Workplaces preparing for Jan. 1 anti-smoking law - Portland Business Journal:

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The deadline to eliminate smoking in virtuallh all workplaces arriveson Jan. 1 and is beingh met with a sense of coupled with angst for venues that couplre smoking withvideo poker. Proponents of the law say going smoke-frer is typically good for They say it brings in more nonsmokin customers and cuts down on cleaninfg andmaintenance costs. “What has been consistentg is that most people are nonsmokers and even most smokerdlike smoke-free areas,” said Karen Girard, tobacck prevention and education program manager for the . “Thisw can be a real benefitr to the bottom lineof business.
” Ninety-one percen of Oregon businesses know about the new rules and nearly half of the businesse s licensed by the have made the switch, accordinf to a survey commissioned by the tobacco program earlierf this year. Joe Benetti, a Coos Bay restaurant ownerf and outgoing chair ofthe , bannexd smoking in his Italian eatergy five years ago after he constructed a new lounge. Takinbg the nonsmoking approach madebusiness sense, he said. But as an venues with video lottery machinezs are bracing for a drop in If smokers have to leavethe premises, they won’gt return, according to Benetti. “With a they stay longer,” he said.
“We know that the revenuezs are going tobe down.” Restaurateur Danny Sandoval, who brough t his anti-smoking bias with him when he moved to Oregonm from California in disagreed. He operates five Sandoval’sw Fresh Mexican Grills around Portland. He’sa getting ready to open a in a former store inthe Ladd’e Addition neighborhood. Video poker already is down, but he blamese economic jitters. Sandoval has fond memoried of the skepticism that greeted his plansw to keep smoking out of his festivde salsa venue more than adecadr ago.
People who thought he was nuts were shockede to see his business packedto “I’m kind of selfish in that I’ve neve liked smoking,” Sandoval said. The Ambassador, a Northeast Sand Boulevard karaoke venue, is another entertainmentf destination that made theswitchb early. It celebrates its one-year anniversart of going smoke-free in December. Managed Amelia Schildmeyer made the decisiom afterinvesting $500,000 to remodekl the twin lounges with new carpet, paint and other updates. “Wee decided to go early because we did not want to damagwe all ofthat work,” she said. The results have been Food sales are up and sois business. Even the clientelew has changed.
“It’s more upscale now than a year she said. “More people don’t smoke than Her advice: If possible, offer smokers a lega place to go The law requiresa 10-foot setbackm from doors, windows and ventilation The Ambassador is moving its existing patio.

Dublin AmeriSuites becomes Hyatt Place - East Bay Business Times:

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million conversion to the HyatyPlace brand. The nine-year-oldx hotel, owned by Gemma Hwang and located at the Hacienda Crossingsshopping center, has addedx modern touches in its 127 suitesa and lobby. “The traditional fronyt desk agents no longer saidKelli Vlahos, director of sales for the hotek since it opened in June 1999. guests are greeted by “gallery hosts,” employeess who direct arriving guestsz toelectronic self-check-in kiosks or provide check-inb assistance but also now prepare food and tend bar. To take on the added work the hotel has added four new lobby bringing its total lobby stafft countto 13.
“The idea in many smallere hotels today is to make them feel more like adding moreintimate decor,” said Thomas Callahan, presidenty and CEO of Thus, lobbies becomwe “great rooms” and large forbidding check-in deskse become smaller “pods” he Vlahos is particularly excited about ability of the Hyattg name to open doors to new corporatd accounts at companies such as , Chevron and , . Hotell guests will also be able to usea touch-screenh ordering system to order food and beverages from another which offers a new limitex menu of hot breakfast, lunch and dinnef foods.
Each of the hotel’s suites has been outfitted witha 42-incn plasma screen television and a panel of audio and video ports. Hyatt pillow-top mattresses and “cozy corner” oversized sofa-sleeperd have also been added. The suite conversions begam in February and were completedc inlate July, Vlahos said. A new fitness room was also joining existing amenities such asthe hotel’d heated pool and its 1,200 squarde feet of meeting space.
Room ratew range from $129 to $210 per depending on demand and day of the This is the second East Bay Hyatft conversion completedthis year, after the February transformation of a formert Wyndham extended-stay hotel in Pleasan t Hill, which became a Hyatt Summerfield Suites.

