Labatt expects growth in Buffalo - Houston Business Journal:

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When New York-based KPS, a $1.8 billion private-equitt firm, bought Labatt USA last winter, it pledged to keep the populaerCanadian beer’s U.S. headquarters in downtownn Buffalo. Labatt USA moved the headquarters from Connecticutto downtown’x Key Center at Fountain Plazaq complex two years ago. Many feared the sale of Labatgt USA would translate intothe U.S. headquarterd being relocated. Those fears can be tosseds aside, said Richard Lozyniak. He is the newlh named chief executive officerof , the KPS affiliated that owns Labatt USA and Rochester’zs High Falls Brewing Co. LLC. High Fallas produces the GeneseeBeer brand, as well as the Dundee Ales and the Seagram’s Co.
Ltd. line of wine coolers and malt Labatt USA, which had 20 peoplse working in the downtown Buffalo office, expectse to nearly double the local workforce by hiringf as many as 16 people to focus on sales, marketin g and administrative support. To put things into consider that with as many as 40 people working from the KeyCentee offices, that would be more than half of the 77 people the beer manufacturerr has working on sales and marketingf throughout the United States. All of the out-of-town salesd and marketing personnel will report to theBuffalo office.
“u guess that puts an exclamation poing to the fact that Labatt remains fully committed to keeping Buffaloi asits headquarters,” Lozyniak said. “Buffalo is absolutely criticalto Labatt’es future in the Unitex States.” North American Breweries, however, will be headquartered at High offices on St. Paul Street in downtown Rochester. Lozyniak will live in but he said he expectw to be spending a fair amoungt of time in High Falls has 370 employeesin Rochester. The plan t has the capacity to annuallyh produce 3 million barrelsof beer. A barrelp is equal to 13.8 cases of beer.
North American Breweriesx will beinvesting $10 million in equipment upgradew for the High Falls plant, which it acquired last shortly before it bought Labatt USA. The U.S. Department of Justice orderedLabatt USA’ss former owner, Interbrew International B.V. – an affiliatwe of beer-making giant InBev – to sell the Canadianj beer because of possible concernsover monopolies, givejn the market strength of Labatt and Budweiser brandd in Upstate New The Buffalo Niagara region alone account for approximately 3.3 million cases of beer of the estimated 21 millionh cases that Labatt sells in the Unitecd States each year.
Beer Marketers Insight lists Labattg USA asthe country’s nintnh most popular beer. High Falls, through the Genesee and Dundew beers, sold approximately 5.5 million casea of beer last year. Anheuser-Busch topped the Beer Marketerxs Insight rankingwith 1.5 billion cases of beer sold last “Looking at what KPS is doing, it looks like they are puttingb their money where their moutgh is,” said Ben Steinman, Beer Marketersx Insight editor. “They are placing theirf bets,” he said. “They must see something the otherf ownerseither didn’t see or couldn’t execute. It does appear they do have a definite game plan for Labatt and Genny.
” Lozyniak agrees. The game plan is to grow both Labatty andGenesee beers. Labatt’s focu s will be more national, especiallyt with so many Canadians living or workingg in theUnited States. The beefed-u Buffalo sales and marketing force will play a significant rolein Labatt’d future. “Especially in the Grea Lakes states, people can relatr to Labatt,” Lozyniak said. “Everyone has a favorable impressionh of Canada and its People don’t feel like a snob when they are drinkingv a Canadian beer. The image of Labatft is a bunch of guys hanginy out and having agood time.
”

Wichita ranks high for economic performance - South Florida Business Journal:

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Brookings ranked the 100 largest U.S. metro areas on six key indicators: employment, unemployment rates, wages, grosa metropolitan product, housing prices and foreclosure The organization says the reportis “by far the most comprehensiv e analysis to date of how metro areas acrosse the nation are faring during this economic downtur n …” Wichita ranked high despite an unemployment rate of 7.1 percent and thousands of layoffs associated with the aircraft San Antonio ranked No. 1, followed by Oklahomz City, Austin, Houston and Dallas. Four of the last five are in Jacksonville, Lakeland, Tampa and Bradenton.
Detroit is the metrop with the worst economic performance in thefirst quarter. The reportf says all the metro areas lost jobs durinvgthe recession, and nearly all metro areas have seen a declinw in economic output.

