Fifth Third Bank said it will open six new branches in Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky by late 2005. Cincinnati's largest banking company, which this week opened a branch in Beckett Ridge in Butler County, plans to open new branches in Loveland, Dent, Harrison and Mason in Ohio as well as branches in Edgewood and Independence in Northern Kentucky. It also plans to replace 11 branches in the region with new offices by late next year. Fifth Third now operates 141 branches in Greater Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky with deposits of about $15 billion.

Race fans can drive new Ford vehicles

SPARTA - More than 1,000 Ford Racing fans will have the opportunity to drive the new 300-horsepower 2005 Ford Mustang at the Kentucky Speedway Oct. 23. from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. The event, one of a series Ford Motor Co. is holding around the country to display its new vehicles, is free but requires advance registration: To do so call (800) 647-7268 or go online at www.fordinnovationdrive.com/racing. Attendees will also be able to drive the new Five Hundred and Freestyle.

Kroger names chief for Food 4 Less unit

Jay Cummins has been promoted to president of Food 4 Less, a Kroger Co. subsidiary, the company said. Food 4 Less operates 137 price-impact, warehouse-format supermarkets under the banners Food 4 Less in Southern California, Nevada, Illinois and Indiana, and Foods Co in Northern California. Before his promotion, Cummins served as group vice president and general manager of Food 4 Less' Midwest division in the Chicago area.

Voice over Internet service gets backing

BOSTON - FCC Chairman Michael Powell said Tuesday that he would seek broad regulatory authority for the federal government over Internet-based telephone services to avoid stifling the emerging market.

Powell told a receptive audience at an industry conference that letting states regulate Voice over Internet Protocol, or VoIP, services would lead to a patchwork of conflicting rules like those which have ensnarled the traditional phone business for decades. To do so, Powell said, "is to dumb down the Internet back to the limited vision of government officials. That would be a tragedy."

After his speech, Powell told reporters he expected to introduce a proposal to the full Federal Communications Commission in less than a month, and definitely before a new Congress begins its session in January.

American pushes electronic ticketing

American Airlines said Tuesday it will add a fee to encourage customers outside the United States to switch from paper tickets to electronic ones. The fee will be $25 in the Caribbean and Latin America, including Mexico, with the charge converted to local currencies. Paper tickets bought from travel agents in Italy, Spain, Belgium and France will be charged a fee of $28, and those in the United Kingdom will be charged about $45.

Also, American said it wants regulatory approval to begin daily nonstop flights between Chicago and Nagoya, Japan, in April and to resume daily nonstops between Dallas and Osaka, Japan, beginning in November 2005.

Former execs admit supplying false data

HOUSTON - Two former El Paso Corp. traders pleaded guilty to providing false data to an industry publication to try to manipulate natural gas prices.

Donald Guilbault, 51, and William Ham, 45, admitted they reported inaccurate data to Inside FERC Gas Market Report, U.S. Attorney Michael Shelby said. The men could get up to five years in federal prison and a $500,000 fine. Ham will be sentenced Jan. 18 and Guilbault Jan. 24.

The publication uses data from traders to calculate the index price of natural gas. Prosecutors said Guilbault and Ham would either report fictitious trades or modify actual trades in a way that would manipulate the price up or down. Nancy Herrera, a spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney, would not comment on how the men may have profited from the scheme.

Wire/staff reports