U.S. Steel New CEO Expected To Slash More Costs

U.S. Steel (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The $1.8 billion charge U.S. Steel announced Friday is the first of several moves that industry analysts expect new CEO Mario Longhi will make to revitalize a company that has not had a profitable year since 2008.

Mr. Longhi, who took over Sept. 1 for John P. Surma, has been given a mandate to drastically slash costs and increase efficiency. So far, the former Alcoa executive has been largely silent about how he intends to do that. But analysts expect Mr. Longhi to rip a page from the playbook that most new CEOs rely on by getting the bad news out of the way early in his tenure.

Among the measures analysts expect is shutting at least one of the company’s plants. They cite the glut of current capacity as well as new mills being built that are targeting one of U.S. Steel’s most profitable markets: tubular products used in the oil and gas industry.

“We remain in a structurally over-supplied market,” said analyst Gordon Johnson of Axiom Capital Management in New York City. “Supply is going to continue to grow at an unhealthy clip.”

Read more: http://www.post-gazette.com/business/2013/10/22/U-S-Steel-new-CEO-expected-to-slash-more-costs/stories/201310220091

Lehigh Valley Airport Sells Land For $9.6 Million

Aerial photo of Lehigh Valley International Airport (IATA: ABE, ICAO: KABE) in Hanover Township, 2005 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Lehigh-Northampton Airport Authority agreed Tuesday to sell 253 acres of surplus airport property to the Rockefeller Group so that it can be developed into a massive Fed-Ex Ground warehouse that could employ more than 1,000 people.

It’s a deal that could solve many of the airport’s financial problems, but it also comes with some risks. The money could take as long as two years to come, while the airport needs as much as $5 million of it by the end of next year. And if Fed-Ex decided against building in Allen Township, the airport could end up getting nothing.

In a separate move, the authority also gave Rockefeller the first option to buy another 281 acres, and encouraged the airport staff to begin negotiating to sell another 298 acres to local developers that include Lehigh Valley Industrial Park Inc.

“We know the clock is ticking and we have a [financial] gun to our head,” said authority chairman Tony Iannelli. “But this [project] is for real. We’ll all be keeping our fingers crossed.”

Read more: http://www.mcall.com/news/breaking/mc-allentown-airport-authority-meeting-20131022,0,881921.story#ixzz2iUfo7CgL
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Delta-Owned Trainer Refinery Posts Profit

Delta Air Lines’s flagship, the Boeing 777-200LR. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Delta Air Lines said Tuesday its refinery in Trainer, Delaware County, posted a $3 million profit for the three months ended Sept. 30.

It was the first quarterly profit since Delta bought the former ConocoPhillips refinery last year to keep supplied with jet fuel.

“We have a tremendous opportunity with the Trainer refinery,” Delta CEO Richard Anderson told investors on a conference call discussing third-quarter financial results. “Importantly, the refinery’s production has proven to be effective in keeping jet cracks in check, particularly in the New York harbor,” he said.

The “crack spread” is the difference between the cost of crude oil and the selling price of jet fuel – it’s the price paid to refiners.

Read more at http://www.philly.com/philly/business/20131023_Delta-owned_Trainer_refinery_posts_profit.html#7zFHTHAbykYR1tAY.99

Pancakes, All You Can Eat, Will Benefit Pottstown Music Education

POTTSTOWN, PA — So do you like pancakes?

Do you really, REALLY like pancakes.

Then you need to get yourself, family, friends and neighbors down to the Goodwill Fire Company on Saturday morning when an all-you-can-eat Pancake Breakfast will be held from 8:30 to 11:30 a.m.

The breakfast includes the afore-mentioned pancakes, plus bacon, sausage, coffee, tea, water and orange juice.

Tickets are $7 in advance and Friday is the last day to buy advance tickets.

Read more: http://www.pottsmerc.com/general-news/20131022/pancakes-all-you-can-eat-will-benefit-pottstown-music-education

Reading May Not Cut Commuter Tax Or Earned-Income Tax

Map of Berks County, Pennsylvania, United States with township and municipal boundaries (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Reading City Council members who weeks ago tentatively agreed to a slight drop in earned-income and commuter taxes have now changed their minds; they want both taxes to stay flat.

The difference would mean an extra $1.2 million in annual revenue – mostly from commuters – and council is focusing on the 2015 and 2016 budgets that have gaps of more than $10 million each.

Council President Francis G. Acosta, who is against the move, said he was surprised when a poll of council members Monday showed five in favor of keeping the tax flat.

But he and other council members said they don’t want the extra 2014 revenue to be used to hire more people at City Hall, but rather be put in the contingency fund, or be reserved for 2015 and 2016.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=517020

Lancaster Transit Agency Taking Driver’s Seat For BARTA

Lancaster County‘s transit organization will manage BARTA for at least the next six months, officials with both groups said Monday.

The agencies will continue to operate separately but Lancaster’s Red Rose Transit Authority will share its executive leadership with BARTA.

David W. Kilmer, Red Rose executive director, will lead both organizations, dividing his time between Reading and Lancaster.

The move comes as BARTA works to restructure its leadership following the death last month of Dennis D. Louwerse, its longtime executive director. Managers have been keeping projects and operations moving with oversight from the agency’s board of directors.

Read more: http://readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=517063