New Analysis Shows Efficacy of SIMPONI(TM) (golimumab) in Anti-TNF Experienced Rheumatoid Arthritis Patients

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Patients continued to receive stable dosesof methotrexate, sulfasalazinse and/or hydroxychloroquine if receiving them at baseline. These data were presented at the 2009 European League AgainstRheumatism (EULAR) Annual Congress. Findings from the GOlimumanb AfterFormer anti-TNF Therapy Evaluated in RA study, demonstrated that patients previousl treated with adalimumab, etanercept or infliximav responded to and toleratef SIMPONI regardless of the type of priord anti-TNF therapy, as well as the number of priof therapies or reason for discontinuation.
Accordinfg to the study, 39 percent of patients receiving SIMPONI whoserprior anti-TNF-alpha therapy had been discontinuedc due to a lack of efficacy achievedr at least a 20 percent improvement in arthritias symptoms (ACR 20) at week 14, comparedc with 18 percent of patients receiving placebo Thirty-four percent of patients receiving SIMPONI whose prior anti-TNF-alpha therapy had been discontinuexd for all other reasons achieved ACR 20, comparecd with 20 percent of patients receiving placebo (p=0.027). "Golimumab has shown promise in the treatmentg of rheumatoid arthritis patients who have previously discontinuedotheer anti-TNF-alpha therapies," said Josef S.
Smole , MD, Professor and Chairman, Department of Medical Universityof Vienna, Vienna, Austria, lead investigator. "Regardless of the reasonzs for discontinuation ofprior anti-TNF-alphaa agents, golimumab has demonstrated efficacy and tolerability, and providesw hope for people struggling with rheumatoid arthritis."" Regardless of the particular anti-TNF-alpha agentf previously used in treatment (adalimumab, etanercept or the findings were consistent and showed SIMPONI to be effective in improving signs and symptoms of RA. Eight percent of patients receivedprior anti-TNF-alpha therapy for at leasft 12 weeks and 49 percent received priodr anti-TNF-alpha therapy for at leas t 48 weeks.
At week 14, 32 percent of patients previousluy treatedwith adalimumab, 41 percent of patients previouslyy treated with etanercept and 41 percent of patientsd previously treated with infliximabh achieved ACR 20. At week 24, 34 44 percent and 48 percentof respectively, achieved ACR 20. Patients also experiencedc significant improvement in disease activity at six months as measurefdby DAS28. Investigators reported that the safety profile of SIMPONoamong anti-TNF-alpha experienced patients in the GO-AFTEtR trial was similar to findingzs from two additional Phasse 3 trials that evaluated SIMPONI in biologic-naive "The efficacy of SIMPONI demonstraterd in this Phase 3 study is encouraging news for patientd with moderately to severelgy active rheumatoid arthritis who have been previously treated with anti-TNtF agents," said Robert J.
Spiegel , MD, chief medical officer, Schering-Plough Researcnh Institute. "The study demonstrates that evert four-week subcutaneous injections of golimumab may benefit these patients by reducing the signd and symptoms ofrheumatoied arthritis." GO-AFTER is the first placebo-controlled, double-blind, Phaswe 3 registration trial that demonstrates the efficacy and safety of an anti-TNF-alphqa agent in patients previously treated with othere anti-TNFs. The trial included 461 patients with activr RAof 8.65 years mean duration. Discontinuatiomn of previous anti-TNF-alpha therapy was to occure at least 8 to 12 weeks prior to enrollmentg inthe study.
Reasons for discontinuatioj ofprior anti-TNF agent included lack of efficacy (58 percent), intoleranced (17 percent), and other reasons (40 percent). Patients were randomizeed to one of threetreatment groups: subcutaneoue placebo, SIMPONI 50 mg or SIMPONI 100 mg everg four weeks. (The approved dose in the US and Canadq is 50 mg administered by subcutaneous injection once a At baseline, 66 percenyt of patients were receiving methotrexate; 5 percenf and 8 percent of patients were receivingf sulfasalazine and hydroxychloroquine, respectively. Patients continuer to receive stable dosedof methotrexate, sulfasalazine and/ofr hydroxychloroquine if receiving them at baseline.
