|
January 2009 Archives
5:46 PM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
 Comments (1)
By Andy Smith  Email
WJAR-TV, Channel 10, laid off 10 employees this week, two of them part-time and the rest full-time. "As a result of the continuing economic crisis that has impacted a lot of our key advertisers, we are taking action to streamline......
|
1:03 PM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
Woonsocket-based CVS Caremark Corp. will close a mail-order pharmacy facility in Largo, Fla., on March 31, a company spokeswoman confirmed today. The company could lay off approximately 200 people as part of the closure. CVS will try to shift workers......
|
12:41 PM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The 4.8 percentage point increase in the state's unemployment rate last year led the nation, according to new data from the U.S. Department of Labor. Only North Carolina, where unemployment grew by 4 percentage points, and Nevada, where it rose......
|
12:00 PM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Bruce Landis Email
PROVIDENCE _ Passengers who rely on the state's bus system could make it to July without major service reductions -- so long as the Rhode Island Public Transit Authority gets some key financial breaks, officials there say. That would amount......
|
10:56 AM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
With Congress debating an economic stimulus that could inject billions of dollars into alternative energy projects, Applied Science Associates, a science and technology consultancy in Narragansett, has hired a wind energy expert. Daniel Mendelsohn worked at ASA from 1985 to......
|
9:42 AM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (1)
By Business staff Email
A.H. Belo Corp., owner of the Dallas Morning News and The Providence Journal, said this morning it plans workforce reductions across the company in the range of 500 jobs. In a letter to employees, Robert W. Decherd, chairman, president and......
|
8:07 AM Fri, Jan 30, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (1)
By Business staff Email
Scott C. Donnelly, recently promoted to president of Providence-based Textron, also had his base salary increased from $850,000 to $935,000 a year, according to a federal regulatory filing. He will also receive a one-time grant of cash-settled restricted stock valued......
|
6:27 PM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
The Internal Revenue Service's walk-in center in Providence will be open this Saturday, and on two Saturdays next month, to offer free service to taxpayers during tax-filing season. The additional hours will allow the IRS office - at 380 Westminster......
|
5:05 PM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Edward Parker Email
A Cranston textile company that was founded in 1807 will stop its manufacturing operations by June 1, company officials said this evening. Cranston Print Works, which prints patterns on fabric aimed at the home sewing market, will still design patterns,......
|
1:26 PM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The Providence Boat Show opened today against a backdrop of depressed consumer spending and low expectations for sales. Experts in marine trades are watching closely for positive signs at the four-day event, given the drumbeat of negative news lately......
|
11:58 AM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Goetz Custom Sailboats has rehired nearly its entire workforce after an international customer resumed payments on an order for a racing yacht. The Bristol boatbuilder went into receivership Jan. 6 after the contract with the client - a private individual......
|
10:19 AM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Bancorp Rhode Island, based in Providence, reported fourth-quarter net income of $2.25 million, a 5.9 percent decline from $2.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2007. Earnings per share were 48 cents, a 4 percent decline from the 50 cents......
|
9:53 AM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
Customers who sent a lighter or other product to the Colibri Group for repairs will get back their items, said the lawyer overseeing the financially troubled company. East Providence-based Colibri Group, one of the region's best-known jewelry makers, unexpectedly shut......
|
7:24 AM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (1)
By Business staff Email
About 96 percent of the shareholders of Sovereign Bancorp voted to accept a takeover bid by Banco Santander, based in Spain. Sovereign also said the deal will be completed on Friday. Sovereign, based outside Philadelphia, has 31 branches and $1.9......
|
7:21 AM Thu, Jan 29, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Providence-based Textron, the maker of Cessna aircraft and Bell helicopters, this morning posted a fourth-quarter loss as the global credit crunch hurt sales of business jets. The loss from continuing operations of $348 million, or $1.44 cents a share, compares......
|
5:26 PM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Can't wait to get your tax returns done? If you live in Rhode Island, and you meet certain eligiblity rules, you can prepare and file your federal and Rhode Island resident income tax returns online - all at no charge.......
