Program to discuss
small businesses

Want insights into the state of small business in Ohio?

Then head early Friday morning to Corporate College East, 4400 Richmond Road, Warrensville Heights.

Economist Ken Mayland and Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher will be featured speakers in a small business economic forecast program sponsored by KeyBank. The program is free and open to the public.

Fisher will discuss the role Ohio small businesses play in the global economy and the state's new Entrepreneurship & Small Business Division within the Ohio Department of Development.

Mayland will discuss the future of Ohio's small business economy.

Continental breakfast begins at 7 a.m., followed by the presentations at 8 a.m. The program is expected to conclude by 9:30 a.m. More than 140 Northeast Ohio small business owners are expected to attend.
UPS, DHL working
on air freight deal

UPS, the world's largest shipping carrier, said it is working toward an agreement with DHL's U.S. Express unit to carry air freight for some DHL units within the United States.

United Parcel Service Inc. predicts the deal, when final, will add up to $1 billion in annual revenue. The agreement is expected to extend for up to 10 years.

The arrangement with UPS is part of a U.S. restructuring announced by DHL parent Deutsche Post.

GE plans to cut use
of global water 20%

General Electric Co. will cut its global water use by 20 percent over five years, CEO Jeff Immelt said. The Fairfield, Conn.-based company said it used 10 billion gallons of fresh water in 2006 for cooling towers and other manufacturing processes.

GE also is raising the sales target for a three-year-old initiative to promote environmentally friendly technology, Immelt said.

GE sales of energy efficient, water saving and pollution reducing products and services exceeded $14 billion in 2007, Immelt said.

Executives arrested
in honey import case

Two executives of a German-based company have been arrested on federal charges of conspiring to import honey from China contaminated with an illegal antibiotic, authorities said.

Prosecutors issued a statement saying the honey was falsely labeled as coming from countries including Russia and Ukraine to avoid paying antidumping duties on Chinese honey. It also contained an antibiotic that is not approved for use in food-producing animals, including bees.

A search of the Chicago offices of Hamburg-based Alfred L. Wolff GmbH showed that a shipment of honey was sold to a company in Texas even though it was found to have contained the antibiotic, authorities said.
Ford to decrease
salaried employees

Ford Motor Co., the world's third-largest automaker, will cut as much as 12 percent of its U.S. salaried work force to reduce expenses as fuel and material costs rise, the Detroit News reported Wednesday.

Ford needs to make the involuntary reductions to keep its restructuring plan on track, the paper said, citing May 23 statements to senior employees by Jim Farley, group vice president of marketing and communications.

Ford also is considering changes to merit increases it usually gives salaried workers in July, the newspaper said.

Sears, LL Cool J
to debut new line

Sears Holdings Corp. signed an agreement with hip-hop artist LL Cool J to introduce a line of streetwear for children and teens this fall.

The collection of jeans, graphic T-shirts and sweatshirts will debut in September and be in 600 stores in time for the holiday season. Prices range from $22 for a T-shirt to $50 for jeans.
United, US Airways
talks fall apart

Consolidation talks between United Airlines and US Airways appear to have fallen apart, the New York Times reported late Tuesday, citing unnamed people with direct knowledge of the discussions.