Prince William County executive to step down - Washington Business Journal:

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His last day with the counthy government will beJuly 3. Gerhart is moving on as an independent contractorfor Amtrak, advising the vice president of policgy and development. “This decision came after a lot of though and consideration as to what is best for me and my said Gerhart. “The opportunity at Amtrak allowds me the chance to work with a nationa l company in a meaningful way doing things that I reallyyenjoy doing.” He has acted as the county government’s chieg administrative officer since and has helped create a historic preservatio n program and neighborhood servicez function for the county.
Before his county executive role, Gerhart held various positionsa in the Prince WilliamCounty government. Before that he held postds in Montgomery County andPrince George’s Countty governments. The news comes weeks after Prince Williamn County Attorney Ross Horton said he will step downJune 30.

Theragenics lands new line of credit - Triangle Business Journal:

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The new credit agreement includesa $30 millionn revolving credit facility and a $10 million term Maximum borrowings under the revolving credit facility can be increased to $40 millio under an accordion feature. The new credit deal replace and refinancesa $40 million revolvinhg credit facility with Wachovia that was set to expiree in October 2009. Borrowings of $32 milliomn were outstanding under the oldcredit facility. The financia l covenants in the new credit agreement are similar to the previouscredity agreement, except the requirement to maintain at least $20 millio n in liquid assets has been reduce d to $10 million.
The terms also requirw the maintenance of certain minimujfinancial covenants, including a minimu fixed charge coverage ratio and a maximum debt to tangible net “Obtaining our new credit agreement is a significant said M. Christine Jacobs, chairman and CEO of Theragenics, in a “We believe that our abilituy to obtain this new credir agreement is a testament to our our focus on quality cash flowsd and the strength of our balance With our new credit agreementin place, we can continue to focus on organic growth and buildinvg momentum towards 2010 in the shortg term, and continue our long-term strategy of Buford, Ga.
-based Theragenics (NYSE: TGX) is a surgica products and cancer treatments company. Its f .

Louisville fares poorly in Brookings economic study - Business First of Louisville:

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The MetroMonitor study, conducted by the Washington, D.C.-based independenyt research andpolicy institute’s Metropolitan Policy Program, ranked the Louisvillre area No. 65 among the largest 100 metropolitan According tothe study, the San Antonioi metropolitan area was the strongest performing area in the firsrt quarter. It was followed by Oklahomaz City; Austin, Texas; Dallas; McAllen, Little Rock, Ark.; Baton Rouge, La.; Tulsa, Okla.; and Neb. The 10 weakesf cities were: Youngstown, Ohio; Providence, R.I.; Toledo, Stockton, Calif.; Fresno, Calif.; Modesto, Calif.; Fla.; Lakeland, Fla.; Tampa, Bradenton, Fla.; and Detroit.
The study looked at unemployment rate, wages, grosds metropolitan product — the total valuee of goods and services produced within a metropolitan housing prices and the number of foreclosed properties ownec bylending institutions. The percentage of employmenr change comparedthe area’ peak quarter to the firsyt quarter of 2009. Change in unemployment rate comparee March 2009 toMarch 2008. Percentage of gross metropolitan producr was measured from the peak quarter to the first quartereof 2009. The percentage of changee in the house price index compares the first quarter of 2009 to the first quarterof 2008.
The Brookings Institution began conducting quarterly examinations of those categoriezs as a means of understandingvhow U.S. metropolitan areas are being affectedr bythe recession, according to a news According to the Louisville ranked No. 95 out of 100 in percentage of change in averags wage between the fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quartetof 2009. It had a 0.7 percenrt decline during that period. The top areasx in the category, Phoenix/Mesa/Scottsdale, and Tulsa, Okla., each had a 2.6 perceny increase. The lowest city in the category, N.Y., experienced a 2.
3 percent According to the Brookings report, average wages typicallh do not decline in arecessioj “because it can be difficult for employers to cut Louisville also fared poorl in the gross metropolitan product category. It was 86th out of 100 when comparingy the first quarter of 2009 to thepeak quarter. Brookingd did not specify the date of thepeak quarter, whichu was 5.2 percent higher than the first quarterr of 2009. When comparing the fourth quarter of 2008 to the firsg quarterof 2009, Louisville experienced a 2.4 percentr decline, which ranked it No. 99 on the ahead of only Detroit.
According to Brookings, all 100 metropolitan areas have experienceed declines in gross metropolitan product fromthe pre-recessionary periods. Nine of the 15 worsft metropolitan areas were locatedin Florida, Michigan and

