The Commercial Appeal from Memphis, Tennessee • 28

D1I2 MEMPHIS WEDNESDAY JULY 2 1986 Hie Commercial Appeal Beam nwrofilt damnmemed SEC probe prompts ex-insiders to pay up is already planted compared with 89 percent at this time last year agricultural economists said Frigw search agronomist at ville's Delta Branch experiment station beans will develop more rapidly as a 1986 growing off to an excellent i By Larry Elkin The Associated Press start son got JACKSON Miss (AP) Mississippi's soybean crop may be facing major problems in the marketplace along with setbacks from the weather The expected 2J mil-lion-acre bean crop is the state's smallest in 12 years farm experts say Last farmers planted 27 million acres a drop of one third from the 1984 crop Heavy rains in May nave delayed planting so that only 69 percent of that 25 million acres about SS per bushel but agricultural economists estimate that growing a bushel of beans costs Mississippi farmers an average of between S6i50 and $7 JO With no federal price support program' to prop up income most bean farmers are -out of luck for profits even with excellent yields marketing specialists say The bean crop may be able to overcome early weather problems the heavy rains left moisture in the ground for value of the bean crop which remains the largest by acreage dropped from $484 million in 1984 to $347 million last year as prices hit a 10-year low Rain last October destroyed crops in many areas This marl make a good yield a i state farmers Prices livery and early 1987 remain with very dry weather during the first four months of the year Farmers were able to prepare fields earlier than usual with a minimum of costly equipment breakdowns usually with working in wet fields Michael McMullan NEW YORK Two former Wall Street executives agreed yesterday to forfeit SIS million after the Securities and Exchange Commission accused them of participating in the biggest insider trading schepe ever uncovered Robert Wilkis 37 former first vice president at Hutton and Ira Sokolow a vice president at Shearson Lehman American Express joined with investment banker Dennis Levine to exploit knowledge of impending mergers and other developments that would affect the stock market the SEC said Wilkis and Sokolow neither admitted nor denied guilt as they signed consent orders to settle the SEC's civil charges Wilkis agreed to turn over S33 million he made in trades going back to the late 1970s even before he knew Levine according to the SEC and Sokolow prom- ised to repay S210000 Robert Wilkis commission said he earned more than S12 million while trading more than SO stocks based on inside information over a five-year period Levine also promised to cooperate with investigators fueling speculation that others would soon be charged with supplying confidential information to him Many observers noted that of the 54 stocks Levine allegedly traded with inside information mortf than 30 had not been involved in any deals in which Drexel or Levine's previous employers Shearson and First Boston participated It thus seemed possible that he was getting information from other investment bankers Hutton spokesman Steve I Wilkis left the firm "personal rea- said 7 citing According to the SEC's latest papers that is just what happened After Levine left Shear-son Lehman the commission said an acquaintance from the firm Sokolow continued to tell him of major deals in which the company was involved That was how Levine got advance word of last acquisition of Nabisco Brands by Reynolds in which Levine netted S26 million by buying Nabisco stock before the merger was announced Levine shared his profits with Sokolow paying him at least $120000 the commission said A Nelson June Sokolow was fired yesterday after the SEC leveled its charges according to a statement issued by Shearson chairman Peter A Cohen Levine who was a managing director of Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges last month and simultaneously settled an SEC civil suit by agreed-ing to forfeit $116 million The Making a clean sweep A crop duster's plane comes In low to the ground as it spreads its load across a rice field south of Walls Miss Farmers and crop dusters are working overtime because the recent heavy rains brought their operations to a standstill throughout the area WPTY-TV sold for 1 1 million Momentum! tak lit? By David Flaum Staff I PCI BUSPC3ESS GM seeks tax break General Motors Corp wants a tax break worth an estimated $60 million for its Saturn plaht added to the tax-overhaul package moving through Con- By- MarybcthNi rv neat' NEWYORK record-setting i momentum yesterday as late buying boosted the Dow Jones industrial average to its first close above broadcasting equipment he said Chase will evaluate the station and its operations but at this point no changes in management or programming are planned The Hartford firm hoped to finance part of the purchase by selling interests in the station to limited partners Freedman said the partnership offering was withdrawn about a week and a half ago The proposed tax reform law awaiting action of a joint Senate-House committee would eliminate or reduce many of the tax benefits that would make the partnership attractive to investors he added Chase will use conventional financing equity from the company and loans to finance the acquisition Freedman said He declined to give amounts or details The offering memorandum for the limited part- offering said that Chase had ar-o borrow up to $8 million from of New York to be used in part to buy the station The 23 million-watt eight-year-old station broadcasts in the Memphis area West Tennessee Northeast Arkansas and North Mississippi and is carried on 89 cable systems In the area Chase Communications Corp of Hart-ford has completed the purchase of WPTY-TV (Channel 24) in Memphis from Precht Communications Corp of Los Angeles for $13 million less than the price first agreed upon Chase officials said yesterday However Chase dropped its plan to sell 60 percent of the television station to limited partners because of the US Senate tax reform bill said Roger Freedman chairman and chief executive officer of GM Is asking congressional tax-writers to allow the automaker to claim investment tax credits for new machinery at the Saturn plant being built in Spiring Hill Tenn because the company was committed to the project before the credits expired Dec 31 1985 Several broad market measures heights amid active Buying interest picked up In the afternoon andf allowed the Dow Jones average of 30 industrials I to break out of a tight trading range The blue chip barometer climbed 1082 points past the png vious closing peak' reached on Monday and fin- ished the session at 1 