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Published reports indicate Ford is preparing to eliminate its Mercury brand.
The brand has a relatively small market share in the Buffalo area. Three Erie County dealers sell it, and there are also Mercury dealers in Arcade, Medina, Fredonia, Perry, Olean and Jamestown.
What are your thoughts on the possibility of Mercury going away? Would you miss the brand?
-- Matt Glynn
In Business Today:
- Slow pace of recovery frustrates the jobless - Jeannine Aversa/AP/Buffalo News
High unemployment isn’t going away.
The slow pace of economic growth shows that the recovery is too weak to generate enough jobs for 15.3 million unemployed people. Layoffs are contributing to the problem. That’s evident from an elevated number of weekly claims for jobless benefits. ...
The economy grew at a 3 percent annual rate from January to March, according to a new estimate released by the Commerce Department on Thursday. The new reading, based on more complete information, was slightly weaker than an initial estimate of 3.2 percent a month ago.
- Near-record low rates prompt surge in mortgage requests - Alan Zibel/AP/Buffalo News
Turmoil in the stock market and the European debt crisis are making life easier for American homebuyers and families looking to refinance: Mortgage rates are inching closer to a record low.
The window of opportunity may close soon. Home loan rates will rise if investors grow more confident and shift money out of the safety of government bonds, which influence mortgage rates. ...
Applications to refinance surged this week to the highest level in seven months, the Mortgage Bankers Association said.
- Columbus McKinnon sees itself recovering - David Robinson/The Buffalo News
Columbus McKinnon Corp. CEO Timothy T. Tevens thinks the worst is over for the Amherst maker of material-handling equipment.
“I believe we are definitely off the bottom of this cycle and in the midst of a slow, but sustained, recovery,” Tevens said Thursday.
That optimism was supported by Columbus McKinnon’s performance during the first three months of this year, when the company was profitable again, even after restructuring expenses and a 9 percent drop in sales, as its cost-cutting efforts paid off.
- Area car dealers sprucing up showrooms - Matt Glynn/The Buffalo News
West Herr Automotive Group plans to open its new Ford Lincoln Mercury dealership in Amherst this fall, one of several dealer-driven construction projects occurring locally.
Dealers around the region are pouring money into their facilities to bring them up to customer expectations for features like lounges and service areas, as well as to meet automakers' standards for selling their products.
Except the dealership mentioned above might be shortening its name a little.
- Ford reportedly plans to eliminate Mercury - Keith Naughton/Bloomberg/Buffalo News
Ford is preparing to wind down the Mercury line, created in 1939 by Edsel Ford, after sales plunged 74 percent since 2000, said two people familiar with the plan.
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
Among the stories you'll find in Business Today:
- Construction begins on second of 3 hotels across from airport - Jonathan D. Epstein/Buffalo News
Construction is under way on the second of three planned hotels on the site of the former Radisson Inn across from the Buffalo Niagara International Airport, as Benderson Development Co. adds to its hospitality portfolio in Western New York.
Concrete is being poured for the first floor of a new prototype Courtyard by Marriott hotel on Genessee Street in Cheektowaga.
The new 140-room Courtyard hotel will feature a new “bistro” arrangement and should open in about a year, said Ronald Kendall, president of Benderson subsidiary Buffalo Lodging Associates, which will own and operate the hotel.
The new facility is next to a 140-room Fairfield Inn by Marriott that Buffalo Lodging opened last summer, and it’s in front of the site where the firm will build a 125-unit Marriott TownePlace Suites hotel, a new extended-stay brand that Kendall said is more moderately priced than Residence Inn or Homewood Suites.
- Delta to cut nonstop flights to Cincinnati - Matt Glynn/The Buffalo News
Delta Airlines is preparing to drop its nonstop service between Buffalo and Cincinnati [see page 32, between Buenos Aires and Burbank]. It is the only airline serving Buffalo Niagara International Airport that flies directly between those cities. [On the airport's website, the flight is listed as a Comair route.]
