1. SUBARU FACES SHORTAGES
After a 25 percent year-over-year jump in U.S. sales in April, and a 17 percent gain for the first quarter, Subaru-maker Fuji Heavy Industries may be facing shortages due to limited production capacity. Keeping up with demand for its compact sport-utility vehicle the Forester has proved challenging. The company also plans to increase production and grow its sales network in southern U.S. states where sales have been slower. [Wall Street Journal]
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2. SMITHFIELD EXECS TO WIN $85.4 MILLION FROM CHINESE DEAL
If all goes according to plan and Shuanghui International Holdings succeeds in buying Smithfield Foods for $4.7 billion, Smithfield executives will take home $85 million from the deal. Based on the offer, CEO C. Larry Pope would get about $36.4 million from his combined stock and share options. The pork producer is "one of the worst-performing large U.S. food makers over the past five years," says Bloomberg. [Bloomberg]
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3. UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE EUROZONE REACHES NEW RECORD
Another 95,000 people are out of work in the eurozone, raising the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate to 12.2 percent from 12.1 percent. A total of 19.38 million are now out of work in the 17 countries that use the euro. The highest unemployment rates are in Greece (27.0 percent in February 2013), Spain (26.8 percent) and Portugal (17.8 percent), while the lowest unemployment rate is in Austria (4.9 percent). The eurozone is suffering the longest recession since it was created in 1999. [BBC]
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4. NEWSWEEK IS UP FOR SALE AGAIN
In an internal memo to Newsweek staff, CEO Baba Shetty and editor-in-chief Tina Brown said the publication is up for sale — for the third time in three years. After the sale, said the memo, Newsweek will operate as a separate entity from The Daily Beast, the website started by Brown in 2008. "We will only do this sale if it reflects the value we've created. If not, we'll continue to operate it as now," they wrote. In an interview with Bloomberg last month, IAC chairman Barry Diller said that buying Newsweek was a "mistake." [Media Daily News]
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5. WENDY'S COMBINES PRETZELS AND BURGERS
After announcing plans to focus on "better breads" earlier this year, Wendy's now says it will roll out its new Pretzel Bacon Cheeseburger, a new sandwich served on a hearty "pretzel-like" bun. During testing, the pretzel burger became one of Wendy's' best-selling limited-time items in decades, analyst Mark Kalinowski of Janney Capital Markets told Bloomberg Businessweek. He was so pleased with its performance, he upgraded Wendy's stock rating from neutral to buy. [Bloomberg Businessweek]
