Buffett won’t seek re-election to Coke board

Billionaire investor Warren Buffett will not stand for re-election to The Coca-Cola Co.’s board of directors, the world’s biggest soft drink company said Tuesday.

Buffett, who has been on the board since 1989 and is one of the company’s biggest shareholders, told Coke he made his decision because of increased demands on his time resulting from acquisitions by his holding company, Berkshire Hathaway Inc.

Some shareholders have raised questions about Buffett sitting on the Coke board while some of the companies he owns do business with Coke.

“Beleaguered American Italian Pasta Co. said Tuesday it plans to sell a manufacturing plant in Wisconsin, two underperforming brands and miscellaneous other assets, including its aircraft.

The Kansas City-based company, which hasn’t filed a financial report since last summer and has pulled reports going back to 2002, also postponed its annual shareholders meeting indefinitely.

“General Motors Corp. said Tuesday that it will hire almost 300 workers and invest $545 million in five Michigan plants.

While the news was good for GM’s home state, which has lost an estimated 130,000 auto manufacturing jobs in the last five years, the investment is dwarfed by the struggling automaker’s restructuring plan, which calls for shedding 30,000 jobs nationally by 2008.

A big chunk of the investment — $163 million — will go to GM’s Pontiac Assembly Center, which makes the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups, GM spokesman Dan Flores said.

“Budget airline Ryanair Holdings PLC offered millions of cheap tickets Tuesday as it went on the attack against allegations in a TV program that it has been lax in respecting air safety and security rules.

“The development firm controlled by Robert L. Johnson has signed a deal to buy 100 hotels for $1.7 billion, a significant expansion of the real estate holdings of the founder of the Black Entertainment Television network.

Johnson’s RLJ Development LLC said Monday that it will purchase the properties, most of them operating under Hilton and Marriott brand names, from the hotel company White Lodging Services, based in Merrillville, Ind. The hotels are in 12 states.

One of the holding companies Johnson formed after he sold BET to Viacom Inc. in 2001 for $3 billion, RLJ Development currently holds 30 properties.