AT&T Cutting Deeper

AT&T (T Quote) is shedding more jobs and planning a big write-off as the telecom industry fails to pull out of its tailspin.

AT&T in the coming days is expected to announce the layoff of several thousand additional workers, as well as an asset writedown approaching $10 billion, according to people familiar with the company.

Company representatives say AT&T reached its target of cutting 8% of its staff earlier this year and likely will end up exceeding that total. They declined to comment further.

Not surprisingly, most of the cuts are expected to come from the consumer unit, where the company is beating a retreat in the wake of recent regulatory setbacks. But people familiar with the plan say AT&T's industry-leading business services division is also being scaled down, as ongoing price wars take their toll. ...