|
3:13 PM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
An unemployed Westerly couple plan to put an upside down American flag back up on their front porch as a sign of distress over the economy. Jason and Kelly Jarvis hung an upside flag on their house last Thursday to......
|
3:03 PM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
The American Civil Liberties Union claimed victory today in a case challenging the state's right to limit advertising on buildings near state highways to promoting activity taking place on the premises. The suit was filed on behalf of Anthony Joseph......
|
11:34 AM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The Rhode Island Science & Technology Advisory Council is asking lawmakers to spend $1.5 million to help local researchers develop technologies that could "lead to commercialization." In the past, part of the annual appropriation for the council has funded the......
|
10:35 AM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The state's top economic development official, J. Michael Saul, has called on lawmakers to pass legislation that would make it easier for small businesses to borrow money. Saul, acting executive director of the state Economic Development Corporation, said the......
|
10:34 AM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (1)
By Paul Grimaldi Email
People looking for a way to get rid of unwanted electronics can bring them to Best Buy stores starting Feb. 15 as the retailer expands its recycling program nationwide. People can bring up to two electronic items per day,......
|
9:22 AM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
John F. Treanor, president and chief operating officer at Washington Trust Bancorp, intends to elect early retirement, effective in October, according to the company. Treanor, 62, will continue to serve as a director. Also, the company said John C. Warren,......
|
8:10 AM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
General Dynamics Corp., owner of Electric Boat at Quonset Point, this morning said fourth-quarter earnings jumped nearly 6 percent as higher profits in business jet and shipbuilding units outweighed an earnings drop in the company's division that makes armored vehicles......
|
7:12 AM Wed, Jan 28, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Leaders in the General Assembly have appointed the 12 legislators who will serve on the newly-created study commission looking into development of port facilities in Rhode Island. The study commission was created earlier this month when both chambers of the......
|
4:38 PM Tue, Jan 27, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The state Industrial Facilities Corporation, which issues tax-exempt revenue bonds to help manufacturers pay for expansion projects, is gaining two new board members. Michael P. Kehew, of the insurance brokerage firm USI New England, and John Ward, the director of......
|
1:13 PM Tue, Jan 27, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Because of the impact the weak economy is having on Rhode Island's business community and workers, the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce today said that it will offer a first-of-its kind 59-cent membership to business professionals who have lost their......
|
1:13 PM Tue, Jan 27, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
Malls in Rhode Island reset their hours of operation recently as shopping returns to a pace typical of a non-holiday period. One shopping center, Warwick Mall, cut its operating time by one hour a day in response to the economic......
|
12:09 PM Tue, Jan 27, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
WASHINGTON -- The government should consider creating a "bad bank" to help ailing private banks to get rid of bad assets so that they can recover, U.S. Senator Jack Reed, D-RI, said this morning. "The bad bank is something we......
|
8:00 AM Tue, Jan 27, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Amgen Inc., the California-based biotechnology company that runs a plant in West Greenwich, reported that fourth-quarter sales of its core products to treat anemia were lower than analysts expected. Overall, net income climbed 15 percent to $961 million, or 91......
|
6:58 PM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Government officials and community leaders today urged low-income Rhode Islanders to take advantage of a special tax break for the working poor during the current tax-filing season. The tax break, known as the earned income credit or earned income tax......
|
4:35 PM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
A tire commercial set for Sunday's Super Bowl telecast will feature two members of Hasbro Inc.'s toy lineup. The ad, for Bridgestone Tire, will feature Mr. and Mrs. Potato Head in a 30-second spot titled "Taters," according to Hasbro. The......
|
4:30 PM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Earlier this month, Business Week reported that companies reducing staff to cut costs during the recession "are trying to spare the post-55 set from the ax, a reversal of the top-down trends in past waves of layoffs." Those efforts include......