Delta said it will eliminate the service, consisting of seven weekly round-trip flights, effective Sept. 7. The flights are on 50-seat regional jets and account for only a few dozen local passengers each day, said Trebor Banstetter, a Delta spokesman.
Aviation Week said Delta will cut flights to other cities from Cincinnati as well, reflecting a downgrade of the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport to small-hub status.
While the Buffalo-Cincinnati service will go away, Delta said it will bolster its service to Detroit, JFK Airport in New York City and Minneapolis, also starting in September.
[Too bad, I think. I've been through CNKIA a time or two, and I thought it was pretty nice. Progress.]
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
From Business Today:
- Looking for work with so little to be found - David Robinson/The Buffalo News
... With unemployment in the Buffalo Niagara region at 7.8 percent — the second-highest for any April in more than 20 years — finding a job takes more work and more diligence than ever.
“It’s an employer’s market right now,” said Christopher M. Beckage, a vice president at Superior Technical Resources, an Amherst-based staffing firm. ...
Most important, Beckage said, is to treat the job hunt as a full-time job itself. “You’ve got to be proactive,” he said. “If you’re sitting and waiting for the phone to ring, you’re going to be waiting a long time.” ... That’s why Beckage said job-hunters need to find ways to stand out, and avoid mistakes that knock them out of the running right off the bat. His advice includes: ...
- Phillips Lytle expects summer decision on location - Jonathan D. Epstein/The Buffalo News
The law firm Phillips Lytle LP hopes to decide by the end of the summer whether to stay in HSBC Center or move to a new location, the firm’s managing partner said.
David McNamara said Buffalo’s second-largest law firm has “made significant progress in developing the data that will be used in making our decision.”
He said Phillips Lytle officials “recently met” in New York City with executives of Seneca One Realty LLC, which owns HSBC Center and hopes to retain Phillips Lytle, the building’s No. 2 tenant after the bank itself.
The firm is also considering options from Ciminelli Development Co. and Uniland Development Co., which “remain actively engaged in fine-tuning their respective proposals,” McNamara said.
- FWS sold; new owners planning to expand - Jonathan D. Epstein/The Buffalo News
The longtime owners of closeout furniture retailer FWS Home Furnishings have sold the popular business to its general manager and a veteran furniture executive, who say they plan to grow the business
John Wanat of Amherst and Lockport’s John Grimaldi bought FWS last week from Jim Nisbet and Richard Zakalik, who had owned the firm together for 17 years. Officials would not disclose the price. The deal closed last week but was not announced until Tuesday.
Plans call for continuing to operate both current showrooms at 1738 Elmwood Ave. in Buffalo and at 4199 Transit Road, at Main Street, in Clarence, above discount clothing retailer TJ Maxx. But the new owners are also hoping to expand and add locations, as they seek to boost sales.
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
[Photo: Ivana Miletic of Hamburg discusses employment opportunities with Brian Peek, CEO of American Coradius International in Amherst, during BuffaloJobFinder.com and YahooHotJobs.com Job Fair in Cheektowaga. Robert Krikham/Buffalo News]
Today's business news, like yesterday's, shows hope for clean energy and reasons why we should hope.
- Honeywell's local lab to benefit from grant - Matt Glynn/The Buffalo News
As interest grows in lithium-ion batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles, Honeywell International's Buffalo laboratory will play a key supporting role in advancing the battery technology.
The Peabody Street site will benefit from a $54 million joint investment by the federal government and Honeywell in producing electrolyte salt, a critical component of lithium-ion batteries.
[Video here]
Related:
- State shows off green-car clout with conference - Ted Evenoff/The Indianapolis Star
About 100 representatives from FAW and several other Chinese automakers and trade groups are scheduled to be in Indianapolis for an electric-car conference Friday.
- Electric-car maker picks central Ohio for battery plant - Dan Gearino/The Columbus Dispatch
A former telecom-equipment factory on the Far East Side might return to life soon making batteries for electric cars, holding out the promise of 1,000 new jobs.
