Business in Brief

The Bugaboo Bee model of baby stroller turns out to have a bug: It may roll downhill when parked because of a flaw in its brakes. The manufacturer, an international company, received more than 500 complaints from consumers around the world, 121 of them Americans, about the problem of the runaway pram. No injuries were reported. Locally the relevant Bugaboo Bee strollers are marked with the code 580210 on the rear of the seat, and 50100 on the plastic support underneath the seat. About 200 units of this model were sold in Israel during the last six months, each costing about NIS 3,000. To fix the problem, Bugaboo developed an easily installable part that consumers can get at the store or through the Internet, if, of course, they realize they need one. There's the rub: Complaints began arriving weeks ago, yet the company - and its Israeli representative - did not formally advise consumers of the problem. (Rina Rozenberg)

Hutchison Whampoa yesterday informed Ilan Ben-Dov that his offer to buy its controlling interest in Partner Communications has reached the next stage. He was the first potential buyer to receive such notice. Market sources surmise that the Hong Kong conglomerate will pass at least two other offers onto the next stage, in order to create competition. Other contenders for Hutchison's stake include Shaul Elovitch's company Eurocom, Ishay Davidi's private equity fund FIMI, and Leumi Partners, which put together a group hat includes the Migdal insurance company, Mivtachim, and former banker Shlomo Nehama. The first stage, which Ben-Dov has passed, involved proposing a non-binding offer. The second stage will grant them access to Partner's confidential information, after which they'll have to make a binding offer. (Amitai Ziv)

Bank Mizrahi-Tefahot has given American-Israeli builder Shaya Boymelgreen three years' grace to return a giant loan taken to buy Israeli real estate company Azorim. Yesterday the parties agreed on a compromise restructuring the NIS 650 million loan, which Boymelgreen took in 2006. He has three years to return the principal, but has to cover interest payments sooner. Originally the loan carried 7.2% interest, linked to the consumer price index. Observers surmise that the rate hasn't changed much. Recently Boymelgreen increased his personal guarantees backing the loan from $50 million to $75 million. The bank also holds a primary lien on shares of Azorim, presently worth NIS 295 million on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. (Michael Rochvarger)

The Tel Aviv Administrative Court approved a class-action suit application against the Tel Aviv municipality for overcharging on city taxes, in breach of the Arrangements Law. The suit, filed by the company Srigei Shalom and Malka, states that in 2004 and 2005, the municipality charged NIS 155.94 per square meter on the first 100 square meters of property zoned for industrial use, instead of the NIS 125.70 set by law. The company has a factory on Levanda Street that covers nearly a dunam. The judge emphasized that the class represented in the proceedings includes anyone who paid anything beyond NIS 125.70 per square meter for the first 100 square meters. (Amit Benaroia)

Israel Lands Authority tenders for land development will start including a stipulation prohibiting projects from being marketed to limited demographics, such as religious communities or high-tech employees, according to a letter from the Deputy Attorney General's Office to the Association of Civil Rights in Israel. The letter said the attorney general is planning to take action on the matter. The letter came in response to the association's demand to cancel the outcome of a tender after learning that the winner intended to sell homes only to national-religious community members. (Ranit Nahum-Halevy)