New York Times Co. debt rating is cut to BBB

New York Times Co.'s debt rating was cut one level to BBB, the second-lowest investment grade, by Standard & Poor's, which cited falling advertising sales and the broader newspaper industry decline. The short-term corporate credit and commercial paper ratings for the New York publisher were also lowered, S&P said. Total advertising revenue fell 8.5 percent to $157.3 million from a year earlier, and newspaper ad sales dropped 9.9 percent. Publishers, including New York Times Co., owner of the namesake newspaper and The Boston Globe, have been hurt by the loss of advertisers to the Internet. Catherine Mathis, a spokeswoman for the Times Co., didn't immediately respond to a phone call seeking comment. (Bloomberg)

Enterprise Rent-A-Car Co. is facing calls for a boycott from organized labor groups upset that it hired a subcontractor to run its Logan International Airport operations after 30 employees began efforts to unionize. Groups led by IUE/CWA Local 201 and the Greater Boston Labor Council plan a rally this afternoon outside Enterprise's office near Logan on Route 1A in East Boston. Enterprise spokeswoman Christy Conrad said Enterprise hired ParkWest Staffing Services Inc. to improve operations at the Logan center. Conrad said ParkWest, which manages 20 other Enterprise centers, is committed to giving job interviews to all current Enterprise workers. The National Labor Relations Board is reviewing a June 15 complaint by workers that Enterprise retaliated against them for pursuing unionization by outsourcing their jobs to ParkWest. Enterprise denies any wrongdoing. (Peter J. Howe)

Ten lawyers -- nine of them partners -- have left the 70-attorney Boston law firm Donovan Hatem to establish a Boston office of Virginia-based LeClair Ryan. The new office will open July 23 at 2 International Place. Donovan Hatem, a multipractice business and litigation firm that specializes in representing architects, engineers, construction managers, and other professionals, was established in 2001 by David J. Hatem and John A. Donovan Jr., who were previously with Burns & Levinson. LeClair Ryan, a full-service firm with 150 lawyers, has 10 Virginia offices, and offices in Manhattan and Washington, D.C. (Sacha Pfeiffer)

Massachusetts will receive $165,000 as part of a $3 million national settlement with Internet services provider America Online, Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley said. The agreement, which involves 48 states and the District of Columbia, requires AOL to make significant changes in honoring cancellation requests and in making refunds for unauthorized service charges, Coakley's office said. The settlement resolves complaints that consumers were experiencing difficulties when attempting to cancel their services, Coakley's office said. (Chris Reidy)

Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc., and other firms that sell derivatives known as structured products to investors have been sent initial letters of inquiry by Massachusetts securities regulators. Structured products are becoming more complex, increasing the possibility that investors will buy "unsuitable investments," Secretary of State William F. Galvin said. The products are bonds or notes based on an underlying index such as the Standard & Poor's 500. (Bloomberg)

THE NATION

Seeking to avoid another Vioxx debacle, the House voted overwhelmingly to give federal health officials more money and power to police the safety of prescription drugs. The bill gives the Food and Drug Administration nearly $400 million, collected as fees from the drug industry, to spend on drug safety over the next five years. The Senate already has approved similar legislation. (AP)

Motorola Inc. said it had a quarterly loss after sales missed forecasts for the third time this year and customers defected to Nokia Oyj and Apple Inc.'s iPhone. Shares fell 1.7 percent after Motorola predicted a loss of up to 4 cents a share in the second quarter. Sales sank to about $8.6 billion, trailing the Schaumburg, Ill. company's forecast of $9.4 billion. (Bloomberg)