IN BRIEF (Page 15)

'Whiz Kid' dies

J. Edward Lundy, a former chief financial officer at Ford Motor Co and one of its "Whiz Kids", died on October 2 in Dearborn, Michigan, the New York Times reported, citing Ford officials. He was 92.

Lundy was credited with helping to revive Ford after World War II and the death of its founder, Henry Ford, the Times said. He was one of 10 Army Air Force veterans, including Robert McNamara and known as the "Whiz Kids", who were hired to turn the company around, the Times reported.

Gazprom earnings

OAO Gazprom, the world's biggest supplier of natural gas, said profit advanced 14 percent in the first quarter after the company stopped consolidating its pension assets.

Net income climbed to 210 billion rubles ($8.4 billion) from 185 billion rubles in the same period last year, the Moscow-based company said on its website yesterday. That's more than the median estimate of 158 billion rubles in a Bloomberg survey of 11 analysts. Sales climbed 4.4 percent to 612 billion rubles.

Deal near

Sony Corp and Bertelsmann AG are "really close" to an agreement that would allow their Sony BMG label to pursue music publishing revenue, the Financial Times reported, citing an interview with the head of Sony BMG.

The proposal would allow Sony BMG to pitch for the publishing rights of its own recording artists, Sony BMG Chief Executive Officer Rolf Schmidt-Holtz (above) told the FT.

Builder's offering

Strabag SE, Austria's biggest builder, plans to raise as much as 1.35 billion euros ($1.9 billion) in an initial share sale to fund expansion in the booming Russian and Balkan construction markets.

Strabag is offering 28.2 million shares for 42 euros to 48 euros apiece, the Spittal an der Drau, Austria-based company said yesterday in an IPO prospectus. The period runs from yesterday through October 19.

Friends' forecast

Friends Provident Plc, the UK insurer that agreed to be bought by Resolution Plc, forecast ninth-month new business sales will rise 17 percent.

Life and pension sales for the nine months ending 30 September, may exceed 5.4 billion pounds ($11 billion) compared with 4.6 billion pounds a year earlier, the Dorking, England-based company said in a Regulatory News Service statement yesterday.

Mandator purchase

Fujitsu Ltd, Japan's second-biggest personal-computer maker, agreed to buy Swedish information technology consulting company Mandator AB for about 508 million kronor ($78.4 million).

Fujitsu offered 3 kronor in cash for every Mandator share, about 30 percent higher than the average share price in the ten days preceding the offer, Fujitsu said in a statement distributed by Cision. The bid has the support of Mandator's board.

Fortescue surges

Fortescue Metals Group Ltd, building a A$2.6 billion ($2.3 billion) iron ore project, rose to a record in Sydney trade on speculation prices may gain and a court ruling boosted the chances of lower development costs.

The Perth-based company gained as much as A$3.34, or 6.7 percent, to A$53.05 and traded at A$52.51 at 10:38 am Sydney time on the Australian Stock Exchange, giving it a market value of A$14.7 billion.

Bloomberg News

(China Daily 10/09/2007 page15)