The Professional Beauty Association is launching an annual trade show for the Midwest region in Rosemont this spring, hoping to attract more than 20,000 attendees in the spa and salon industries.
The PBA said it is North America’s largest association of professionals in the salon, spa and beauty industries. Get the full story »
Caterpillar’s machinery sales through dealers accelerated in the trailing three-month period through January, according to data posted on the equipment maker’s website.
Dealer-reported retail sales were up 49 percent worldwide from a year earlier, accelerating from the 44 percent pace reported last month. The increase was led by jumps of 58 percent in North America and 56 percent in Latin America, both marking a sequential increase, according to data on the website. Get the full story »
American Airlines is recalling 200 more flight attendants who were furloughed in recent years.
American said Friday it also agreed to hire 30 new Mandarin-speaking flight attendants to staff flights to and from Shanghai. Get the full story »
From Bond Buyer | Illinois plans to sell $3.7 billion of taxable general obligation bonds Tuesday and Wednesday, the state said Friday morning.
Regulators have begun an inquiry into Apple Inc.’s plans to take a cut of the revenue generated by the sale of online subscriptions through its App Store, according to a person familiar with the plans. Get the full story »
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan’s office says it raised nearly $1 billion in state revenue last year through a variety of litigation and the collection of estate-tax revenues.
(Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)
Borders will begin holding closing sales this Saturday at 200 of its stores, including 15 locations in the Chicago area.
A U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York gave Borders the go-ahead on Thursday to shutter roughly 30 percent of its stores. The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based bookseller filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Wednesday.
The company said in a press release that more than $350 million in books, magazines, music, movies, calendars and other merchandise will be liquidated at discounts ranging from 20 percent to 40 percent. Borders Rewards programs remain in effect in stores and online, and the retailer is also honoring gift cards. Get the full story »
Brazilian exchange operator BM&FBovespa is not in merger talks with Chicago-based exchange operator CME Group but expects their partnership to expand in the near future, BM&FBovespa Chief Executive Edemir Pinto said on Friday.
His remarks followed a frenzied week of merger announcements by exchanges around the world as bourses move to strengthen ties in the face of tough competition at home. Get the full story »
Investors hoping to ride the current wave of smartphone growth can now buy shares of a new exchange-traded fund based on the NASDAQ’s CEA Smartphone Index.
The First Trust NASDAQ CEA Smartphone Index Fund trades under the ticker symbol FONE and “provides a convenient way for investors to take advantage of the positive trends that are shaping the smartphone industry,” the NASDAQ OMX Group Inc. said in a press release. Get the full story »
U.S. regulators should stem the growing tide of anonymous stock-trading and consider charging high-frequency traders fees for the disproportionate amount of orders they send into the marketplace, said a panel of experts advising how to avoid another “flash crash.”
The report laying out 14 recommendations for the Securities and Exchange Commission and Commodity Futures Trading Commission contains some fresh ideas. Taken together, they would significantly overhaul the high-speed market that has gone increasingly electronic in the last decade. Get the full story »
Motorola Mobility Chief Executive Sanjay Jha defended his decision to sell the company’s coming Xoom tablet in the U.S. at $800, a higher price tag than market leader Apple Inc.’s iPad.
Jha, speaking to reporters at Barcelona’s Mobile World Congress, said a device that was 4G compatible on Verizon’s network was worth the extra money. A 32GB iPad with 3G currently retails in the U.S. for $729. Get the full story »
From the Chicago Sun-Times | The Aurora restaurant that once carried Walter Payton’s name has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after months of unpaid bills and delinquent taxes that have kept its owners in and out of the courtroom. Owner Scott Ascher said he filed for bankruptcy protection for the facility Monday in order to sell the building to one of three interested parties. Ascher said the restaurant will remain open. Get the full story>>
From the Daily Herald | Motorola Solutions is offering for lease two major buildings on its Schaumburg campus to outside companies. After Motorola Inc. split on Jan. 4, the remaining Motorola Mobility equipment was transferred to Libertyville, so more space opened at the Motorola Solutions headquarters, located off Algonquin and Meacham roads. Get the full story>>
Spending by Chicago businesses on dining and retail goods rose in the fourth quarter of 2010 from a year earlier, showing “an overall corporate spending resurgence,” according to data released by American Express Business Insights. Get the full story »
Six Flags Great America in Gurnee said it is planning to hire 3,200 seasonal workers this year for positions that can last up to six months. Get the full story »
