Defense contractor gets $260m radar contract
Raytheon Co., of Waltham, said it won a logistics-support contract worth up to $260 million over five years to operate radars for the nation's ballistic missile defense system. Under the deal with the US Missile Defense Agency, the company's Integrated Defense Systems division in Tewksbury will maintain and operate forward based X-band transportable radars used for missile defense. Raytheon was awarded an initial contract in April 2003 and delivered its first radar platform to the agency in November 2002. (Robert Weisman)
Colo. real estate trust settles civil rights suit
Archstone-Smith Trust, a Colorado-based real estate investment trust that owns apartments, agreed to retrofit about 12,000 apartment units to remove barriers to people with disabilities, settling a federal civil rights lawsuit. Three civil rights organizations sued in December 2004, claiming Archstone's apartment complexes had steps at entryways, doorways that were too narrow, and other barriers to people who use wheelchairs. Among the 71 complexes affected by the nationwide settlement are Cronin's Landing in Waltham and Archstone Watertown Square in Watertown, according to the civil rights groups. (Bloomberg)
Sonus Networks says SEC ends probe of reporting
Sonus Networks Inc., a maker of telephone-network equipment, said the Securities and Exchange Commission ended its investigation of the company's financial reporting without recommending enforcement action. The SEC began an informal probe into how the company booked sales of its equipment in February 2004 after Sonus said it may restate results because some sales might not have been recorded at the right time, Chelmsford-based Sonus said. Shares rose 25 cents, or 5.7 percent, to $4.64. (Bloomberg)
THE NATION
Instinet shareholder offer could push back merger
The proposed merger between the Nasdaq Stock Market and the electronic trading arm of Instinet Group could be delayed after an investment-advisory company made a separate, higher bid for Instinet's institutional brokerage division. Third Avenue Management LLC, an Instinet shareholder, confirmed it was making a $307 million bid for Instinet's brokerage unit. The unit was initially slated to be spun off to a group of private investors led by Silver Lake Partners and Instinet executives for $207.5 million. While the counterbid was unlikely to substantially harm Nasdaq's proposed $934.5 million acquisition of Instinet's electronic trading unit, the takeover could be delayed if Instinet shareholders accept Third Avenue's counterbid. (AP)
Acting FDA chief cleared of all favoritism charges
The Food and Drug Administration's acting chief, Lester Crawford, was cleared in an investigation of allegations that he had an affair with an agency employee and promoted her on that basis, according to an inspector's letter. The probe found no evidence Crawford had an affair with the employee, intervened on her behalf in FDA business, or allowed her misuse of a government-issued credit card, the Health and Human Services Department's Office of the Inspector General said in a letter to the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee. The office submitted the findings as the Senate considers President Bush's nomination of Crawford to head the agency as permanent chief. (Bloomberg)
Inspections can't keep pace with airlines' cuts
Safety inspectors are not keeping up with potential risks posed by airlines trying to save money, according to a Transportation Department report. The problem could worsen because the Federal Aviation Administration may have fewer inspectors due to budget cuts next year, the department's inspector general said. The FAA defended its safety record and oversight during a period when low-cost carriers expanded and traditional airlines looked for ways to cut costs. Airlines worked to get planes in and out of airports more quickly and contracted out maintenance operations, but FAA inspectors ''did not respond to industry changes in a timely and consistent manner," the report said. (AP)
Greenberg quits board of American International
Maurice ''Hank" Greenberg quit the board of American International Group. The board forced Greenberg to relinquish his posts as president and CEO March 14, and he retired as chairman two weeks later, amid state and federal inquiries into the firm's accounting under his watch. Greenberg resigned through a short letter faxed to the board, The Wall Street Journal reported on its website. (AP)