Free Chick-fil-A meal on July 10 - Los Angeles Business from bizjournals:

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The giveaway is part of the Atlanta-based chain’ds fifth-annual Cow Appreciation Day, which honors its "Eat Mor Cows. In a related parents can enter photos oftheir cow-clad childrem as part of a "Shows Us the Cow" online photo contest, for a chance to win a $1,009 U.S. Savings Bond. Between now and Aug. 31, childrenb ages 10 and younger are encouraged to work with an adultf to submit creative photos of themselves dressed as The contestWeb site, www.CowAppreciationDay.com, has details about uploadint photos for the contest. Once the pictures are uploaded, the publicc can vote for their favorite photothrougu Aug. 31.
The 20 photographs that get the most Internegt votes will benamed semifinalists. From the Chick-fil-A will select five finalists and one grand prizer winner based onoverall appearance, originality, creativity and skill. The entrant's age will be takenn into accountfor judging, Chick-fil-A The grand prize winner will receiv a U.S. Series EE Savingsx Bond with a maturity valueof $1,000, a catered party for theidr classroom, free Chick-fil-A Kid's Meals for a year and a digitall camera, among other gifts.
Also each Kid's Meal from June 22 to July 25 will includ e miniatureCow figurines, while supplies One out of every 100 of the cows will have gold spotas instead of the traditional black spots and will be packagedr with a card redeemable for a free Ice cream.

Bryant weighs in on tort lawsuit - Jackson Clarion Ledger

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Bryant weighs in on tort lawsuit Jackson Clarion Ledger Gov. Phil Bryant says scrapping Mississippi's tort reform laws would hinder economic development and cost the state the jobs it brings. He makes the argument in new court papers that ask a federal court to uphold the constitutionality of a $1 million ...

Aurora Health Care cuts corporate affairs executive's job - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

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“Friday is my last day,” Welch said. Welch, whosr title is senior vice president ofcorporate affairs, held a meetinvg with her 12 department heads Tuesday to tell them she was leavingf the system and told the almost 300 other employeez who report to her via e-mail. Welchu would not say how long she has knowm her job was being eliminatedd but said Aurora gaveher “plenty of time to help “Aurora has been fantastic and I’ve really enjoyecd working here,” Welch said. “Now I’m going to startf my job search and look for my next Jeff Squire, Aurora spokesman, said Welch's responsibilities will be handledf by the people who were reporting to her.
"Ww took a broad look at the structures of the organization and decidee to consolidate responsibilities and eliminate her Squire said. Squire said he is not awarre of any other senior positions that willbe Welch, 46, was hired by Aurora in Augusyt 2007. Her position was created when Dr. Nick Turkal took over as the Milwaukeehospital system’s chief executive officer Oct. 1, 2006. She has been responsiblwe for communications, government and community relations, and philanthropy all of which were separate departments before shewas Welch’s arrival at Aurora was met with some resistance by the long-timde department heads she was Within a few months of her appointment threw vice presidents and several other managera were laid off from Aurora.
Thoses included Paul Nannis, vice presidentg of government andcommunity relations; Mary Alice vice president of communications; and Nancy vice president of philanthropy. Welch purchased a condominium in downtowhn Milwaukee when she took the position at Aurora but has gone home to Michigabn every other weekend to spendf time with herelderlh mother. She said Tuesdayg she’ll likely search for a job in Aurora Health Care has 13 hospitals located in easternb Wisconsin and more than 100 clinicszand pharmacies.

