Oct. 22, 2010 at 12:18 p.m.
Filed under:
Consumer news,
Economy,
Retail
Chicago Costume has a wide array of items for Halloween, for which people are expected to spend an average of $73, according to an American Express survey. (Alex Garcia/Tribune)
By Dawn Rhodes | Ankit Patel and Valerie Loborec were scouring the aisles at the cavernous Chicago Costume in Lincoln Park, hoping to find the perfect Halloween costume.
Patel, 26, of Lakeview, didn’t want to spend more than $60 and came away empty-handed.
“I just don’t think it’s worth it,” he said, standing next to a display of accessories for two of the hottest themes: Lady Gaga and Jersey Shore cast members. “It’s just one day and you don’t want to wear the same thing over again.” Get the full story »
By Reuters
Verizon Communications Inc.’s wireless business lost more ground than expected to AT&T in the third quarter, pushing shares down 2 percent.
Verizon Wireless, its venture with Vodafone Group is widely expected to sell Apple’s iPhone early next year, but for now it is playing catch-up to AT&T, the exclusive U.S. iPhone carrier. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 10:58 a.m.
Filed under:
Commercial real estate,
Health care,
Real estate
By Associated Press
Ventas Inc. said Friday it is buying the real estate assets of Atria Senior Living Group for $1.5 billion in cash and stock, giving it a portfolio of 118 homes located in wealthy coastal regions.
The health care real estate investment trust is also assuming $1.6 billion in debt. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 10:55 a.m.
Filed under:
Magazines,
Media,
TV
By Associated Press
Playboy Enterprises Inc. said Thursday that it expects to book a non-cash charge in excess of $20 million related to its television programming inventory in the third quarter that ended Sept. 30. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 10:43 a.m.
Filed under:
Exchanges
From Bloomberg News | Futures market CME Group Inc. will start trading on-the-run Treasury futures contracts next week that will provide investors exposure to benchmark 2-, 5- and 10-year notes.
Oct. 22, 2010 at 10:32 a.m.
Filed under:
China,
Economy,
International,
Policy,
Politics,
Trade
By Reuters
The United States struggled on Friday to win backing for its proposal of setting numerical targets for external imbalances as a way of pressing surplus countries such as China to let their exchange rates rise.
In a letter to fellow finance ministers of the Group of 20 leading economies, U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said countries should implement policies to reduce their current account imbalances below a specified share of national output. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 10:27 a.m.
Filed under:
Consumer electronics,
Technology
By Reuters
Hewlett-Packard unveiled its first product for the fast-growing tablet market, a $799 device running Microsoft Windows that is aimed at business customers.
HP’s Slate 500 attempts to replicate the PC experience in a tablet form, providing a contrast to rivals who have brought more of a smartphone feel to their devices. The Slate runs the same version of Windows 7 used by many companies on their standard PCs. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 9:49 a.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Policy
By Reuters
A measure of future U.S. economic growth fell to a six-week low in the latest week, while the index’s annualized growth rate rose to an 18-week high, a research group said on Friday. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 7:40 a.m.
Filed under:
Earnings,
Energy
By Associated Press
Exelon says its third-quarter net income rose 12 percent as stifling summer heat led more people to crank up their air conditioners. The company is also raising its forecast for the year. The Chicago utility company said Friday it earned $845 million, or $1.27 per share, compared with $757 million, or $1.14 per share a year earlier. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 6:25 a.m.
Filed under:
Bankruptcy,
Economy
By Associated Press
Despite mixed financial signals, rural bankers who responded to a survey in 10 Midwest in Plains states apparently are growing optimistic about the regional economy. The Rural Mainstreet economic report for October says its economic confidence index, which reflects expectations for the economy six months out, rose to 57.3 from 54.9 in September and 46.0 in August. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 6:15 a.m.
Filed under:
Construction,
M&A
By Associated Press
Caterpillar Inc. said Friday it is buying a German engine maker, MWM Holding GmbH, from private-equity firm 3i for 580 million euros, or about $810 million, in cash. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 5:58 a.m.
Filed under:
Food,
Restaurants
By Dow Jones Newswires-Wall Street Journal
McDonald’s Corp. plans to raise menu prices to blunt higher costs, including what would be its first such increase in the U.S. in more than a year — a time when the burger chain’s sales have thrived amid lower prices.
The company expects to increase prices in the U.S. and Europe amid projections that commodity costs will rise between 2 percent and 3 percent in 2011, Chief Financial Officer Peter Bensen said Thursday during a conference call after McDonald’s reported a 10 percent increase in third-quarter earnings and added that October sales appear strong. Get the full story »
Oct. 22, 2010 at 5:30 a.m.
Filed under:
Local earnings: Exelon Corp. releases quarterly financial results.
Other major earnings: AirTran Holdings Inc., Honeywell International Inc., Schlumberger Ltd., Verizon Communications Inc. releases quarterly financial results.
Oct. 21, 2010 at 6:06 p.m.
Filed under:
Exchanges,
Stock activity
By Reuters
Shares of Wells Fargo & Co. traded on the CBOE Stock Exchange Thursday morning at a price about 8 percent below its price on other exchanges, Reuters data showed.
The action was notable because sudden drops in stock prices have become more scrutinized after the May 6 “flash crash,” when markets fell precipitously in minutes. Get the full story »
Oct. 21, 2010 at 5:58 p.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Housing,
Policy,
Stock activity
By Los Angeles Times
The cost for the huge government bailouts of housing finance giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will grow — and possibly more than double to $363 billion — over the next three years.
But the taxpayer loss depends mainly on the health of the economy and the real estate market, a federal regulator said Thursday. Get the full story »
