Exchange Commission

Vornado Realty Trust might be set to gobble up all or part of the Mills Corp., the troubled developer of the giant Arundel Mills mall in Hanover. New York-based Vornado confirmed in a Securities and Exchange Commission filing yesterday that the company's management "has had an informal dialogue with management of The Mills Corp." Vornado first disclosed the news during a conference call Monday with investment analysts. That set off reports that Vornado might be interest in buying Mills, which has announced it is up for sale in whole or in part.

Nation Retailing Starbucks cutting 1,000 non-store jobs Starbucks Corp., which already plans to shut 600 stores, said yesterday that it was also cutting almost 1,000 non-store jobs as part of its bid to re-energize the brand and boost its profit by cutting costs. In a letter to all employees, Chief Executive Officer Howard Schultz said the gourmet coffee chain is reducing the number of positions and partners across the country. The jobs being cut are in addition to the layoffs from the store closures.

Economy heightens retirement worry DES MOINES, Iowa : Rising costs and uncertainty about the economy have workers less confident in their ability to save enough money to retire comfortably, say the authors of a study released Tuesday. Even though workers are saving more and expecting to work longer to improve their chances of a happy retirement, there's still a disconnect. The survey shows many are failing to plan appropriately and making incorrect assumptions about retirement income. The new survey by the nonpartisan Employee Benefit Research Institute reveals only 13 percent of U.S. workers say they're very confident they'll have enough money to retire comfortably.

Two companies that broker Nathan A. Chapman Jr. plans to merge to create a publicly traded Internet financial services firm restated 1999 earnings yesterday, giving both companies losses for the year. Chapman Holdings Inc., a Baltimore-based brokerage and investment banking firm, lost $442,000 last year as a result of an accounting change. The move reversed a $364,000 profit previously reported. Chapman Capital Management Holdings Inc., an investment advisory company, said it lost $853,000 last year, widening its previously reported loss of $582,000.

As merger talks between Arthur Andersen LLP and other accounting firms all but collapsed yesterday, senior Andersen executives decided that the firm will not plead guilty to charges of obstruction of justice in the Enron case, people close to the firm said. Lawyers for Andersen argued in a letter to a senior Justice Department official that the planned charges constituted "a gross abuse of governmental power." The aggressive posture was taken just hours before a government-imposed 9 a.m. deadline today in which Andersen, the accounting giant, had the choice of pleading guilty or risking indictment.

Icahn expected to quit TWAAfter making the final installment of a $200 million loan to Trans World Airlines, Carl Icahn is expected to resign as early as today from TWA, the only big-name company the takeover strategist ever bought.Mr. Icahn's loan, his promise to help fund TWA's pension plans and his resignation are part of an agreement that will allow the airline to complete its sale to creditors and employees.4 Japanese brokerages probedFederal stock market regulators are reportedly preparing legal action against the U.S. subsidiaries of Japan's four largest brokerage houses, according to a published report yesterday.

Cyanamid lets offer deadline passApparently betting that it can still make a better deal, American Cyanamid Co. let a 24-hour deadline pass yesterday without saying whether it would accept a sweetened $100-a-share takeover offer from American Home Products Corp.American Home Products, a diversified health- and consumer-products company based in Madison, N.J., had said it would go back to its earlier $95-a-share tender offer if the American Cyanamid board did not respond positively.Shares of American Cyanamid rose $3.125, to $94, in heavy trading on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday.

bTCBaxter barred by governmentBaxter International, the world's largest hospital supply corporation, was barred yesterday from doing business with the federal government for up to one year.The suspension, which could cost the company more than $125 million, was imposed by the Veterans Affairs Department. The agency said the company in Deerfield, Ill., misled VA purchasing agents to fatten its government contracts.Car sales edge upwardSales of domestically built cars and light trucks rose just 3.6 percent in early August, compared with a weak year-earlier period, as dwindling dealer inventories caused some shoppers to postpone their purchases.

Baltimore financial services company eChapman Inc. said it earned a first-quarter profit of $245,000, or 2 cents a share, on revenue of $1.7 million. That compares with a loss of $1.6 million, or 13 cents a share, on revenue of $1.4 million in last year's first quarter. The company attributed the improved results to cutting costs and a revised strategy that de-emphasizes Internet operations. As part of the moves, eChapman is seeking a buyer for NetNoir, an African-American-oriented Internet portal the company agreed to acquire last July, General Counsel James P. Wu said yesterday.

A well-known Baltimore veterinarian who sold $184,000 worth of Grow Group Inc. stock last week says he will file a class-action lawsuit today against the New York company, claiming its failure to disclose a rival offer from Sherwin-Williams Co. violated SEC regulations and cost investors money.Kim J. Hammond, along with fellow investor Jeffrey Dell, says the lawsuit will be filed today in U.S. District Court in New York.Last Tuesday, the day after Grow Group announced its $18.10 per share merger agreement with Imperial Chemical Industries PLC, Dr. Hammond sold 10,300 shares of the company's stock for $17.875 per share, the suit says.