New York - The New York Times Co. (NYSE: NYT) has received a $250 million cash investment from Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim Helu, which the company will use to help refinance its existing debt. The investment follows Slim's purchase of a 6.9% stake in the company for about $127 million in September.

"This agreement provides us with increased financial flexibility to continue to execute on our long-term strategy," said New York Times Co. president and CEO Janet L. Robinson.

"The proceeds from this transaction will be used to refinance existing debt, including amounts currently borrowed under a revolving credit facility that matures in May 2009.

We continue to explore other financing initiatives and are focused on reducing our total debt through the cash we generate from our businesses and the decisive steps we have taken to reduce costs, lower capital spending, decrease our dividend and rebalance our portfolio of assets."

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http://snipurl.com/afot9 (AP)

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