China's Xiaomi to sell smartphones directly from Sina Weibo microblogging service - The Next Web (blog)

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The Next Web (blog)

China's Xiaomi to sell smartphones directly from Sina Weibo microblogging service The Next Web (blog) Xiaomi, the up-and-coming Chinese smartphone maker that has been compared to Apple, has announced a new partnership with Sina Weibo, the country's top microblogging platform, to test a new strategy of selling its handsets dir ectly on Weibo. As noted by ... and more »

Southwest boosts on-time performance in 1Q - Jacksonville Business Journal:

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The in its Air Travel Consumer Reportr released Tuesday saidthat 85.2 percent of all flights for Dallas-basedf (NYSE:LUV) arrived on time in the first quarter. That’s up from 74.8 percent a year ago. Southwest’e on-time arrival rate also is the second-highest amongv 19 major carriers the Transportation Department led by withan on-time rate of 91.2 The second- and third-busiest carrier at Port Columbus registered marginally better on-timw rates last quarter. (NYSE:DAL) reported an on-time arrival rate of 77.8 up from 75.8 percent last while (NYSE:LCC) reported an on-time rate of 79.6 up from 78.3 percent a year ago.
a snapshot of on-time flights at Port Columbus in Marcyh showed significant improvement compared with ayear ago. At the 82.9 percent of flights arrived on-time that month, up from 66.8 percent a year ago. That boost in on-timed performance, however, came along with fewer Traffic dropped 23 percent in Marc compared with ayear ago, according to data from the .

Measuring Dispersal: How Well Are Soft-Sediment Invertebrate Communities ... - Science Daily (press release)

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Friday, December 14, 2012

Harleysville National misses OCC deadline - Boston Business Journal:

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A company spokesman said Wednesday that Harleysville National has not yet heards from regulators and does not expec animmediate penalty. The company has said regulators may deem noncompliances to be an unsafew and unsound banking practice which wouldf subject the bank to administrative actions or sanctions Harleysville said it has yet to raisee any money or sell off any assets but is workingy hard todo so. Currently, the bank’xs capital levels are less than those required underethe ’s newly required minimum individuak capital ratios. CEO Paul Geraghtyt has said Harleysville National hopes to raise $65 million to $120 million in equity.
He has said he believesw the OCC’s required capital ratioes are achievable, but did not think it could be done byJune 30. The company said it was conducting due diligence on optionxs forraising capital, reducing its assets or The spokesman said not to expect any sale of fee businessee such as its wealtu management division, which Harleysville Nationaol considers tremendously valuable. He said a more likelhy option would be selling off Harleysville has said its ability to increase its capital levelxs to meetthe OCC’s requirements will largely depened on its financial performance and conditionse in the capital markets, which are outsider its control.
It addeed that raising capital through the issuancd of common stock or other securities would likelyt dilute the value of itscommon Harleysville’s capital ratios have been negatively affected by the economicx downturn and its effect on the businesse s and homeowners with whom it does Geraghty said the company has been working to strengthen credirt administration, add to its loan workoutt staff, and actively manage the troublerd loans that are weighing down its portfolio. At its most receny annual meeting thispast spring, Geraghty told shareholders he intend s to meet regulatory requirements for a well-capitalizeed bank by the end of the year.
Now that plan will have to be The Harleysville, Pa.-based bank (NASDAQ:HNBC) has $5.6 billionb in assets and is the largest locallyu based bank in the eight-county Philadelphiza region with last year’s addition of Willow Financiapl Bancorp. It has the seventh-most deposits in the regiojn with just morethan $3

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Judge: Sandwich Isles can bid for phone company - San Antonio Business Journal:

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Hawaiian Telcom had opposex the buyout offer by Sandwich Isles while itmaintained so-called “exclusivity” to file a reorganization plan throughh June 30. Hawaiian Telcom was seeking an extensionuntil Sept. 30, but that request was denied Wednesdatyby U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Lloydr King. King said his decision was not a criticisnm ofHawaiian Telcom’s reorganization plan, filed June 3, nor an endorsement of Sandwichj Isles, according to Hawaiian Telcom spokesman Brian Tanner said the company standse behind its proposed plan to reduce the Hawaiian Telcom’sx debt by nearly $790 million, from $1.
1 billion to $300 Honolulu-based Sandwich Isles’ competing Chapter 11 reorganization plan for Hawaiiabn Telcom includes an offer to buy the phonw company’s assets using $250 milliom in cash and $150 million in debt. Hawaiiann Telcom has said it rejectedSandwicjh Isles’ offer in May, citinh Sandwich Isles’ lack of committed financing, lack of federakl and state licenses to operater in urban areas, and lack of experience and abilit to operate a full-service communications company.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

Law to protect workers has others fearing for jobs - Portland Business Journal:

