate staff

Talbots Inc., the clothing retailer that targets women 35 and older, plans to eliminate 9 percent of its corporate staff, including its chief operating officer position, as it tries to reverse six years of profit declines or losses. The 129 job cuts will save Talbots $14 million a year. COO Philip Kowalczyk will leave early next month, Talbots said Thursday in a regulatory filing.

TRANSPORTATION

Teamsters OK deal with Frontier

Denver —- Frontier Airlines said Thursday that Teamsters Union members have approved temporary wage and benefit concessions designed to help the company emerge from bankruptcy. The union represents about 430 mechanics, tool room employees and others. Unions representing Frontier's pilots and dispatchers approved concessions last month. The airline says Chief Executive Sean Menke and other executives have agreed to pay cuts of up to 20 percent.

Northwest pilots, Delta execs meet

The leadership of Northwest Airlines pilots' union met in a closed session in Minnesota on Thursday with Delta Air Lines President Ed Bastian and Mike Campbell, Delta's executive vice president of human relations. Northwest pilots have been complaining that they are not being given equal treatment to Delta pilots in the proposed merger. Delta pilots have reached a deal with Delta that includes annual pay raises and an equity stake in the combined company. The Northwest pilots union leadership has said it expects "immediate pay parity" for Northwest pilots in the merger, but that Delta management planned to propose a phase-in of pay increases. "We are not happy with the pace of contract negotiations," the Northwest pilots union leadership said in a message to members Wednesday.

WORKPLACE

Hispanics more likely to die on job

Hispanics were more likely to die of work-related injuries than other ethnic groups in the United States from 1992 to 2006, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In 2006, the death rate for work-related injuries was 5.0 per 100,000 Hispanic workers, compared with 4.0 for all workers, according to a study in the center's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. The study attributed the deaths to the higher number of Hispanics working in high-risk industries such as construction, inadequate training and language difficulties, particularly among foreign-born workers.