The Greenville News from Greenville, South Carolina • Page 24

1yiMngiar jj-lyn 3 DOW JONES CLOSE: UP: 54.83 L-J 2he rccnvilteNcuJS Thursday November 19, 1998 8B ness ineenwie Parisian to bsooiri IProffi IN THE NEWS Dow charges ahead as most stocks slip The Dow rose within 300 points of a new high, but most stocks fell Wednesday as the latest interest rate cut by the Federal Reserve left a bittersweet taste in the market. The Dow Jones industrial average erased an early 29-point deficit and rose 54.83 to 9,041.11. It was the best finish since July 22 and left the Dow slightly more than 3 percent below the record 9,337.97 set five days earlier on July 17. The blue-chip rebound also lifted ditional department-store mix. While Proffitt's will continue to carry many of the same designer names in men's, women's and children's apparel as Parisian, the store also will feature home furnishings, too.

Proffitt's will have fewer of the most exclusive fashion name brands. "Parisian has a layer of goods found typically in specialty shops only," said Julia Bentley, vice president of investor relations for Saks. Proffitt's brand name in the Southeast, the company said. There was be no cuts in staff. "We are delighted to extend Proffitt's presence into the important market of Greenville, said Toni Browning, chairman and chief executive officer of Proffitt's.

"Our entry into Greenville is a natural extension of our presence in Asheville and Spartanburg, where we have stores in the Biltmore Square Mall and the WestGate Mall, respectively." Wednesday marked the second time in less than three months a Greenville Mall anchor store announced it would begin operating under a new name. J.B. White, one of the mall's original anchors, has changed to the Dillard's name after being acquired from Mercantile Inc. by the Arkansas-based Dillard's chain last year. For shoppers, the change from Parisians to Proffitt's will mean a shift from an upscale to a more tra- By Leroy Chapman Jr.

Business Writer Parisian, Greenville Mall's newest anchor store, will operate under the Proffitt's name beginning in February. Tennessee-based Saks formerly Proffitt's, announced the change Wednesday. The department store will continue to operate as Parisian through January and will change names to strengthen the lines' What's new in computing? At Vegas show, not much enf twtgtm-r- By David E. Kalish The Associated Press LAS VEGAS The high-tech industry has seen the future and it looks pretty much like the present. Computers should grow sleeker.

Shirt pockets should overflow further with electronic gizmos for keeping appointments. But life, despite the industry hype, will stay about the same at least judging by some reaction this week to Comdex, the computer industry's largest and glitziest trade show. To some attendees, the most eye-catching exhibits seemed to merely tweak already popular technology. Missing were hot products to rival earlier standouts, such as the Palm Pilot handheld organizer introduced three years ago, which swiftly became essential business gear. "I didn't see anything exciting and new said Larry Diehl, a software developer with American Airlines.

"Nothing really caught my eye." The show has "lost some of the glitter," added veteran Comdex attendee Ronald Harp. The president of Catalina Distributors Inc. of Boca Raton, has attended 18 shows in the spring and fall since 1990. The dimmed enthusiasm hit some big exhibitors too. IBM Intel Corp.

and Dell Computer among the show's largest participants in the past, withdrew this year after finding that jockeying for attention with roughly 2,400 other exhibitors in the sprawling show isn't a cost-effective way to reach potential customers. Exhibitors can spend several million dollars for the biggest displays. To be sure Comdex, which started as the Computer Dealers Exposition in 1979, still attracts tons of attention; an estimated 220,000 people are attending this year's event, up 4 percent from last year. Show director Bill Sell noted that some big exhibitors such as software maker Oracle Corp. and Compaq Computer iiiini if? Tor instance, you can buy Robert Talbot ties in Parisian, which is a brand Proffitt's wouldn't carry." Saks became the nation's fourth-largest department store retailer when it was acquired by Proffitt's in July.

The new $6 billion Saks Inc. operates 340 department stores in 38 states under the names of Saks Fifth Avenue, McRae's, Younkers, Parisian, Herberger's, Carson Pine Scott, Boston Store, Bergner's and Off 5th. The company has 30 Proffitt's stores. ft jfncs AOL may join with Netscape for new browser By Dale Hopper The Associated Press SPRINGFIELD, Va. America Online the world's largest online provider, is reportedly negotiating with Netscape Communications Corp.

for a new Internet browser to replace or join its current Microsoft browser. AOL's exclusive contract to use Microsoft browser on its online service expires in January. The Wall Street Journal said Wednesday that Dulles, AOL is negotiating with Netscape, which lost out to Microsoft when the original deal was created in 1996. "It makes sense for AOL to go out and do some talks," said Paul Hagen, an industry analyst with Forrester Research. "Netscape has tremendous incentive to win back market share, which gives AOL leverage." AOL spokeswoman Tricia Primrose said she could not comment on the story.