|
12:30 PM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
The staffing cutbacks that pushed the state's unemployment rate to 10 percent in December and the national jobless level to 7.2 percent continued today. "In the United States, several corporations said Monday morning that they would cut a total of......
|
11:02 AM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
North Kingstown-based Inside Scoop is opening its third restaurant, choosing a location inside the Gateway development at the Quonset Business Park. The 74-acre Gateway could eventually include three restaurants in an effort to build a village environment in a development......
|
10:38 AM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts visits Narragansett on Friday to promote locally owned businesses, part of her Buy Local RI campaign. Roberts, chairwoman of the Small Business Advocacy Council, helped launch the initiative last November, calling on Rhode Islanders to favor......
|
10:17 AM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Jack Perry Email
Gasoline prices increased one cent in the past week, marking the third straight week that prices have gone up, according to AAA Southern New England. The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline is $1.849 per gallon at......
|
9:13 AM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Lillian Singerman Ross, of Cranston, a co-founder of Ross-Simon Jewelers, died on Saturday. She was 88. Born in Peabody, Mass., she was a daughter of the late Louis and Sarah Singerman and had been a resident of Rhode Island for......
|
9:03 AM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Sovereign Bancorp, the savings and loan that agreed to be acquired by Spain's Banco Santander SA, will take a $2 billion writedown and get a new chief executive officer. Gabriel Jaramillo, a former head of Santander's Brazilian unit, will lead......
|
8:49 AM Mon, Jan 26, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Brian Moynihan, the last top executive at Bank of America who once worked at the former Fleet Financial Group, has been named president of Global Banking and Global Wealth and Investment Management, replacing John Thain, who resigned. Moynihan has been......
|
6:11 PM Fri, Jan 23, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (2)
By Neil Downing Email
A key piece of Governor Carcieri's economic stimulus plan for small business received a cool reception at a State House hearing today. At issue is a state tax credit that small businesses could use to help cover the cost of......
|
3:36 PM Fri, Jan 23, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
Football fans gearing up for the Super Bowl apparently are feeling the pinch of a tight economy, according to a new survey conducted for the National Retail Federation. An estimated 167 million adults will watch the big game this year,......
|
12:43 PM Fri, Jan 23, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Florida developer Island Global Yachting has dropped plans to build a massive shipbuilding and repair yard in the Quonset Business Park in North Kingstown. The company proposed the $150-million complex in 2007, and it was received with enthusiasm by the......
|
12:12 PM Fri, Jan 23, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
U.S. Rep. James R. Langevin has been appointed to the House Committee on the Budget, the congressman announced today, where he hopes to help improve the nation's health-care syste,. Langevin, who also serves on the House Armed Services Committee, has......
|
8:46 AM Fri, Jan 23, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Domestic Bank, based in Cranston, plans to recruit nine new employees at all retail locations during a job fair in Cranston next week, company officers said this morning. "We are committed to hiring, training and investing in conscientious ladies and......
|
7:08 PM Thu, Jan 22, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
As Rhode Island's unemployment rate climbs, more people are flooding the state Department of Labor and Training's call center with calls and e-mails - to file claims for unemployment benefits, or just to get questions answered. But the agency does......
|
2:41 PM Thu, Jan 22, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Gilbane Inc., based in Providence, has been included on the 12th annual "100 Best Companies to Work For" list compiled by Fortune magazine. One of the driving factors for inclusion on the list is that the companies excel at creating......
|
7:11 AM Thu, Jan 22, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
The First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, based in Boston, has ruled that Providence-based Textron, can withhold from the Internal Revenue Service some documents related to a tax shelter. The court said yesterday the company's "tax-accrual workpapers'' are privileged material......
|
5:32 PM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Taxpayers in Rhode Island will have to mail their federal income tax returns to a new location this season. The Internal Revenue Service said today that taxpayers in Rhode Island who file paper returns will have to mail or ship......
