Court delays merger by Berkshire Hathaway

A judge on Monday ordered Berkshire Hathaway’s acquisition of Clayton Homes delayed until a jury can decide if Clayton directors committed fraud in pursuit of the $1.7 billion buyout.

A Tennessee circuit court judge ruled that investors in the company, namely the Denver Area Meat Cutters and Employers Pension Plan, had done enough to establish legal grounds for their fraud allegations.

The judge restrained Clayton Homes and Berkshire Hathaway from “any action to change the status quo of the subject merger” until a trial can be held in 30 to 45 days, pending appeals.

Clayton Homes officials said they immediately would appeal the decision because the sale was virtually complete. Some large shareholders had opposed the deal, saying Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway’s $12.50 per share bid was too low.

Aviation

Boeing wins contract for Air Force project

The U.S. Air Force has awarded Boeing Co. a contract worth up to $126 million to build a 767-400 jet for use in modeling a new weapons and surveillance aircraft, Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems unit said Monday.

The jet, to be delivered in December 2005, is to be outfitted with computers, displays, radar and other equipment to test out the E-10A concept, a joint project of Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and Boeing’s St. Louis-based IDS division, Boeing said. The E-10A is planned as a command and control aircraft with surveillance and weapons capabilities.

The plane is to be built in Boeing’s Everett, Wash., plant and modified in Northrop Grumman’s Lake Charles, La., plant.

Boeing operates a plant in Wichita that does military work for the government.

Manufacturing

Automakers reopen plants after blackout

General Motors Corp. and DaimlerChrysler AG’s Chrysler Group resumed operations Monday at all their U.S. factories affected by the blackout, while Ford Motor Co. restarted all but one of its plants.

The automakers also reopened some of their plants in Ontario, but production at those locations remained limited because the province’s power system remained several days away from returning to full strength following Thursday’s blackout.

Detroit’s Big Three automakers all expressed confidence that their companies will make up most of the lost production, but said it was too soon to estimate blackout-related costs.