BUSINESS NOTES.

T-BILL RATES RISE: Interest rates on short-term Treasury securities rose in Monday's auction.

The Treasury Department sold $7.55 billion in three-month bills at an average discount rate of 5.16 percent, up from 5.12 percent last week. An additional $7.5 billion was sold in six-month bills, also at an average rate of 5.16 percent, up from 5.13 percent.

The three-month bill rate was the highest since they sold for 5.17 percent on Aug. 11. The six-month bill rate was the highest since they averaged 5.19 percent on Sept. 2.

?13- Associated Press

MGM REDUCES IPO: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. reduced the size of its initial public offering by agreeing to sell some $75 million worth of stock to Tracinda Corp., the holding company controlled by billionaire Kirk Kerkorian.

Tracinda, based in Las Vegas, already ranks as the largest shareholder of MGM, whose motion picture studios have produced movies such as ``Annie Hall,'' ``Platoon,'' and ``West Side Story.'' The company paid about $875 million to acquire the equivalent of 36.45 million MGM shares in October 1996.

MGM filed documents with the SEC Monday stating that Tracinda will buy about 3.5 million of the 12.5 million shares originally allotted for the IPO.

At least one money manager said MGM entered into these arrangements because the company was having trouble generating enthusiasm among investors for the IPO.

?13- Bloomberg News

HSN LAUNCHES SPANISH SHOPPING NETWORK: Home Shopping Network and Univision Communications Inc. are teaming up to form the Spanish Shopping Network, a television retailer targeting the Latino market.

The new network, which will premiere early next year, hopes to attract some of the 29 million Latinos in the United States and 540 million Latinos in other parts of the world.

Home Shopping, based in St. Petersburg, Fla., reaches 70 million households with its English-language programming.

?13- Associated Press

AHMANSON BUYING BACK STOCK: H.F. Ahmanson & Co. said it will repurchase $400 million of its stock, its fifth program in about two years.

The second largest U.S. thrift would acquire 6.55 million shares, or 6.7 percent, of total shares based on Friday's closing price. Ahmanson, the parent of Home Savings of America, has $46.8 billion in assets and 371 branches in California, Texas and Florida.

Since October 1995, the Irwindale-based company has repurchased $817 million in stock, or 22 percent of its shares outstanding. Including this latest program, Ahmanson authorized repurchase of $1.3 billion in common stock and $175 million to redeem preferred stock.

?13- Bloomberg News

HILTON WON'T PAY MORE: Hilton Hotels Corp. halted the bidding war for ITT Corp. on Monday, refusing to raise its $10 billion offer despite a sweetened bid from rival suitor Starwood Lodging.

ITT shareholders are to vote Wednesday on Hilton's offer, which it maintains is better despite being lower overall because it contains more cash than Starwood's $10.6 billion proposal. The vote pits ITT's current board against a slate of directors proposed by Hilton.

ITT, which owns Sheraton and Caesars hotels and casinos, agreed last month to a $10.25 billion merger with Starwood to form the world's biggest hotel company, but now says it wants to auction itself off to the highest bidder.

While refusing to boost its $80-a-share offer, Hilton also promised in writing to end its nearly 10-month pursuit of ITT if shareholders reject Hilton's nominees.

?13- Associated Press

HMOS FACE MEDICARE BILL: Health plans serving Medicare would be required under legislation approved by the U.S. Congress to pay as much as $95 million for the distribution of information to senior citizens about their choices of care.

The provision would cut deeply into the scaled-back Medicare pay raises of about 2 percent that managed-care insurers such as Woodland Hills-based Blue Cross of California and Health Net received for 1998, health plan executives say.

The distribution costs, in turn, could force health plans to scale back their benefits to senior citizens, said Roy Ramthun, lobbyist for Louisville, Kentucky-based Humana Inc. ``Any costs get passed on to seniors,'' he said.

The provision is in the 1998 U.S. Department of Health and Human Services spending bill that is expected to win President Clinton's signature.

?13- Bloomberg News