Sonesta reaches profit on lower expenses in period

Sonesta International Hotels Corp. said it swung to a profit in the second quarter on lower operating expenses and higher income from two of its hotels, while revenue dropped 15 percent. Net income rose to $762,000, or 21 cents per share, compared with a loss of $233,000, or 6 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue decreased to $18.1 million from $22.8 million. Operating expenses fell to $21.2 million from $26.8 million. The 2006 period included a $449,000 expense from the closure of Sonesta Beach Resort Key Biscayne. Operating income rose to $1.6 million from $115,000, on higher revenue from its Royal Sonesta Hotel Boston and Royal Sonesta New Orleans hotels. Sonesta shares fell 66 cents to $41.41. (AP)

Adelphia Communications founder John Rigas and his son and former finance chief Timothy turned themselves in at the Butner Federal Correctional Complex, located about 45 minutes northwest of Raleigh to begin serving time after being convicted of one of the largest corporate frauds in US history. John Rigas, 82, was sentenced to 15 years and Timothy Rigas, 51, to 20 years. They were convicted in 2004 on multiple charges of securities fraud, conspiracy to commit bank fraud, and bank fraud. They had remained free while their appeals navigated the court system, a repose that ended in June when US District Judge Leonard Sand gave the father and son until yesterday to report to prison. (AP)

THE NATION

Qualcomm Inc. said its head lawyer resigned after a string of legal setbacks at the world's second-largest chipmaker for cellphones. Lou Lupin, 52, joined Qualcomm in 1995 and was elevated to general counsel in 2000, a position from which he led efforts to build and defend the company's vaunted business of licensing rights to its patented technology to other companies. Carol Lam, 48, one of eight federal prosecutors fired by the Bush administration this year, was named his interim replacement. Qualcomm spokeswoman Bertha Agia, said Lupin resigned for personal reasons and was unavailable to comment. (AP)

SCO Group Inc. of Lindon, Utah, and Armonk, N.Y.-based International Business Machines Corp. must submit arguments on their legal dispute after a US judge ruled that SCO doesn't own copyrights to the Unix computer system that form the basis of the case. US District Judge Dale Kimball in Salt Lake City last week ordered SCO and IBM to provide statements detailing their views on "the status of this case" by Aug. 31 in light of his ruling earlier that day that Novell Inc., not SCO, owns the copyrights to the Unix system. SCO has claimed that some of the Unix code was included in the Linux computer operating system and demanded royalties from IBM and other users of the free system. (Bloomberg)

US prosecutors asked a federal judge to order convicted former media mogul Conrad Black and two co-conspirators to forfeit $16.9 million to the government. The request was made in a document filed in Chicago's US District Court to Judge Amy St. Eve, who is scheduled to sentence Black and three other former Hollinger International Inc. executives on fraud and other charges on Nov. 30. The demand was based on the US government's calculation that they stole more than $31 million from Hollinger and its shareholders in illegal, tax-free bonuses. (Reuters)

CME Group Inc. said it will cut 380 jobs as it continues to combine the Chicago Mercantile Exchange with its former crosstown rival, the Chicago Board of Trade. The job cuts will affect all the company's departments and are expected to be completed in June. Employees will be notified of the cuts this week. (AP)

THE WORLD

A chemical that thickens antifreeze has turned up again in a Chinese-made toothpaste, this time under a brand that serves hotels around the world. Gilchrist & Soames said it is recalling its 6 1/2-ounce tubes of complementary toothpaste with the company name on it. Gilchrist said some samples showed the toothpaste contained diethylene glycol, a chemical that can lead to liver and kidney damage. (AP)