Commonwealth Edison and other state utilities would be able to lock in profit margins above 10 percent under a bill to be introduced Tuesday in the General Assembly.
The legislation also proposes that rate hikes for consumers, which typically undergo an 11-month regulatory review, could be decided in as little as 45 days.
Martin Havlat. (Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
ELITE STREET | By Bob Goldsborough | Former Chicago Blackhawks left wing Martin Havlat, who now skates for the Minnesota Wild, on Monday sold his 16th-floor condo unit on the New East Side in a cash deal for $670,000 — $90,000 less than he paid for it in 2006.
Havlat, 29, bought the three-bedroom unit in the Lancaster building in 2006 for $760,000. Features in the six-room, 1,800-square-foot condo include a full limestone bath with a whirlpool, a full granite bath, mud set showers in both full baths, a powder room with an onyx floor, Grohe faucets throughout, Brazilian cherry floors, a balcony, lake views, and a custom kitchen with slate floors, granite counters, stainless steel appliances, 42-inch cabinets and a Sub-Zero refrigerator. Get the full story »
From The New York Times’ DealBook | Chicago’s posh Blackstone Hotel, which charges visitors up to $699 per night, benefited from federal aid that targets poor communities, Bloomberg Markets reports in its March issue. Renovations for the hotel were financed by Prudential Financial, which received a $15.6 million tax credit from the New Markets Tax Credits program, a $10.1 billion incentive for companies to develop poor neighborhoods and towns.
U.S. regulators began their most forceful attempt yet to clamp down on bank bonuses since the 2007-2009 financial crisis, and warned firms they would seek to counter attempts to circumvent the reforms.
While the proposals pale in comparison to similar restrictions in Europe, the talk of keeping a keen eye on loopholes indicates regulators want to get tough on banks that make symbolic pay changes while finding ways to gut the intent of reforms. Get the full story »
Illinois Tool Works Inc. said Monday it will see a significant tax deduction, most likely in the first quarter, as the result of a court case in Australia.
The Glenview-based company, which makes automotive and food services equipment, industrial packaging and other products, said the Federal Court of Australia issued a favorable decision Feb. 4 in its dispute with the Australian Taxation Office over income tax deductions. Get the full story »
Chicago-based Orbitz Worldwide Inc. said on Monday that it has renewed its agreement with airfare software provider ITA Software through the end of 2015. Get the full story »
One of America’s wealthiest clans, the Pritzker family, is continuing to shed assets with the expected sale of Triton Container International Ltd. to private equity firms Warburg Pincus and Vestar Capital, people familiar with the matter said.
The buyout shops are close to a deal to acquire the shipping-container leasing company owned by Chicago’s Pritzker family for about $1 billion, these people said.
The Pritzkers, which took the Hyatt Hotels Corp. hotel chain public in 2009, are among the wealthiest U.S. families, controlling a business empire founded by Nicholas J. Pritzker more than a century ago. Get the full story »
A major power outage at Chicago O’Hare International Airport brought three terminals to a stand-still for about 20 minutes today, according to Commonwealth Edison. Get the full story »
An image from Groupon's Tibet ad. (Groupon)
Groupon Inc. is reworking its television commercials in response to the negative reception they received when they aired during Sunday’s Super Bowl.
Chief Executive Andrew Mason said in a Monday blog post that the company is tweaking the end of the ads to draw attention to the philanthropic causes they were intended to support.
“Ads are traditionally about shameless self promotion, and we’ve always strived to have a more honest and respectful conversation with our customers,” Mason wrote. “We would never have run these ads if we thought they trivialized the causes — even if we didn’t take them as seriously as we do, what type of company would go out of their way to be so antagonistic?” Get the full story »
Riverwoods-based Discover Financial Services said Monday it has reached a deal with Puerto Rico’s largest commercial bank to expand acceptance of the company’s Discover card in that territory. Get the full story »
Kmart is among seven companies that have warned the state this month that they are planning closings or mass layoffs. Kmarts in Franklin Park, Ill., and Washington, Ill., will close, the company said, putting 144 employees out of work.
The Illinois Department of Commerce and Opportunity requires employers to provide 60 days notice of plant closures or mass layoffs. The law applies to businesses with 75 or more full-time workers. Get the full story »
Ford Motor Co. is recalling more than 1,600 just-built Explorers for a safety problem with the second row of seats.
Ford said in a filing with federal safety regulators that the seats may not provide the required strength in a crash. Get the full story »
Crain’s Chicago Business and the Chicago Reader each announced the appointment of new top editorial executives on Monday.
Jim Kirk, who has been managing editor of the non-profit Chicago News Cooperative for the last nine months, is joining Crain’s as chief of editorial operations, beginning Feb. 24. The new top editorial post will have him overseeing Crain’s growing number of content-based businesses. The Chicago Reader reported Mara Shalhoup, editor of parent Creative Loafing’s alternative weekly in Atlanta, will be its next editor, effective Mar. 7.
Americans increased credit-card use for the first time since 2008, a sign they are growing more confident about the economy and opening their wallets wider.
The surprising rise in December revolving credit as tracked by the Federal Reserve pushed up consumer credit outstanding by $6.1 billion, or 3.0 percent, to $2.41 trillion. Economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires had forecast the Fed data Monday would show consumer credit rising by only $2.5 billion. Get the full story »
Sara Lee Corp.’s managers passed up three chances to sell itself in the last year, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing people with knowledge of the negotiations. Get the full story »
