BUSINESS BRIEFS
Trump, daughter quit casino company's board
Advertiser News Services
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ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. — Donald Trump fired himself yesterday from the casino company that bears his name.
Spurned by bond holders who rejected his effort to buy Trump Entertainment Resorts, the real estate mogul and his daughter Ivanka are resigning from its board of directors. He called the troubled casino company he once controlled "worthless to me now." He is the largest shareholder, owning more than a quarter of its stock, yet stressed that it comprises "substantially less than 1 percent of my net worth."
The company won a fourth extension Wednesday on restructuring $1.25 billion in debt, and some analysts have predicted it will file for bankruptcy protection for a third time if it doesn't work out a deal with its bond holders.
"If I'm not going to run it, I don't want to be involved in it," Trump said last night. "I'm one of the largest developers in the world. I have a lot of cash and plenty of places I can go."
S&P FIRMS POISED FOR COLLECTIVE LOSS
NEW YORK — The companies that make up the Standard & Poor's 500 are on track to post a collective quarterly loss for the first time — a sign corporate America was battered even harder than expected by the economy.The dismal earnings reports already handed in by three-quarters of the S&P companies are compelling Wall Street analysts to tone down expectations for this year and push back predictions for when the economy will recover.
The deepest wounds are showing up on banks, weighed down by the bad debt on their books.
But the pain hardly stops there. Among major industries, only consumer staples, utilities and healthcare have been able to maintain or add to profits.
AUTO SUPPLIERS SEEK $25.5B IN AID
WASHINGTON — Auto suppliers asked the Obama administration yesterday for up to $25.5 billion in loans and government guarantees to stabilize the battered U.S. auto industry.Two trade groups, the Original Equipment Suppliers Association and the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association, made the request to the Treasury Department. The aid would prevent a shortage of parts for key vehicle models and follow massive loans to U.S. automakers.
General Motors Corp. has received $9.4 billion in federal loans and is expected to receive another $4 billion, while Chrysler LLC has received $4 billion in loans and is hoping to access another $3 billion.
G-7 MEETS AMID WORSENING CRISIS
ROME — The job of the Group of Seven finance ministers meeting on solutions to the financial crisis looked even more difficult yesterday as new economic data showed Europe's recession deepening.The meeting marks U.S. Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner's international debut.
Officials from the leading industrial nations will discuss new financial markets rules, concerns about protectionist measures in stimulus plans, and the effect of the crisis on poorer countries. But a major breakthrough would be a surprise, with the meeting coming ahead of a broader, 20-country summit in April.
