Two private equity firms have agreed to buy Redmond-based Eddie Bauer Holdings Inc. for $286 million in cash, the clothing chain said Monday. Under terms of the deal, a holding company owned by affiliates of Sun Capital Partners Inc. and Golden Gate Capital will pay $9.25 per share in cash and assume $328 million in debt. The offer represents a nearly 5 percent premium over the $8.85 closing price of Eddie Bauer shares on Friday.
Auto industry leaders seek political support
Auto industry leaders plan to stress in a White House meeting that they are not seeking any federal bailout, but want support on health care and trade issues that affect large manufacturers. President Bush will meet today with General Motors Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Rick Wagoner, Ford Motor Co. Chief Executive Alan Mulally and Tom LaSorda, president and chief executive officer of DaimlerChrysler AG’s Chrysler Group, in a gathering that has been delayed since last spring.
Commerce leader visits China for deals
U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez began a trip to Beijing on Monday to help American entrepreneurs clinch deals and to discuss barriers that have contributed to a soaring and politically touchy Chinese trade surplus. Highlighting his efforts to increase U.S. exports, Gutierrez saw Motorola Inc. sign a $1.6 million cell phone contract with a Chinese distributor
The KFC colonel gets a new look
The image of the late Colonel Harland Sanders is shedding his white suit jacket for a red cook’s apron as the company he founded unveils a worldwide redesign of its KFC restaurants and one of the world’s most recognizable icons. The company unveiled a new brand logo Tuesday that includes bolder colors and a more well-defined visage of the Kentucky Fried Chicken founder.
Airlines cut fares for year-end flights
Led by Delta Air Lines Inc., most major carriers cut leisure fares on flights through Dec. 12, although the deals don’t apply to the busiest days around Thanksgiving. Neil Bainton of farecompare.com said the sale prices, which Delta filed in ticketing systems Sunday, applied to 7-day advance-purchase tickets. Bainton calculated the average reduction at $281, which he said was a surprisingly deep cut.
T-bill rates mixed in Monday auction
Three-month Treasury bills sold at a discount rate Monday of 4.955 percent, unchanged from last week. Six-month bills were auctioned at the same rate. For a $10,000 bill, the three-month price was $9,974.75 while a six-month bill sold for $9,749.50. Separately, the Federal Reserve said Monday that the average yield for one-year Treasury bills, a popular index for changing adjustable rate mortgages, edged up slightly to 5.03 percent last week from 5 percent the previous week.
From Herald news services
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