Electric-car manufacturer Coda Automotive said yesterday that it has chosen to open a battery plant in central Ohio, a move that is contingent on the approval of federal and state aid.
- Coke plant in Erie, Pa., told to shut; has local tie - David Robinson and Mark Sommer/The Buffalo News
The owner of the embattled Tonawanda Coke plant was ordered Monday to shut down a similar plant in Erie, Pa., by Pennsylvania regulators, who charged the company with violating the state’s air quality laws.
The order, issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, gives Erie Coke three days to shut down after revoking the foundry’s air quality permit in a move that state officials described as a “last resort.”
Later Monday, the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board granted Erie Coke’s request for a stay of the order until next Tuesday, according to Freda Tarbell of the Department of Environmental Protection. A hearing is scheduled Wednesday in Pittsburgh.
- Offshore drilling here to stay, but changes coming - Chris Kahn/AP/Buffalo News
BP's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has focused attention on the petroleum industry's loose regulation and failure to plan for the worst.
That is going to change, experts say.
Regulators are likely to make permitting, inspections and equipment requirements for rigs more stringent. Lawmakers want to extract more money from the industry to help pay for any future cleanups. And insurers are bound to raise rates for underwriting this risky business.
The increased scrutiny - and cost of doing business - is all worth it, says longtime oil analyst Fadel Gheit of Oppenheimer & Co.
"This is a vital industry, and we just can't allow it to self-destruct," Gheit says.
- Obama administration conflicted about relying on BP to stop gulf oil spill - Washington Post
Since the oil rig exploded, the White House has tried to project a posture that is unflappable and in command.
But to those tasked with keeping the president apprised of the disaster, Obama's clenched jaw is becoming an increasingly familiar sight. During one of those sessions in the Oval Office the first week after the spill, a president who rarely vents his frustration cut his aides short, according to one who was there.
"Plug the damn hole," Obama told them.
- As Spill Gets Bigger, So Does White House PR Problem - Mara Liasson/NPR
- White House takes heat over spill response - Politico
- BP is only oil company able to halt Gulf of Mexico spill, Coast Guard boss says - N.Y. Daily News
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
Business Today Monday is a little less gloomy that it was Friday. Not only are their jobs being added instead of lost, it's mostly about clean energy.:
- CanAm Wind Energy sets itself to be an industry force - Matt Glynn/The Buffalo News
Call it tilting at the wind power industry.
Buffalo Niagara Enterprise is teaming up with Greater Rochester Enterprise and the Niagara Economic Development Corp. in Southern Ontario to try to attract investments in that segment of renewable energy.
The initiative, called CanAm Wind Energy, will debut at the 2010 Wind Power Conference and Exhibition, scheduled this week in Dallas. [Speakers include three governors, one senator and one George W. Bush.]
Related:
- GE to build wind turbines for test run on Lake Erie - John Funk/Cleveland Plain Dealer
A local nonprofit development group racing to erect the first offshore wind turbine in the Great Lakes has reached an agreement with General Electric Co. to supply five turbines for a $100 million demonstration project in Lake Erie.
The Lake Erie Energy Development Corp., known as LEEDCo, and Gov. Ted Strickland are to announce the deal in Dallas today during the annual conference of the American Wind Energy Association.
The cutting-edge turbines would stand 300 feet above the lake and be clustered six miles or so off Cleveland's shore, northwest of the city's drinking water crib.
- Metaullics Systems sets major expansion - Thomas J. Prohaska/The Buffalo News
WHEATFIELD — A carbon graphite company plans to nearly double its work force within three years through a $22 million expansion that will make it a key supplier to manufacturers of batteries for hybrid cars.
Metaullics Systems will add about 50 jobs to its current 54-person roster, operations manager Kevin Scott said last week.
The plan is to erect a new 93,000- square-foot building at the Cory Road plant. The structure will house 12 high-temperature electric furnaces, which will be used to produce anodes for lithium-ion batteries.
