Headlines

The auction for Nortel Network's optical networking and carrier ethernet business went into a second day on Saturday, after Ciena called for a break in the auction late on Friday, two sources said, Reuters reported. Last month Nortel Networks Corp, the bankrupt Canadian telecommunications equipment maker, said that Ciena's cash-and-stock bid, worth some $526 million, would be the stalking horse offer for these assets. Earlier this week another source familiar with the sale told Reuters that Nokia Siemens Networks and private equity firm One Equity Partners had also bid for the assets.

Time is running out for German political leaders to provide financial help for General Motors Co.'s European Opel division—or risk the loss of more domestic jobs, The Wall Street Journal reported. Angered by GM's surprise move to abandon plans to sell Opel this month, German politicians have so far taken a belligerent stance and are threatening to withhold state aid altogether. Economics Minister Rainer Brüderle suggested this week that Opel may no longer qualify for aid regardless of what restructuring plan GM presents, a sentiment echoed by several other influential politicians.

General Motors Co. said it expects to release a full restructuring plan for its Opel and Vauxhall operations in mid December, but did not specify the amount of cuts to capacity and jobs it would seek, The Associated Press reported. GM Europe released a statement late Thursday in response to what it said was a "misrepresentation" by the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (FAZ), which claimed that GM wanted to maintain all its European plants.

European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said the bank will gradually withdraw the emergency cash it has pumped into the economy in order to ensure it doesn’t fuel inflation. “Not all our liquidity measures will be needed to the same extent as in the past,” Trichet said at a conference in Frankfurt today. “Any non-standard measure whose continuation would pose a threat to the achievement of price stability must be undone promptly and unequivocally.” Trichet has already signaled the ECB is unlikely to renew its offer of 12-month loans to banks after the third tranche in December.

Donington Ventures Leisure Limited went into administration on Wednesday just weeks after failing to raise enough money to host the British Grand Prix, the BBC reported. Administrators said they hoped to find a buyer who would step in and complete the current work on the track. Motorsport News said any investor would struggle to get the venue ready in time. In its last financial statement in 2007 Donington Ventures Leisure Limited was more than £66 million in debt. But after it won the contract from Silverstone in 2008, early indications were that the funding was in place.

Japan's transport minister said Friday that he hasn't heard from AMR Corp.'s American Airlines on the airline's intention to provide financial support to struggling carrier Japan Airlines Corp., Dow Jones reported. "No, we haven't (heard from American Airlines) ... There is no change in our policy to support JAL while (the Enterprise Turnaround Initiative Corp.) is implementing assessment of JAL's assets," Seiji Maehara, Japan's Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, said at a regular press conference. JAL has been talking to both American and Delta Air Lines Inc.

Iain Pero, the brother of Mike Pero Mortgages founder Mike, has confirmed he is the new owner of flight simulator business Flight Experience, The New Zealand Herald reported. Pero and one of Flight Experience's founders, Russell Hubber, have joined forces to buy the business out of receivership. However, the original shareholders, including Mike Pero, will be left out of pocket. The receivers of Flight Experience Group say there will still be a "significant shortfall" in funds after the sale. The company was put into receivership this month by ASB Bank, which is owed $4 million.

Hong Kong’s personal bankruptcy filings fell in October to a one-year low as the city emerges from its worst slump since the 1997-98 Asian financial crisis, Bloomberg reported. Petitions declined to 992 from 1,142 in September, the Official Receiver’s Office said today. Compulsory business winding-up petitions dropped to 60 from 61 in September. The city’s rebound from a yearlong recession prompted employers to start hiring again, with the city’s jobless rate falling to 5.2 percent in the three months ended Oct. 31.

State-controlled German bank HSH Nordbank AG expects to reach an agreement with the European Commission regarding its planned restructuring by the end of the year, Chief Executive Dirk Jens Nonnenmacher told Dow Jones Newswires Friday. HSH Nordbank has previously only said it hopes to complete its talks with the commission soon. At the beginning of September, the bank presented a restructuring plan to the commission aimed at trimming its balance sheet and focusing on its core business activities.

Some of the City's leading law firms are considering outsourcing legal work as increasing numbers of firms look to cut costs by using external providers for both legal and business support, LegalWeek reported. Linklaters, SJ Berwin, Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer and CMS Cameron McKenna are among eight firms within the top 30 currently looking at introducing some aspects of legal process outsourcing (LPO).