From the Chicago Sun-Times | Rockford-based FatWallet.com, an online partner of Amazon.com and Overstock.com, is leaving Illinois for Wisconsin after losing business ties with major online retailers since Gov. Quinn signed of the “Amazon.com tax” earlier this month. Get the full story>>
Nasdaq, ICE make rival bid for NYSE Euronext
Nasdaq OMX and IntercontinentalExchange on Friday announced a joint $11.3 billion bid to buy the parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, topping an offer by Germany’s Deutsche Boerse. Get the full story »
Crayola’s ill-fated colored bubbles anger parents
A child with green and orange fingers from Crayola Colored Bubbles. (Tribune photo)
It took nearly two decades of toil and trouble before scientists at toy giant Crayola successfully brewed up the secret formula that lets kids blow bubbles in vivid colors. The bottles went on sale in February, at $10 for a pack of three. Shoppers have snapped up several hundred thousand packages.
But now some angry parents may burst Crayola’s bubble. The problem: when the bubbles pop (or the solutions splash), they leave a neon-bright — and, parents complain, often permanent — mess. Despite the large type on the front of the bottles that says “Washable.” Get the full story »
State Farm CEO: Biz must address state spending
State Farm Insurance CEO Ed Rust Jr. says business leaders should inject themselves into the debate about “unchecked” government spending and borrowing. Get the full story »
Macy’s renovating Water Tower Place store
Macy's store at Water Tower Place (Alex Garcia/Tribune file)
Macy’s is undertaking a multimillion-dollar renovation of its Water Tower Place store in a move to bring new life to the Magnificent Mile outpost.
The department store chain is concentrating its efforts on the first three floors, where it generates most of its business. Cosmetics, women’s accessories, shoes and intimate apparel account for 36 percent of total revenue at Macy’s Inc. nationwide, according to the company’s annual report filed this week.
The last time the eight-level, 227,000-square-foot store had a makeover was in 1996 when it was a Marshall Field’s. Get the full story »
Honda, Mazda to resume some production
Honda Motor and Mazda Motor on Thursday became the latest major automakers to say they would resume some production in Japan after halting plant operations following the earthquake and tsunami of March 11. Get the full story »
Fed reveals which banks borrowed during crisis
Foreign banks, regional U.S. banks, and banks fighting for their last chance at survival counted among the heaviest users of the Federal Reserve’s emergency discount lending window during the heat of the 2008 financial crisis. Get the full story »
Court ruling threatens McCormick Place overhaul
In this photo from April 7, 2010, McCormick Place union representatives, including John T. Coli of the Teamsters, far right, testify in front of the Joint Committee on the Metropolitan Pier & Exposition Authority. (Nancy Stone/Chicago Tribune)
The state-mandated overhaul of McCormick Place operations hit a legal wall Thursday, as two major labor unions won a federal court judgment that the National Labor Relations Act preempts states from enacting legislation that would interfere with the collective bargaining process.
U.S. District Court Judge Ronald Guzman’s ruling in parallel cases brought by Teamsters Local 727 and by the Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters has the potential to throw a major wrench into the revamped show-floor rules. The new rules give exhibitors the right to do much of their own booth set-up and tear-down work. Get the full story »
Sbarro reportedly in bankruptcy talks
Sbarro Inc., the fast-food pizza chain that dots shopping-mall food courts around the world, is preparing to file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection as soon as next week, said people familiar with the matter. Get the full story »
Lightbank invests in San Francisco startup Qwiki
Lightbank, the Chicago investment firm run by Groupon backers Eric Lefkofsky and Brad Keywell, has invested $1 million in Qwiki, a San Francisco, Calif.-based startup. Get the full story »
Ally, former GM finance arm, files for IPO
Ally Financial filed Thursday for an initial public offering that will allow the U.S. government to sell down its majority stake in the bailed-out auto and mortgage lender. Get the full story »
Stock gains bolster public pension coffers
Public pension assets rose 5.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2010 as stock market gains helped pensions continue to recover from the financial crisis, a federal agency reported Thursday. Get the full story »
March 31 at 2:21 p.m.
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Filed under: Cell phones, Software, Technology, Telecommunications, Wireless Walk and Text look-alike targets app thieves
Symantec Corp. said Thursday that it has detected a new kind of malware that targets Android mobile phone users who download illegal applications. Get the full story »
Beef leading commodity price surge
Last year, consumer spending on beef totaled $74.3 billion. (AP Photo/Jayme Halbritter)
Surging commodity prices have consumers paying more for groceries such as eggs, milk, cereal and particularly beef.
In February, the average retail price per pound for beef was $3.87, up 12.4 percent from a year earlier, according to market research firm FreshLook Data. Get the full story »
Illinois paces decline in latest initial jobless claims
The number of U.S. workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits fell slightly last week, indicating the jobs market continues to gradually recover. Get the full story »