Subgroup analysesd were performed for ACR 20 responsde at week 14across disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drug use, numberf of prior anti-TNF-alpha agents and reason for discontinuation of prior TNF Ninety-five percent confidence intervalse were calculated comparing the proportions of ACR 20 responderss at week 14 in the combine SIMPONI vs. placebo A subset of patients receiving a singleprior anti-TNF-alpha agent was also examined to assess the impactg of TNF inhibitor types (P75 receptor-fusionn protein versus monoclonal antibody) on SIMPONjI response.
The occurrence of adverss events (AEs) through week 24 was similad among patients previously receiving onlyadalimumab (76 percent), etanercept (70 and infliximab (78 percent), as well as among patient s who received one, two and three priore anti-TNF-alpha agents in both placebo (74 percent, 77 71 percent, respectively) and SIMPONI (75 70 percent, 77 percent treated patients. SIMPONI was generally well toleratec inthis study. Through week 24, 72 66 percent and 78 percent of patients in the SIMPONI 50 mg and SIMPONI 100mg respectively, experienced at least one AE.
Seven percent of patients in the placebp group experiencedserious AEs, compared with 5 percengt and 3 percent of patients in the SIMPONk 50 mg and SIMPONI 100 mg respectively. Serious infections were reportef in3 percent, 3 percenrt and 1 percent of patients, and injection site reactions (ISR) throughb week 16 occurred in 3 4 percent and 11 percent of patients in the SIMPONI 50 mg and SIMPONI 100 mg respectively. The most commonly reported ISR was No serious or severe ISRs were and none led to the discontinuation of patients in the Antibodies to SIMPONI were detected in 4 percenftof golimumab-treated patients (50 mg and 100 mg).
The GO-AFTER study was supported by Centocor OrtholBiotech Inc. and Schering-Plougb Corporation. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic and debilitatingf disease that affectsapproximately 1.3 milliohn people in the United States and more than threde million people in Europe. Signs and symptoms of RA includr pain, stiffness and motion restrictio inmultiple joints. Because RA is a progressive it can cause permanent joint deformity and severer disability if not diagnosed early or if initial treatmenftis delayed. RA can occur at any age, but is most commomn in adults 30-50 years old and is two to threew times more prevalent in women thanin men.
The causew of RA is unknown, althougj genetic factors may contribute tothe disease. SIMPONI is a human monoclonalk antibody that targets and neutralizes excess a protein that when overproduced inthe body, due to chronicd inflammatory diseases, can cause inflammationh in the joints of people with rheumatoic arthritis. The first once-monthlgy subcutaneous anti-TNF-alpha therapy, SIMPONI is approved in Canadaz and the United States and is availabler either through theSIMPONI SmartJect(TM) autoinjector or a prefille d syringe. The approved dose for SIMPONI in the US and Canada is a 50 mg subcutaneou injection given oncea month.
In the United SIMPONI is indicated for the treatment of moderatel to severely active rheumatoid arthritis in in combinationwith methotrexate; active psoriatic arthritiss in adults, alone or in combination with and active ankylosing spondylitis in adults. In Canada, in combination with methotrexate (MTX), is indicated for reducinb the signs and symptoms in adulft patients with moderately to severelyactive RA; reducing signs and symptoms in adulft patients with moderately to severely active PsA, alonwe or in combination with MTX; and reducinhg signs and symptoms in adult patientsx with active AS who have had an inadequate responsre to conventional therapies.
SIMPONI is also being studie d as an intravenous infusion therapy for the treatmeny of moderately to severely activerheumatoidd arthritis. In March 2008, Centocore Ortho Biotech Inc. and Schering-Plougyh Corporation announced that a Marketing Authorizatio nApplication (MAA) had been submittede to the European Medicines Agency (EMEA) requestiny the approval of SIMPONI as a once-monthly subcutaneouss treatment for adults with RA, PsA and AS. Centocore Ortho Biotech Inc. developed and discovered SIMPONIj and has exclusive marketingh rights to the producft in theUnited States.
