Also. . .

* Delray Beach, Fla.-based Sunbeam Corp. said it dismissed Arthur Andersen as its longtime independent auditor after the troubled appliance maker restated its results for the last two years. Sunbeam, the largest U.S. maker of small appliances, said it named Deloitte & Touche as independent auditor for 1998.

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* Thailand’s recession is deepening, with the private investment index in September showing its biggest drop in at least a decade. Private investment, which includes both foreign and local commitments, fell 22% in September from a year earlier, bigger than the 21% drop in August, the Bank of Thailand said.

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* Cable & Wireless, Britain’s No. 2 phone company, named Dennis D. Matteucci chief executive of its U.S. unit, replacing Rich Yalen, who resigned last week after eight months in the job.