L.A. Mutual Fund Firm Accused of Misconduct
Los Angeles-based American Funds, the nation’s biggest seller of mutual funds for the last three years, violated securities rules by steering stock trading business to brokerages that pushed its funds to their clients, regulators said Wednesday. The NASD alleged that American Funds paid $100 million in commissions to 50 brokerages from 2001 through 2003 for executing stock trades, the Los Angeles Times reported. The NASD’s complaint is the first formal action by regulators against American Funds.
Amgen Drug Said to Work
Just days after Amgen Inc. said it would stop supplying patients an experimental drug for Parkinson’s disease, a research team from the University of Kentucky reported in a medical journal that the medicine worked in a clinical trial. The author of the study said he hoped Amgen would reconsider its decision and provide the trial drug to 48 patients who participated in company-supported studies, the Los Angeles Times reported. Many of the patients have been lobbying Amgen for the drug, which they see as their only hope.
Newly Elected Feckner Urges Fight Over Calpers Overhaul
Within minutes of his unanimous election as president of the $183 billion California Public Employees’ Retirement System, Rob Feckner discussed the number one agenda item: voting to oppose Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s campaign to overhaul the state’s pension system for state and local workers. Feckner said the fund could lose billions of dollars if it converted from a traditional benefit program that provides retirees with lifelong monthly checks to a 401(k)-type savings plan, the Los Angeles Times reported.
Ty Must Forfeit $700,000 Award
The company that makes Beanie Baby toys must forfeit more than $700,000 after a federal judge found that owner H. Ty Warner tampered with the defense’s star witness in a trademark case, reported the Los Angeles Times. Ty Inc. was ordered to pay back the $716,046 it had won in its trademark-infringement lawsuit against Van Nuys-based toy maker Softbelly’s Inc. Softbelly’s argued that the term “Beanie” had become generic and was not a brand name. The company had planned to make us of Harold Nizamian, a former executive at plush-toy company Dakin Inc., as an expert witness to prove its case, but Warner called him to dissuade him from testifying.
Mitsubishi Names Head of North America Unit
Japan’s Mitsubishi Motors Corp. has selected its former president to help guide its Mitsubishi Motors North America Inc. operation, the Los Angeles Times reported. Hideyasu Tagaya will become chairman of the Cypress-based North American unit on March 1. Rich Gilligan will remain president. Tagaya resigned as corporate president in January.
Cargo at Long Beach Port Increases 35 Percent
Cargo shipments at the Port in Long Beach rose 35 percent in January to set a record, signaling that freight passing through the busiest U.S. port complex will continue to climb this year, Bloomberg News reported. Long Beach handled 509,597 shipments, based on standard 20-foot cargo containers. Asian cargo hauled by companies such as China Ocean Shipping Group’s Cosco accounted for 50 percent of the total.
AES Hit with $72 Million Bill From Redondo Beach
Redondo Beach is looking to recoup $72 million from the AES power plant for unpaid utility-users’ taxes, a figure that more than triples initial estimates and sets the stage for a long legal battle, the Daily Breeze reported. A tax assessment mailed late last month has been turned over to attorneys on both sides, prompting a flurry of correspondence and court filings. The matter will likely head to a hearing at City Hall at the end of March.
Torrance Mayor’s Move to Rename Theater for Nakano Raises Concerns
When Torrance Mayor Dan Walker announced that he intended to rename a city theater to honor his ally, former Assemblyman George Nakano, it didn’t take long for his plan to get snared in questions of fairness and precedent, the Daily Breeze reported. Since Torrance has no rules for naming landmarks, the city has appointed a panel to look into whether such a decision should require anything more than the mayor’s word. As a member of the state Assembly, Nakano directed a $250,000 grant to Torrance that covered half the cost of the theater.
L.A. Tech Exodus Feared
A new report Wednesday fueled concerns that the high cost of doing business in Los Angeles, and much of California, puts the region at a serious disadvantage in trying to compete for high-tech businesses against less-expensive Western and Midwestern cities, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported. The report by Boyd Co. Inc., a firm specializing in helping businesses relocate, compared 18 California communities with 12 out-of-state locations and concluded that San Francisco, with business costs of $12.1 million, was the most expensive place and that Sioux Falls, S.D., was the least expensive. The L.A.-Long Beach area ranked fifth at $11.3 million.
Kaiser Trims Urgent Care in Woodland Hills
Kaiser Permanente has closed its daytime adult urgent care center in Woodland Hills and has redeployed its staff to give patients a better shot at actually seeing their assigned doctors, the Daily News of Los Angeles reported. If the pilot program works, it may be expanded to surrounding Kaiser hospitals. Advocates said the move could help patients to see their regular doctor instead of a revolving on-duty staff member, ensuring better continuity in treatment.
National Association of Broadcasters’ Fritts Plans Exit
The most visible face of the TV and radio business inside the National Capitol Beltway is calling it quits, as National Association of Broadcasters president and CEO Edward O. Fritts announced his retirement Wednesday, The Hollywood Reporter said. His contract runs through April 2006.
