Thursday, October 10, 2002

AT&T Broadband to Cut 1700 Jobs AT&T Corp. and Comcast Corp. said on Wednesday 1,700 jobs would be cut at AT&T's  cable unit in Denver after the two companies close their $28.6 billion merger combining the nation's No. 1 and No. 3 cable companies. 9:38:03 AM  Google It!  comment  []

Consumer spending dismal in September Shoppers, spooked by stock market plunges, the prospect of war in Iraq and a weak job market, retrenched even further in September, resulting in lower sales and indicating a difficult holiday season is ahead. As the nation's retailers reported their sales Thursday, department stores and apparel stores were hit the hardest. But even high-flying Wal-Mart Stores Inc., Target Corp. and Kohl's Corp. also posted disappointing results. "Consumers are unwilling to spend, and if they do they are only buying necessities," said Walter Loeb, president of retail consulting firm Loeb Associates. The weak performance led several merchants, including Target, Talbots Inc. and Federated Department Stores Inc., to reduce their earning outlook for the remainder of the year. "This has made it more certain that holiday will be lousy," said Michael P. Niemira, vice president of Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi Ltd. 8:41:42 AM  Google It!  comment  []

Ford Motor's Legs Are Wobbly Under Finance Unit's Debt Load . . . investors seem to be awakening to a host of weaknesses in Ford's financial position. . . . Ford, mostly through its Ford Motor Credit unit, carries a staggering debt load. It faces lingering questions from investors about how it presents its cash position and concerns about its ability to finance long-term pension and health care obligations to workers. . . . The more that investors focus on company balance sheets, the more anxious they seem to become about heavy corporate debt or a company's dependence on capital markets. Investors seem to have concluded that a company's future can depend less on its operations than on its ability to finance those operations. . . . When bond investors sour on a company's prospects, higher borrowing rates are a result. Though rising costs for financing are never a plus, Ford will especially suffer from higher costs because of its zero percent financing deals to car buyers. 8:21:53 AM  Google It!  comment  []