|
4:20 PM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
People have been lining up today at the Macy's store in Providence to receive free, high-end cosmetics being given away to settle a class-action lawsuit that accused manufacturers and department stores of price fixing. As part of the lawsuit's settlement,......
|
2:32 PM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Jack Perry Email
By Bruce Landis Journal Staff Writer PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The state Department of Transportation this morning opened the bids to replace the dilapidated Sakonnet Bridge, which carries Route 24 over the Sakonnet River and connects Tiverton and Aquidneck Island. The......
|
1:46 PM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Edward Parker Email
Some of the same factors that pulled Rhode Island's housing market into crisis before the rest of the nation may rescue the state from the crisis before other parts of the country, the head of the state's housing agency said......
|
12:04 PM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
Textron Inc. (TXT: NYSE) this morning said it had promoted its chief operating officer to president, just six months after he joined the Providence-based company. Scott C. Donnelly will take on the joint roles of president and chief operating officer,......
|
11:46 AM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Edward Parker Email
T.F. Green Airport posted its year-end passenger traffic numbers this morning and, as projected, they showed the airport had its slowest year in a decade, dipping below 5 million passengers for the first time 1998. In December, 339,319 passengers used......
|
11:19 AM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Days after it unexpectedly closed its door after eight decades in business, The Colibri Group is seeking buyers for all or parts of the historic jewelry maker. "We've had great interest from both local and national companies in terms of......
|
8:56 AM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
The former Old Colony Bank Building in downtown Providence is set to reopen in the early weeks of February as a Hampton Inn and Suites, a mid-range hotel brand by the Hilton company. The 72-year old building reopens after a......
|
7:20 AM Wed, Jan 21, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Providence-based Textron Inc. had its debt ratings lowered by Moody's Investors Service on concern that the finance division's pace of collections will be slower than expected. Moody's cut Textron's rating to Baa2, or two levels above junk, with a negative......
|
6:08 PM Tue, Jan 20, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Governor Carcieri's tax-reform panel is poised to recommend sweeping changes to the state's personal income tax system. The changes, if adopted, would have far-reaching effects on thousands of taxpayers. Middle-income taxpayers would generally pay more, while lower-income taxpayers and some......
|
12:51 PM Tue, Jan 20, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Three executives from Treanor Brothers Animation, a 3D animation studio in Providence with an unusually innovative corporate Web site, will talk about their company tomorrow at the first Providence Geeks dinner of the year. The Geeks, an IT industry group,......
|
12:43 PM Tue, Jan 20, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
U.S. air travel has been slowing, evidenced by the generally dreary performances by the major air carriers last year. American Airlines, for example, saw a nearly 5-percent drop in traffic last year, and United Airlines recorded a 6.5-percent drop, The......
|
10:55 AM Tue, Jan 20, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (1)
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
With layoffs and bankruptcies at some of the biggest names in the state's marine sector, industry leaders and state officials are planning a round table discussion about the marine trades. Organized by the Rhode Island Marine Trades Association, the discussion......
|
8:35 AM Tue, Jan 20, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Senate President Teresa Paiva Weed will be the guest speaker at a breakfast hosted by the Northern Rhode Island Chamber of Commerce on Thursday at 8 a.m. at Kirkbrae Country Club, 197 Old River Road, Lincoln. She will address the......
|
8:29 AM Tue, Jan 20, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
The Met Center for Entrepreneurship will hold a business plan competition on Wednesday at The Met's Public Street campus in Providence. Twenty one students presented in class and 10 plans were chosen to advance to the competition. Up to $4000......
|
5:53 PM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
By Neil Downing, MoneyLine Columnist Planning to get your tax return out of the way early? Not so fast - not if you have a brokerage account. A little-noticed provision of a new federal law generally lets brokerages wait......
|
2:00 PM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Jack Perry Email
By Donita Naylor Journal staff writer President-elect Obama will sign inaugural documents tomorrow with a pen made by A.T. Cross, a company based in Lincoln, R.I. Lori Geshelin, marketing manager for A.T. Cross, said the company was notified about a......