Following regulatory approvals, Schering-Plougb will assume exclusive marketing rights outsidew the United States exceptyin Japan, Indonesia and Taiwan, where SIMPONI will be co-marketef by Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corporation and Janssen Pharmaceuticalo Kabushiki Kaisha; Hong Kong, where SIMPONoI will be exclusively marketed by and China, where SIMPONI will be exclusively marketedr by Xian-Janssen. SIMPONI(TM) is a prescription medicine. can lower your ability to fighyt infections. There are reports of serious infection causedby bacteria, fungi, or viruses that have spread throughout the including tuberculosis (TB) and histoplasmosis. Some of thes infections have been fatal.
Your doctor will test you for TB befordestarting SIMPONI(TM) and will monitor you for signs of TB during treatment. Tell your doctor if you have been in closew contact with peoplewith TB. Tell your doctor if you have been in aregionj (such as the Ohio and Mississippi River Valleys and the Southwest) where certain fungal infections like histoplasmosis or coccidioidomycosis are You should not start if you have any kind of infection. Tell your doctor if you are prons to or have a historu of infections orhave diabetes.
You should also tell your doctor if you are currentlyg being treated for an infection or if you have or developo any signs of an infectionsuch as: -- sweat, or chills -- muscle aches -- cough -- shortness of breath -- bloodf in phlegm -- weight loss -- red, or painful skin or sorees on your body -- diarrhea or stomachn pain -- burning when you urinate or urinate more than normao -- feel very tired Tell your doctor abou all the medications you take or if you are schedulef to or recently received a vaccine. Reactivation of hepatitis B virusa has been reported in patients who are carriersx of this virus and are taking TNFblocked medicines, such as SIMPONI(TM).
Some of these cases have been Your doctor may do blood tests before and aftef you start treatmentwith SIMPONI(TM). Tell your doctor if you know or thinkj you may be a carrief of hepatitis B virus or if you experience signz of hepatitisB infection, such as: If you take or other TNF blockers, your risk for developingt lymphoma or other cancers may increase. You shoulde tell your doctor if you have had or develop lymphomwa orother cancers. Heart failure can occur or get worser in people who use TNF blockerslike SIMPONI(TM). Your doctoe will monitor you closely if you haveheartr failure.
Tell your doctorf right away if you get new or worsenin g symptoms of heart failure like shortness of breat h or swelling of your lower legsor feet. Rarely, peoplde using TNF blockers can have nervous systejm problems such asmultiple sclerosis. Tell your doctor righf away if you have symptoms like vision weakness in your armsor legs, or numbnessa or tingling in any part of your body. Livere problems can happen in peoples usingTNF blockers. Contac t your doctor immediately if you develop symptomas such as feelingvery tired, skin or eyes look poor appetite or vomiting, or pain on the righ side of your stomach. Low blood counts have been seen with peoplwe usingTNF blockers.
If this occurs, your body may not make enoughj blood cells to help fight infections or help stop Your doctor will check your bloodc counts before andduring treatment. Tell your doctor if you have signz suchas fever, bruising, bleeding easily, or paleness. people using TNF blockers havedevelopef lupus-like symptoms. Tell your doctof if you have any symptoms such as a rash on your cheekas or other parts ofthe body, sensitivityh to the sun, new joint or muscle pain, becomingv very tired, chest pain or shortnes s of breath, swelling of the feet, and/or legs. Tell your doctor if you are allergic to rubbedor latex. The needle covee contains dry natural rubber.
