NATIONAL

Altria to spin off Philip Morris International

Altria Group plans to spin off its Philip Morris International tobacco unit, a move designed to give the overseas maker of Marlboros and other cigarette brands more freedom to pursue sales growth in emerging markets.

The plans announced Wednesday would leave Altria with a much smaller domestic tobacco business that nonetheless still ranks as the biggest in the United States.

The spinoff would clear the international tobacco business from the legal and regulatory constraints facing its domestic counterpart, Philip Morris USA.

OFFER TO CONSIDER A.G. Edwards & Sons Inc. shareholders will vote next month whether to approve a purchase offer from Wachovia, the nation's fourth-largest bank.

A.G. Edwards announced Wednesday the special stockholder meeting will be at the brokerage firm's headquarters Sept. 28.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia proposed the takeover in May, offering to purchase A.G. Edwards for $6.8 billion in cash and stock.

The resulting company, called Wachovia Securities, would be the second-largest retail brokerage firm in the United States, behind Merrill Lynch & Co. of New York.

MANAGEMENT CHANGE Dean Foods Co., the biggest U.S. milk processor, said Alan Bernon will step down as president of the company's dairy unit.

Chief Executive Officer Gregg L. Engles will assume responsibility for the unit as of Saturday, Dallas-based Dean Foods said. Bernon will continue as a director of the company.

Dean Foods' shares have declined 37 percent this year as milk prices rose, increasing costs and cutting profit.

The reason for Bernon's departure is being kept "confidential," spokeswoman Marguerite Copel said.

Dean owns White Wave Foods and Longmont-based Horizon Organic.

GETTING DIRECTIONS DaimlerChrysler AG's Mercedes-Benz USA unit is using mapping software from Google Inc. and Yahoo! Inc. to help drivers plot addresses and find their destinations.

The Search and Send feature, available Sept. 5, will be included in the S-Class sedans, CL-Class coupes and C-Class sedans.

NEW PHONES Nokia Oyj, the world's biggest maker of mobile phones, unveiled new music phones and plans for a simpler user interface to fend off Apple Inc.'s iPhone.

The new 5610, 5310 and N81 music phones, along with an upgraded version of the N95 handset with 8 gigabytes of memory, will start shipping in the fourth quarter, the Espoo, Finland- based company said Wednesday.

Nokia said it will start selling touch-screen models next year.

MONSTER SECURITY Monster Worldwide Inc., owner of the world's largest employment Web site, plans to notify all job seekers about measures they can take to protect themselves after a hacker stole information from 1.3 million users.

The company also will put in place new systems to improve security and minimize threats, Monster said.

The steps taken by Monster focus on tightening the access employers have to Monster's databases since hackers used passwords stolen from recruiters to get into the company's system last week.

LOCAL

Flatiron Construction in talks to sell unit

Royal BAM Groep NV, the biggest Dutch builder, may conclude talks on the sale of its U.S. bridge-building unit, Longmont-based Flatiron Construction Corp., in September as it focuses on expansion in Europe.

ECONOMY

Home buyers struggle to find financing

Mortgage applications in the U.S. declined to a four-week low as the rate on one-year adjustable loans jumped by the most since the Mortgage Bankers Association began keeping records in 1996.

The report demonstrates the difficulty some home buyers face in securing affordable financing. The organization's index fell 4 percent last week to 615.2. The group's purchase and refinancing gauges each decreased for a second week.

The mortgage bankers' purchase index fell 4 percent to 424 last week from 441.5. The refinancing index decreased 4.2 percent, to 1,729.6, from 1,806.3. Both measures were the lowest in four weeks and below their year-earlier levels.

The number of applications for adjustable-rate loans slumped 23 percent, while those for fixed-rate mortgages rose 0.2 percent.

The average rate on a 30-year fixed loan fell to 6.41 percent last week, from 6.49 percent. At that rate, monthly borrowing costs for each $100,000 of a loan would have been about $626, little changed from a year ago.

The average rate on a 15-year fixed mortgage dropped to 6.10 percent from 6.20 percent the prior week.

THIS JUST IN...

• Will Temby, CEO of the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce, will step down Friday. He will join the University of Colorado Foundation, assisting with major initiatives on the Boulder and Colorado Springs campuses. Dave Csintyan, president of the chamber's Business Affairs Division, was selected to serve as interim chief executive officer.

• The Denver Board of Realtors named Metro Brokers agent Will Roberts, who is broker/owner of Brokerfordenver.com LLC, as its 2008 president-elect and 2009 president.

• Home Depot has signed on as first tenant at Firestone City Centre, a 400,000-square-foot development at the intersection of Colorado 119 and Interstate 25.

• The Art Institute of Colorado will induct four alumni into its Hall of Fame on Sept. 8 at its Grape Escape event. This year's inductees are Neal Aspinall, an illustrator; Phillip Atencio, a video-game artist; Tim Meehan, an advertising executive who pioneered the use of Apple Macintosh for the design profession; and Mark Mock, an advertising designer specializing in corporate identity.

• Exempla Healthcare hired Joseph Heaton as IST medical director.

• The Colorado Enterprise Fund received a $10,000 contribution from Wells Fargo to support the organization's efforts throughout the state to assist entrepreneurs and small businesses in reaching their potential.

• The Monfort College of Business at the University of Northern Colorado added professors Joseph French and Mi-chael Martin to the School of Finance, and professor Lloyd "Pat" Seaton to the School of Accounting and Computer Information Systems.

• Key Equipment Finance, a bank-held equipment finance company headquartered in Superior, appointed Mark D. Erickson to senior vice president of Key Government Finance.

• Dollar Tree Stores Inc., a discount variety store, has opened a store in Englewood Plaza at 351 W. Englewood Parkway.

• Metrolist Inc., a real estate multiple listing service for the Denver area, appointed Megan Aller to account representative.

• The Family Practice Center at Exempla St. Joseph Hospital has changed its named to Bruner Family Medicine.

• Colorado State University named Frank Pierz as senior adviser for board relations and legislative policy, and Rich Schwei-gert as chief financial officer and director of system operations.

• The Denver West Market Center of Keller Williams Realty in Lakewood added Steve Trujillo to its team.

Rocky staff and wire reports

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