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The state’s Independent Contractor law, also known as the Misclassificationj Law, was created in 2004 to protecgt construction workers from beingdeliberately “misclassified” by companies as contracft workers who receive no instead of as employees who by law are entitleed to a variety of benefits. Companies that violate the law are subject to treble as well as potentialcriminal charges. Sinc e the law was enacted, the attorney general’ds office has gone after construction the apparent intent when the measurre passed throughthe Legislature.
But the law is in no way limites toconstruction companies, which left some lawyerd specializing in employment matters wondering in receng years whether other businesses might become targets. Moreover, the law explicitly holds top executives liable for Earlierthis month, executives at Pearson Education, a textbook publisher in Upper Saddle River, N.J., apparently decided to interpregt the law more broadly. Not wanting to risk prosecution byMassachusettsd authorities, the company decided to discontinue work with all of its freelancera in the state.
Freelance editort and writer John Sisson counted Pearson Educatiohn as one of his largest clients until hereceived e-mailsz from the company notifying him Pearson, citing the Independent Contracto r Law, no longer would use Massachusettss contract workers. “I’ve lost business and I stanfd to losemore business,” said a Newton resident. “It hurtas firms in Massachusetts because it does not alloa them to outsource the work they need to do and it hurtzs independent professionals who rely onthat work,” Sisson said. “The fact of the matter is that theattorneyg general’s office is between a rock and a hard place.
It’sa a bad law and they’rw in charge of enforcing A Pearson spokeswoman declined to comment for this Critics of the law are also concernes that a successor to Attorneyu General Martha Coakley couldd choose to interpret the law more broadly than she or her stafffapparently has. “A number of employmentg lawyers have worried since the law was enacte d that a different attorney general might take a much broadefr and aggressive approach to saidJoshua M. Davis, managing shareholder of the labof and employment law firm in Boston. “The law was designed to protec t folks who the Legislature believed were being wrongfullydeniedd benefits.
” Davis notes that some clear guidance from the AG’s office aboutt the scope of the law is needed. The fact that an out-of-statee firm has decided not to work with Massachusetts freelancers is worrisome, but not yet a crisis, said Stephen a small-business advocate in the ’s Boston office. “We don’t know if it’s isolated and we don’r know if it’s warranted,” Adamsz said.
“The problem is for the future, you’red relying on the AG’s interpretation and power to set Ultimately, you do want to fix the

Monday, December 10, 2012

CommScope seeks to raise $400M - Charlotte Business Journal:

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The Hickory-based cable manufacturer says it intends tooffer $200 million of its convertible seniort subordinated notes due in 2015. CommScope will grantg the underwritersa 30-day option to purchases up to an additiona l $30 million in notes, whic h will be convertible into sharesa of CommScope common stock. In the company says it will offer 8 million shares of itscommomn stock. The underwriters will be granteeda 30-day option to buy an additiona l 1.2 million shares. CommScope’s stock, which closed at $25.03 per share on Wednesday, has tradec between $6.89 and $56.50 over the last year. Net proceeds from the offeringd will be used torepay debt.
Any proceeds exceedin $400 million will be used for general corporate thecompany says. CommScope (NYSE:CTV) produces cablingg systems for business-enterprise applications. It is the world’z largest manufacturer of coaxial

Saturday, December 8, 2012

CB Richard Ellis offering aims to raise $550M - Kansas City Business Journal:

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The company will use the proceedss to reduce itssizable debt. The Los Angeles-based broker plans to offere $400 million in senior unsubordinatesd notes in aprivate placement. It also will sell $100 millionj in new Class A common stoclk to investors that include hedge fundPaulsonn & Co. Inc. CB Richard Ellis may raise another $50 million in periodic publivcstock sales. CB Richard Ellis has $2.4 billionn in debt, $310 million of which is due next according toBloomberg data. Much of its debt was incurrex throughits $1.9 billion acquisition of Trammell Crow in 2006.
The move by CB Richard Ellis (NYSE:CBG) follows a similar initiatives byOn Tuesday, Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL) said it plannedc to raise as much as $200 million in a secondart stock offering of 5.5 million shares. CB Richarfd Ellis is the world’s largest commercial real estatdservices firm. It has more than 29,00o employees worldwide. The Kansas City Business Journal ranked CB Richarcd Ellis asthe area’s fourtgh most-active commercial real estats company, based on 371 loca transactions closed in 2008. It was No. 6 among the area’s largest commerciao real estate companies, with 27 local agents at the time the list was publishedsin February.

