Postal Service: Scranton Distribution Facility To Close Next Year

USPS service delivery truck in a residential area of San Francisco, California (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The U.S. Postal Service on Thursday reaffirmed its intention to close the processing and distribution facility on Stafford Avenue in Scranton.

The nearly bankrupt agency unveiled plans to consolidate 140 mail processing operations over the next year, including the Scranton plant. The facility employs 300 people, and the mail service plans to transfer the work to a center near Allentown.

“The plan is under review to move operations to the other facility beginning after January 2013,” Ray Daiutolo, regional spokesman for the postal service, said in an email.

The revelation came as Congress remains deadlocked over a postal reform bill, assuring more political activity over the agency’s future.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/business/postal-service-scranton-distribution-facility-to-close-next-year-1.1316809

Rep. Tom Quigley To Speak On Local Job Creation

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TCN Membership Meeting

Rep. Tom Quigley to Speak on Local Job Creation

 Tuesday, May 15, 8am-10am

Montgomery County Community College, West Campus

Community Room, 101 College Drive, Pottstown

Special thanks to our breakfast sponsor
Money Management International

For more information or to register call 610-705-3301, Ext. 2.

 Membership Meeting Agenda

8:00am-8:30am Breakfast & Networking

8:30am-8:40am Introductions

8:40am-8:50am Announcements

8:50am-9:00am Breakfast Sponsor Presentation

9:00am-10:00am Presentation

Pennsylvania Losing Extended Unemployment Aid

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HARRISBURG, PA — Pennsylvania‘s unemployment rate is now too low for it to continue offering 13 weeks of extended unemployment benefits, the U.S. Department of Labor and Industry says.

Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was 7.5 percent in March, down from a 12-month high of 8.3 percent in September.

Right now, jobless Pennsylvanians receive 26 weeks of state-funded benefits and, once that runs out, 47 weeks of federally funded Emergency Unemployment Compensation. The extended benefits provided 13 weeks of additional aid beyond that 47-week window.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/nationworld/pennsylvania/mc-pa-unemployment-compensation-20120504,0,1579587.story

Lancaster County Jobless Rate Dips To 6%

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Lancaster County‘s unemployment rate receded again in March, the state said Monday.

The jobless rate slid to 6.0 percent from February’s 6.2 percent, the fifth consecutive monthly decline.

The new rate is the lowest in Lancaster County since January 2009, when the rate stood at 5.9 percent.

“We still might have the occasional blip here or there, but the rate is heading in the right direction,” said Bill Sholly, an analyst with the state Department of Labor & Industry.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/638749_Lancaster-County-jobless-rate-dips-to-6-.html#ixzz1tm1RlTiK

Unfinished West Reading Project Leaves Residents With Dirt, Weeds, Fading Hopes

Every year on the anniversary of her move-in date, Holly Zdravecki picks up the phone to call West Reading Borough Hall.

She bought the first town house in the promising Villas at West Reading development off Tulpehocken Avenue on March 16, 2008.

But Zdravecki still doesn’t have a paved street in front of her home.

Instead, mounds of dirt covered with grass and weeds adorn the lot at the entrance to the development. Six large concrete foundations with utility lines poking through the ground make up the north side of the complex.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=379000

Report: Sony To Axe 10,000 Jobs In Turnaround Bid

 

The logo of Sony is not considered a "work of authorship" because it only consists of text in a simple typeface, so it is not an object of copyright in respect to US law. However, this logo is still protected by trademark laws. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Japan’s Sony Corp. is cutting 10,000 jobs, about 6 percent of its global workforce, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday, as new CEO Kazuo Hirai looks to steer the electronics and entertainment giant back to profit after four years in the red.

The job cuts would be the latest downsizing in Japan Inc where companies from cellphone maker NEC Corp. to electronics firm Panasonic Corp. are trimming costs in the face of a strong yen and competition from rivals like Apple and Samsung Electronics.

TV makers in particular have been hit hard by the tough business climate as well as sharp price falls, with Sony, Panasonic and Sharp expecting to have lost a combined $17 billion in the fiscal year just ended.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/business/chi-sony-to-axe-10000-jobs-in-turnaround-bid-20120409,0,38906.story

Tourism In Berks Bouncing Back

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Whether they soaked up sounds at Berks Jazz Fest, watched cars tear up the track at Maple Grove Raceway or savored roasted ox at the Kutztown Folk Festival, tourists have increased their spending in Berks County.

