Nov. 15, 2010 at 4:39 p.m.
Filed under:
Entertainment,
Government,
Sports,
Taxes,
Updated
A proposed rendering of the renovations at Wrigley. (Handout)
By Alejandra Cancino and Kathy Bergen | Chicago Cubs owner Tom Ricketts on Monday told the Tribune’s editorial board he doesn’t have a Plan B to come up with $200 million if the state rejects his proposal to borrow that money in a bond offering.
The money will be used to make extensive renovations at Wrigley Field, including repairs of the dilapidated concourses beneath the field, better amenities for players and more bathrooms, he said.
The Cubs’ proposal calls for the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority, which owns U.S. Cellular Field, to float $200 million to $300 million in bonds. The bonds would be paid back over 35 years through amusement taxes that Wrigley Field patrons pay. Get the full story »
Nov. 15, 2010 at 4:24 p.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
IPOs,
Updated
By Reuters
Strong investor demand is expected to drive the pricing of General Motors’ initial public offering to $30 per share or higher, above the initially proposed range, two people familiar with the matter said on Monday.
GM earlier filed to sell shares for $26 to $29 each. Get the full story »
Nov. 15, 2010 at 3:48 p.m.
Filed under:
Conventions,
Tourism,
Travel,
Updated
By Kathy Bergen
While the National Restaurant Association announced Monday that its high-profile trade show will stay put in Chicago through 2016, the city is not quite on terra firma yet.
The association will keep a close eye on whether a new state law aimed at cutting exhibitor costs at McCormick Place is fully implemented — a progression that could be derailed if two trade unions prevail in their challenge of the law in federal court.
“If something changes and the legislation is not able to be enacted the way it was designed and exhibitor rights go away, it becomes more difficult to explain why we would be in Chicago,” Mary Pat Heftman, executive vice president/convention for the association, said after a press conference announcing the new pact. Get the full story »
Nov. 15, 2010 at 3:09 p.m.
Filed under:
Internet,
Technology,
Updated
By McClatchy Tribune Newspapers
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg talks about the 350 million active users daily of Facebook messaging in San Francisco, Nov. 15, 2010. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma)
In a bid to become the junction box for people’s digital communications, Facebook announced Monday it plans to launch a new communication platform intended to unify e-mail, instant messaging, text messaging and the social network’s existing message system through a single “social in-box.”
While each of the social network’s more than 500 million users will have the chance to get an @facebook.com e-mail address as the new service gradually rolls out to members in coming months, CEO Mark Zuckerberg said the goal was not to create the world’s largest e-mail network, but to merge external e-mail, text messaging, instant messages and Facebook’s existing internal messaging service into a new kind of seamless communication system. Get the full story »
Nov. 15, 2010 at 11:25 a.m.
Filed under:
Agriculture/Farming,
International,
M&A,
Updated
By Reuters
Potash Corp. said it was vindicated in its decision to reject BHP Billiton’s offer of $130 a share as too cheap and was in a strong position to grow on its own.
Shares of Potash Corp. have traded consistently above the bid price, closing at $139.91 on Friday.
BHP Billiton scrapped its $39 billion bid for Canada’s Potash Corp. on Sunday and bowed to calls from investors to return cash, a move that came days after regulators blocked the year’s biggest takeover deal. Get the full story »
By Ameet Sachdev
(Tribune file)
The owner of the Chicago Cubs is asking the state to help finance more than $200 million in renovations at Wrigley Field that will ensure the team stays at the historic ballpark for the next 35 years.
The Ricketts family, which purchased the team last year from Tribune Co. in a deal valued at $845 million, has pledged that the project will not be financed by new taxes or an increase in existing taxes, but it would redirect some future revenue to the stadium. Get the full story »
Nov. 11, 2010 at 4:27 p.m.
Filed under:
Airlines,
Airplanes,
Manufacturing,
Updated
By Reuters
Boeing Co. said on Thursday it lost eight orders for 787 Dreamliners in the week that ended Nov. 9 but gained eight after the transfer of orders from one customer to another, leaving the order book for 787s basically unchanged.
Boeing had said on Sunday Kuwait-based leasing company ALAFCO had shifted orders for the eight Dreamliners to Saudi Arabian Airlines. Get the full story »
Nov. 10, 2010 at 1:26 p.m.
