In a move to boost its wireless telephone business on the east coast, AT&T Corp said that the company will buy Vanguard Cellular Systems Inc for $1.5 billion, including about $600 million in debt. Shareholders of Vanguard, which operates the Cellular One network, will get either $23 in cash or 0.3987 of an AT&T share, with the proviso that half that the overall purchase price will be paid in cash and half in stock. The companies expect the merger to close in the first quarter of 1999.

Orange's Everyday targets fixed-phone market:

UK mobile phones group Orange Plc on Tuesday launched Everyday 20, a low cost mobile telephone service targeting the fixed-line domestic territory of British Telecommunications Plc. It said the service could be up to 53 per cent cheaper to own and run than a BT phone if users make mainly off-peak calls. A one-off connection fee of 35 pounds ($58.97) gives users access to 20 minutes aday of calls between 7 pm and 7 am for a total annual fee of 182.50 pounds -- equivalent to 50 pence a day. Excluding discounts and promotions, this compares with 385.96 pounds to use a BT telephone in the same way, Orange said. Peak rate calls will be charged at 40 pence per minute and off-peak calls outside the 20 minutes will cost 10 pence per minute.

Mitsubishi aims for Y80 bn group profit:

Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp said on Tuesday that it is aiming for a group net profit of 80 billion yen and a group-based return-on-equity ratio of eight percent in 2000-2001. A company spokesman said that the company also hopes to achieve a parent net profit of 35 billion yen and parent-based return-on-equity ratio of six per cent in the same business year. The trading house recently drew up a three-year restructuring plan starting from the 1998-99 business year, under which it would cut 1,200 jobs by March 2001 from the current 8,200, the spokesman said. The company wants to focus its business onfour areas, energy, food, information-related business and development projects, he said.