|
1:15 PM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Sailboat maker Pearson Composites has laid off nearly half its workforce, as the economic downturn dries up orders for recreational craft. Fifty of the company's 110 employees were dismissed on Friday. Pearson, founded in 1968, at one time had as......
|
12:15 PM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Donations for the new Seabees museum have dried up as the economy has soured, leaving the group with only half the money needed for a major expansion of the complex in the Quonset Business Park. In its most recent newsletter,......
|
12:06 PM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Jack Perry Email
Gas prices in Rhode Island have increased for the third straight week, according to AAA Southern New England. The average price for a gallon of regular, unleaded gasoline has increased nine cents to $1.839 at the self-service pump, according to......
|
8:21 AM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Royal Bank of Scotland Group, the owner of Providence-based Citizens Financial Group, said this morning it may post a loss of as much as $41 billion, the biggest ever reported by a U.K. company, as the credit crisis worsens. The......
|
8:08 AM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
The recession continues to cause gamblers to cut back spending at the two Connecticut slot parlors. Foxwoods Resort casino reported slot-machine revenue slid 19 percent in December. For the full year, Foxwoods made $728 million from its slots, down 7......
|
7:59 AM Mon, Jan 19, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Us. financial markets, including the stock market, are closed today for Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed Friday at 8281.22, and is down 5.6 percent in 2009. The Standard & Poor 500 Index is off......
|
4:05 PM Fri, Jan 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Edward Parker Email
Bird strikes such as the suspected culprit in the downing of a US Airways jetliner in New York on Thursday are a regular, though relatively rare, event at Rhode Island's main airport. A total of 38 bird strikes -- including......
|
12:54 PM Fri, Jan 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Andy Smith Email
The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management is taking applications now for about 450 summer jobs. Positions include park ranger, beach managers, lifeguards, recreational area clerks, restroom attendants. Applicants must be at least 16 years old, and in some cases......
|
8:07 AM Fri, Jan 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Journal photo/ Steve Szydlowski The building at 380 Westminster Street in Providence, which sold recently, houses the IRS, bankruptcy court along with the Navy and Army recruiters office. A building that houses federal offices in downtown Providence has sold......
|
7:59 AM Fri, Jan 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (2)
By Business staff Email
Bank of America, the largest U.S. bank by assets, this morning posted its first loss since 1991 and cut the dividend after receiving emergency funds from the government to support the acquisition of Merrill Lynch & Co. The fourth-quarter loss......
|
7:51 AM Fri, Jan 16, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Jim Gordon, developer of the Cape Wind project off Cape Cod, has called a press briefing this afternoon to discuss a federal agency's final report on the environmental impact of the plan to build the nation's first offshore wind farm.......
|
3:57 PM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Edward Parker Email
As house construction has come to a virtual standstill in Rhode Island, representatives of the construction industry today joined a national campaign urging Congress to make housing a key component of a national economic stimulus plan. "If Congress takes the......
|
3:35 PM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
The Rhode Island Department of Labor and Training wants to make sure it has the correct, current mailing address for the 63,000 or so people who collected unemployment benefits last year. Otherwise, they won't receive the appropriate tax form in......
|
12:11 PM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Home supplies retailer Lowe's opened its store in Quonset today, a sign that the $144-million Gateway development is continuing despite the economic downturn. Kohl's, the other large tenant at the 72.5-acre site, was the first retailer to open at the......
|
11:46 AM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
A private equity firm has petitioned a Providence court to force The Colibri Group into recievership, a form of bankruptcy in which a court-appointed trustee sells a company's assets to pay its debt. Founders Equity SBIC filed the petition in......
|
10:52 AM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Legislators who represent North Kingstown, where proposals to expand the state-owned Quonset port are highly unpopular, say they are "watching closely" a new legislative commission to study port development. "Given the language in a news release that accompanied the......
|
8:07 AM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
State and tourism officials will gather at the State House in Rhode Island this afternoon to accept the "International Star Diamond Award." The award, according to state officials, represents Rhode Island's achievement in the tourism and hospitality industry.......
