15 Mar 2005 08:44 AM

Philip Morris International, a unit of Altria Group, has made a $5.2 billion offer to purchase PT HM Sampoerna, Indonesia’s third-largest cigarette maker. The deal includes a-$1.13 a share offer for 40$ of the company’s stock and a public offer for the rest at the same price, a 20% premium to the March 10 closing price on the Jakarta Stock Exchange. "Our investment

15 Mar 2005 08:42 AM

IBM announced yesterday the acquisition of Ascential Software, a maker of data-managing software for $1.1 billion in cash. The purchase comes amid a raging price war between Oracle and SAP AG for the software maker Retek. Big Blue says the acquisition will serve the integration purpose, combining the Ascential with IBM’s Information

15 Mar 2005 08:39 AM

Disney’s new President Robert Iger has been put in charge of the company that runs BC and ESPN television networks, movie studios, a consumer products division and theme parks in the US and abroad. Iger, less prominent than the former Chief Executive Michael Eisner, is viewed with hope by many analysts as he is

14 Mar 2005 06:42 PM

Auditing firm Deloitte & Touche LLP obtained a favorable ruling in a North Carolina case over the collapse of aviation-reinsurer Fortress Re Inc in which it was sued for billions of dollars by Japanese insurers. In a ruling issued last week, Richard J. Wertheimer, a special master supervising discovery in the case recommended

14 Mar 2005 05:17 PM

Federal prosecutors are investigating whether a small brokerage firm and a former executive misused confidential information about stock trades by listening in on large brokerage firms’ internal broadcast systems, people familiar with the matter said. The

14 Mar 2005 04:38 PM

Foreign capital is promoting many small high-technology companies in China, despite concerns about intellectual-property protection and government regulation in the Chinese technology industry, according to a new

14 Mar 2005 12:33 PM

IBM announced the acquisition of Ascential Software, a maker of data-managing software for $1.1 billion in cash. The purchase comes amid a raging price war between Oracle and SAP AG for the software maker Retek. Big

14 Mar 2005 11:01 AM

Internet media company Yahoo Inc. signed a deal on Monday with Research In Motion Ltd. As consequence of this cooperation RIM’s popular BlackBerry wireless e-mail device will be supplied with Yahoo

14 Mar 2005 08:41 AM

Michael Eisner has announced his departure as Walt Disney chief executive and will be replaced by Robert Iger, former director of the ABC network. On Sunday Disney’s chairman, George Mitchell, said that Iger will take the post on Sept. 30. The departure will end three decades of Eisner’s reign as Walt Disney head. In a letter

14 Mar 2005 08:40 AM

Lufthansa announced Sunday a takeover plan to acquire Swiss International Air Lines, saying the offer is to be made based on Swiss’s average recent trading stock price. The deal is to be approved by principal Swiss shareholders

12 Mar 2005 09:47 AM

China said it is delaying for further study a plan to raise taxes for foreign manufacturers. The plan, which would unify differing corporate income-tax rates for foreign and domestic companies, had been widely expected to be approved at the annual meeting of the national legislature currently under way, and implemented next year, according to the Wall Street Journal. Xie Xuren, director of the State Administration of Taxation

11 Mar 2005 01:26 PM

New technology developed by Samsung will allow users of its new mobile phone enjoy the advantages of the next generation phone. New SCH-V770 mobile phone has a seven-megapixel camera and can download and stream music like an MP3

11 Mar 2005 11:43 AM

Apple Computer said it supports Blu-ray format of Sony Corporation which was chosen for the next generation of DVDs in an attempt to penetrate the US market. Blu-ray said in its yesterday’s statement that Apple joined the Blu-ray Disc Association’s board. The company’s

11 Mar 2005 08:54 AM

New bankruptcy law passed by the US Senate will give more opportunities to prevent from excessive use of bankruptcy protection. "We should all stand behind a law that requires people with the ability to repay their debts to actually repay their

11 Mar 2005 08:51 AM

Dan Rather, CBS News anchor, stepped down as a leading newsman for the company after more than 40 years of work. Bob Schieffer is named as his successor and a “new face” for evening news. On Wednesday, Rather told his viewers that he wished courage to soldiers, sailors and journalists in harm’s way; to tsunami and other natural disaster victims, and to all those oppressed by financial burdens or failing health