Former Chicagoan Cheryl Rosner has stepped down as chief executive of online deals site BuyWithMe after less than a year in her position. Get the full story »
Northwestern grads launch coupon site Bare Deal
A pair of Northwestern University graduates has launched a Chicago-based online deal company that merges snail mail and the Web.
Bare Deal, founded by Justin Shapiro and Glen Andrianov, launched Wednesday in Chicago and the site lists 12 additional cities where the company plans to expand, including Los Angeles and New York.
Chicago is home to tens of Web companies offering local daily deals, including Groupon, the pioneer of the space. Groupon’s co-founder, Andrew Mason, is also a Northwestern alumnus. Shapiro and Andrianov graduated in 2008. Get the full story »
Sears shares gain on strong 4Q projections
Sears' flagship store on State Street in Chicago. (PRNewsFoto/Sears Holdings Corporation)
Sears Holdings Corp. projected fourth-quarter earnings that topped analysts’ expectations because of a lower tax rate, sending shares of the retailer higher.
However, the company also reported its domestic same-store sales declined during December due to continued weakness at its U.S. Sears stores, particularly in consumer electronics.
The retailer has struggled as it continues losing business to rivals and worries remain that consumers are keeping a tight grip on their wallets amid economic uncertainty and high unemployment. Get the full story »
Geithner gauging support for big U.S. tax change
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner speaks at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies on Jan. 12, 2011. (Tim Sloan/AFP/Getty Images)
The Obama administration is exploring ways to boost tax incentives for corporate investment in the United States, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said Wednesday, ahead of his meeting with chief financial officers from some of America’s biggest companies.
“We’re examining whether we can find political support for a comprehensive tax reform — revenue neutral — but that would improve incentives for investing in the United States,” Geithner said in comments after a speech at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies.
Geithner is expected to meet with CFOs of major U.S. companies including Microsoft Corp and Cisco Systems on Friday to hash out ideas for simplifying and trimming the corporate tax — nearly the highest in the industrialized world. Get the full story »
Lake Forest private equity firm does Florida deal
Lake Forest-based private equity firm Green Courte Partners LLC has acquired six age-restricted, manufactured housing communities in central Florida.
The firm, which targets niche real estate sectors, said the purchase includes more than 1,850 home sites that are nearly 100 percent occupied.
Green Courte now owns more than 18,000 home sites in 48 communities in 10 states. Get the full story »
Second coal-to-gas bill passes Senate
In one of its final votes of the session, the state Senate passed a controversial bill this morning that would force state utilities to purchase synthetic natural gas from a plant proposed for downstate Illinois.
The bill paves the way for Power Holdings of Illinois LLC’s to produce gas from Illinois coal in Jefferson County by guaranteeing that the plant would have a market for the gas it produces for the next 10 years: Illinois consumers.
The vote follows a similar bill that passed last week that forces utilities to purchase the total output of a coal-to-gas plant proposed for Southeast Chicago by Leucadia National Corp. for the next 30 years. Get the full story »
Library of Congress taps Navteq for map data
The Library of Congress has picked Chicago-based digital mapping company Navteq to provide data that will underpin economic and demographic research.
Navteq, which is owned by Finnish company Nokia, said it will provide map data for the Congressional Cartography Program, which supplies geographic research and analysis for lawmakers. The Navteq data encompasses roads, cities, political boundaries, census boundaries, schools, law enforcement agencies and other types of locations. Get the full story »
Obama approval rating rises as economy improves
President Barack Obama returning from his vacation in Hawaii with his family, Jan. 4, 2011. (Reuters/Jason Reed)
President Barack Obama is getting a bump in his approval ratings from an improving economy, but Americans want him to focus on reducing debt and spending, a Reuters/Ipsos poll showed on Wednesday.
The poll found reasons for optimism for Obama as he searches for areas of compromise with newly emboldened Republicans this year and lays the groundwork for his 2012 re-election bid.
Obama’s job approval rating went up to 50 percent from 45 percent in December, the first time Obama has achieved 50 percent approval in this poll since last June. Get the full story »
Geithner says China needs faster yuan rise
China’s yuan currency remains “substantially undervalued” and it is in Beijing’s own interest to let it appreciate more rapidly to ward off inflation risks, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said on Wednesday. Get the full story »
Boeing, Spirit reach deal on 787 claims
Guests exit a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft at the Farnborough Airshow in Hampshire, England, July 18, 2010. (Ben Stansall/AFP/Getty Images)
Aircraft parts maker Spirit Aerosystems Holdings Inc. said it has reached a deal with Boeing Co. on claims related to development and production of the 787 Dreamliner.
Spirit did not specify what claims had been addressed, but the company has taken financial hits in recent years due to delays in the Dreamliner, which is nearly three years behind schedule.
Spirit spokesmen were not immediately available for comment. Get the full story »
Taking cell call tops list of job interview blunders
If you receive a cell phone call or text message during your job interview, don’t answer it. Doing so ranks as job candidates’ most common mistake in an interview, according to a survey of hiring managers.
Indeed, 71 percent of managers surveyed named it as the top blunder, according to a report out Wednesday from online career site CareerBuilder. Other common mistakes: dressing inappropriately and appearing disinterested, each cited by 69 percent of managers, followed closely by appearing arrogant at 66 percent. Get the full story »
GM wants to tie union pay to performance
General Motors Co. wants pay for union-represented workers be tied to employees’ work performance and the company’s financial health — much like the way its salaried workers are paid — in what would be a major shift in how generations of auto workers have been compensated.
“They are trying to give hourly workers the same metrics as salaried workers,” GM Vice Chairman Stephen Girsky said Tuesday at the Detroit auto show. “There is a big pay-for-performance element going through the company and there is going to be more of it.” Get the full story »
Makers Mark head to step aside
For 35 years, Bill Samuels Jr. oversaw Maker’s Mark bourbon as it matured from a regional novelty started by his parents to an international brand recognizable by its red wax seal.
Now he’s planning to step aside for the next generation of his family to lead the rural Kentucky distillery, known for its distinctive square bottles that are sealed with red wax. Samuels, 70, will retire as president of Maker’s Mark on April 15, when he’ll become chairman emeritus of the brand owned by Fortune Brands Inc., the company announced. Get the full story »
Mortgage applications increased last week
Applications for U.S. home mortgages increased last week as lending rates eased from recent highs, an industry group said on Wednesday. The Mortgage Bankers Association said its seasonally adjusted index of mortgage application activity rose 2.2 percent in the week ended Jan. 7 to its highest level in about a month. Get the full story »
Walgreen aims to fill more 90-day prescriptions
Walgreen Co. wants more customers to fill 90-day prescriptions in its stores, a move it says will make it easier for patients to stick to their drug regimens and save millions of dollars in healthcare costs. Get the full story »
