The founder of Jimmy John’s sandwich shops says he’s considering moving his company’s headquarters from Champaign to Florida because of Illinois’ tax increase.
Jimmy John Liautaud told The (Champaign) News-Gazette Tuesday that he’s gathering information on a potential move and will ask the company’s board to decide. Get the full story »
The United States and China reached agreement on export deals worth $45 billion, a senior U.S. official said Wednesday.
The agreements included a $19 billion deal with Boeing in which China will purchase 200 Boeing aircraft. Get the full story »
American Airlines parent AMR Corp. posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss on a 10.3 percent increase in revenue as the company aimed to control fuel and labor costs.
AMR is the second major U.S. airline to post fourth-quarter results. Delta Air Lines on Tuesday posted a lower-than-expected quarterly profit. Get the full story »
Groundbreaking on new U.S. home construction fell more than expected in December to its lowest in over a year, suggesting the battered housing sector remains a major roadblock to economic recovery. Get the full story »
U.S. farm equipment maker Deere & Co will spend $100 million to expand its capacity to produce tractors for the Indian market and for export, building a new factory and expanding an existing one. Get the full story »
Vitaminwater has too much sugar to be accurately described as nutritious, Britain’s ad regulator ruled Wednesday, ordering brand owner Coca-Cola to stop running publicity carrying the claim. Get the full story »
Flight attendants at United Airlines and Continental are represented by separate unions, but the union at United filed papers Tuesday that could start the process of combining them as parent company United Continental Holdings Inc. combines the two airlines into one. Get the full story »
Starbucks Corp. will allow customers at U.S. company-operated stores to use some smartphones to pay for their purchases in an effort to drive sales.
Customers with Research in Motion Ltd.’s BlackBerry or Apple Inc.’s iPhone or iPod touch will be able to pay using a Starbuck card mobile app at nearly 6,800 company-operated stores and 1,000 Starbucks in U.S. Target Corp. locations. Get the full story »
A former Chicago hedge fund manager accused of engaging swindling more than $3.5 million from approximately 48 victims who invested in funds he purported to operate, has turned himself in to federal authorities.
James Brandolino, 42, of Joliet and formerly of Chicago, was charged with mail fraud in a criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court by U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald. Prosecutors said he obtained about $4.7 million from 48 high net worth investors since 2003 for purported managed futures trading accounts and a commodity pool investment. He provided about $1.1 million in investor redemptions and allegedly lost roughly half of the total invested funds through trading and misused most of the remaining funds for his own benefit, prosecutors said. Get the full story »
Nate Berkus shows off his Chicago condo in a video on People.com. (People)
ELITE STREET | By Bob Goldsborough | Chicago interior designer Nate Berkus, who rose to national fame through his frequent appearances on the “Oprah Winfrey Show” and who now hosts his own eponymous and Winfrey-backed, New York-based talk show, on Tuesday placed his seven-room, full-floor Gold Coast condo on the market for $2.65 million.
Berkus, 39, has owned the 3,980-square-foot condo unit since 2003, when he bought it for $500,000. The condo is located in a small, 12-unit building that was constructed in 1928 and that “feels like a co-op building, with some of the vintage features,” said Berkus’ listing agent, Katherine Chez of Coldwell Banker. Get the full story »
Reports: Housing starts for December, 7:30 a.m.
Major earnings: AMR Corp., EBay Inc., Goldman Sachs Group Inc., Wells Fargo & Co.
Before Thursday night’s big bash in Chicago where Mayor Richard Daley will welcome China’s President Hu Jintao to the Windy City, several business executives with Chicago connections met with the Chinese leader and President Barack Obama in a Wednesday afternoon gathering at the White House.
Attending the meeting were James McNerney, chairman and chief executive of Chicago-based Boeing Co. and Greg Brown, the president and chief executive of Motorola Solutions Inc. in suburban Schaumburg. Get the full story »
The U.S. Labor Department said Tuesday that it is seeking authority to monitor a suburban sewer contractor the agency says has been cited multiple times for safety violations.
The contractor, Norridge-based Gerardi Sewer & Water Co., has had a “severe violator history” at work sites where it digs trenches, the agency said in a press release. Get the full story »
Sears Holdings Corp. has named Robin Michel, formerly president of Giant Foods, as the retailer’s new grocery and pharmacy chief.
Michel, a veteran supermarket executive, joins the operator of Sears and Kmart stores at a time when mass merchandise chains are moving more aggressively into the food business. Get the full story »
U.S. consumer confidence slipped in the latest week after a sharp jump the week before, according to an ABC News index, but economic optimism was at a seven-year high.
The overall consumer-comfort index reading was -43 on its scale of -100 to +100 in the week ended Sunday, down three points from the prior week. Get the full story »