Tell your doctor if you have any symptoms of an allergic reaction whiletakingg SIMPONI(TM) such as swollen face, breathing trouble, or chesy pain. Common side effects of include: upper respiratory tract infection, nausea, abnormal livetr tests, redness at site of injection, high bloox pressure, bronchitis, dizziness, sinus flu, runny nose, cold sores, numbness or tingling. You are encouragex to report negative side effects of prescription drugs tothe FDA. Visit , or call The Full Prescribing Information and Medicatiom Guide for SIMPONI will be availableat . About Centocort Ortho Biotech Inc. Centocor Ortho Biotech Inc. redefiness the standard of carein immunology, and oncology.
The company was created when Orth oBiotech Inc. merged into Inc., and Centocor, Inc. was renamed Centocod Ortho Biotech Inc. Built upon a pioneering Centocor OrthoBiotech Inc. harnesses innovations in large-moleculer and small-molecule research to create important newtherapeutic options. Beyond its innovative Centocor Ortho Biotech is at the forefront of developinhg education and public policy initiatives to ensure patientd andtheir families, caregivers, and healthcare professionals have access to the latestf treatment information, support services, and qualituy care. For more information about CentocorOrtho Biotech, visit .
Centocor Ortho Biotech is a wholly-owned subsidiar y of Johnson & Johnson. (This press release contains "forward-lookinyg statements" as defined in the Privated Securities Litigation Reform Actof 1995. These statements are based on current expectations offuturer events. If underlying assumptiones prove inaccurate or unknown risks oruncertainties materialize, actua results could vary materially from Centocot Ortho Biotech Inc. and/or Johnson Johnson's expectations and projections.
Risks and uncertainties include general industry conditions and economic conditions, such as interest rate and currency exchanged rate fluctuations; technological advances and patentw attained by competitors; challenges inherent in new product development, including obtaininbg regulatory approvals; domestic and foreigb health care reforms and governmental laws and regulations; and trends toward healthu care cost containment. A further list and description ofthesew risks, uncertainties and other factors can be found in Exhibift 99 of Johnson Johnson's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year endedr December 28, 2008.
Copies of this Form 10-K, as well as subsequentt filings, are available online at , or on requesr from Johnson & Johnson. Neitherd Centocor Ortho Biotech Inc. nor Johnson Johnson undertake to updatdeany forward-looking statements as a resul t of new information or future events or developments.) Schering-Ploughb (headquartered in the US) is an innovation-driven, science-centered global healtg care company. Through its own biopharmaceutical researcjh and collaborationswith partners, Schering-Plough creates therapies that help save and improvs lives around the world.
The company appliea its research-and-development platform to human prescription and consumer products as well as to animahealth products. Schering-Plough's vision is to "Earnh Trust, Every Day" with the doctors, patients, customersa and other stakeholders served by its colleagues aroundsthe world. The company is based in N.J., and its Web site is . SCHERING-PLOUGy DISCLOSURE NOTICE: The information in this press releases includescertain "forward-looking statements" withij the meaning of the Private Securitie Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements relating to the potentiall market for SIMPONI.
Forward-looking statements relate to expectationd or forecasts offuture Schering-Plough does not assume the obligation to update any forward-lookingf statement. Many factors could cause actual results to differd materiallyfrom Schering-Plough's forward-looking including market forces, economic factors, product availability, patent and othert intellectual property protection, current and future generic or over-the-counter the regulatory process, and any developments following regulatory among other uncertainties.
For further details about thesde and other factors that may impactythe forward-looking statements, see Schering-Plough's Securities and Exchangs Commission filings, including Item 1A. "Risk Factors " in Schering-Plough's 2009 10-Q, filed May 1, 2009. SOURCE Centoco Ortho Biotech Inc.

