Xerox cites clear audit

        Xerox Corp., the subject of a Securities and Exchange Commission accounting probe, said auditor KPMG LLP didn't find any fraudulent practices in the company's financial statements for the past three years.

        “After rigorous reviews of Xerox's accounting, no fictitious transactions were found and the company's liquidity is not impacted,” chief executive Paul Allaire said in a statement.

Vlasic to file plan

        Vlasic Foods International Inc. said it expects to file a bankruptcy plan within two weeks that provides for no payment to shareholders.

        The Cherry Hill, N.J.-based food company said the $370 million sale of substantially all its assets to buyout firm Hicks, Muse Tate & Furst Inc. is insufficient to pay unsecured creditors in full and leaves nothing for shareholders.
       

Joblessness claims up

        New claims for state unemployment benefits remained at the highest level in a month, suggesting the nation's labor market still is struggling.

        The number of workers filing new claims for the insurance jumped 8,000 to a seasonally adjusted 419,000 for the work week ending May 26, the Labor Department said Thursday.
       

Mortgage rates rise

        Mortgage rates around the country rose this week but are still more than 1 percentage point lower than they were last year.

        The average interest rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages climbed to 7.24 percent, up from 7.20 percent last week, according to a nationwide survey released Thursday by Freddie Mac, the mortgage company.
       

Henson Co. again on block

        The Jim Henson Co., creator of Kermit the Frog and the Muppets, is up for sale again after being acquired last year by German entertainment firm EM.TV AG.

        “We bought the Jim Henson Co. because its products and brands fit our company very well,” EM.TV spokeswoman Marion Moormann said Wednesday. “But in the meantime, EM.TV has got into several problems.”

        Munich-based EM.TV, whose stock price has fallen 96 percent since last summer, has hired New York investment bank Allen and Co. to help it decide whether to sell all or part of the Jim Henson Co., Mr. Moormann said.

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