Business

Ford Completes Sale of Hertz to 3 Private Equity Investment Firms
Ford will receive $5.6 billion in cash for Hertz, the nation's largest auto rental company. The total transaction, including debt, was valued at $15 billion. The deal includes a cash tender offer of up to $2.3 billion. The infusion of cash comes at a time when Ford's cash reserves are shrinking.

Ford and Visteon Reach Agreements on Deal
Ford Motor Co. and auto-parts maker Visteon Corp. said Tuesday that they have reached definitive agreements to transfer unprofitable plants back to the automaker. Visteon has failed to make a profit nearly every year since it was spun off from Ford five years ago. Visteon, the No. 2 U.S. auto parts supplier behind Delphi Corp., relies on Ford for 64 percent of its business. Visteon has blamed its financial woes on production cuts at Ford, lower prices for parts and high labor costs it inherited after its spin-off from Ford. Goal: savings on auto parts.

Oracle to Pay $5.85 Billion for Siebel
Oracle, the giant database-software maker, announced on Monday that it would pay $5.85 billion to acquire Siebel Systems, its largest competitor in the market for sales automation programs. The deal will bolster Oracle's effort to topple its German rival SAP as the leading seller of business applications software for big corporations.

EBay to Buy Skype for $2.6 Billion
EBay said yesterday that it would buy Skype Technologies, the Internet phone provider based in Luxembourg, for $2.6 billion in cash and stock, a move that eBay hopes will bolster trading on its online auction site.

Labor
* Boeing machinists are on strike.
* Delta asks pilots' union for second round of cuts in wages and benefits.

Suddenly, Those Solar Panels Don't Look So 1970s
Solar power used to be pie in the sky. It’s still expensive, but technology is progressing. Without subsidies, solar panels for your home cost $20,000 to $25,000. Giants like BP and Royal Dutch Shell in the energy industry, or Sharp and Kyocera in electronics, make most solar gear.

New Approach From Gap to Cut Down on Clicks
"Gap's new sites leapfrog every other retail site out there today," said Carrie Johnson, a retail analyst with Forrester Research, an online consulting firm. "They're providing a customer experience that other retailers will quickly try to figure out how to copy."

Samsung Unveils New 16GB Flash Memory Chip
This is great news.

What the hell is flash memory?