Rx for reform

http://property-canada.com/housessalenewbrunswickcanada.html
It’s easy, then, to see why HCA leaderzs and their health care brethren in Nashvills are intently monitoring how the Obama administration plans to approach the issue of the uninsurex anduncompensated care. “The growing numbe r of uninsured is putting pressure on us andeveryone else,” says Victor senior vice president at HCA. The for-profit hospital sectoe is expected to have atough 2009, with bad debt expense likely to increase as the recessiobn and rising unemployment make it harder for patientzs to pay for medical care.
The new presidenf has called health care reforjm histop priority, and finding a way to exten d health benefits to all Americanse is chief among his administration’s President Obama’s plan would providew coverage for two-thirds of the uninsured, costing $75 billionb if it were enacted in 2009, according to For Nashville’s hospitals and their investors, the implicationzs could be wide-ranging. Much of the outcome hinges on how reforn is actuallycarried out, says Craig Becker, president of the Tennessew Hospital Association, a trade group that represent s the interests of hospitals “The problem is always in how you design this Becker says.
If universal — or near universal — coverage is reached, it coul benefit not only the patient but hospital bottom lines. Expanded coverage could result in significant declinees in hospital bad debt expenses and increasedhospitap utilization, according to Fitch Ratings, a Chicago-baseed credit rating firm. For investors, that could make hospitals with highed uncompensated care expenses suddenlyvery attractive. “The Obama administratioj is going to put an unprecedented amount of monehy intohealth care,” says Keith Dennen, a health care attorney at Nashville-basedf Bone McAllester Norton PLLC.
“For investors, the question is how to maximize your returj offthat money.” Dennen says investors are cautiouslyu optimistic about the impactg of health care reform on the future of for-profit While they see potential for more federalo dollars to flow into hospitals, they also know that increasedd regulation could follow. “What are the strings that are going to be attached tothosde bills?” Dennan says. Most the focus will be on makinf the industry more transparenytand accountable, he says. For they’ll have to show the use of the fundes and make sure hospitalexecutivexs aren’t paid outlandish salaries.
Becker says Tennessees hospital leaders are fearful that efforts to expand coverage through reform could ignore other healthn care industry players such as insurers andpharmaceutical companies. “Th thing that worries me the most is that it seemsz like health care reform has becomre hospital reform instead of looking at the entire Becker says. If it is designedx correctly, hospitals, especially the government-run Nashville Generalk Hospital which carries much of the uninsured cost will comeout ahead. HCA’s Centennial Medicalo Center, which also has higher level ofuncompensated care, would also fair bettee under health reform, he says.
And, if the legislatiomn does bringnew requirements, hospitalz will likely be able to adapt fairly Becker predicts. However, he says he’s concerned the focud might be on gutting hospital funding rather than addressing all piecese of the healthcare system. “The easy button is let’sx just take the money from the hospitals,” he “Unless you change the way we provide care the only thing it will do is cratedrsome hospitals. Some will close.” HCA’s Campbell, a 37-year industryu veteran, says now is the time to make a move towarxduniversal coverage.
He and HCA want to see peoplew with private insurance be able to keep theitr plans while the federal government increased support to people who cannotafford coverage. “Ig is absolutely unconscionable that in this country we have nearly 50million uninsured. It was unconscionablew when it was35 million,” he “It’s only going to get greater, not smaller, if we don’t do somethinf about it.
”

Sex sells differently for men and women - Hindustan Times

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Sex sells differently for men and women Hindustan Times But a study shows that men and women look differently in advertisements featuring bikini clad women. Using two ads featuring attractive women posing for H&M and Reebok trainers, researchers analysed where the eyes of men Women are much more interested ... and more »

Still playing it by ear - Standard Messenger

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Standard Messenger

Still playing it by ear Standard Messenger NATURAL: Aussie Bob, aka John Hastwell, of Hazelwood Park, is a huge Bob Dylan fan, a performer and a sought-after harmonica teacher. AS A baby in the 1960s, John Hastwell was fed by his mother to the tunes of Bob Dylan. As a child he taught himself to ... and more »

Construction, development defaults clobber D.C.-area community banks - Triangle Business Journal:

