Midwest manufacturing continued its recovery in January, led by improvement in the auto industry, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago. The Chicago Fed’s monthly manufacturing index increased 1.1 percent in January, to a seasonally adjusted 84.1. Get the full story »
Food and energy prices are surging. Still, underlying inflation remains low, the government said Thursday. The U.S. Consumer Price Index, a key measure of inflation, increased 2.1 percent during the past 12 months ending in February, up from 1.6 percent in January, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said Thursday. Get the full story »
Job seekers in Anaheim, Calif., in June 2010. (Roben Beck/AFP/Getty Images)
The number of Americans filing first-time claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, a sign that the job market continues to slowly improve. There were 385,000 initial jobless claims filed in the week ended March 12, the Labor Department said Thursday. That was down 16,000 from the previous week’s upwardly revised 401,000. Get the full story »
Mortgage rates posted a sharp decline, with the benchmark conforming 30-year fixed mortgage rate falling to 4.91 percent, according to Bankrate.com’s weekly national survey. Get the full story »
Boeing Co. says its suppliers in Japan are still shipping some airplane parts to the Chicago-based manufacturer, the Associated Press reported Wednesday, citing company spokesman Thomas Brabant. Get the full story »
Amazon dropped its Illinois business affiliates last week. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
The Illinois commerce department will try to find new partners for businesses that previously sold products through Internet retailers like Amazon.com and Overstock.com. Amazon and Overstock plan to drop Illinois-based affiliates this spring to allow them to avoid collecting sales taxes under a new law that applies to Internet businesses that team up with Illinois partners. Get the full story »
Don’t take no for a final answer when a health insurer rejects a claim and leaves behind an unpaid medical bill. As many as 50 percent of some appeals prompt insurers to reverse their decisions, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office. Get the full story »
U.S. banking regulators have paid out nearly $9 billion to cover losses on loans and other assets at 165 failed institutions that were sold to stronger companies during the financial crisis. Get the full story »
Diet Coke is now the No. 2 soft drink, behind Coke. (Coca-Cola)
U.S. sales of Diet Coke overtook those of Pepsi-Cola for the first time in 2010, making the diet soda the No. 2 carbonated soft drink in the country behind Coca-Cola, industry data are expected to confirm Thursday.
Occupying the top two rankings would mark a historic win for Coca-Cola Co. in its decades-old rivalry with PepsiCo Inc., which has seen its market share slip in recent years and is trying to retool its marketing. Get the full story »
Rising radiation levels and continual aftershocks rumbling through Tokyo are raising tensions between pilots and managers at U.S. carriers flying to central Japan.
Union leaders at United and Continental Airlines say flight crews are anxious about deteriorating conditions in Tokyo, where the carriers’ pilots and flight attendants recuperate from long trans-Pacific flights. Get the full story »
Mesirow CEO James Tyree at his office in 2009. (Brian Cassella/Chicago Tribune)
James Tyree, the Mesirow Financial chief executive who led the group that took control of Sun-Times Media in 2009, died Wednesday, five months after being diagnosed with stomach cancer.
Tyree had stepped up to save the Chicago Sun-Times when it was floundering in bankruptcy court. He led an investor group that bought it for $26 million. Get the full story »
From Bloomberg | Chicago-based Options Clearing Corp. changed its name to OCC, according to a statement from the group which clears and settles all trading of U.S. exchange-listed equity derivatives contracts.
The yen soared to a record high against the dollar on Wednesday as concerns escalated over a nuclear crisis in Japan, and investors nervously watched to see if Japanese authorities will step in to stem the currency’s rise. Get the full story »
