Business Briefs

TOKYO -- Economic fears continued to grip Japan Monday despite some rare good news: The world's second-largest economy grew more than expected in the final three months of 2000.

The government's announcement that the economy grew 0.8 percent in the October-December quarter didn't impress investors, who pushed the benchmark index on the Tokyo Stock Exchange to a 16-year low.

The Nikkei Stock Average tumbled 456.53 points, or 3.75 percent, to 12,171.37 -- its lowest close since April 19, 1985, when it ended at 12,114.80.

Per new policy, FCC

fast-tracks mergers

WASHINGTON -- The Federal Communications Commission, working its way through a backlog, approved 32 radio mergers Monday after determining the deals warranted no further review.

It's one of the first major moves by new chairman Michael Powell,who has repeatedly stressed the importance of speeding up FCC decisions so companies can make appropriate business plans and not face uncertainty in a changing marketplace.

American Airlines

closer to TWA buy

WILMINGTON, Del. -- American Airlines won a federal judge's approval Monday of its $742 million bid for bankrupt Trans World Airlines Inc., to the relief of TWA workers who feared the company might be reacquired by billionaire financier Carl Icahn.

The decision by U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Peter Walsh moves the TWA name one step closer to disappearing after a storied 70-year history. He said he approved the bid in part because of fears the airline would be forced to liquidate its assets if the deal with American's parent AMR Corp. did not go through.

Hershey names Kraft

exec as new CEO

HARRISBURG, Pa. -- Hershey Foods Corp., hoping to build momentum in its push to offer more than chocolate bars in the candy aisle, has named a Kraft Foods executive as its chief executive.

Richard H. Lenny, 49, was named CEO of the world's largest candymaker Monday. He had been with Nabisco when it was acquired last year by Kraft Foods parent Philip Morris Cos.

London's Prudential

expands US position

HOUSTON -- Prudential PLC is buying American General Corp. for about $22.5 billion in stock in a deal that will make the London-based company one of the world's largest insurance concerns and greatly expand its position in the United States.

Alarmed investors

send markets reeling

NEW YORK -- Investors alarmed by a series of warnings from high-tech companies pummeled stocks Monday, sending the Nasdaq composite index skidding below 2000 for the first time in 27 months and slicing more than 400 points from the Dow Jones industrial average.

The extent and speed of the selloff stunned even investors who have become accustomed to the bearish atmosphere that has pervaded Wall Street for months.<