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Byline: - Staff and Wire Services

Credit card bill movig forward

WASHINGTON - Banks and other issuers of credit cards would no longer be able to raise a cardholder's interest rate simply because of negative information from a credit report under a bill that advanced Tuesday in the House.

The House Appropriations Committee added the restrictions on card issuers to a bill funding the Transportation and Treasury departments for the budget year beginning Oct. 1. Rep. David Obey, D-Wis., sponsored the proposal - which he said was aimed at credit card issuers that jack up interest rates even when consumers pay their bills on time - and won a 33-25 vote.

Maytag says it will consider buyout

DES MOINES, Iowa - Shares of Maytag Corp. rose Tuesday after the appliance maker said it would review a $1.28 billion buyout offer from two private equity firms and a rival Chinese manufacturer, a month after Maytag agreed to be acquired by an investor group that wants to take the company private.

Shares of Maytag rose 83 cents, or 5.4 percent, to close at $16.06 Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.

Maytag agreed a month ago to be acquired by Ripplewood Holdings, a New York investment firm. But in a statement late Monday, Maytag said it had received a preliminary bid from another group - Bain Capital, Blackstone Group and Haier America - of $16 per share, $2 more per share than the offer from Ripplewood.

Ford to lay off 5% of management

DEARBORN, Mich. - Ford Motor Co. on Tuesday lowered its earnings outlook for the full year, citing continued weakness at its North American operations and announced plans to reduce its management ranks by an additional 5 percent.

The nation's second-largest automaker said it now expects to earn $1 to $1.25 per share, 25 cents lower than its previous forecast issued in April. The company said the profit outlook for its North American operations has weakened over the last two months, and added that ``continued supplier-related challenges'' will also affect results.

Ford raised its second-quarter earnings guidance before special items to a range of 30 cents to 35 cents a share, up from previous estimates of break-even to a loss of 15 cents a share.

Fund reforms may be put in jeopardy

WASHINGTON - Post-scandal rules that could reshape the mutual fund industry, designed to protect investors from abuses, were thrown into doubt Tuesday by a federal appeals court ruling that they must get new scrutiny from regulators.

The departure later this month of the head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, combined with the ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, cast doubt on the rules' future.

In a 3-0 ruling, the appeals court said the regulations mandating that chairmen of mutual funds be independent from the companies managing the funds must be returned to the SEC. There, they will be examined for the costs that mutual funds would incur to comply and for consideration of alternatives to the requirement of independent fund chairmen.

Krispy Kreme ousts executives

CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Krispy Kreme Doughnuts Inc. ousted six company executives Tuesday, but declined to name them or say why a special committee formed by the company recommended that they be discharged.

Five of the executives resigned and one retired, the troubled Winston- Salem company said in a terse statement. A company spokeswoman declined to provide any additional comment.

Once a Wall Street darling, Krispy Kreme has been the target of investigations into the way it accounted for franchise buybacks and slower sales.

Krispy Kreme shares were halted for trading early Tuesday. Its shares fell 1 cent, or 0.1 percent, to close at $7.66 in late Tuesday trading on the New York Stock Exchange.