|
7:54 AM Thu, Jan 15, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Providence-based LIN TV Corp., the broadcasting company that owns WPRI (Channel 12) said it received notice from the New York Stock Exchange that it is not meeting certain requirements to continue to be listed on the New York Stock Exchange.......
|
2:31 PM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
More taxpayers will be eligible to file their federal income-tax returns electronically this year through the Internal Revenue Service's Free File program, the IRS said today. If your adjusted gross income (AGI) was $56,000 or less for 2008, you'll be......
|
2:22 PM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Rite-Solutions, a Middletown software company, is trying to convince a group of schools in Georgia to try out its new, futuristic system for monitoring school buses. The price tag for participating in the experiment: $10 million. Rite-Solutions is one......
|
2:21 PM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Most companies that offer tax preparation software programs have eliminated the separate fees they charge for electronic filing, a top Internal Revenue Service official said. In past years, off-the-shelf software programs typically allowed consumers to prepare their returns, but charged......
|
1:59 PM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Can't wait to file your federal income tax return? On Friday, the Internal Revenue Service will begin accepting returns filed electronically from Rhode Island and other states. "This Friday, we open the doors on the filing season," said David Williams,......
|
8:49 AM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Richard Schloesser has been appointed the new chief executive officer of Toray Plastics (America), Inc., based in North Kingstown. He has been with Toray since 1990 and is the first American to hold the company's highest-ranking position. Schloesser most recently......
|
8:29 AM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Southwest Airlines Co., the biggest passenger carrier at T.F. Green Airport, won a 78 percent cut in a $9 million damage award to bounty hunters arrested for flying armed on the largest low-fare carrier after getting its permission to bring......
|
8:22 AM Wed, Jan 14, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Woonsocket-based CVS Caremark Corp. (CVS:NYSE) yesterday approved an increase in its quarterly dividend to 7.625 cents per common share, payable February 3 to shareholders on Jan. 23. The increase translates into an annual rate of 30.5 cents per share, up......
|
3:17 PM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (2)
By Paul Edward Parker Email
The federal Department of Housing and Urban Development has awarded $13.2 million in affordable housing grants for four projects in Coventry, Warwick and Westerly, Sen. Jack Reed announced. "This federal aid is targeted to help vulnerable citizens with limited resources......
|
2:37 PM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
With Rhode Island suffering from one of the country's highest rates of unemployment, the Economic Policy Council , Governor Carcieri's top economic advisors, will meet tomorrow at 10 a.m. Carcieri is scheduled to discuss the "current economic conditions" and his......
|
11:52 AM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
In an interview with The Providence Journal yesterday, Mohegan Sun's chief executive officer, Mitchell Etess, said it was not only the recession hurting the casino's bottom line. Expansions at Foxwoods, Twin River and elsewhere, Etess said, have been siphoning customers......
|
11:37 AM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Amgen Inc., the California-based biotechnology company that runs a plant in West Greenwich, plans to sell 10- and 30-year notes as soon as today, according to Bloomberg News. The senior debt will contain a so-called poison put that would allow......
|
11:21 AM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
A youth hockey tournament that begins tomorrow in Rhode Island is expected to draw 3,000 players and fans, giving a boost to local hotels and restaurants struggling from the economic downturn. The Providence Warwick Convention & Visitors Bureau says the......
|
7:26 AM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
U.S. Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy, D-RI, will meet with job seekers at the Providence netWORKri Career Center today and discuss improved accountability from financial institutions for the second installment of the Troubled Asset Relief Program. Kennedy said he is sending......
|
7:20 AM Tue, Jan 13, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Rogers Corp., based in Rogers, Conn, today revised guidance for the fourth quarter that ended Dec. 31. Rogers (ROG:NYSE) now projects fourth quarter net sales of $78 to $79 million compared to the Oct. 31 guidance report of $88 to......