903J4fi! The final price was $112 million Freedman said Chase had agreed to pay $12S million when the deal was announced early this year but the price was reduced because of state of some of the Freedman said The most immediate changes at the station will be a substantial upgrading of the The Dow Jones first closed above 1 J00 on March 20 when it rose 1629 points to 1 J0C24 V' i As ft V-1- vtt Bank on the block The Bank of Commerce of Morristown Tenn which took over Butcher Southern Industrial Banking Corp may be sold hank officials said yesterday The shareholders of East Tennessee Bancorp the parent com Older folks offered deal thrift The membership gives customers 11 banking and nonbanking services including discounts For example Met Setters will be able to buy prescription eyeglasses at discounts of up to SO percent Also the thrift will offer half-day and full day tours overnight trips and private lunches in area locations for Met Set members In addition the customers will get a NOW check- Metropolitan Federal caters to 55 and up By David Flaum Staff Reporter are available for anyone who meets the age requirement and opens a NOW (negotiable order of withdrawal) account said Edwin Moats Jr president There is no fee for persons with $10000 in deposits at the thrift and at least $2500 in the NOW account Metropolitan created the package in hopes of attracting more customers in a fast-growing age fjroup said Merilyn Herbert senior vice presi- Those persons like personal service from their bank or thrift we have something to offer in their she said Metropolitan officials hope Met Set will lead customers into a banking with the terly general information discounts on movie tickets at Consolidated Theaters travelers checks at no service charge free checks and a travelers advantage package Ms Herbert said The travel package includes 10 percent refunds on hotel and motel bills a 3 percent cash bonus on airline tickets and a 3 percent rebate on car rentals made through Teletravel Service Metropolitan Federal yesterday introduced a new package of products and services for customers who are 55 years old or more The Nashville-based savings and loan association which has two offices in the Memphis area calls its package Met Set For a $5 per month membership fee the services pany of The Bank of Commerce have been asked to vote on the sale of the bank to an undisclosed buyer July 21 New union card The AFLrCIO will offer a special MasterCard to its 13J million members at interest rates well below those charged by other major credit card issuers Mexico promises Mexico earned some breathing space in tough negotiations on its $97i6biUion foreign debt with an announcement it would pay $600 million in Interest and continue talking for 30 more days about an overall solution CBS plans cuts CBS is bracing for a series of job reductions tha could total 600 positions Industry sources said AMC threatens American Motors Corp said it was proceeding with plans to close its Toledo Ohio plant after failing to reach agreement with the United Auto Workers union on contract concessions Company officials seid they remained open to further discussions ESM trial ending A federal prosecutor described two former officers of the collapsed ESM Government Securities as who knew all about the massive fraud that went on in the company for seven years In closing arguments prosecutor Jane Moscowitz said former ESM president Nicholas Wallace had of what was going on Wallace and Stanley Wolfe a former vice president of the securities clearing operation are charged with criminal conspiracy and fraud! Coca-Cola considers bottling expansion after Chattanooga outfit agrees to offer Purchase of JTL Corp puts fizz into plans From Staff and Wire Reports I to buy the bottling the largest to buy Chattanooga comprised of the territories represented by these two groups as well as our current company-owned bottling operations" Keough said Such a new company would bottle about 30 percent of the Coke products sold in the United States company spokesman Randy Donaldson said Coke now owns bottling companies that distribute about 11 percent of its drinks The bottling interests of Beatrice Cos had a 6 percent share JTL controls about 13 percent of the Coke bottling in the United States and Donaldson The acquisition of the JTL properties is' subject to approval by Coca-Cola's board of directors and a waiting period required by law Although Coca-Cola spokesmen would not comment on the connection the company has shown an interest in several bottlers following a ruling earlier this year by a federal judge in Delaware who ordered it to release the secret formula for its syrup the basis of most Coca-Cola products That order was issued in a lawsuit filed by a group of bottlers claiming Coca-Cola unfairly prices its syrup products Coca-Cola has not complied with the court JTL said the group had changed its mind after considering other options the recent talks with the Coca-Cola Co about merging our respective Coca-Cola bottling properties were discontinued members of the Lupton family considered a number of alternatives and decided that the sale of our bottling interests to the Coca-Cola Co best accomplishedowf Lupton said The Coca-ColaDr Pepper Bottling Co of Mem-his owned by the Pidgeon family here is not af-ected by the transaction company spokesman Nat Baxter said they want to do is he said asked that discussions be reopened and are pleased that this letter of intent is the he said Last month Coca-Cola announced plans to acquire bottling operations owned by Beatrice Cos and Keough said acquisition of the two properties led the company to consider a bottling business of its own the closing of the recently announced acquisition of the Beatrice Coca-Cola bottling pro-perties and the closing of the purchase of the JTL properties this new bottling company could be The Coca-Cola Co has agreed facilities of JTL Corp of group of bottlers distributing its soft drinks Company president Donald Keough said Coke may form its own bottling company Keogh said the firm plans to pay $14 billion less assumed debt for bottlingproperties operated by JTL in Arizona Colorado Texas and Florida are very pleased to have reached this agreement in principle with the largest group of Coca-Cola bottling companies in the United States" said Keough CbcaCola Co is now ready to ex- new freestand- Sjpinoff possibl of the JTL acquisition came as a surprise since Coca-Cola officials announced last month that talks on a possible buyout had fallen through John Lupton chairman of the family-owned ning off its chemicals or its oil-a businesses to shareholders to stave off a hostilb S15-a-share acquisition bid by Dallas investor Harold Simmons 4.