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Apple Avoids Billions via Tax Shelters
Apple is the nation’s most profitable technology company and yet it managed to avoid paying billions in taxes in the United States and across the globe via a network of subsidiaries that were set up all over the world. This was according... More of this article »
Tallapoosa County Unemployment Rate Drops to 7%
Tallapoosa County’s jobless rate dropped 1.9 percent from January 2013 to April 2013. This was according to the most recent report released by the Alabama Department of Labor. The county’s jobless rate was at 7 percent in April.... More of this article »
Dow and S&P Close at Record Levels
Stocks continued their upward trend Friday as the market got their fourth straight week of gains that was attributed to the encouraging economic reports that prompted investors to opt for shares of growth companies. The Standard &... More of this article »
Dell Earnings Drop 79% as Sales of PC Continue to Shrink
Dell has been in the middle of a takeover battle between the company’s billionaire founder and activist investor Carl Icahn. The company reported that its profit dropped 79 percent that was attributed to the decline of personal computer... More of this article »
Factory Output and Wholesale Price Add to US Economy Woes
Factory output declined in April as manufacturing activity in New York slowed down. These were seen as signs that the global demand has made an impact on the US economy. The slow growth was also caused by the largest decline in wholesale... More of this article »
Airlines Collect Record Baggage Fees in 2012
US airlines collected at least $6 billion in baggage and reservation change fees from customers in 2012. This was the highest amount since the fees were made common five years ago. The fees have helped the airline industry return to... More of this article »
GM Unveils High Tech Data Center
General Motors revealed its state-of-the-art data center located at the company’s Technical Center in Warren, Michigan. GM said it was worth $130 million. The company has plans to open a second one at its Milford, Michigan facility.... More of this article »
JPMorgan Directors against Dividing Dimon’s Role
JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s directors asked shareholders to oppose the calls to make Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon to resign from one of his roles as CEO and chairman of the company. The directors said that it could be disruptive... More of this article »
College Debt Bubble Same as the Housing Bubble
The Federal Advisory Council, which is composed of 12 bankers who meet each quarter to advise the Federal Reserve, warned that the growth in student loan debt was similar to the nature of the housing crisis. The group also said that... More of this article »
Oil Options Volatility Increases for Second Straight Day
Crude options volatility increased for the second day in a row as the futures dropped due to higher dollar that decrease the appeal of raw materials available in the US currency. Implied volatility for at-the-money options expiring... More of this article »
Another Round of Errors Made on Checks Issued as Compensation for Homeowners
Three weeks ago, checks released to homeowners as compensation for foreclosure abuses were rejected because of insufficient funds. This week, the consulting firm made another error with the checks once again. The amounts written on... More of this article »
McDonald’s Sales Drop Due to Avian Flu Scare
McDonald’s sales at restaurants open more than a year dropped in April, a month after the largest burger chain in the world said its sales dropped 1 percent in the first quarter. The company attributed the 0.6 percent fall to the... More of this article »
Job Openings Fall from Highest Level in Five Years
Job openings in the United States dropped in March from the highest level in almost five years. This was a sign that employers were waiting to see how the economy performs as the federal spending cuts take effect. The number of positions... More of this article »
Denver Investors Optimistic about Markets
According to the recent Morgan Stanley Wealth Management Investor Pulse survey, investors from Denver with at least $100,000 in investable assets are optimistic about the growth of the state, United States, and global economies as... More of this article »
Caterpillar to Cut 300 Workers By July
Equipment maker Caterpillar announced Friday that it will lay off 300 more employees in Decatur, Illinois by July. The company said April that it planned to cut around 500 employees at the said facility. The 800 layoffs are around... More of this article »
Taco Bell to Roll Out Low Price Menu
Taco Bell officials said that the fast food chain is set to launch a new $1 Cravings menu that would provide value offerings at lower prices. The chain started testing its new value offerings earlier this year and has changed the menu... More of this article »
