Jan 27, 2009By: Paul Rosta, Senior Associate Editor
Word of new development plans is uncommon in the industrial sector these days, as it is for most commercial property types. Nevertheless, the supermarket chain Harris Teeter Inc. is bucking the trend. Making one of the largest commitments to an industrial facility so far this year, Harris Teeter intends to build a $101 million distribution center in King George County, Va.
Virginia edged out North Carolina and Maryland in its bid for the distribution center, which will serve stores in Maryland and Delaware as well as in Virginia. The project’s size and construction schedule were not disclosed in the announcement last Thursday by the office of Gov. Tim Kaine that Virginia had prevailed. However, Harris Teeter vice president of distribution Larry Cooper said in the statement that location, work force and highway access helped tip the balance toward King George County.
The distribution center is apparently part of Harris Teeter’s aggressive plan to expand a footprint that included 176 stores in eight states and the District of Columbia at the end of last September. Harris Teeter’s operating plan calls for capital expenditures of $241 million during fiscal 2009. As of last fall, Harris Teeter was planning to open 17 new stores and complete the remodeling of four others during its current fiscal year.
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TORONTO, Jan 27 (Reuters) - Metro Inc, Canada's third-largest grocer, said on Tuesday quarterly profit rose, helped by strong sales in Quebec and an improved performance in Ontario, where it united its stores under the Metro banner.
The company said it earned C$81.1 million ($65.9 million), or 73 Canadian cents a share, up from C$73.8 million, or 64 Canadian cents a share for the comparable period.
Excluding some items including an
income tax expense, earnings came in at C$84.1 million, or 76 Canadian cents a share, up from C$62.4 million, or 54 Canadian cents a share.
Sales rose to C$2.6 billion from C$2.51 billion.
Analysts on average had expected earnings of 64 Canadian cents a share and revenue of C$2.58 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.
'They have rebounded from a tough quarter a year ago, both from the internal issue and perspective and from a competitive perspective,' said David Hartley, an analyst at BMO Capital Markets.
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Kroger Co. plans to invest $75 million in "a massive economic development initiative" that will create "several hundred" jobs in the Fort Wayne area.
Details were announced 10 a.m. Thursday at a news conference. Bob Moeder, president of Kroger's central division, and Mayor Tom Henry met with members of the media at the Greater Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce downtown headquarters.
The initial announcement said the company will:
*Add three stores. Two of the new stores will have a unique format that
does not now exist in Indiana.
*Close three stores.
*Significantly expand two stores.
*Remodel three stores.
*Build 10 more fuel centers in the region
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Bloomberg
Yoshinoya Holdings Co., Japan's largest chain of beef-bowl restaurants, plans to add a record 100 outlets in its home market next fiscal year as demand for budget meals increases from recession-hit consumers.
The Tokyo-based company aims to increase restaurants in Japan to at least 1,194 by February 2010 and accelerate an expansion in China, adding 60 outlets to the 185 already open there, President Shuji Abe said.
"The market is harsh but conditions for investing and opening new stores are positive," Abe said in an interview broadcast Thursday on Bloomberg Television.'
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There are four days until the Inauguration, and the country is alight with excitement, not just about the arrival of Barack Obama in the White House but also for the beginning of a new era of civic engagement.
We’ve tapped into this energy with our
Ideas for Change in America, and today we held a press event at the National Press Club in Washington DC to announce the winners of the competition. The 10 winning ideas reflect the diverse interests of the millions of people calling for change across the country, and include ideas for securing universal heath care, LGBT rights, and sustainable green energy. All winning ideas can be viewed at
www.change.org/ideas.
The winning ideas were accepted on behalf of the Presidential Transition Team by Macon Phillips, the Director of New Media and the person who oversees our second-favorite website, Change.gov. Macon then addressed the attendees of the event, which included nonprofit leaders and grassroots activists, and spoke about the importance the administration will place on citizen-driven efforts like Ideas for Change.
