GE’s Welch Says He’ll Retire in 2001

General Electric Co. Chief Executive John F. Welch Jr. said he will retire from the conglomerate after its annual meeting in 2001. Since Welch took the helm in 1981, GE’s market value has risen by more than $350 billion. Welch, who next November will turn 65, GE’s mandatory retirement age, made the remarks on CNBC, which GE owns through its NBC TV network. Welch would not say who will succeed him, only that the company will have a “team in place late next year to take care of this whole thing.” Separately, GE said it named Sun Microsystems Inc. Chief Executive Scott McNealy as a director, expanding its board to 17 members, amid an effort by Welch to make his company do more business electronically. McNealy, 44, co-founded Sun in 1982 and became CEO in 1984. GE stock fell $6.13 to close at $129.38 on the New York Stock Exchange. The shares have risen 48% in the last year, whereas the Standard & Poor’s 500-stock index, by comparison, has risen 22%.