July 20, 2010 at 4:42 p.m.
Filed under:
Development,
Politics,
Retail,
Updated
Mayor Richard Daley speaks during the grand opening of the Wilson Yard Target on Tuesday, July 20, 2010. (William DeShazer/Chicago Tribune)
By Becky Schlikerman | Mayor Richard Daley and other supporters of a beleaguered Uptown development marked a major milestone today by celebrating the completion of a Target store that anchors the Wilson Yard project.
The new store finalizes a decade-long battle to redevelop the site of a burned-down CTA bus barn. The store will open on Sunday.
“This has been a very long time coming,” Ald. Helen Shiller (46th) said. “There were times it seemed this wasn’t going to happen.” Get the full story »
July 20, 2010 at 12:30 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Housing,
Mortgages,
Policy,
Politics,
Real estate
By Mary Ellen Podmolik
Only four of the eight largest mortgage servicers have committed to participate in a government-sponsored, yet voluntary, program designed to aid troubled homeowners with second mortgages, new data released Tuesday shows.
Of the four servicers participating in the second lien modification program — Bank of America, CitiMortgage, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo Bank — only Bank of America and Chase were “operationally ready” and extending modification offers to consumers this spring, the Treasury Department said Tuesday. Get the full story »
July 19, 2010 at 3:46 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Investing,
Policy,
Politics,
Regulations
By Reuters
The broadest shake-up in U.S. financial services law since the Great Depression will likely require the Securities and Exchange Commission to beef up its staff with 800 new positions, the SEC’s chief said in prepared remarks on Monday. Get the full story »
July 19, 2010 at 10:30 a.m.
Filed under:
Jobs/employment,
Policy,
Politics,
Updated
President Obama on Monday called on Republicans to put aside politics and to join with Democrats in approving an extension of jobless benefits. Speaking from the Rose Garden, Obama repeated his recent themes, criticizing the Republicans for refusing to pass the $34 billion extension pending in the Senate.
July 9, 2010 at 11:34 a.m.
Filed under:
International,
Policy,
Politics,
Unions
By Reuters
The largest U.S. labor group urged Congress on Friday to pass legislation to fight China’s currency practices, a day after the Obama administration again declined to label Beijing a currency manipulator.
The United States should also keep other options on the table, including a possible challenge of China’s currency practices at the World Trade Organization, Richard Trumka, president of the AFL-CIO labor federation, said in a statement. Get the full story »
July 8, 2010 at 5:15 p.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
International,
Policy,
Politics
By Reuters
China needs to take further “significant steps” to raise the value of its currency, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus said on Thursday in reaction to the Obama administration’s decision not to label China a currency manipulator. Baucus, however, stopped short of threatening to move legislation on the issue. Get the full story »
By Julie Johnsson
Boeing Co. once again finds itself as the front-runner as Friday’s deadline approaches for submitting proposals for aerial refueling tankers, one of the largest and most controversial contests overseen by the Pentagon.
Although the latest contest hasn’t formally begun, Boeing and its primary competitor, EADS North America Inc., are jockeying for position and exchanging shots over which company’s tanker is the superior entry for the initial $35-billion contract. Their supporters, meanwhile, are wrangling over whether a long-running trade dispute between the U.S. and European Union should also influence the contest’s outcome.
Getting an early jump into the race, EADS submitted its 8,000-page tanker proposal on Thursday. Boeing intends to follow suit early Friday morning, said Boeing spokesman William Barksdale. Get the full story »
July 7, 2010 at 5:36 p.m.
Filed under:
Environment,
Policy,
Politics
By Associated Press
Indiana regulators have given ArcelorMittal permission to dispose of more than 2 million tons of steel-making waste in a landfill at the company’s sprawling complex along Lake Michigan. The decision comes more than two years after ArcelorMittal requested a permit for the restricted waste landfill.
July 7, 2010 at 2:53 p.m.
Filed under:
Banking,
Economy,
Investing,
Policy,
Politics
By Reuters
A government program to bail out banks at the height of the financial crisis has so far turned a profit, according to a report by investment bank Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc. The Capital Purchase Program, part of the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program, has generated an average return of 10 percent on the initial investment in 61 banks that have fully repaid the aid, said the report, issued on Wednesday. Get the full story »
July 2, 2010 at 4:42 p.m.
Filed under:
Bank failures,
Banking,
Politics,
Taxes
By Clout Street
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Alexi Giannoulias lost about $2.7 million last year in the collapse of his family’s Broadway Bank, according to tax returns his campaign released Friday.
July 2, 2010 at 10:01 a.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Jobs/employment,
Policy,
Politics
By Associated Press
President Barack Obama on Friday cast the state of the economy in upbeat terms, declaring that it was headed in the right direction even as employers slashed payrolls last month for the first time in half a year. The unemployment rate dropped to 9.5 percent. “To every American who is looking for work, I promise you we’re going to keep on doing everything that we can,” Obama said. “I will do everything in my power to help our economy create jobs and opportunities for all people.”
July 1, 2010 at 11:45 a.m.
Filed under:
Chicago executives,
Policy,
Politics
By Reuters
U.S. President Barack Obama met five top CEOs Thursday for the latest in a series of White House lunches with business leaders. The CEOs included Patricia Woertz, the chairman, president and CEO of Archer Daniels Midland; Alan Mulally, president & CEO of Ford Motor Co. and Brian Roberts, chairman and CEO of Comcast Corp.
June 30, 2010 at 10:29 a.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Policy,
Politics
By Associated Press
Confronting public pessimism about the economy, President Barack Obama says the U.S. faces a choice between returning to what he calls failed economic policies of the past, or moving forward.
In excerpts of remarks to be delivered on Wednesday in Wisconsin, Obama promotes Wall Street reform legislation pending in Congress, saying it will “protect our economy from the recklessness and irresponsibility of a few.” Obama continued a tone that has characterized some of his recent public remarks, accusing Republicans of being out of touch with the struggles of ordinary Americans. He is visiting Wisconsin to talk about the economy — and jobs — before taking questions at a town meeting in Racine.
June 30, 2010 at 10:04 a.m.
Filed under:
Defense,
International,
Politics
By Reuters
The European Union and some of its states paid prohibited export subsidies to planemaker Airbus and must eliminate them rapidly, a World Trade Organization dispute panel said on Wednesday. The ruling marks a big setback for Airbus, but is not the end of its battle with rival Boeing over subsidies in the market for large civil aircraft worth $3 trillion over the next 20 years.
Boeing hailed the WTO ruling, which did not back all U.S. claims, saying it proved that Airbus had only been able to take market share from Boeing — nudging it out of number one place in the process — because of subsidies. Get the full story »
June 28, 2010 at 5:32 p.m.
Filed under:
Conventions,
Government,
Politics
By Kathy Bergen
Gov. Pat Quinn on Monday named two attorneys and an organized labor representative to the interim board of the agency that operates McCormick Place and Navy Pier.
The appointees are:
Carmen H. Lonstein, a partner in the Chicago office of Baker & McKenzie, chairs the firm’s financial restructuring, creditors’ rights and bankruptcy practice group in North America. She is on the board of the Institute of Puerto Rican Arts and Culture. Get the full story »