|
3:15 PM Mon, Jan 12, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
Some Massachusetts taxpayers will be able to file their state income-tax returns online, at no charge, this season. The Massachusetts Department of Revenue today brought back its free online filing program, which was mothballed several years ago. At the same......
|
3:02 PM Mon, Jan 12, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
It's not your imagination. Gasoline prices in Rhode Island are inching up. The average price of a gallon of regular, self-serve gasoline today is about $1.78, according to a survey by the state Office of Energy Resources. That's up about......
|
2:47 PM Mon, Jan 12, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Grimaldi Email
Financially strapped mall owner General Growth Properties Inc. is shopping around Providence Place mall to help cut its $27-billion debt, a company spokesman told The Providence Journal. General Growth began marketing the mall for sale amid last month's Christmas rush,......
|
8:23 AM Mon, Jan 12, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Bank of America Corp. may post a $3.6 billion loss in the fourth quarter and slash its quarterly dividend, Citigroup analyst Keith Horowitz said this morning. Bank of America is likely to post a loss of 75 cents a share,......
|
8:19 AM Mon, Jan 12, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Officials at the Mohegan Sun casino say they will be reducing the pay of all 9,800 employees but will avoid layoffs in new cost-cutting moves spurred by declining revenues. The Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority announced Sunday that it will cut......
|
4:18 PM Fri, Jan 09, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
State Sen. Joshua Miller, D-Cranston, will head the Corporations Committee, which controls key legislation regarding state business regulations. Miller, who runs two restaurants in downtown Providence, learned of his appointment this morning. He announced his new role today at the......
|
3:25 PM Fri, Jan 09, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
New data from the secretary of state's office reveals a deep decline in new businesses moving into Rhode Island last year, the sharpest drop since the state began keeping records more than a decade ago. The number of new business......
|
2:07 PM Fri, Jan 09, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Cumberland-based Collegium Pharmaceutical, Inc., a specialty pharmaceutical developer, said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved the nasal spray the company developed. The spray is an aqueous-based steroid for once daily treatment of symptoms associated with both seasonal and......
|
10:44 AM Fri, Jan 09, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Woonsocket-based CVS Caremark Corp. this morning forecast a smaller 2009 profit than Wall Street expected, pointing to uncertainty in the U.S. economy. On a conference call, CVS Chief Executive Tom Ryan said the company expects a profit of $2.53 to......
|
8:19 AM Fri, Jan 09, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Lowe's Companies plans today to open its new store in North Kingstown. The home improvement store will be at 1530 Davisville Road, the northwest corner of Gate and Davisville roads. It will have 117,000 square feet of retail sales space......
|
12:09 AM Fri, Jan 09, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
U.S. Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse has asked Senate leaders to consider a temporary increase in Social Security benefits as part of a broader federal economic stimulus package. A boost in benefits would help to ensure that seniors and the disabled received......
|
4:50 PM Thu, Jan 08, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Paul Edward Parker Email
When T.F. Green Airport compiles it passenger traffic numbers in the next couple of weeks, they will show that 2008 was the worst year in a decade and the first time since 1998 that the airport failed to reach 5......
|
4:01 PM Thu, Jan 08, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Christine Dunn Email
Brown University received 90 inquiries about the two historic houses on Angell Street in Providence it will sell for $10 apiece, but only 9 parties returned detailed proposals to buy the houses, which will be moved to make way for......
|
12:18 PM Thu, Jan 08, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Since it opened for occupancy last September, just five condominiums at Intercontinental Real Estate Corp.'s Waterplace towers in Providence have been sold, but 70 more have been leased, many by people who have exercised a rent-to-own option. Paul J. Nasser,......
|
1:14 AM Thu, Jan 08, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
The Internal Revenue Service seeks volunteers to help prepare federal income tax returns in Rhode Island through the IRS's Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. VITA provides free return preparation help to people who can't afford to hire a professional.......
