The Boeing Co. said Wednesday it will try to sell its Spokane manufacturing plant to someone who will continue to operate it. The plant employs about 500 people who make air conditioning ducts, floor panels and cockpit shields for commercial airliners. When the company began studying the economics of selling or closing the plant, Boeing said its strategy was to get out of the parts business and concentrate on assembling and selling jetliners.
The federal judge hearing the Microsoft antitrust case said particularly damaging testimony against the company is hearsay, and refused to consider it in deciding whether nine states can impose harsh penalties on the company. U.S. District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly said the written testimony from RealNetworks vice president David Richards could not be admitted because Richards did not have direct knowledge. Richards said Microsoft had insisted that America Online drop RealNetworks’ media software in favor of Microsoft’s, citing an e-mail last year between AOL CEO Barry Schuler and RealNetworks head Rob Glaser. “They want to kill you guys so badly, it is ugly,” Schuler told Glaser.
Housing construction, bolstered by low interest rates and good weather, climbed in February to its highest level in more than three years. Home builders broke ground in February on 1.77 million housing units, at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, which was 2.8 percent more than in January, the Commerce Department reported Wednesday. February’s larger-than-expected increase pushed housing construction to its highest level since December 1998 and followed a strong 7.4 percent advance in January, even bigger than the government previously reported. All of the strength last month came from single-family home construction, which rose 7.4 percent to a rate of 1.46 million units in February, the highest level in more than 23 years.
The sheets, towels and kids’ clothing made by Martha Stewart and Disney will stay on Kmart shelves after the discount retailer on Wednesday got bankruptcy court approval to continue its licensing agreements with its five major brands. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Susan Pierson Sonderby approved Kmart’s request to continue its licensing agreements and pay outstanding accounts with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.; Disney Enterprises Inc.; G.H. Productions Inc., which supplies its Jaclyn Smith line; Joe Boxer Licensing LLC; and Kathy Ireland World Wide LLC.
From Herald news services
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