James Sherwood News

Sea Containers Ltd. has announced that the company is completely quitting the ferry business, including its SeaStreak commuter service between New York City and New Jersey, taking a $500 million charge and was in talks to amend some of its loan agreements. Shares of the Bermuda-registered passenger transport and marine container leasing company fell as much as 29 percent after the announcement. Sea Containers said it would restate its earnings for all four quarters of 2005 and delay filing its annual reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission until April to allow time to finalize bank negotiations and outstanding accounting issues.

Sea Containers Ltd., which runs marine passenger transport and leases equipment, on Friday said its shareholders approved resolutions to permit the spin-off of its luxury hotel subsidiary Orient-Express Hotels Ltd. Sherwood also said net income at Sea Containers for the first half of 2001 should top that of the prior year's first-half, while Orient-Express Hotels expects to report higher earnings for 2001 than for 2000. Sea Containers' president James Sherwood said it was still the company's intention to divest the majority of its shares in Orient-Express around the end of the year. Before that time, the company plans to sell about 5 million shares, in blocks.