Matsushita Electric Industrial Co

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. said Wednesday that its earnings for last year more than tripled, but it forecast a loss for this year because of its sale of an 80% stake in MCA Inc. Matsushita, the world's largest consumer electronics maker, said its earnings soared to $1.04 billion for the fiscal year ended March 31, from $281 million the previous year. Sales rose to $79.8 billion from $76.0 billion.

Intel Corp., the world's largest maker of computer chips, said Friday that it will build new plants in Israel, Ireland and Malaysia at a cost of more than $3.1 billion to meet an expected surge in demand. Meanwhile, Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. announced that it will spend more than $600 million to expand a plant in Puyallup, Wash., and will build a new factory in Indonesia as part of its strategy to nearly double chip production by the beginning of the next century.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday denied an appeal by Dean Witter, Discover & Co. over its antitrust lawsuit against Visa U.S.A., allowing Visa to exclude from its franchise those banks that are owned by the rival card issuer. Separately, the court agreed to review a lower federal court ruling refusing to recognize the settlement of shareholder litigation stemming from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.'s 1990 acquisition of MCA Inc.

Reports of yet another potential takeover of Apple Computer--this time by a troika of technology companies--boosted the company's shares 8% Friday. Software maker Oracle Corp. and consumer electronics giants Philips N. V. of the Netherlands and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. of Japan are mulling a joint bid for Apple, according to the Jan. 16 issue of Information Week, an industry trade magazine.

The son of MCA President Sidney J. Sheinberg and three others agreed Thursday to pay $1.3 million to settle government insider-trading charges related to the 1990 acquisition of MCA by Japan's Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Jonathan J. Sheinberg, 34, an agent with the William Morris Agency, and three associates were charged in a civil complaint filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday. They immediately settled without admitting guilt.

With telecommunications alliances being formed by the day, Hollywood's major Japanese investors are aggressively angling for position in the new world order. In recent weeks, both Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. and Sony Corp. have indicated that they would be open to selling parts of their entertainment companies to a major cable television operator or a Baby Bell if the price were right.

Top officers of Japan's Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. and Hollywood's MCA Inc. have narrowed their price discussions to a range that would pay MCA stockholders between $75 and $85 a share, according to people familiar with the talks. The two sides have begun face-to-face meetings in New York and could reach a deal as early as next weekend despite continued differences over the exact buyout price, one of the people said.

When MCA's corporate jet lifts off today, the ambitions of MCA President Sidney J. Sheinberg will take flight as well. He and MCA Chairman Lew R. Wasserman are traveling to meet with senior executives from Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. to discuss the strained relations between the Japanese parent and its frustrated Hollywood subsidiary.

Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. officially handed over the keys of MCA Inc. to their new owner Monday morning, in what has become for Seagram Co. a highly publicized if somewhat fitful entrance into the entertainment business. Edgar Bronfman Jr., chief executive of the Montreal-based beverage company, had hoped to announce a new management team shortly after closing the $5.7-billion purchase of 80% of MCA.

Secretary of the Interior Manuel Lujan Jr., angry that Yosemite National Park's accommodations will soon be owned by a Japanese firm, took the first step Monday toward trying to cancel the government contract with the Yosemite Park & Curry Co. MCA Inc., the Curry Co.'s parent firm that is being purchased by Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., had promised to put the Yosemite concession into escrow and sell it within a year to an American buyer. The Park Service praised the move at the time.