Business briefs for May 24, 2004

Monday, May 24, 2004 | 10:48 a.m.

Grasso, NYSE sued over pay

NEW YORK -- New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer filed suit against former New York Stock Exchange chairman and chief executive Richard Grasso, the exchange itself and former exchange board member Kenneth Langone today, claiming the defendants abrogated their fiscal responsibility by approving Grasso's $187.5 million compensation package.

The suit followed a four-month investigation into the controversial pay package. Grasso resigned last September amid intense criticism of his pay.

Firm boosting freight charges

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- FedEx Corp., the world's largest overnight shipping company, today said it's increasing freight charges in North America by 5.9 percent because of higher costs to expand and operate its fleet.

The higher rates take effect June 14, FedEx said in a statement.

They apply to cargo shipped within the United States and between the United States, Mexico and Canada, and don't apply to consumer package shipments. Memphis-based FedEx's freight division, which carries cargo from multiple customers on truck trailers, increased shipping rates by the same amount last June.