A state report on tourism in calendar year 2010, the latest year for which numbers are available, showed Berks tourism spending increased by 10.3 percent from 2009 to $687.7 million.

It was, for Greater Reading Convention & Visitors Bureau President Crystal A. Seitz, a healthy dose of good news after a difficult recession.

Seitz said, “I am in love with those numbers.”

Read more: http://businessweekly.readingeagle.com/?p=3003

Lancaster County Convention Center, Local Tourism Looks Stronger

In recent weeks, the Lancaster County Convention Center has played host to gun enthusiasts, fly fishermen and winemakers for the first time.

For the third straight year, it hosted thousands of quilters.

And, this spring, the downtown Lancaster center will be the backdrop for conservative commentator Glenn Beck, Republican presidential candidates Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair in three separate events.

Life is good at the convention center right now, Marketing Director Josh Nowak told Lancaster Convention Center Authority board members Thursday.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/615174_Convention-center–local-tourism-looks-stronger.html#ixzz1qqQe74o3

Lancaster County Jobless Rate Drops To 6.3 Percent

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The Lancaster County unemployment rate fell to 6.3 percent in January, a three-year low, the state said Thursday.

The drop from December’s 6.7 percent marked the fourth time in the past five months that the jobless rate here has dipped.

January’s figure is the best here since January 2009′s rate of 6 percent, according to the state Department of Labor & Industry.

Bill Sholly, an industry and business analyst with the department, said he was encouraged to see more county residents with jobs.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/605844_Jobless-rate-in-Lancaster-County-drops-to-6-3-.html#ixzz1pmp8SUos

Bethlehem Mayor Announces $56 Million In Development At Former Bethlehem Steel Site

Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan on Wednesday announced $56 million of economic development for two projects at the former Bethlehem Steel plant — two buildings that could be used for warehousing or light assembly.

Lehigh Valley Industrial Park VII is negotiating for a 175,000-square-foot facility along Route 412.

Liberty Property Trust has filed plans for an 800,000-square-foot speculative building, one that would be built without a formal commitment from whoever ends up using it.

While Callahan didn’t have any job estimates on that building, he noted that a 1.2 million-square-foot warehouse under way is expected to bring as many as 500 jobs once a tenant is signed.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-bethlehem-state-of-city-callahan-20120314,0,5953407.story

Lancaster-Based Armstrong World Industries Reports 10-Fold Profit Increase

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Armstrong World Industries today reported a profitable fourth quarter and a ten-fold increase in profits for the full year.

Helping the results were sharply lower restructuring charges, the absence of asset-impairment charges and lower selling, general and administrative expenses.

Lancaster-based Armstrong also announced it will build its first manufacturing plant in Russia, continuing its expansion into what it calls “emerging markets.”

The $100 million mineral-fiber ceiling plant is expected to begin operations in 2015, said Armstrong, although the company did not name the city where the plant will be located.

Read more: http://lancasteronline.com/article/local/594659_Armstrong-reports-profitable-fourth-quarter–sees-10-fold-increase-in-profits-over-last-full-year.html#ixzz1nbRWCT1O

As Gas Drilling Boom Slows, Worry Sets In

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TOWANDA, PA - Vince Arena has a commanding view of Route 6 from Moore’s Auto Showroom. Since 2006, he has seen the traffic on the two-lane road swell with the region’s gas boom until it is bumper-to-bumper, light-to-light for miles just about all day.

Every few seconds, a tractor-trailer hauling water or massive pumps to or from drill sites rumbles past. For the last few weeks, however, Mr. Arena has been able to pull out from his lot without relying on the kindness of other motorists to let him out.

In January, one of the region’s largest gas drillers, Chesapeake Energy Corp., announced it would reduce its rig count in the region. Its rig count will go from 75 to 24, drilling fewer new wells and reducing the flow from existing wells. Other companies made similar announcements.

Read more: http://thetimes-tribune.com/news/as-gas-drilling-boom-slows-worry-sets-in-1.1273569#ixzz1mrJwxXny

Gasoline Pushes Inflation Up In January

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Gasoline prices jumped in January, leading overall consumer prices higher and offering a reminder of the risks energy costs pose to the economic recovery.

Despite the warning signal, overall consumer prices rose just 0.2 percent, the Labor Department said on Friday, which is unlikely to ring alarm bells at the Federal Reserve.

