Free Republic

MEXICO CITY (Dow Jones)--Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim's decision to loan the New York Times $250 million gives a vote of confidence to a debt-strapped publisher at a time when the financial viability of print is being widely questioned in the age of the Internet. The New York Times Co. (NYT) said Tuesday it will use the money to refinance existing debt, but also continues to seek other financing and will press ahead with cost-cutting measures. Slim's move to expand his involvement with the Times raised some eyebrows given difficulties faced by newspaper publishers seeing double-digit declines in advertising revenue.

CHICAGO June 26 (Reuters) - The family of Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim said on Thursday that Circuit City Stores Inc. (NYSE:CC - News) had rejected a takeover offer, sending shares of the U.S. electronics retailer up sharply amid hopes of a higher price. The $8 per share offer from the Slim family, which owns computer retailer CompUSA and a large stake in upscale retail chain Saks Inc. (NYSE:SKS - News), comes as Circuit City struggles with slumping sales and losses in its credit card operations. The Slim family, whose holdings in Telefonos de Mexico (Telmex) and several other Latin American...