National Business Briefs: Groups Call on R.J. Reynolds to Pull Cigarettes

Source from:  kansascity.com Aug. 15, 2007 08/17/2007

Cigarette protest Dozens of women's and public health organizations on Wednesday called on R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. to remove from the market its Camel No. 9 cigarettes. They say the brand is cynically aimed at getting young, fashion-conscious women and girls to start smoking. Camel No. 9 hit stores early this year. It immediately drew fire for its stylish packaging - shiny, sleek black boxes bordered with fuchsia and teal - and ads that included florals, hints of lace and the slogan "Light and Luscious." Wal-Mart inspections Wal-Mart Stores Inc. found a decrease in the worst types of labor violations at foreign factories last year in inspections of nearly 8,900 plants. In an annual report released Wednesday, the world's largest retailer said its inspection program found a smaller percentage of factories had severe violations of safety, labor and environmental standards. It said challenges remain, including how to collaborate with other big companies and local governments in other countries to make lasting improvements for workers. Joint strategy Google has quietly begun including Sun Microsystem's StarOffice suite of word processing, spreadsheets and other productivity programs for free as part of the Google Pack download. The download package is part of Google's efforts to expand beyond Web search and control more of users' computing experience online and offline. It already includes Firefox, the No. 2 Web browser behind Microsoft's Internet Explorer, and RealNetworks Inc.'s RealPlayer, a key rival to Microsoft's media player. Citrix's purchase Citrix Systems Inc. is buying 3-year-old startup XenSource Inc. for $500 million, marking the second big deal this week to highlight the bustling market for software that makes computers run more efficiently. The cash-and-stock acquisition announced Wednesday followed the sensational stock market debut of XenSource's much-larger rival, VMware Inc., whose shares have nearly doubled from Monday's initial public offering price of $29. Investor lawsuits The Bush administration on Wednesday took the side of defendant companies in a Supreme Court case that could determine the fate of other investor lawsuits including one stemming from the Enron scandal. At issue in the case before the high court is whether third parties such as investment banks, accountants, lawyers or vendors can be found liable in shareholder lawsuits for scheming with companies accused of deceiving investors. The brief filed by the Justice Department's solicitor general maintains that allowing such liability would vastly overreach the securities laws against Congress' intent. Amgen layoffs Biotechnology company Amgen Inc. said Wednesday it would cut up to 14 percent of its work force and has lowered its profit guidance because of slimmer than expected sales of its anemia drug Aranesp. The company said it planned to cut between 2,200 and 2,600 positions and will get hit with a restructuring charge between $600 million and $700 million. Amgen also reduced its adjusted earnings per share guidance for the full year to between $4.13 and $4.23 a share from previous guidance of $4.28 a share. Enditem