Filed under:
Bankruptcy,
Media,
Newspapers,
Updated
By Michael Oneal
The judge in Tribune Co.’s bankruptcy case approved more than $40 million in 2010 incentive bonuses for 635 operating managers and executives Wednesday.
But based on the company’s projected performance through the end of the year, the payout will likely be closer to $30 million, according to court documents. Get the full story »
Nov. 10, 2010 at 11:15 a.m.
Filed under:
Economy,
Technology,
Updated
By Dow Jones Newswires-Wall Street Journal
Moving to staunch the defection of staff to competitors, Google Inc. is giving a 10 percent raise to all of its 23,000 employees, according to people familiar with the matter. The raise, which will be given to executives and staff across the globe, is effective in January. Get the full story »
Nov. 10, 2010 at 10:45 a.m.
Filed under:
Bankruptcy,
Investing,
Retail,
Updated
By Reuters
General Growth Properties plans to resume paying dividends early next year, after the second-largest U.S. mall operator emerged from bankruptcy and spun off a new company, Howard Hughes Corp.
Citing a higher-than-expected cash stake, General Growth also said it expects to retire $570 million of obligations by paying cash, avoiding the potential issuance of more than 50 million common shares. Get the full story »
Nov. 10, 2010 at 10:24 a.m.
Filed under:
Autos,
Earnings,
Updated
By Reuters
General Motors posted a $2 billion third-quarter profit Wednesday, driven by an accelerating turnaround in North America as it rushes to complete an initial public offering of stock set for next week. The quarterly profit was the largest for GM since it emerged from bankruptcy in July 2009 and provides the last piece of financial data for investors evaluating the automaker’s $13 billion IPO.
GM said it expected to post solidly profitable results for 2010, its first full-year profit since 2004.
Get the full story »
By Reuters
One test model Boeing 787 passes another on the tarmac before a flight from Boeing Field Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2010, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Chicago-based Boeing halted test flights of its long-delayed 787 Dreamliner on Wednesday, a day after smoke in the cockpit forced an emergency landing in Texas.
“We have decided to not fly the other airplanes until we better understand the incident,” said Boeing spokeswoman Loretta Gunter. “Whether this lasts all day or shorter or longer remains to be seen. The teams will focus on ground test objectives in the meantime.”
The incident, which involved a runway evacuation of those on board the flight, knocked shares 3.4 percent lower to $66.90 in early trade on the New York Stock Exchange as investors pondered the likelihood of another delay to the program, which is already nearly three years behind schedule. Get the full story »
Nov. 9, 2010 at 2:46 p.m.
Filed under:
Policy,
Politics,
Transportation,
Updated
By Associated Press
Wisconsin governor-elect Scott Walker speaks to reporters Nov. 3, 2010. (AP Photo/Scott Bauer)
High-speed rail projects in Wisconsin and Ohio appear close to derailment, with Wisconsin’s outgoing governor saying Monday he’ll leave the future of his state’s project to his Republican successor, who has vowed to kill it, and Ohio’s incoming governor saying again he plans scrap his state’s project.
Jim Doyle, Wisconsin’s outgoing Democratic governor, told The Associated Press that although he thinks a high-speed rail line to connect Milwaukee with Madison is a good idea, he feels obligated to leave the project’s future up to Republican Gov.-elect Scott Walker.
Minutes after Doyle made his comments, Walker said he remains opposed to the $810 million project. Get the full story »
Nov. 9, 2010 at 9:26 a.m.
Filed under:
Food,
Packaged foods,
Updated
By Associated Press
A shopper passes shelves of Sara Lee bread at a Chicago market . (AP Photo/M. Spencer Green)
Sara Lee Corp. is selling its North American Fresh bakery unit to baking company Grupo Bimbo for $959 million as it looks to concentrate more on its coffee and meat businesses.
The Downers Grove-based maker of Jimmy Dean sausages and Sara Lee breads said Tuesday that the sale will allow it to aggressively expand other businesses through acquisitions and other means. Get the full story »
By Reuters
The American Medical Association unleashed its latest salvo Monday in its campaign against cuts in Medicare payments to doctors with a survey that finds overwhelming concern among Americans.
The physician’s group did an online survey of 1,000 Americans aged 18 and older and found 94 percent of them said they are concerned about the cuts to doctors who treat elderly patients.
The group released the findings at a meeting in San Diego to kick off a new advertising and lobbying push to convince lawmakers to block payment cuts — set to take effect Dec. 1 — before they recess for the Thanksgiving holiday later this month. Get the full story »
