Toys 'R' Us loss widens

        Toys “R” Us Inc. said its loss in the fiscal second quarter will be wider than expected, and profit this year will miss forecasts, as the company renovates stores to compete with Wal-Mart.

        The loss in the quarter ending Aug. 4 will be at least 14 cents, Toys “R” Us said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Analysts' average loss estimate was 10 cents, according to First Call/Thomson Financial. Toys “R” Us will report results Aug. 20.

        Chief Executive John Eyler is retraining staff and adding exclusive products to stores to lure back customers.
       

Honeywell revamp

        Honeywell International Inc. will consolidate into four business units, cutting its number of divisions by half a week after General Electric Co.'s planned takeover of the company collapsed.

        Operations will be combined into aerospace, automation and controls, specialty materials, and transportation and power units. Costs savings weren't specified and there won't be any immediate layoffs. Chief Operating Officer Giannantonio Ferrari will retire immediately.

        Chairman and Chief Executive Lawrence Bossidy returned from retirement after European regulators blocked the $47 billion purchase, replacing Michael Bonsignore. He was given a year by Honeywell's board to fix operations. Honeywell again cut profit forecasts last week, the fourth time in a year. Mr. Ferrari was a Bonsignore ally, analysts said.
       

Price-fixing rejected

        A federal judge in Peoria, Ill., intends to dismiss a class-action lawsuit alleging Archer Daniels Midland Co., Cargill Inc., Tate & Lyle Plc and Cerestar conspired to fix prices in the $2 billion market for high-fructose corn syrup.

        U.S. District Judge Michael M. Mihm told lawyers Wednesday that he plans to dismiss the lawsuit filed in 1995 by PepsiCo Inc., the Coca-Cola Co. and 24 other food companies. The suit alleged that the four companies colluded as far back as 1991 over the price of high-fructose corn syrup, a sweetener used in soft drinks and candy.
       

Maytag buy proceeds

        Maytag Corp. received approval from federal regulators to proceed with the purchase of rival Amana Appliances. The Federal Trade Commission said Friday that the companies can proceed with the deal, exempting them from the waiting period required under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvement Act.

        Newton, Iowa-based Maytag Corp. announced last month that it planned to buy rival Amana Appliances for $325 million.
       

Nasdaq rides rise

        U.S. stocks rose, sending the Nasdaq Composite Index to its third weekly gain in four, as networking-equipment shares climbed on optimism corporate profits will rebound this year. Cisco Systems Inc. led the advance.

        Semiconductor stocks declined, limiting gains in major stock indexes, after Advanced Micro Devices Inc. said it may post a loss this quarter and Rambus Inc. cut its revenue forecast.

        The Nasdaq advanced 9.05, or 0.4 percent, to 2084.79. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index rose 7.54, or 0.6 percent, to 1215.68. The Dow Jones Industrial Average climbed 60.07, or 0.6 percent, to 10,539.06.

        For the week, the Nasdaq gained 4 percent.
       

Less demand for oil seen

        Faltering economies and high oil prices have lessened the world's thirst for crude, leading a respected energy study Friday to again cut its estimate for annual growth in demand.

        The International Energy Agency reduced its projected demand growth by 510,000 barrels of oil a day — the seventh downward revision in its forecast since last summer. The Paris-based IEA is the energy watchdog of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Comair to again reach 97 cities
A heck of a deck
FedEx wants to halt DHL's Mexico permit
Sysborne acquires bankrupt InfiNET
401(k): Don't look for quick fix
HIGGINS: Personal Finance
Savvy Strategies
The Sophisticated Investor
Harley-Davidson revs up for new-generation rider
Honeywell CEO streamlines procedures
Individual Investor magazine shuts down
Rate report
Small economic rebound expected
Two design-engineering firms will become one
Business Digest
What's the Buzz?