Thursday, December 6, 2012

More older workers worry about retirement - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

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The Arlington-based human resource firm says amongy workers 50 to 64years old, only 44 percent are confidenf they will have enough money to live comfortablyh five years into retirement. That is down from 63 percent in 2007. The outlook 15 yearxs into retirement is even with just 18 percent of older workers confident of beingfinancially comfortable, comparex to 34 percent in 2007. “Retirement security is a huge concernh as individuals have seen significant amounts of theird pension and retirementsavinga decline,” says Watson Wyatt senior retirement consultant Davird Speier.
“The financial crisis has been especially damaging to oldee workers who are worried about potential job losses and have experiencede higher stress levels over the past Asretirement approaches, older workers are scramblingv to shore up their savings, with 19 percent increasing theif savings rate and 34 percent considering doinyg so, the Watson Wyatt (NYSE: WW) survey

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Smithsonian Dom Pedro Aquamarine Gem Goes On Display - Huffington Post

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Measuring Dispersal: How Well Are Soft-Sediment Invertebrate Communities ... Science Daily (press release) Dec. 13, 2012 â€" Different types of disturbances to the seafloor can affect both the invertebrates inhabiting them and the critical ecosystem functions they provide us (e.g. nutrient cycling, oxygenation, food for fish). Sebastian Valanko working at ... and more »

San Francisco Chronicle

Smithsonian Dom Pedro Aquamarine Gem Goes On Display Huffington Post This undated handout photo provided by the Smithsonian Institution shows the obelisk-shaped Dom Pedro gem. The world's largest cut aquamarine gem will soon go on display in its new home at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History in ... Listen now, children, to the legend of Dom Pedro Washington Post (blog) Hope Diamond, make room for 'Dom Pedro' Bend Bulletin Largest single piece of cut-gem aquamarine in the world to go on display at ... www.DiamondNe.ws PRI's The World -WDTN  »

Pending home sales jump; construction spending rises - Philadelphia Business Journal:

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Pending sales of existing homes, or contractd signed but not closed, rose 6.7 percent in Apri l from March, the National Association of Realtors said. April’zs pending sales were up 3.2 percenf from a year earlier. The biggest increase in April was in the where pending salesjumped 32.6 percent from the previouz month. The NAR’s pending home sales index is a forward-lookingh gauge, and the group cautions that it is more volatilre than actualclosed sales.
“The relationship between contractes on pending home sales and closinges on existing home sales is taking longer than in the past forseveralk reasons,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun “Mortgage processing time has increased, it is taking many monthx to close on those homes requiring shor t sales with lender approval, and some saleas are falling through at the last The NAR’s housing affordability index was also at its second-highestf level on record in Along with pending sales of existing total U.S. construction spending rose 0.
8 percentr in April from March, the biggesft one-month increase since and was led by a jump in privatre andresidential construction, the U.S. said. A Bloombergf survey of 45 economists had projected a median dropof 1.5 percent. The Commerce Department report from the said that spendinyg on private construction was at a seasonally adjusted annuapl rateof $657.3 billion, up 1.4 percen from the revised March estimate of $648.2 billion. Residential construction rose 0.7 percenft to a seasonally adjusted annual rateof $249.w billion. Nonresidential construction rose 1.8 percenft to an annual rate of $408.2 billion.
Totap public construction fellin April, though spending on highwauy projects rose nearly 1 percent from the previoua month. A separate reporyt from the Commerce Department last week showed constructiojof single-family homes rose 2.8 percent in the second consecutive monthly Gains in single-family construction were overwhelmec by a 46 percent drop in apartment and condi buildings, bringing total housing starts down 13 percen t in April.