Under the contract, Microsoft's Internet Explorer is the default browser for AOL users. In turn, the Windows operating system comes with AOL software preloaded, making it available with just a click. Microsoft won out over Netscape because it promised to put AOL's logo on Windows, AOL senior vice president David Colburn said during the ongoing Microsoft antitrust trial in Washington, D.C. AOL is reconsidering its competitive relationship with Microsoft and may not want to be so closely aligned, people familiar with the negotiations told The Journal. Jody Kramer, a spokeswoman for Mountain View, Netscape, also would not comment on The Journal's report but said the two companies have been working closely for about a year and already made two deals, one this month.

pert witness Frederick Warren-Boulton, a consultant who served as the Justice Department's chief antitrust economist during the Reagan administration. "Consumers will be significantly harmed if Microsoft succeeds in crushing the cross-platform threat that independent browsers pose to the Windows operating system monopoly," Warren-Boulton wrote in an 89-page statement released as his direct testimony in the case. "The market should not be prevented by Microsoft's anti-competitive practices from making that decision," Warren-Boulton concluded. business Bausch Lomb, which employs 15,000 people, leaped over Texas-based Alcon Laboratories as the world's largest eye-care company by acquiring Storz Instrument Co. and Chiron Vision Care last year for $680 million.

Among its products are contact lenses, eye surgery instruments, ophthalmic drugs and hearing aids. Wednesday's news sent the company's shares surging on the New York Stock Exchange. Bausch Lomb stock closed at $50.37, up $2.50. OBI SB I 5 IT High-tech on parade: Thousands of Las Vegas Convention Center during Corp. feature large displays for the first time, and the event remains the premier showcase for testing customer appetite for new and sometimes offbeat technologies.

"There's still a lot of important innovations," Harp said, pointing to new all-in-one digital boxes that sit atop TV sets and help control a variety of functions, from ordering movies to providing Internet access. Turning some heads since the an industry issue and lobbying group. That figure is better than the re-' cord $5.2 billion airlines collectively earned in 1997, but it will likely be surpassed with an estimated $6 billion to $6.5 billion in net profits in 1999. It's unclear what effect the trend will have on airfares, especially big-ticket business rates. Swierenga predicted that two groups will compete vigorously to divvy up the spoils: airline employees and Mm broad-market indexes, with the Nasdaq composite rising 18.92 to 1,897.44 as big computer-related names rallied further and Internet stocks sprinted higher yet again.

The Standard Poor's 500 rose 5.16 to 1,144.48. Fluor subsidiary wins contract in Peru A division of Greenville-based American Equipment Co. has been awarded a 10-year-contract at a Peru metallurgical smelting complex. The contract awarded to AMECO Peru S.A.C will provide equipment rentals and sales, equipment maintenance, small tools and supplies and related site service to Doe Run Peru at its La Oroya metallurgical smelting complex. The site is located about 150 miles east of Lima in the Andes Mountains.

The contract value was not discussed. American Equipment Co. is the wholly owned equipment rental and sales subsidiary of Fluor Corp. It has 67 offices in 13 countries. American Equipment will service the facility with personnel on site and from Lima.

Additional support will be provided by AMECO's other South American facilities and its U.S.-based operations centers. Don Run-USA is a fully integrated producer of lead. It has eight mines, six mills, two primary and one secondary smelter and fabrication facilities throughout the United States. FirstSpartan announces stock buyback FirstSpartan Financial the holding company for First Federal Bank, announced Tuesday that it has completed the repurchase of 10 percent, or 420,886 shares, of its outstanding stock at an average price of $32.54 per share. Train store to open at Haywood Mall The Great Train Store, a train-themed hobby, gift and toy store, will open at Haywood Mall Friday opposite Belk's in the Dillard's wing.

The store is the latest addition to the'54-store chain that specializes in the sale of model trains and collectibles. The Haywood Mall Great Train will be the third in South Carolina. The others are located in Columbia and Myrtle Beach. Carolina Southern declares dividend Carolina Southern Bank has declared a regular quarterly dividend of 5 cents per share. The dividend will be paid on Jan.

4, to shareholders of record at Dec. 16. Stricter auto emissions standards loom Environmentalists are increasing pressure on the Environmental Protection Agency to follow California's lead and impose stricter emission standards nationwide on sport-utility vehicles and light trucks. "How cars will be built will affect what we will breathe in the next century," said Frank O'Donnell, executive director of the Clean Air Trust, at a press conference Wednesday. Within the next few months, the EPA will decide on new emissions standards for motor vehicles starting in the model year 2004.

On Nov. 5, California restricted most sport-utility vehicles, mini-vans and pickup trucks less than 8,500 pounds to the same emissions standards as passenger cars. By the year 2010 at least 25 percent of vehicles in California must be "super-ultra low emission" vehicles, emitting only 0.02 grams of nitrogen oxide per 50,000 miles compared to today's national standard of 0.4 grams. Auto industry officials say that adopting California standards nationwide mean higher prices for car buyers. Staff, wire reports By Andrew J.

