Business Briefs

Germany's Grundig declares bankruptcy

The German electronics company Grundig AG filed for bankruptcy on Monday after reporting losses for two straight years, according to a company statement. The maker of such items as video cameras and televisions had been on the brink of declaring all last week. After possible investors Beko, a Turkish electronics company and Taiwan's Sampo decided against a stake in the Nuremberg-based company, the decision was made final. The company posted losses of €150 million in 2001, and is expected to post losses of €75 million in 2002. Analysts say there's still hope Grundig can turn it around under bankruptcy administrator Eberhard Braun. Braun is expected to take up talks with Beko again this week, according to a story in the Financial Times Deutschland. Grundig employs 3,800, around 1,800 of those in Germany.

Bayer denies it produced, sold "Agent Orange"

The pharmaceutical company Bayer denied a newspaper report over the weekend saying it had delivered the herbicide "Agent Orange" to the South African government during the apartheid regime. The Financial Time Deutschland reported Bayer, along with U.S. firms Dupont and Eli Lilly, had sold the herbicide, used extensively in Vietnam, to the South African government in the 1980s. The agent was used in wars against Namibia, Angola and Mozambique. "We have never produced or sold Agent Orange," said a Bayer spokesperson.

German company wants to recycle old phones

The German mobile company Vodafone D2 is starting a recycling campaign for old mobile phones. The second-largest mobile phone operator in Germany wants to collect at least 100,000 phones within 100 days and either recycle them or send the working ones to developing countries. There are an estimated 60 million mobile phones that are no longer in use in Germany, creating an estimated 50,000 tons of garbage each year.

Bayern Munich angry at German soccer league

Germany's football league and top Bundesliga club Bayern Munich engaged in a war of words over a controversial marketing deal, even after an apparent settlement over the weekend. The football league (DFL) charged Bayern with receiving €21.5 million ($23.2 million) from embattled media company KirchGroup, a violation of a marketing principle that sees all Bundesliga teams sharing television revenues. Bayern Munich agreed over the weekend to pay €3 million back but became incensed after a DFL official called their secret deal "morally reprehensible." "I no longer see a basis for further collaboration with the DFL," said Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge. Other officials and club heads urged the two sides to make peace.

Used-machinery fair begins in Nuremberg

The world's largest used-machinery trade fair begins today in Nuremberg. The Resale fair expects round 10,000 visitors out of 100 different countries. Used machinery is especially in demand these days. The difficult worldwide economic climate makes it the first choice over brand-new goods.

Compiled with information from wire services.