Feb. 16 at 2:55 p.m.
Filed under:
Consumer electronics,
Retail,
Updated
By Sandra M. Jones
Electronics retailer H.H. Gregg Inc. said it plans to enter the Chicago market for the first time this fall with 20 stores.
The Indianapolis-based company will open stores in Schaumburg, Niles and Vernon Hills, among other locations, according to spokeswoman Sari Martin.
The fast-growing retailer aims to take advantage of big-box real estate left empty in the wake of the recession, moving into stores once occupied by bankrupt retailers Circuit City, Wickes Furniture and Linens ‘n Things. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 2:18 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Insurance,
Litigation
By Dow Jones Newswires
Insurer Allstate Corp. sued JP Morgan Chase & Co. over more than $700 million in residential mortgage-backed securities — the latest to allege that a bank misled investors on the quality of mortgages underlying securities.
In the suit, filed Tuesday in state court in New York City, Allstate said JP Morgan and its entities sold Allstate a “toxic mix of loans given to borrowers that could not afford the properties” while telling Allstate it was buying a safe security. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 1:18 p.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Government,
Jobs/employment
By Reuters
U.S. Federal Reserve officials are increasingly confident of the economic recovery but remain unsatisfied with the healing of the job market, minutes of their January meeting released Wednesday showed.
“Participants generally expressed greater confidence that the economic recovery would be sustained,” the Fed said. Get the full story »
By Julie Johnsson
United Airlines operations are returning to normal after the carrier voluntarily grounded its fleet of 96 Boeing 757s Tuesday to ensure the planes’ air-data computer software complied with a Federal Aviation Administration airworthiness directive.
The Chicago-based carrier was able to quickly carry out the software checks needed to meet federal guidelines, and most of the aircraft were back in service by mid-day Wednesday. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 12:01 p.m.
Filed under:
Regulations
By Reuters
Swaps trading venues, a centerpiece of legislation overhauling derivatives, may need to be phased in later than planned because many will miss an October 15 deadline for meeting self-policing requirements, a Chicago-based regulator said.
The potential delay, flagged late Tuesday by National Futures Association President Daniel Roth in comments to a group of Chicago trading executives, represents a potential new setback as regulators rush to write rules for the sweeping Wall Street reform, known as the Dodd-Frank act, that was passed last summer. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 11:53 a.m.
Filed under:
Media
By Phil Rosenthal
Bill Bellis, whose hire as WFLD-Ch. 32 new chief meteorologist was first rumored in October and officially announced in mid-November, is set to finally make his Chicago debut as Amy Freeze’s replacement on the station’s 9 p.m. newscast Feb. 23.
Feb. 16 at 11:30 a.m.
Filed under:
Exchanges
By Reuters
Nasdaq OMX Group is scrambling to respond to Deutsche Boerse AG’s $10.2 billion takeover of NYSE Euronext, and may team up with IntercontinentalExchange Inc, Fox Business Network said.
Nasdaq has hired an investment bank and has discussed launching a joint bid for NYSE with Chicago-based CME Group, the report said. The deal to team up with ICE had not gone to Nasdaq’s board of directors as of Tuesday, the report said.
It was unclear whether the report was referring to a potential Nasdaq merger with ICE, or to a possible joint bid for NYSE. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 10:58 a.m.
Filed under:
Hotels
By Reuters
Strategic Hotels & Resorts is using $95 million in stock to buy two Four Seasons hotels from the Woodbridge Company, which will become its largest investor.
The heavily-leveraged Strategic needs ways to retain and grow its 16-hotel portfolio of luxury properties without taking on more debt, said FBR Capital Markets analyst Patrick Scholes. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 10:37 a.m.
Filed under:
Consumer electronics
By Reuters
The Motorola Xoom. (Reuters)
Motorola Mobility Holdings’ Xoom tablet will sell for an unsubsidized $799 at Verizon Wireless, with the WiFi-only version priced at around $600 price, chief executive Sanjay Jha said on Wednesday.
“Competing with Apple you have to deliver premium products,” Jha said, adding Xoom software was also upgradable.
Motorola is a latecomer to the surging market for tablet computers, which was created by Apple’s iPad last year, and is expected to reach total sales volumes of around 50 million units this year. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 10:33 a.m.
Filed under:
Airplanes
By Dow Jones Newswires
Chicago-based Boeing Co. should be obliged by U.S. civil aviation authorities to conduct an emergency evacuation test of its new 747-8 Intercontinental, a senior Airbus executive said Wednesday.
The 747-8, a stretched version of the 747-400, was rolled out over the weekend at Boeing’s plant outside Seattle. It will carry 467 passengers, 51 more than the current version of the jumbo jet, offering airlines a lower cost-per-seat mile. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 9:49 a.m.
Filed under:
Bankruptcy,
Retail,
Updated
By Reuters
A Borders at the corner of Pearson and Michigan Ave. in Chicago, which closed in January of 2011. (Heather Charles/Tribune)
Borders Group Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection and said it planned to close nearly one-third of its bookstores, after years of shriveling sales that made it impossible to manage its crushing debt load.
The long-expected Chapter 11 filing will give the second-largest U.S. bookstore chain a chance to fix its finances and shrink its business at a time when buyers are increasingly going online rather than visiting megastores. The bankruptcy could help larger rival Barnes & Noble Inc, which also is struggling, by reducing the number of competing stores. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 9:45 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Recalls,
Updated
By Reuters
General Motors Co. is recalling over 44,000 Cadillac CTS sedans over a flaw that could cause one of the rear wheels to become unstable.
The recall affects 2009 and 2010 CTS vehicles, Cadillac’s best seller. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 9:26 a.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Retail
By Becky Yerak
Chicagoans like doing their banking at the supermarket.
Nationally, the number of in-store bank branches and the deposits they hold are falling, but those numbers continue to edge up in Chicago, according to a newly released study by trade publication SNL Financial. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 8:53 a.m.
Filed under:
Airplanes,
Defense,
Government
By Reuters
EADS North America said it submitted a final proposal in the politically charged U.S. tanker competition against Boeing Co. and that it lowered its price.
“We submitted what we think is a very competitive price proposal,” EADS North America Chairman Ralph Crosby told a briefing for reporters. Get the full story »
Feb. 16 at 8:23 a.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Manufacturing
By Reuters
U.S. industrial output unexpectedly fell in January as a return to normal winter temperatures caused a sharp fall in utility output, while production from mines also fell, a Federal Reserve report showed on Wednesday.
Industrial production fell 0.1 percent in January after an upwardly revised 1.2 percent jump in December, which had been driven by unseasonably cold weather that spiked heating demand. Get the full story »