Kraft Foods Reports Earnings and Revenue Above Forecasts
Kraft Foods Group released its earnings and revenue report Thursday that showed results that exceeded analysts’ forecasts. The food company’s shares increased after the release of the report. Its earnings excluded items were 76... More of this article »
Investors Worry about Market Deflation
The yield on the 10 year Treasury note dropped to its lowest level in 2013 to 1.62 percent as traders worry about falling prices. The most recent economic reports showed wage pressures were less than half of what the Federal Reserve... More of this article »
Home Prices Climb the Most in 20 Cities
Residential real estate prices went up in February the most since May 2006. This is an indicator that the housing market in the United States is improving. The S&P/Case-Shiller Index of property values in 20 cities increased 9.3... More of this article »
Premium Income Drop Hurts Hartford Financial Profits
Hartford Financial Services Group reported a quarterly profit that was above analysts’ expectations. It was helped by higher underwriting margins but was dragged by the slight drop of premium income in its property and casualty business. Hartford... More of this article »
Burger King Reports 1st Quarter Profits
Burger King Worldwide reported its first quarter profit more than doubled. The company attributed it to less expense that helped offset the negative sales in same-stores and lower revenue. It went public in June of 2012 after it was... More of this article »
GrainCorp Agrees to $3 Billion Takeover Offer from ADM
GrainCorp, which is the biggest crop handler in eastern Australia, agreed to the $3 Billion takeover offer from Archer Daniels Midland. This brought GrainCorp shares to reach record level in Sydney Friday. The latest offer was the... More of this article »
Exxon Mobil Reports Flat Profit for 1st Quarter
Exxon Mobil released its earnings report Thursday that showed flat profit for the first quarter. It got strong earnings on its chemical business that offset the declines in production, exploration, marketing and refining. Exxon, which... More of this article »
Demand for Durable Goods Down in March
It looked like manufacturing in the United States cooled at the end of the first quarter. One of the most recent indicators is the slump of the demand for durable goods in March. It went down the most in seven months. Orders for merchandise... More of this article »
Home Sales Drop due to Low Supply
Existing home sales dropped last month and this could indicate that recovery in sales has reached a lull that can only be resolved by higher prices. Total existing home sales declined 0.6 percent in March from February to a seasonally... More of this article »
Optimism Surrounds the Opening of High Point Market
The High Point Market opened April 19 as officials hope that the housing market recovery would result to high demand for furniture and give the market a sustainable economy. The High Point Market is the world’s largest trade show... More of this article »
Antitrust Beer Deal Will Expand Corona’s Global Presence
Anheuser-Busch InBev said that its deal with the antitrust regulators in the United States will expand the global presence of Mexican beers. The settlement between the beer company and the Department of Justice calls for the sale of... More of this article »
IBM Shares Drop after Releasing Lower-Than-Estimates Earnings Report
IBM declined in the first quarter due to economic uncertainty and a falloff in the company’s hardware business that dragged its profits and revenue down. In the past, the company’s cost-cutting discipline as well as its shift towards... More of this article »
Illinois Governor Says Bonds are needed for Transportation Projects
Illinois Governor Pat Quinn said that he needs legislative approval to be able to issue $2.7 billion of bonds to fund transportation projects. The Democratic governor said the debt would be the last part of the state’s $31 billion... More of this article »
Intel Profit Drops 25 due to Fall in Chip Sales
Intel, which is the world’s biggest computer chip manufacturer, reported a drop in its quarterly profits Tuesday that reflected the consensus within the personal computer industry. The big chip maker faces several challenges as it... More of this article »
TurboTax Goes Down as Late Filers Panic
TurboTax, which is one of the most popular tax preparation programs in the United States, temporarily went down and made last minute filers panic. At around 6:40 Sunday night, filers were not able to log in or enter data online for... More of this article »
Fed Downplays Risk of US Inflation
Federal Reserve policymakers stated that there are no indications that their aggressive measures to improve the US economy would lead to inflation in the future. It is a clear sign that they will continue the stimulus action to boost... More of this article »