|
7:12 PM Wed, Jan 07, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Neil Downing Email
The new state tax forms are now available online. The Rhode Island Division of Taxation has updated its Web site to include personal income tax forms for the 2008 tax year. So if you can't wait for your tax booklet......
|
3:29 PM Wed, Jan 07, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Buy Local RI is hoping to take what Farm Fresh Rhode Island did for farms and expand it throughout the state's economy by getting Rhode Islanders to support locally owned business. Michael Tanaka, a spokesman for Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts,......
|
3:29 PM Wed, Jan 07, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Pawtucket-based Collette Vacations has laid off 40 employees, saying the economic slowdown has would-be travelers opting for less-elaborate holidays. Advanced bookings for travel this year are down 21 percent, John Galvin, the chief financial officer, said in an interview today.......
|
10:28 AM Wed, Jan 07, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Benjamin N. Gedan Email
Organizers of a campaign to promote local products to boost the state's souring economy are gathering today to "develop a more permanent organization." Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts, chairwoman of the Small Business Advocacy Council says organizers plan to launch a......
|
7:32 AM Wed, Jan 07, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
An estimated 4,000 workers in Rhode Island can receive on-the-job training when the Governor's Workforce Board RI awards up to $2 million in employee training grants this winter. "The Governor's Workforce Board grants are a $4-million public and private sector......
|
4:03 PM Tue, Jan 06, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By News staff Email
By Michael McKinney Projo.com staff writer Imax Corp. has sold Feinstein Imax Theatre in the Providence Place mall to Quincy Amusement of Dedham, Mass. That means Rhode Island philanthropist Alan Shawn Feinstein and Imax "part company," according to a news......
|
1:26 PM Tue, Jan 06, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Lt. Gov. Elizabeth Roberts, chairperson of the Small Business Advocacy Council, will meet with small businesses to form a Buy Local RI organization on Wednesday at the Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation in Providence. Buy Local RI, the statewide initiative......
|
8:31 AM Tue, Jan 06, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (2)
By Business staff Email
Rhode Island, Massachusetts and 9 other Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states have agreed to create a low carbon fuel standard to reduce greenhouse gases. Massachusetts Secretary of Energy and Environmental Affairs Ian Bowles said the states will come up with a......
|
7:49 AM Tue, Jan 06, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Providence-based Textron made a $625 million cash payment to its Textron Financial Corp. unit to meet ratio and leverage requirements. Textron made the payment Dec. 29, according to a filing today with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. As part......
|
3:50 PM Mon, Jan 05, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Andy Smith Email
The International Yacht Restoration School (IYRS) in Newport will host a career information session Thursday evening from 6 to 8 in the auditorium on the Newport Campus of the Community College of Rhode Island. The session will offer information about......
|
12:19 PM Mon, Jan 05, 2009 | Permalink |
Comments (2)
By Tim Barmann Email
There may not be room in its newsroom for the state's legions of unemployed, but The Rhode Island Catholic, the weekly newspaper of the Diocese of Providence, is trying to lend a hand. Bishop Thomas J. Tobin has announced plans......
|
10:13 AM Mon, Jan 05, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Lynn Arditi Email
House prices in Rhode Island fell nearly 20 percent in November, and sales for the month fell to their lowest level in more than a decade, The Warren Group reported today. The median price of a single-family house in November......
|
8:52 AM Mon, Jan 05, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
The median selling price for single-family homes in Rhode Island plunged almost 20 percent in November, marking the steepest percentage decline in year-over-year monthly prices since The Warren Group began tracking the state's real estate market in 1989. The median......
|
8:09 AM Mon, Jan 05, 2009 | Permalink |
Write a comment
By Business staff Email
Governor Carcieri this morning will join the new owners and employees of Bradford Printing and Finishing LLC to reopen the reorganized company in Westerly. Bradford Printing and Finishing replaces the old Bradford Dyeing Association, which closed its doors in late......
|
|
Tags
Channel 10
Lisa Churchville
WJAR-TV
New photos
New posts
Projo blogs
Archives