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Jan. 16 (Bloomberg) -- President-elect
Barack Obama is likely to back a bank-rescue effort that combines fresh capital injections with steps to deal with toxic assets clogging lenders’ balance sheets, according to people familiar with the matter.
Obama’s economic team will use another portion of the $350 billion remaining from the Troubled Asset Relief Program to help homeowners avoid foreclosure. It may also assist cash-strapped cities and states that are having trouble selling bonds, the people said.
This week’s sell-off in financial stocks and the continuing decline of the U.S. economy put pressure on Treasury Secretary- designate
Timothy Geithner and Obama’s economics chief
Lawrence Summers to unveil a comprehensive program. Without a radical new effort, soaring credit losses could prolong and deepen a
recession that is now more than a year old.
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JPMorgan Chase posts surprise profit
Analysts expected the bank to break even. But earnings fell sharply from a year ago, while CEO Jamie Dimon warns of "very difficult business climate."
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- JPMorgan Chase reported a surprise quarterly profit Thursday, even as the company suffered a hit in its investment banking business and was forced to set aside a chunk of cash for looming loan losses.
The New York City-based bank said net income fell 76% to $702 million, or 7 cents a share during the fourth quarter, from $2.97 billion, or 86 cents a share, during the same period a year ago.
The results beat expectations, however, as analysts were forecasting that the company would break even for the quarter, according to Thomson Reuters.
How much good news is there on the news these days?
Few.
Bad news clearly receives a lot more attention than the good stuff. But good things do happen all the time and they must be encouraged.
So when something positive has happened to you, when someone has been exceptionally helpful or when something has changed your life positively, why not say Thank You!
Thanks-O-Meter is a site that collects all the nice things people do and experience. The site is public access and no membership is required to express your own gratitude. Stories can be searched for by keywords.
Banking giant gives nod to legislation that would allow judges to alter mortgages for homeowners who have filed for bankruptcy.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- Citigroup reached an agreement with Democratic lawmakers Thursday on legislation that would allow judges to reduce mortgage debt for individuals who have filed for bankruptcy.
Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the bill's architect, said he hoped the participation of Citigroup would entice other mortgage lenders to sign onto the program.
"I hope other institutions will follow suit," he said. Durbin appeared at a press conference along with fellow sponsors of the bill, Sen. Christopher Dodd of Connecticut and Sen. Charles Schumer of New York.
Until recently, members of the banking industry, including Citigroup (C (
C,
Fortune 500), Fortune 500), as well as other housing-related groups like the National Association of Realtors, have criticized the notion of allowing the courts to have a say over their mortgage portfolios.
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When Will This Recession Finally End?
There's really just one question that matters this new year. When will the recession end?
OK, I lied. There's another question that matters even more. Will the recession
ever end?
I have a lot of institutional clients who take very seriously the idea that this recession could be permanent. In their minds, it could turn out to be more like a depression. Even when we pull out of the worst of it, we'll be stuck with year after year of slow growth.
Pretty much no one thinks this recession could possibly already be over. And only a few brave souls dare to consider that it might only take another quarter or so to hit bottom. So it's just a matter of, how bad is it really?
Call me crazy, but I actually think we could all end up being pretty pleasantly surprised. I admit I was one of the last people on earth to agree we were in recession in the first place. So let me make up for that mistake: I'll be the first person to say it's over.
I don't mean to get carried away on wings of optimism here. But there really are some hopeful signs. Some of the same symptoms that, earlier this year, gave us an early warning that recession was lurking are now pointing in a more hopeful direction.
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Though 2008 was wrought with layoffs and economic struggles, the New Year means rejuvenated hope for job seekers.
While several companies continue to make mass layoffs, other companies are shifting their focus to hire aggressively in the beginning of 2009.
"This is a difficult economy, no doubt," says Andrea Hough, vice president of talent acquisition for ServiceMaster, a lawn care and landscape maintenance company. "However, I would caution job seekers to be thoughtful about whom they are going to work for and not act out of desperation. There are some very strong companies with solid ethics in need of employees eager to be a part of a thriving organization."
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