Business Desk
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.

CITY
NYC RESIDENTIAL MARKET STRONG IN AUGUST
Manhattan’s residential real estate market showed continued strength in August, thanks to improving economic conditions and low interest rates, according to a new study. The Halstead Property Co.’s Monthly Market Report, released yesterday, said the median price for a condo or co-op apartment in August was $650,000, which is 33% higher than a year ago. Co-op apartments in pre-war buildings saw the biggest gain, where the median price rose 41% to $499,000. Co-ops in postwar buildings were up 25% in August. In the condo market, the median price for a pre-war apartment was $720,000, up 13% from a year ago, while postwar co-ops jumped 33% to $730,000. “Low interest rates have been driving the real estate market for a while. We’ve never seen them this low for this long,” said the chief economist with Halstead, Gregory Heym. He added that the return of the Wall Street bonuses and the increase in new jobs in Manhattan have also helped drive demand for co-ops and condos.
– Dow Jones Newswires
IN THE COURTS
APPEALS COURT GRANTS EMERGENCY STAY ON QUATTRONE LETTERS
A federal appeals court has granted an emergency stay sealing some letters written in support of former star technology banker Frank Quattrone. The stay granted by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit means some letters containing private information about Quattrone’s family will be sealed until the court hears his motion on the matter. No date has been set for the motion.
Quattrone, the one-time head of Credit Suisse First Boston’s technology group, asked the appellate court to order U.S. District Judge Richard Owen to seal “a limited number of personal letters” submitted prior to his sentencing on obstruction of justice and witness tampering charges last week or at least redact some of the information contained in those letters. More than 400 letters in support of Quattrone were submitted to the court, including a number from Silicon Valley executives.
Mr. Owen declined to seal the letters at the time and the letters were made public late Thursday when they were filed as part of the record of the case.
The letters in question discuss the “medical and psychological conditions” of Quattrone’s wife, Denise, and 15-year-old daughter Cristina, as well as details about his daughter’s school and her extracurricular activities.
Quattrone was sentenced to 18 months in prison and two years supervised release last week. He has vowed to appeal and declared his innocence in a brief press conference minutes after the sentencing.
– Dow Jones Newswires
REGULATORY
CLOTHIER TO REVISE ADVERTISING UNDER SPITZER SETTLEMENT
A national clothing chain will reform its advertising practices as part of a legal settlement reached yesterday with New York state.
Accused of potentially misleading customers, Jos. A. Bank Clothiers will no longer advertise items as “on sale” unless they actually are, said state Attorney General Eliot Spitzer.
The Hampsted, Md.-based company claimed in promotional material that merchandise was being offered for a short time at a discounted price. But Mr. Spitzer claimed that many of those items advertised were, in fact, almost continually on sale for as long as 18 months.
“Retailers have a fundamental obligation to be truthful and accurate with their advertising,” Mr. Spitzer said in a statement announcing the settlement. “A ‘sales price’ or ‘discount price’ should mean that the items cost less than it usually does.”
Under terms of the settlement, Jos. A. Bank, which owns 200 stores nationwide and 12 in New York state, will not promote items at a discount price unless the merchandise has been offered at a higher price for a substantial period.
The company also will pay $425,000 in civil penalties and $50,000 in costs to New York state, Mr. Spitzer said, adding that his office will continue to monitor Jos. A. Bank advertising. The company referred calls to its chief financial officer, David Ullman, who was not immediately available for comment.
Mr. Spitzer said that his office will also review the advertising practices of the retail industry as a whole.
– Associated Press
CHARLES SCHWAB SET TLES SEC’S LATE-TRADING ALLEGATIONS
Charles Schwab & Co., the world’s biggest discount brokerage, agreed to pay $350,000 to settle regulators’ allegations that the firm let some investors make mutual fund trades after 4 p.m.
Schwab, based in San Francisco, permitted the investors to change orders after funds had calculated their net asset values for the day, the Securities and Exchange Commission said in a press release. Schwab improperly allowed the customers to pay that day’s outdated price for a potential savings, the SEC said.
Schwab neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing. The SEC said that, starting in January 2001, Schwab “on hundreds of occasions” invited customers whose orders had been rejected by the firm’s computer system to make substitute orders after 4 p.m. The investors were advisers whose customers included institutions and individuals, SEC lawyer Marc Fagel said.
The SEC said it found no evidence that Schwab made agreements to give the customers favored treatment or that any customers deliberately exploited Schwab’s practices to capitalize on the stale fund prices. Schwab stopped the practice in October 2003 after the SEC began looking into the matter, the agency said. The firm also agreed to be subjected to stiffer penalties if it breaks securities laws in the future.
“We’re pleased to have this matter behind us,” Schwab spokesman Greg Gable said. “We’ve enhanced our oversight of order processing since the problems were identified.”
Deliberate late trading has been a key abuse identified in a yearlong crackdown of trading and sales abuses in the $7.6 trillion mutual fund industry. Companies including Bank of America Corp. and Alliance Capital Management Holding LP have paid more than $2.3 billion in sanctions.
– Bloomberg News