August 20, 2002

India's Gujarat Cooperative Milk Market Federation, which markets under--and is known by--brand name Amul, is battling Hindustan Lever for ice cream market in India; Amul appears to be gaining steadily over Hindustan Lever, which has been losing ground; Hindustan Lever's ice cream revenue fell 27 percent in quarter ended June; Hindustan Lever, which is 51 percent owned by Unilever, says it is less concerned with volume sales than with earnings, and that profits from ice cream are rising, totaling more than $1 million per quarter for first time in period ended June 30; map; photos (M)

Natalie Angier essay on biophilia, term coined by Harvard naturalist Dr Edward O Wilson to describe humanity's innate fascination with nature; notes that biophilia affects people negatively as well as positively, suggesting that merely having affinity for natural world does not guarantee that one will work to protect it; photo (Special Report: Managing Planet Earth) (M)

Metro-North Railroad's Lost and Found department at Grand Central Terminal in Manhattan is computerizing operations with goal of returning 75 percent of found items to people who lose them; currently returns to owners only quarter of approximately 400 items turned in each month; photos (M)

Qwest Communications International agrees to sell its yellow pages directories business to group of financier for $7 million in move that would help it avert bankruptcy filing; will sell unit to politically influenced Carlyle Group and Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe; sale comes as Qwest announces it will change way it accounts for yellow pages unit and restate results for at least 2001 and first half of 2002; says it will now recognize sales and expenses over life of phone directory instead of when it is published; change will reduce 2001 directly sales by 5 percent, or $80 million (M)

Hong Kong's jobless rate rose to 7.8 percent in July from 7.7 percent in June, seventh consecutive record, leaving 275,000 of Hong Kong's 3.5 million workers out of job and dimming hopes economy will pull out of slump this quarter (S)2

San Diego Padres owner John Moores says he would be willing to sit out season to fight for owners' rights and best deal possible, arguing that other owners feel same as strike date approaches; photos (M)

Alan Riding reviews exhibitions at Palazzo Stozzi, Accademia and Casa Buonarroti in Florence, Italy, devoted to Michelangelo; photos (M)

South Korean government selects Hana Bank as its preferred bidder for SeoulBank, which government took over in 1997-98 economic crisis and has been trying for years to resell; designation gives Hana Bank, which bid $920 million, exclusive rights to negotiate final purchase of bank; decision to favor Hana over Lone Star Fund of Dallas raises new questions about government's willingness to allow foreign interests to buy Korean banks; appears to break promise government made to International Monetary Fund when fund bailed South Korea out with $58 billion loan package; Lone Star appears to have bid higher than Hana (M)

Advance ticket sales indicate that Broadway and Off-Broadway theaters, despite first anniversary of terrorist attacks, are doing much better than expected; new musical Hairspray and New York International Fringe Festival are both doing well; photos (M)

New York City medical examiner releases list of 2,819 people killed or missing in September 11 terrorist attacks against World Trade Center; most complete official accounting to date of victims was prepared in advance of anniversary observance at ground zero (S)

Price of oil rises 1.7 percent, to $29.84 per barrel, increase of 50 percent this year; further increase could put pressure on Bush administration to work for lower prices and turn spotlight on next meeting of OPEC oil ministers, who are scheduled to meet in Osaka, Japan, in September; Acting Kuwati Oil Min Sheik Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah says OPEC will not raise production quotas unless price of oil rises above $30 per barrel; graph (M)

House Energy and Commerce Committee spokesman Ken Johnson suggests that ImClone Systems Inc's former chief executive Samuel D Waksal was not truthful during interview with committee investigators and raises prospect of further criminal charges; says there is good possibility that committee will refer criminal charges to Justice Department that would include making false statements to Congress and obstructing Congressional inquiry; committee sends letter to Harlan W Waksal, ImClone's current chief executive, regarding documents Samuel Waksal is accused of destroying; letter formally requests written assurance from ImClone that no records pertaining to committee's inquiry were 'destroyed, altered or withheld'; letter also asks for any information about documents that might have been destroyed, as well as all records 'to, from or with' Samuel Waksal about investigation, and other records, including expense accounts and offshore bank accounts, along with 'telephone numbers, accounts and message logs starting Sept 1, 2001, through Jan 31, 2002' (M)