US Postal Service Advices Taxpayers to File on Time
US Postal Service stations will not extend their counter hours or collection times on Monday, which is the Internal Revenue Service’s income tax deadline. Income tax filers must sent in their forms by the last collection times as... More of this article »
Retail Sales Drop in March
The US Census Bureau released the nominal read of retail sales showed a drop of 0.4 percent in March compared to February. Despite the decline, the reading was still an increase of 2.8 percent on a year-over-year basis on an aggregate... More of this article »
Obama Stresses the Need to Revive the Economy with Bankers
President Barack Obama met with the world’s most powerful bankers Thursday. He stressed to them the need to revive the economy and overhaul the fiscal and immigration policies. The ongoing reform of Wall Street was not part of the... More of this article »
American Airlines Plans to Expand LAX Service
It looks like American Airlines is not affected by its parent company’s bankruptcy. The airline just announced its plans to expand to eight new destinations out of the Los Angeles International Airport. The airline wants to attract... More of this article »
Natural Gas Resources at Record Levels
According to an estimate made by the industry, the United States has 2,384 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas. The quantity is twice what a similar study stated nine years ago. The advancement of the industry was caused... More of this article »
Caribou Coffee to Close Down Shops in Chicago
Caribou Coffee is going out of Illinois and Peet’s Coffee & Tea will gain some ground in Chicago. Caribou became private this year as a result of a $340 million deal with Joh. A. Benckiser. It announced that it will shut down... More of this article »
US Small Businesses Slash Borrowing for 2nd Month in a Row
Small businesses in the United States cut their borrowing in February for the second month in a row. This is an indicator of slower growth in the next couple of months even as other economic reports showed recovery picked up in the... More of this article »
US Shale Boom to Burst Soon
Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller dismissed the current energy boom in the United States as a soap bubble that is going to burst soon. He said that the US is not a competitor of his company. He added that there are no projects that would make... More of this article »
Consumer Bureau Fines Mortgage for Kickbacks
Four of the largest mortgage insurers in the United States paid millions of dollars in kickback to home lenders over the past decade. This was made in exchange for business and increasing insurance prices for consumers according to... More of this article »
Factory Orders Get Biggest Increase in 5 Months
Factory orders in the United States increased in February due to the surge in volatile demand for commercial aircraft. The advance in orders offset the drop in important orders that indicated business investment. The report from the... More of this article »
BP Spill Claims Administrator Wants Judge to Dismiss Lawsuit
Court-appointed administrator Patrick Juneau is in charge of the monetary settlement with thousands of individuals and businesses who sued BP regarding the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill. He urged US District Judge Carl Barbier to dismiss... More of this article »
Job Growth Continues in South Florida
Job growth is still on the rise in South Florida despite the lower payrolls in local government that dragged the hiring recovery. According to the February employment report, the recovery has regained steam in the state. Miami-Dade... More of this article »
UPS Pays $40 Million to Stop Online Pharmacies Investigation
Shipping company UPS agreed to pay $40 million to stop the federal criminal probe with regards to its connection to online pharmacies. This was announced by the US Department of Justice Friday. It added that the company will be taking... More of this article »
Softbank and Sprint Promises Not to Use Huawei after Merge
Sprint Nextel Corp. and Softbank Corp. told Representative Mike Rogers of Michigan that they will not use equipment from Chinese maker Huawei Technologies into Sprint’s network after the two companies merge. The Republican representative... More of this article »
More Than 300,000 Homes in US are Zombie Properties
According to RealtyTrac, a real estate information company based in Irvine, California, 301,874 “zombie” properties are found in the United States. These are foreclosed properties that homeowners have moved out and left a vacant... More of this article »
US Congressional and Business Group to Visit India
A group composed of members of the US Congress and businesses are scheduled to visit India this week. It will include a meeting with Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi. He has been denied a visa for the United States for his supposed... More of this article »