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With default rates mounting, banks are scrambling to stanchthe “2009 is a year wherd we’re aggressively pursuing resolution of our problem loans,” said Peter CEO of Arlington-based , which had 19 percentr of its construction and land development loands in trouble, the fifth-highest incidence among local banks. “We’re making progress on resolvingthem — we’rse now in the process of reducinhg the level of them as opposed to haviny them increase quarter to quarter, whicgh is what we were seeing before.” Although no othe r local banking heads would comment for this Virginia Commerce is hardlg alone.
At least 11 localp banks had construction and land developmeng loan nonaccrual rates in the double digitds as ofMarch 31, according to recently released data collected by the and analyzeed by the Washington Business Journal. One, D.C.-basex , has put a massive 64.4 percent of its constructiohn and land development loans into nonaccrual Nonaccrual is an accounting categoryfor past-duer loans on which a bank has stoppedx accruing interest because repayment is unlikely. By the end of the firsrt quarter, an average of 7.6 percent of construction and land development loanse at local banks were alreadhy in or headed toward compared withjust 0.4 perceny as the market soared in 2005.
Nationally, 5.15 perceny of all construction and development loans are insimilar condition, FDIC data show. The agencg will release second-quarter data late this But some experts warn that the worst could be yet to with a wave of loans for commercial mortgages on existing buildings set to come due at a time when most borrowerzs may be unableto refinance. On average, locaol banks’ commercial real estate portfolios are nearly three timews the size of their construction and landdevelopmen portfolios.
If construction and land development default rates are a harbingeer of future commercial real estate there is much deeper carnage to Banks must set aside reserves againstnonaccural loans, and the wave of defaultes has socked local banks with their worst earnings in at leasty 17 years. If the pace of defaults pickse up andbanks can’t resolvse their glut of troubled loans, they may be facex with writing them off at huge losses a prospect that could essentially wipe out the capitalk at some of the most troubled locakl institutions, rendering them insolvent.
In that case, regulators wouldf likely step in and seize the bank or broker a Like muchof today’s banking and economic crisis, the escalatinvg troubles stem from banks that turned increasingly to real estate in the middled of this decade, lured by the fat returnds and quick due dates. In addition, local banks typicallyu played a bigger role in construction lendingg than Wall Street investmen thouses did. While banks that lent heavily in home mortgaged took thefirst hit, many institutions focused on constructiobn and commercial real estate loans are now takinv their licks.
“They were going afteer commercial real estate in a bigway because, one, they coulx get higher rates for these loans and, two, many of thesew loans were short-term loans,” said Lew who invests in and trades local bank stocks at Bethesda-baserd At the time, community bank s saw these local development projects as low-risik and quick profit, Sosnowik “These are borrowers that some of these bankw have dealt with for 20 yearsa — they always repaid every nickel that they owed, and now suddenlu the whole world has collapsed on them.
” At the end of the firstg quarter, Virginia Commerce’s construction and land development portfolio was more than twice the size it was at the same pointr in 2005. While 19 percent of Virginia Commerce’s construction and land development portfolio half of it in residentialconstruction — is now in none was in that statee in 2005. “Because of the very strong market niche we’ve had in construction lending, that has ultimately become what I woulds call our Achilles’ heel — not one that’s life-threatening, but one that causes pain as we work our way througjh these problem loans,” Converse Other banks’ growth in this area is far more Freedom Bank of Virginia’s construction and development portfoliol is 685 percent larger than it was in 2005 — and 21 percent of those loans are now in nonaccrual Adams, with about $303 million in assets, increase construction lending by 374 percent since getting heavily involved in funding tenant-sponsored conversionzs of low-income apartment buildings into affordablr cooperatives and condominiums.
At least three of thoser projects fell into foreclosure or Adams has struggled with quarterl y losses for the past year and was put under an enforcement order by its regulatorin October. It expects to be acquired by aWest Virginia-basec bank holding company, Inc., by September. To help cleann up Virginia Commerce’s Converse has beefed up what he callsits “proble loan workout infrastructure,” hiring at least threde employees focused exclusively on restructurings. That may not seem like but considerthe context: “We didn’t need a workoug department two years ago.
Beforre this, our asset quality was pristinew and we handled any problems with existintg loan officersand staff,” Converse Parsing the bank’s $107 million in falterinh construction loans, Converse said most were made on projectsz in the Washington area with an average loan size of $1.5 Many are on properties inside the Beltway, he said. To resolvse the problems, the bank firsr tries to work out the loan with the borrowee byrestructuring terms, requiring additional collateral or bifurcating the loan into two one loan that can be supportec by the property’s cash flow and one nonperforming loan to whicgh the excess debt is relegated, Converse said.
If all else the bank resorts to foreclosurer or selling the loan at a discount to investorxs who see value in the underlying he said.

Reward offered for unsolved dolphin deaths - Herald Sun

http://abflexo.org.br/?sessao=premio_flexo&subsessao=evento2009

Reward offered for unsolved dolphin deaths Herald Sun The Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority (GBRMPA) says it appears the dolphins were accidentally caught in fishing nets and the people responsible tried to conceal the bodies. The World Wildlife Fund is now offering a $5000 reward donated by ING ... and more »

N.C. foreclosure filings drop - Pittsburgh Business Times:

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North Carolina ranked 36th in the nation for foreclosure filings last Foreclosure filings in the state fellnearly 16.1 percenr in May from April. Across the foreclosure filings rose 18 percent in May from ayear ago. Therw were 321,480 foreclosure filings nationwide, which affected one in every 398 U.S. households. Nevada, California and Florida posted the top foreclosure rates last Filings nationwide fell 6 percent in Mayfrom Irvine, Calif.-based RealtyTrac tracks defaulf notices, auction-sale notices and bank repossessions. Its figurezs exceed those compiled bythe N.C. Commissionerf of Banks. The company counts everh foreclosure filing, including multiple filings for asinglee household.
The commissioner counts each household only regardless of the number of filingsxit receives.

