Del Monte may be looking to sell some businesses

Del Monte Foods Co. may be preparing to sell some of the businesses it acquired in December 2002, according to a report in TheDeal.com, an Internet publication that tracks mergers and acquisitions. The report said Del Monte is seeking to divest its Natures Goodness baby food line and its private label soups business. Both baby food and soup are made for Del Monte at the former H.J. Heinz factory on the North Side. Other Heinz businesses acquired by Del Monte include Star Kist tuna and pet foods, including the Kibbles 'N Bits, Pup-Peroni and Snausages brands, among others. While those business are managed from Pittsburgh for San Franciso-based Del Monte, their production facilities are elsewhere. The report said that Bank of America was handling the auction of the businesses. Bank of America could not be reached for comment Tuesday. Del Monte spokeswoman Melissa Murphy said the company will not comment on rumors. Murphy said the company will provide a strategic outlook for the company Thursday to investors during a conference call. Bob Timmons, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 325, which represents about 600 workers at the North Side plant, said employees have a lot of questions, but the company has provided no answers, other than its official statement that it will not comment on rumors. "We're just going to keep going on with business as usual," he said. Murphy said construction is on schedule for Del Monte's new Pittsburgh headquarters building on the North Shore between PNC Park and Heinz Field. She said the building should be complete by November, and the first employees should begin moving in by December or January.

State employment hits record

The number of people employed in Pennsylvania reached a record total of 6,045,000 in May, Gov. Ed Rendell said Tuesday. Also, the statewide unemployment rate dropped to 4.8 percent, below the national average of 5.1 percent and at its lowest level since July 2001, Rendell said at a news conference at Pittsburgh International Airport. He said the figures indicate his $2 billion economic stimulus package is helping the state's economy. However, he also acknowledged that the state still needs to create more high-paying jobs to replace thousands of manufacturing jobs lost in recent years. In early 2004, a study found that the state had lost 133,000 manufacturing jobs since 1998 due to the 2001 recession, productivity gains, foreign competition and offshore outsourcing.

Winn-Dixie to cut 22,000 jobs

Supermarket chain Winn-Dixie said Tuesday it will cease operations in four Southern states, close 326 of its 913 stores and cut 22,000 jobs under its proposed bankruptcy reorganization plan. The company said it will stop operating in Tennessee, Virginia and the Carolinas, and trim operations in its five remaining states, Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. The cuts amount to 35 percent of its stores and 28 percent of its current work force of 78,000. The company said it will try to find buyers for the closing stores and ask the new owners to retain as many employees as possible. Peter Lynch, president and CEO of Winn-Dixie, has said for months that the reorganized company must become smaller.

AMC, Loews to merge

The nation's second-largest theater chain AMC Entertainment Inc., announced plans Tuesday to acquire Loews Cineplex Entertainment Corp. in a move that may help the new company compete as Hollywood struggles to lure more people to the nation's megaplexes. The combined company, to be called AMC Entertainment Inc., will own, manage or have interests in about 450 theaters in 30 states and 13 countries. It will be headquartered in Kansas City and led by current AMC Chairman, CEO and President Peter C. Brown. AMC and Loews said they expect the merger to close within six to nine months. Financial details of the deal weren't disclosed.

LogicLibrary to add 61 jobs

The state is providing some $101,000 in public financing to help LogicLibrary, a South Side-based provider of development software and services, add 61 jobs and retain 10 existing positions over three years. The funding package, which includes a $40,000 state opportunity grant and $61,000 in job creation tax credits, was announced by Gov. Ed Rendell at a news conference at Pittsburgh International Airport Tuesday. The company's clients include such major firms as International Business Machines, Liberty Mutual Insurance, CVS Pharmacies and Honeywell.

Brewery may refile lawsuit

A lawsuit by Pittsburgh Brewing Co. against the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority in a dispute over billing for sewage treatment charges has been voluntarily discontinued at the request of the company. However, Robert O. Lampl, attorney for Pittsburgh Brewing , said he is considering refiling the suit in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. The suit, originally filed in Common Pleas Court, was moved to federal court in May because Alsocan claimed it raised civil rights issues. The Lawrenceville brewer of Iron City and I.C. Light beers has alleged the authority overcharged it for sewage treatment based on water usage. The company owes some $2.3 billion in back bills to the Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Authority, which has already paid the money to Alcosan, but it has been holding off threatened action to cut off the company's water supply while the company tries to resolve its dispute.

Bon-Ton sells credit cards

Department store chain The Bon-Ton Stores Inc. has sold for an undisclosed price its credit card portfolio and administration of the business to a unit of banking giant HSBC. Expected to close next month, the sale will result in a gain for the York County-based chain, but also means as many as 84 employees will lose their jobs when a credit center in York is closed. The employees will be offered available positions within the company's headquarters and nearby retail stores, with those leaving given a severance package. The Bon-Ton has five stores in Western Pennsylvania.

Agency lifts stainless tariffs

The U.S. International Trade Commission voted Tuesday to lift its duties on imports of stainless steel from France and the U.K., while maintaining tariffs for six other countries. The independent commission in Washington, by a vote of 4-2, determined that U.S. tariff protections from French and British stainless steel sheet and strip is no longer warranted. By the same margin, the agency chose to keep its duties on imports from Germany, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico and Taiwan. Since the duties were put in place in 1999, imports of those products from the eight countries dropped from $405 million a year to as low as $169 million a year.

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