Business and Finance
EXXON AGREED to buy Mobil for stock valued at about $75.3 billion, creating an energy giant in the largest takeover ever and marking an era of low inflation. The deal is likely to attract close antitrust scrutiny, and the two companies face the task of integrating different corporate cultures. Meanwhile, the CBOE is investigating premerger options trading in Mobil.</br></br>Lower oil prices will offer U.S. consumers extra purchasing power, while airlines, railroads, and other companies will reap a windfall. January crude fell nine cents to $11.13 a barrel at the New York Merc, a 12-year low.</br></br>---</br></br>Boeing announced sharp production cutbacks for almost every jetliner model and the elimination of as many as 20,000 additional jobs through 2000, as it acknowledged the impact of Asia's problems on its strategy.</br></br>---