News In Brief

US employers generally see no reason for a drop in their staffing needs in the year's third quarter, according to the results of a new survey. Chicago-based Manpower Inc., which polled more than 15,000 companies, found 32 percent planning to add staff and 58 percent expecting no change. Only 6 percent of respondents indicated they'd lay off employees. The survey found demand likely to be highest in Western states.

Avis Rent A Car will buy the leasing and fleet-management unit of Cendant Corp. - including operations in Europe - for $1.8 billion, the companies announced. The deal will allow Cendant to increase its ownership stake in Avis, which it spun off in 1997, from 19 percent to 34 percent.

Crumbling demand at home and in the Asian-export market sent profits tumbling 22 percent in fiscal 1998 for Japan's No. 1 automaker, Toyota. Exports to other Asian countries plummeted 47 percent, more than offsetting an increase in sales in North America. A projected 12 percent rise in net income for fiscal 1999 will come mostly from a change in Japan's corporate tax structure, Toyota said.