March 16 at 6:08 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Banking,
Government,
Insurance
By Associated Press
The government’s bailout of banks, auto makers and insurers helped prevent a more severe economic crisis, but might have sowed the seeds of the next one, a congressional watchdog group said Wednesday in its final report.
The Congressional Oversight Panel said that the government’s rescue fund may have prevented an economic depression by sending billions of dollars to companies crippled in financial crisis that erupted in 2008. But little has been done to aid to homeowners facing foreclosure or others far from Wall Street, it said. Get the full story »
March 16 at 5:41 a.m.
Filed under:
Banking
By Dow Jones Newswires
Customers use ATMs at a Bank of America branch in Boston. (AP Photo/Lisa Poole)
Some of the nation’s biggest banks are imposing a variety of new fees on people who withdraw money from automated-teller machines.
The move is the latest example of the burgeoning new fees that banks are imposing on customers accustomed to years of free services. Banks are scrambling to replace billions of dollars in revenue expected to be lost from new federal regulations on overdraft charges and debit cards. Get the full story »
March 15 at 5:34 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Government
By Dow Jones Newswires
Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) and a bipartisan group of U.S. senators on Tuesday formally launched their legislative attack on the Federal Reserve’s plan to regulate debit-card transaction fees, a move cheered by banks and credit unions but slammed by retailers.
The bill, dubbed the Debit Interchange Fee Study Act, comes amid mounting concerns over the Fed’s proposed fee caps and calls for a two-year time out on the regulation. Get the full story »
March 15 at 5:18 p.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Food
By Reuters
A rising tide of global forces is supporting the surge in prices for important food staples such as meat, dairy and grains, commodity experts said at the Reuters Global Food and Agriculture Summit on Tuesday.
“This is a pretty sustainable increase. … A number of factors have been building over time in terms of the commodity increase: world economic growth, rising crude oil prices, increased Chinese import demand all have conspired,” said Bill Lapp, president of Advanced Economic Solutions, a commodity analytical firm based in Omaha, Neb. Get the full story »
March 15 at 5:04 p.m.
Filed under:
Litigation,
Transportation
By Dow Jones Newswires
Canadian National Railway Ltd. lost its U.S. court appeal to reverse a U.S. regulatory order that requires it to pay for the majority of the costs associated with two highway grade separation projects in Illinois.
CN will not appeal the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in Washington, the Montreal company said in a statement Tuesday. Get the full story »
March 15 at 4:51 p.m.
Filed under:
Crime,
IPOs,
Internet,
Stock activity
By Reuters
The wild popularity of Facebook and other social media sites has spawned a cottage industry of con artists promising average investors a chance to cash in on the frenzy through shares in the companies before their initial public offerings.
While the pre-IPO offerings may be real, investors must be aware that the people touting them may be frauds, the U.S. Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) said Tuesday. Get the full story »
March 15 at 4:39 p.m.
Filed under:
Personnel moves,
Technology
By Dow Jones Newswires
Nvidia Corp. Chief Financial Officer David White has resigned for personal reasons effective May 31, the graphics-chip maker said Tuesday.
Shares fell 2.1 percent, to $17.29, in early after-hours trading. The company’s stock has fallen 22 percent in the last month through Tuesday’s close.
Nvidia did not disclose White’s plans. Get the full story »
March 15 at 4:30 p.m.
Filed under:
Chicago executives,
Pharmaceuticals
By Bruce Japsen
Abbott Laboratories Chairman and Chief Executive Miles White received a 2 percent raise last year, to $1.89 million, though his bonus and other stock awards dipped amid a turbulent year for the North Chicago-based drug and medical product giant.
Abbott, which failed to win Food and Drug Administration approval for certain prescription drugs, valued White’s total compensation package at nearly $25.6 million in 2010, down from $26.2 million in 2009, according to the company’s annual proxy statement filed Tuesday afternoon with the Securities and Exchange Commission.. The total includes stock awards, bonus, salary and other compensation. Get the full story »
March 15 at 4:17 p.m.
Filed under:
Taxes
By Becky Yerak
People earning more than $1 million a year would be subject to a higher tax rate under a bill to be introduced Wednesday by Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.).
Her proposed “Fairness in Taxation Act” would enact new brackets for income starting at $1 million. Schakowky’s office said details, including the proposed rate, would be released at a press conference Wednesday in Washington, D.C. Get the full story »
March 15 at 4:01 p.m.
Filed under:
Advertising/Marketing,
Education,
Internet
By Emily Bryson York
The Northwestern sex toy scandal got another shot in the arm Tuesday afternoon, as a blog post surfaced that quotes the Chicago advertising executive involved in the demonstration defending his actions and castigating the media for mischaracterizing them.
Jim Marcus, creative director of Tribal DDB, the digital division of DDB Chicago, demonstrated the use of a sex-toy on his fiance in a voluntary assembly after a human sexuality class at Northwestern University this month. The news, first reported in the Daily Northwestern, led to a call for the ouster of professor John Michael Bailey. Get the full story »
March 15 at 2:57 p.m.
Filed under:
Chicago executives
By Wailin Wong
Greg Brown and Sanjay Jha, the chief executives of Motorola Solutions Inc. and Motorola Mobility Inc. saw significant increases in their 2010 compensation from a year earlier, according to a proxy statement Motorola Solutions filed Tuesday with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
Motorola split into two independent companies in January, with Brown heading Motorola Solutions and Jha in charge of Motorola Mobility. In 2010, Brown’s total compensation was $13.7 million, compared with $8.5 million in 2009. Jha’s total compensation jumped to $13 million from $3.8 million. Get the full story »
March 15 at 2:30 p.m.
Filed under:
Food,
Packaged foods,
Recalls
By Chicago Tribune
More than 10,000 pounds of Lean Cuisine frozen spaghetti and meatball dishes have been recalled because of the possible presence of foreign materials, the Department of Agriculture said late on Monday.
March 15 at 2:22 p.m.
Filed under:
Advertising/Marketing,
Exchanges
From BtoB Magazine | CME Group debuted a global print, TV and online ad campaign called “How the World Advances,” designed to show how its financial services help businesses expand and world economies grow. Get the full story>>
March 15 at 2:07 p.m.
Filed under:
Taxes
By McClatchy Tribune Newspapers
Quad/Graphics Inc., which became the nation’s second-largest commercial printer through an acquisition last year, on Tuesday announced the closure of its facility in Mount Morris, Ill.
The Mount Morris plant encompasses approximately 644,000 square feet and employs about 230 people. Customer work will be consolidated at other facilities. Get the full story »
By Sandra M. Jones
The "Priscilla Queen Of the Desert cupcake" at Magnolia Bakery in New York City earlier this month. (Jemal Countess/Getty)
Magnolia Bakery, the New York chain credited with starting the cupcake craze, plans to open its first Chicago store at the Block 37 shops in the Loop. The bakery signed a lease for 2,550 square feet on the first floor of the indoor shopping mall. The shop is slated to open in June. Get the full story »
