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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Business in brief: Siemens to cut 16,750 jobs worldwide

The Spokesman-Review

Industrial conglomerate Siemens AG said Tuesday it will cut 16,750 jobs, or 4.2 percent of its global work force, to streamline operations and slice nearly $2 billion in costs in the face of a slowing economy.

The Munich-based maker of products ranging from light bulbs and medical equipment to high-speed trains and power turbines has a worldwide work force of approximately 400,000 people.

WASHINGTON

Improvements coming in crash test ratings

Attention car shoppers: The government is upgrading its crash test program to offer better information about vehicle safety.

The Bush administration outlined changes to safety ratings, which grade new vehicles on a scale of up to five stars.

The program, to start with the 2010 models, will still assess passenger cars, pickup trucks, sport utility vehicles and vans on the five-star scale but will add an overall safety rating that combines scores from several crash tests.

ST. LOUIS

Anheuser-Busch files suit against takeover

Anheuser-Busch claims that Belgian brewer InBev’s takeover bid isn’t just bad for the bottom line, but is an “illegal scheme” that threatens to defraud Anheuser-Busch shareholders if a federal judge doesn’t step in.

Anheuser-Busch Cos. made the claim in a lawsuit filed late Monday, hours after InBev SA filed its own motion seeking to oust Anheuser-Busch’s board of directors. The lawsuit claims that InBev is deceiving shareholders about the company’s $46 billion takeover bid by concealing a number of facts.

PITTSBURGH

Alcoa’s earnings drop 24 percent

Aluminum producer Alcoa Inc. said its second-quarter earnings fell nearly 24 percent as higher prices failed to offset raw material and facility outage costs.

The Pittsburgh-based company earned $546 million, or 66 cents per share, for the quarter that ended June 30, compared with $715 million, or 81 cents per share, during the same period a year earlier.

Quarterly revenue dropped about 6 percent to $7.6 billion.

From wire reports