Strong jobs and factory data have eased worries U.S. economic growth could slow sharply, but tensions between Western nations and Iran still threaten to hand the economy a repeat of 2011 when a spike in energy prices hit the recovery hard.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/business/sns-rt-us-usa-economytre7bm0ab-20120103,0,2516876.story

Kodak Files Chapter 11 Bankruptcy

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ROCHESTER, NY – Eastman Kodak Co., running short of cash and unable to sell 1,100 digital imaging patents that could have rescued it, filed Wednesday for protection from its creditors under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

The iconic Rochester company, whose history dates to the late 19th century and the technical and marketing genius of founder George Eastman, has been besieged for the past three months by rumors that it would make a bankruptcy filing. Those rumors had intensified in the past two weeks.

“After considering the advantages of Chapter 11 at this time, the board of directors and the entire senior management team unanimously believe that this is a necessary step and the right thing to do for the future of Kodak,” CEO Antonio M. Perez said in announcing the decision.

Read more: http://www.stargazette.com/article/20120119/BUSINESS/201190344/Kodak-files-Chapter-11-bankruptcy?odyssey=mod|newswell|text|FRONTPAGE|s

Pennsylvania Jobless Rate Falls In December

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According to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry, the commonwealth’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was 7.6 percent in December, down from 7.9 percent in November.

Pennsylvania’s unemployment rate was below the U.S. rate of 8.5 percent, and has been below the U.S. rate for 62 consecutive months.

Read more: http://www.dailylocal.com/articles/2012/01/21/news/srv0000016915587.txt

Poor Economy Boosts Mass Transit Ridership In Butler County

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When John Paul of the Butler Transit Authority saw the numbers of riders increasing in big numbers late last year, he thought, “Wow, that was a good month.”

When it happened again the next month, he thought it was a fluke.

Now that it has happened for six consecutive months, he’s calling it a trend.

In fact, overall use of public transit in Butler County is skyrocketing, a fact that local experts link to dual factors of a battered economy and improvements in the transit systems.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/12005/1201300-54-0.stm#ixzz1idLTnao0

York-Based Bon-Ton Store’s Bonds Being Shunned By Investors

Investors are shunning Bon-Ton Stores Inc.‘s bonds – a bad sign for the York-based department store chain with seven stores in the Lehigh Valley.

In contrast, other retailers have recently gained from rising consumer confidence in the U.S.

Bon-Ton’s $480 million of 10.25 percent notes due in March 2014 lost 2.8 percent last month, the worst performance of any bonds in the Bank of America Merrill Lynch U.S. High Yield Super Retail Index, which climbed 1.7 percent overall. Moody’s Investors Service put its Caa1 rating for the securities on “negative outlook” on Dec. 1, citing the company’s “persistent underperformance.”

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/business/mc-allentown-bontton-20120103,0,3027398.story

Poor Economy Great For Dollar Stores

Dollar stores have evolved into a go-to spot for holiday shoppers on a tight budget or trying to get more value for their money. In contrast with the often dingy spaces they once occupied, many have undergone renovations and are stocked with a bounty of Christmas trees, wrapping paper, toys and inexpensive electronics for the holiday season. Some even carry steaks.

With the job market and economy still unsettled, dollar stores are predicted to perform robustly as shoppers of all incomes flock there to pick up cheap decor and presents. For the fourth quarter, the category is expected to post a sales increase of 4.2% or higher at stores open at least a year, according to business data firm Thomson Reuters.

Although dollar stores have attracted higher-income customers in recent years, the fallout of the nation’s economic downturn is still especially evident in the aisles of these low-cost stores during the holidays.

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/business/la-fi-dollar-store-christmas-20111221,0,3740256.story

Pennsylvania Unemployment Rate Falls

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Pennsylvania‘s unemployment rate has fallen from 8.1 percent in October to 7.9 percent in November.  The U.S. average is 8.6 percent.  Pennsylvania has been below the U.S. unemployment rate for 43 consecutive months!

Metropolitan Pittsburgh Records Population Gain For Second Year In A Row

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For most of the span since the end of World War II, more people have been leaving the Pittsburgh region than flocking to it.

For the second year in a row, that trend has been halted. The relative health of the local economy appears to be a motivator for retaining existing Pittsburghers and creating new ones.

The seven-county metropolitan region attracted 1,430 more people than the number who left it between 2009 and 2010, based on new Internal Revenue Service migration data, according to a report by Christopher Briem, a regional economist for the University of Pittsburgh’s University Center for Social and Urban Research.

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/11344/1195941-53.stm#ixzz1gBpZAiaH