GE chief not quite ready for his pension

摘要

Just one week ago, Honeywell was finalising talks with United Technologies to tie up a merger deal worth $40bn. GE stepped in at the eleventh hour, when chief executive Jack Welch learned of the UTC bid — which would have given rival aeroengine outfit Pratt & Whitney access to Honeywell's technology — on Thursday night and topped it by $5bn. The move marks a dramatic finale for Jack Welch's 20-year tenure at GE, and he announced last weekend that he will now postpone his retirement, scheduled for April 2001, until the end of next year to oversee the integration of the two companies.