IN BRIEF (Page 17)

Healthy increase

Humana Inc, the second-biggest provider of government-funded medical benefits, reported a 13 percent increase in first-quarter profit on enrollment gains in US Medicare health plans for the elderly.

The Louisville, Kentucky-based company raised its profit target for the year as quarterly net income climbed to $80.2 million, or 47 cents a share, Humana said yesterday in a statement.

Wrigley purchase

Mars Inc agreed to purchase Wm Wrigley Jr Co for $23 billion, with financing from Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc, to combine the world's biggest maker of chewing gum with the producer of M&Ms chocolate.

Mars will pay $80 a share in cash for the maker of Doublemint gum, the companies said in a statement yesterday on PR Newswire. That is 28 percent more than Wrigley's closing share price on Friday, when it last traded.

Missed forecast

Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc, Japan's third-largest bank by revenue, said full-year profit missed its forecast by 19 percent as bad-loan costs increased.

Net income totaled 460 billion yen ($4.4 billion) for the year ended March 31, compared with the bank's forecast of a 570 billion yen profit. Earnings rose from 441 billion yen a year earlier, it said in a statement to the Tokyo Stock Exchange yesterday.

Job cuts

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, Britain's second-largest bank, may cut about 7,000 jobs following the takeover of ABN Amro Holding NV's securities unit and credit market losses, said two people with knowledge of the plan.

Agencies

(China Daily 04/29/2008 page17)