Hotels not yet full for Dole Institute event

The boost that Lawrence hotels were expecting from the dedication ceremonies of the Dole Institute for Politics hasn’t yet materialized.

Lawrence hotels were expected to be full for the July 20-22 dedication ceremonies. A survey Tuesday by the Lawrence Convention and Visitors Bureau showed only two hotels in the city, the Lawrence Holidome and SpringHill Suites by Marriott, are completely booked for the event. The other dozen hotels in the city have, on average, more than 20 rooms per night available during the dedication.

Judy Billings, director of the convention and visitors bureau, said she thought many people planning on attending the event assumed Lawrence hotel rooms already were full, and thus are making arrangements to stay out of town.

“I think we’ll still have a city full of people for the events,” Billings said. “I just want them to know that our hotels still have room for them.”

Technology

Microsoft changes stock options policy

Microsoft Corp. will start giving shares of stock to employees instead of granting stock options and will record the expenses on its books.

The changes announced Tuesday will give employees actual shares of Microsoft stock over time instead of options, which give holders the right to purchase stock at a set price. Employees generally are given options to purchase stock at prices tied to the day they start work with Microsoft.

With the stock markets struggling to claw out of a three-year bear market, stock prices are considerably lower than in the late 1990s and 2000 and many have complained their options are worthless.

The change, which goes into effect in September, will help Microsoft retain and attract high-quality employees, said Steve Ballmer, Microsoft chief executive.

Manufacturing

Auto parts company launches takeover bid

Auto parts maker ArvinMeritor Inc. said Tuesday it would make an unsolicited, $2.2 billion takeover bid for Dana Corp. after failing to get its larger rival to discuss a possible buyout.

Troy, Mich.-based ArvinMeritor said it will offer $15 in cash for each outstanding Dana share, a 25 percent premium over Dana’s closing price Monday.

But stock market investors were betting the price could go higher. In trading Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange, Dana shares rose 35 percent, or $4.18, to close at $16.20. ArvinMeritor shares fell 67 cents to $20.33.

Because Dana shares are now trading above ArvinMeritor’s offer price, Merrill Lynch analyst John Casesa said it’s likely either that ArvinMeritor will boost its offer or another bidder will step in.

Debt

Consumers increase use of credit cards

Consumers were brisk borrowers in May as free-financing deals and deep discounts motivated them to use their charge cards more freely.

The Federal Reserve reported Tuesday that consumer credit rose by a seasonally adjusted $7.3 billion from April, an annual rate of 5 percent.

That followed a $7.9 billion borrowing increase in April from March, or a 5.4 percent growth rate, a robust pace but not as strong as the Fed had estimated a month ago.

May’s rise in borrowing was larger than the $5 billion advance economists had forecast and pushed up total consumer debt to $1.76 trillion.