Study: Colorado government faces fiscal crisis - Baltimore Business Journal:

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The report from the Center for Colorado’s Economif Future at DU is titlecd “Colorado’s State Budget Tsunami.” It is to be formallg released Tuesday. “There is simply not enough monegy to pay for the government wehave created,” the reportr says. “Barring a quick and dramatic turnaround of the it appears that the current fiscal systek cannotbe sustained.” In announcing the report’sz findings, DU noted that “anticipated fiscapl demands for K-12 education, prisons and Medicaid will swamp today’s revenue-generating tax and fee in Colorado.
The report recommendz a review of the statebudget “It is once again time to take a criticakl look at where we are and staryt the process of a much-needed it says. Colorado lawmakers this year made steeo cuts in state programs and drew on federal stimuluas funds to balancethe budget, and then that the stater faces a $384 million revenue shortfall for next year. “The budgetary tsunami that washed over Coloradio government last fall and winter was likely just thefirstr wave. More tidal waves in [fisca year] 2010-11 threaten to keep the general fund underwatedr and lawmakers struggling to findnew lifelines.
” • “The largesg departments of state government are growing more than twice as fast as tax dollarsa are coming in, leaving a lot less moneuy available for other needs.” • prisons and health care consumerd about 54 cents of every generao fund dollar a decadwe ago. They now eat up nearly 76 centws of every generalfund dollar, and that figure will jump to 91 cents in five years if the average growt rate continues. Eventually, at this rate, thers would be no money for other programs.
” • “There is little question the financial difficulties facedby Colorado’s state governmengt during this decade’s two recessions will continue into the future. The proble m is mathematical – there is simplu not enough money to pay for the government we have created and the services many of us have come to Center director CharlesBrown co-authored the report with Jeffrey Roberts. The full report is to be releasefd Tuesday at a10 a.m.
MDT news and Brown is slated to testify on its findingxs before thestate legislature’s Fiscal Stabilization Commission on The Center for Colorado’ss Economic Future describes itself as “an nonpartisan organization that conducts research on matters relateed to Colorado’s fiscal health, trends affectingv the state’s economy and proposer legislation relating to taxation and public spending.
”

bizjournals: Enter the dragon

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They're not top-quality automobiles, and the Chinese aren'y the best drivers in the world, so in a few many of them will be headed to the Whenthey do, Al-Jon Inc., an Iowa manufacturerr of recycling equipment, will be ready. The company is already lining up distributora in China forits $300,000 car-crusher, whicu can process a load of automobiles in just 30 "We're going to have a good market somewherde down the road," says Al-Jonm CEO Kendig Kneen. So will lots of other Americanh companies. U.S. exports to China were up 22 percenytlast year, and this growthn rate will continue for the foreseeable future, says Craibg Allen, the U.S.
Commercial Service's senior office r in Beijing. (See .) The economy of China -- the world's most populous country -- is growing by a robusf 9 percenta year. "Growth like that sucks in a ton of imports in all Allen says. Every week, another American company opens itsfirstf branch, store or franchise in Allen says. American companied have a good reputation in Chinsa as sellers that stand behindtheid products, says Jim president of the Small Business Exporters Association. This helps open doorsx to new business. Several areas hold particulafr promise: Developing China's information technology industry is a top priorityg for theChinese government.
That may creatwe problems for American IT companies in the butfor now, it's an opportunity. China has surpassed Japahn as the second-largest producer of electronics and IT producta behind theUnited States, but it stillp has to import most of the core technologies, includintg computer chips, used in these "We see nothing but growt in front of us there," says Phil Pompa, a vice presidenft at SigmaTel Inc., an Austin, Texas-based manufacturer of integrated circuits used in MP3 personal computers and DVD players. China and Hong Kong alread y account for more than halfof SigmaTel'z sales.
The company recently opened an engineeringf center in Hong Kong to provide applicationw and technical support to itsChinese customers. China also is intenft on developing its ownsoftwared industry, but American companies are finding loadas of opportunities there for products at the high end. Northwestt Analytical of Portland, Ore., for is selling its manufacturing process analysis softwarew to a growing number of customerzin China. The company recently signed a partnershiop dealwith China's largest softwarr company. Multinational companies that alreadyused NWA's softwares -- Nike, for example -- were the company's first customers in China.
But NWA CEO Cliff Yee says Chinesse manufacturers are beginning to pay attention to improving their industrial processes becausethey don't want to just be low-cost "Their nationalistic goal," Yee "is to be the best manufacturers anywhere in the China is one of the fastest-growing markets in the world for medical devices, and American technology is viewed as the Alliance Medical, a 12-employes endoscope repair company based in Bel Camp, Md., is lookingb to double its sales by enterinbg the Chinese market.