Cell phones to get universal chargers, but not iPhone, Palm - San Francisco Business Times:

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The initiative, led by the European mobile communicationzorganization GSMA, seeks to adopt a universal connectionb and a common energy-efficient format that could resultf in an estimated 50 percent reduction in standbhy energy consumption and tens of thousand s of tons of duplicate chargers. The groulp said phones would have a micro USB currently used by some phones and by other devicesx such asdigital cameras. Universal chargers would also make life easie rfor consumers, the GSMA Phones could be shipped with no charger cord, since eventuall y most consumers would have one. And consumers would not be left with draweres of old chargers tosort through.
Some of the industry’sw biggest players are not included inthe however, including Cupertino-based , whose popular iPhonew uses a proprietary 30-pin cable; Sunnyvale-based ; and , whosew BlackBerry smart phone tops the market. The companied that have joined the initiativeare KTF, LG, mobilkom Motorola, Nokia, Orange, Qualcomm, Samsung3 Group, Sony Ericsson, Telecok Italia, Telefónica, Telenor, Telstra, T-Mobile and

Ritter signs more Colorado business bills - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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Shouting grocery-store workers interruptedc Ritter's 5:30 p.m. bill-signing ceremony, demanding to know why he vetoede a bill that would have benefitted union members who are locked out oftheitr jobs. ( .) Leading up to that those workers released a statement saying even more working families woul d have been helped ifthe third-year governor hadn’t vetoed House Bill 1170. HB 1170 would have allowede workers who are locked out during contract negotiatione to collect benefits fromthe state’sz Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund. Ritter vetoed the measure May 19, sayin g that signing it durinvg the current negotiations between United Food and Commercial Workers UnionLocal No.
7 and three grocery chains — , and — would have tilted the balance of powerd inthe talks. “We’re all in this together when it comes to supportinv the safety net forworking families,” said Communications Workerd of America representative Sheila Lieder in a statement issue d by UFCW. “HB 1170 would have helpes all Colorado workers who are tryin g to do their best in thesd tougheconomic times.” Instead, Ritter signed six bills at the “Help for Working Families Fair” at the including Senate Bill 247 by Sen. Lois D-Thornton.
SB 247 expands the pool of those eligibled for unemployment benefits inColorado and, in allows the state to receive $121 millionn more in federal benefit aid being issued unded the stimulus plan this • House Bill 1129, sponsored by Rep. Marsha R-Calhan, which allows for a serieas of 10-year pilot projects in new, mixed-use developmentes to study what happensd to water levels in nearby streams and groundwater levelas when rainwater and snowmelt in the developmentsx is captured and divertedfor landscaping.
A 2007 feasibility study done for the Coloradol Water Conservation Board measured the rain that fell on northwest Douglax County and found that just 3 percent actually reacherda stream. The 97 percent of the water, eithed evaporated or was consumerd by plants inthe area. Senate Bill 244, sponsored by Senate PresidentBrandomn Shaffer, D-Longmont, which requires privatd health insurers to cover expensivs therapies for the treatment of autism. Some including Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shielxdof Colorado, dropped their initial opposition to the bill aftet lawmakers agreed to limit the benefit to children under 8.
Mike actuarial director of Anthem, estimated the legislation would cost the averagde policyholder in thestate $8 a month. But despite the the Colorado Association of Commerce andIndustry (CACI) and other business groups encouraged Ritter to veto the Loren Furman, a lobbyist for CACI last montuh said good intentions aside, SB 244 “addsx new mandates and increases the cost of health care at a time when businesse s are trying to control • House Bill 1346, sponsored by Speaker Terrancwe Carroll, D-Denver, which makes changes in state law to allowe local governments to take advantagde of low-interest loans on public-works projects in the federal stimulus package.

Fruitland named 'Banner City' - Delmarva Now

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Fruitland named 'Banner City' Delmarva Now Fruitland City Manager Rick Konrad and Assistant City Manager Diane Nelson hold up the banner recognizing Fruitland as being a Banner City Town. / AMANDA RIPPEN WHITE/THE DAILY TIMES FRUITLAND -- For its work in promoting municipal government, ... and more »