BUSINESS CONCENTRATES Chemical employment U.S. chemical employ- Millions' ment in July fell for the 1.06 fourth straight month, according to the latest seasonally adjusted data from the Labor Department, putting it 12,000 below March's level and 1.05 indicating possible further slowing of production in July. Chemical employment in July was 1,040,000, down 2000 from June, which also 1.04 J A S O N D J F M A M J J was down 2000 from the ' 1984 ' I 1985 ' month before. On an ana Seasonally adjusted. nual basis, the July figure was down 10,000 from a year earlier, following an annual drop of 6000 in June. While employment was falling, however, the average (seasonally adjusted) workweek rose to 42.3 hours from 41.9 in June, the same as in April and May. The government's seasonally adjusted index of weekly hours of production in July climbed to 94.4 (1977 = 100) from 93.7 in June, the same value as in May. In July 1984 the index was 95.0.
GAF buys stake in Carbide In a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, GAF disclosed last week it had purchased 5.6% of Union Carbide's outstanding common stock. The news set off a flurry in the stock's price and intense speculation on GAF's intentions. In the SEC filing, GAF calls the stake "an investment position" and says it is considering a number of options, "including the possibility of a business combination" between the two firms. Analysts consider GAF too small to attempt to buy Carbide itself, but hypothesize several possible paths the firm might take. First, Samuel J. Heyman, the GAF chairman who, with a 5% stock stake, wrested control of GAF in 1983 through a bitter proxy battle in which he convinced shareholders that existing management was poor, might try the same tactic with Carbide, management of which is under fire because of the Aug. 11 gas leak at Institute, W.Va. Or, analysts say, GAF might exercise a form of greenmail, forcing Carbide to swap a specialty chemical operation or two for the stock. Or GAF might want to convince Carbide to buy back the shares at a premium to keep the company from joining in a hostile takeover attempt. Another possibility is that GAF might seek an alliance with other outside investors such as T. Boone Pickens, thought to hold about 1.5% of Carbide stock; the Bass brothers, with about 3.5% of the stock; and others. If a coalition of outside investors including GAF were to accumulate 15 to 20% of Carbide stock over the next few months, one analyst says, and wanted to mount a proxy campaign, acquiring the 8
August 19, 1985 C&EN
needed 30 to 35% more of the stock to take over the company could be like "falling off a log." GAF chairman Heyman's "aspirations are higher than a division or two or buying the stock for an investment," says another analyst.
Uniroyal merger opposed by suit A holder of preferred stock has sued Uniroyal to delay the proposed buyout of Uniroyal by Clayton & Dubilier. The suit, filed in New Jersey Superior Court in Bergen County, alleges that the proposed merger is really a "liquidation plan" and that holders of Uniroyal's preferred stock are therefore entitled to receive the stock's liquidation preference of $100 per share. The suit seeks a mandatory injunction requiring Uniroyal to redeem the preferred stock, a temporary injunction against the merger, and other relief.
Citizens group will study Bhopal A coalition of environmental, consumer, religious, and labor organizations has formed the Citizens Commission on Bhopal to formulate recommendations of what relief is needed in Bhopal and to seek a thorough investigation of what happened there. "No meaningful accountability has yet been imposed on those responsible for the disaster," the group says. A. Karim Ahmed of the Natural Resources Defense Council, one of two cochairmen, also says legal proceedings on Bhopal should remain in New York City and calls Union Carbide's suggestion that the disaster was caused by sabotage "gratuitous, irresponsible, and an apparent attempt by the company to deflect their responsibility."
BASF wins court battle with Carbide BASF Wyandotte and another firm may continue to sell antifreeze in yellow containers, a federal district court in Portland, Ore., ruled last week. Union Carbide had sought an injunction to prevent Wyandotte and Fred Meyer Inc. of Portland, Ore., an antifreeze distributor, from selling BASF Wyandotte's antifreeze in the 1-gal containers that resemble those in which Carbide markets its Prestone II antifreeze. The court found that Wyandotte and Fred Meyer had not acted with intent to pass their product off as Prestone.
Fertilizer use flat in 1984-85 period Domestic disappearance of fertilizer increased just 1% in the fertilizer year just ended, from July 1984 to June 1985, compared to the same span a year earlier, according to the Fertilizer Institute. Disappearance of nitrogen products rose 4% and of phosphate rock 1% during the year, but use fell 16% for processed phosphates, 28% for potash products, and 5% for mixtures. During the year, production increased 8%, paced by higher output of nitrogen products, up 10%; phosphate rock, up 10%; and processed phosphates, up 7%.
