GM's SSR pickup due in '02

General Motors Corp. said it will start selling the Chevrolet SSRpickup in late 2002, adding what was a prototype vehicle early thisyear to the world's largest automaker's light-truck lineup. GMunveiled the SSR, which combines 1940s styling with a retractable cabroof and a low-to-the-road profile, as a concept vehicle at theDetroit auto show in January. The prototype was built only threemonths after designs were finished, and the plan to bring the pickupto production shows GM can move faster on new products, the companysaid.

Janus executive Craig departing company

Jim Craig, chief investment officer and director of research formutual fund giant Janus Capital Corp., will leave the firm at the endof September, Janus' parent company, Stillwell Financial Inc., saidtoday. During his 17 years at Janus, Craig managed four Janus mutualfunds. Craig will manage his family's charitable foundation for thedisadvantaged in the Denver area, Kansas City-based Stillwell said.

Phone.com, Software.com to merge

Two companies that sell Internet-enabling software to majortelecommunications concerns have agreed to a $6.4 billion stock-swapmerger. Phone.com Inc. created the Wireless Application Protocol thatallows cellular phones and other mobile devices to access theInternet. Pending shareholder and regulatory approval, it willcombine with Software.com Inc., whose programs allow clients to meshe-mail, paging, instant messaging and voicemail services.Shareholders in the two companies would each own about 50 percent ofthe combined entity which has yet to be named.

Federated owns up to profit shortage

Federated Department Stores Inc. said fiscal second-quarter profitfell 54 percent, hurt by late credit-card payments at the Fingerhutcatalog business acquired by the retailer last year. Net income atthe owner of Bloomingdale's, Macy's, Stern's and other chains fell to$63 million, or 30 cents a share, from $137 million, or 61 cents, inthe year-ago quarter. Sales in the period ended July 29 rose 1.5percent to $4.07 billion. Federated said last month that credit-carddelinquencies among Fingerhut customers, who tend to have lowerincomes than the company's typical department-store shopper, wererising.

Ex-CFO charged with hiring hit man

A.S. Goldmen & Co.'s former chief financial officer, who is jailedwhile awaiting trial on securities fraud charges, has been accused ofhiring a hit man to kill the judge presiding over his case.Prosecutors today charged Stuart Winkler with contracting for a hiredkiller to slay New York Supreme Court Justice Leslie Crocker Snyder.Winkler, while being held on $1 million bail in the securities fraudcase, believed another judge would set lower bail, prosecutors said.Winkler was among 49 people charged in July 1999 with helping A.S.Goldmen pull off a $100 million securities scam. Later that month hewas released on $1 million bail, then violated his bail conditions bychartering a private plane for a Cayman Islands vacation, prosecutorssaid.

FDIC debating insurance limit increase

Washington, The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. kicked off a wide-ranging debate about revamping deposit insurance by asking whether toincrease the $100,000 insurance limit or charge higher premiums toriskier banks. The deposit insurance system, though operating well,has structural problems that require banks "to fund insurance losseswhen they can least afford it," FDIC Chairman Donna Tanoue toldreporters. In addition, some banks have complained the bank andthrift deposit insurance funds are over-funded, with reserves at $40billion, and have called for rebates. Federal Reserve Chairman AlanGreenspan and Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers both oppose abanking industry proposal to double deposit insurance to $200,000.

Florsheim sued over pain relief claim

Florsheim Group Inc. was accused of falsely claiming its magnetic-insole shoes provide wearers relief from pain in a consumer lawsuitfiled against one of the biggest U.S. makers of men's dress shoes.The suit, filed Tuesday in Santa Ana, Calif., seeks a court order tostop the 108-year-old Chicago-based footwear maker from selling itsMagneForce shoes and to offer refunds to customers. Florsheimexecutives were at a trade show in Las Vegas and not immediatelyavailable for comment.