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Barney’s Inc., which has been operating under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection since January 1996, said it will tell a bankruptcy court by Friday which buyout bid it has chosen, but may need extra time to file the agreement with the court. . . . ValuJet Airlines hired Chicago-based advertising agency Cramer-Krasselt to create its advertising when the carrier starts flying under the new name AirTran Airlines later this year. . . . Workers at an Aluminum Co. of America plant in Chandler, Ariz., agreed to be represented by the United Steelworkers of America after an organizing campaign, the union said. . . . The European Union and Mexico initialed a preliminary free trade agreement, laying the foundation for closer political and economic ties. . . . The National Assn. of Securities Dealers slapped $1.8 million in penalties on 20 people suspected of paying an impostor to take a broker’s qualification exam for them, and barred them from the business. The NASD said it has now barred, fined and censured 41 registered representatives in an investigation that continues.