Glass Cox News Service WASHINGTON With its $280 billion market capitalization at risk, an embattled Microsoft Corp. fought Wednesday to defend its formidable Windows franchise on several legal and political fronts. In the fifth week of a historic antitrust trial, Microsoft lawyers sought to turn the tables on the government prosecutors by charging that some of the biggest names in the software industry, led by IBM Corp. and Sun Microsystems had recently formed a secret pact to promote the Java programming language in a bid to break Microsoft's Windows monopoly. While the trial probably has many more weeks to run, Microsoft has seemingly decided that its best defense is a strong offense.

That decision may have been reinforced by a ruling Tuesday in another federal courtroom 3,000 miles away, one that obliges that company to rewrite parts of Windows 98 code to conform to Sun's "write once, use many" version of Java. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, promptly branded the Java ruling a major victory for the Justice Department's separate antitrust case. "I hope that senior executives at Microsoft will begin to see that, in the end, the facts and the law will prevail over its public relations campaign and muddled defenses," Hatch said in a statement. The trial became even more contentious Wednesday when Microsoft lawyer Steve Holley concluded his cross-examination of John Soyring, a government witness from IBM, by asking him: "Do you think it's appropriate for IBM and Sun, who hold themselves out to be major competitors, to collude with one another?" "Objection," thundered Steve Houck, as assistant attorney general from New York, who was handling this aspect of the massive case on behalf of the 20 states that have joined the Justice Department in challenging Microsoft's business conduct. "Sustained," said U.S.

District Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson, who is trying the case without a jury. The out-of-bounds comment was based on an e-mail that Microsoft had unearthed from John Thompson of IBM, the firm's top software gun, to Scott McNealy, the top figure at Sun. Microsoft's capitalization fell slightly on Wednesday when its common stock closed on the Nasdaq exchange at $111.87 a share, down $2.12 for the day. With five witnesses already under its belt, the government is now set to move to the heart of its antitrust case by calling as its top ex- of eyewear and Bausch Lomb's largest customer. In 1997, the division posted a $12 million operating loss as sales slumped 6 percent to $467 million.

Last month, Carpenter said the unit will turn a smaller-than-expected profit this year. While it controls around 40 percent of the global premium-sunglasses business brands priced above $30 rivals like Oakley Inc. of Irvine, have been gaining with contemporary styles aimed at young customers. fj Airline forecast: Record profits for this year and again in 1999 BOB GALBRAITH The Associated Press visitors make their way through the the Comdex computer convention. show opened Monday was a crop of unusual personal computers that deviate from the clunky white boxes on most desktops.

Intel, despite pulling its exhibit, used an off-site hotel to show off several prototype PCs. One, called Aztec, is orange and shaped like a pyramid cut off at the top. Another, Twister, is a gently bending oval tower. Both are about one-third the size of the typical boxes that encase PC circuitry. Already Northwest Airlines and Air Canada have endured strikes by pilots seeking more money, and unions are threatening FedEx and America West with similar actions.

Passengers are also complaining to the Transportation Department in unprecedented numbers this year, and the common perception that airplanes are fuller than normal is, in fact, a reality. Swierenga predicted that if current trends hold, airlines will close out 1998 with their highest passenger volumes since World War II. the company's Vision Care business. "Vision Care is doing quite well, and we are not evaluating any alternatives for that," Echols said. "That is always going to be part of our portfolio." Bausch Lomb also plans to review sunglasses lines like Ray-Ban, which were first developed in the 1920s to help U.S.

Army Air Corps pilots cope with glare. Eyewear sales have been hurt by an unexpected cutback in orders by Sunglass Hut International Inc the nation's largest sunglass retailer Lomb mulling sale By Glen Johnson The Associated Press WASHINGTON With jam-packed planes filling the skies, an industry analyst said Wednesday that U.S. airlines should earn record profits this year and surpass them in 1999. As the fourth quarter nears a close, the nation's major air carriers are expected to post about $5.4 billion in net profits in 1998, said David Swierenga, chief economist for the Air Transport Association, Bausch Staff, Wire Reports ROCHESTER, N.Y. Bausch Lomb maker of Ray-Ban, Revo, Liz Claiborne and Killer Loop sunglasses, may jettison the premium fashion eyewear business it has built up since the 1920s to focus eye health care.

The company has hired investment firm Warburg Dillon Reed to advise it on options for the business, which hasn't turned a profit recently. Those include a sale, a spinoff, or forming a jojnt venture. "It is apparent to uslfhat Bausch Lomb's greatest potential for accelerated growth in the future lies in our health-care businesses for the eyes," chief executive William Carpenter said Wednesday. The company's latest move will not affect the Bausch Lomb plant in Greenville where there are about 450 workers, said Holly Echols, director of media relations for Bausch Lomb. The Upstate plant produces the company's contact lens solutions for the United States, Canada and parts of Asia.

The Greenville plant fx part of.