- Battery firm fights odds, set to open U. S. plant - Don Lee/Chicago Tribune/Buffalo News
BOSTON — Yet-Ming Chiang relishes his 20-mile drive to work. His hybrid car gets more than 100 miles per gallon, recharges by plugging into a regular wall outlet and purrs so quietly that it’s his favorite place for making important phone calls.
But what makes Chiang’s ordinary-looking beige Toyota Prius even more special is that it’s powered by a break-through battery he invented himself and is working to turn into the kind of high-tech, green, “Made in America” product that many see as the key to the nation’s economic future. ...
So why are Chiang and his company, A123 Systems, having trouble moving to full-scale commercial production and creating thousands of new American jobs with his better mousetrap?
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
Fresh in Business Today:
- Pharmaceutical plant in Buffalo closing, ending 260 jobs - David Robinson/The Buffalo News
Contract Pharmaceuticals Ltd., the Canadian manufacturer of ointments and creams that took over the former Westwood-Squibb plant in Buffalo five years ago, said today it will close the facility by the end of next year and shift that work to a sister factory in Mississauga, Ont.
The closing will eliminate 260 jobs at the CPL complex, located at 100 Forest Ave., in the latest blow to the Buffalo Niagara region's already battered manufacturing sector.
Contract Pharmaceuticals executives blamed the closing on excess manufacturing capacity that resulted from the recession and moves by pharmaceutical companies to make more of their own products, rather than contract them out to third-party manufacturers like CPL. Pharmaceutical companies also have slowed their work on developing new drugs.
- HSBC mulls abandoning its signature skyscraper - Jonathan D. Epstein/The Buffalo News
HSBC Bank USA, one of downtown Buffalo's premier companies, is considering moving out of the city's tallest building, potentially leaving a huge hole in downtown's corporate fabric.
The U.S. subsidiary of London-based HSBC Holdings PLC is exploring the property options for its vast Buffalo operations, putting its extensive downtown presence at risk. The bank employs 6,000 in Western New York, including 4,000 in Buffalo. ...
The bank has not decided to leave the tower, where it has been for decades, but its lease expires in October 2013. So "as part of standard business practice," the company wants "to review how its future real estate requirements in Buffalo will best be met," said spokesman Neil Brazil.
The company still has an option to extend its current lease in the tower by mutual consent of the bank and property owner Seneca One Realty LLC.
- Olympic Towers bids top out at $2.9 million - Matt Glynn/The Buffalo News
Fueled by last-minute competition, the online auction of the Olympic Towers ended Thursday with a high bid of $2.9 million, still less than the price the seller had sought. ...
While $2.9 million was less than the reserve price, the seller still might make a deal with the high bidder to complete a sale.
A little auction music, please, Professor:
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
In Business Today, two stories about things that did not happen:
- No ‘alarm bell’ rings as Statler misses ‘most endangered’ list - Matt Glynn/The Buffalo News
The National Trust for Historic Preservation on Wednesday released its annual list of the nation’s 11 Most Endangered Places, but the Statler Towers is not on it.
Preservation Buffalo Niagara had nominated the Niagara Square landmark, which was shuttered in January. The organization is “disappointed but not heartbroken” that the Statler was excluded, said Henry McCartney, executive director of Preservation Buffalo Niagara.
[Why 11? Why not the normal list of 10? See below.]
- M&T bid to merge stalls over control - Jonathan D. Epstein/The Buffalo News
M&T Bank Corp. was engaged in “serious” discussions with Spanish banking behemoth Banco Santander SA about acquiring Santander’s U.S. subsidiary, but talks broke down over M&T’s concerns about which bank would be in charge, sources said Wednesday. ...
M&T spokesman C. Michael Zabel said the bank does not comment on rumors or speculation. A Santander spokesman could not be reached to comment.
And some things that did [or might]:
- Housing market hectic in April - David Robinson/The Buffalo News
Many rushed to sign on the dotted line last month, as homebuyers in the Buffalo Niagara region scrambled to take advantage of federal tax credits on home purchases before they expired.
- Nursing home plan positively received - Brian Meyer/The Buffalo News
A $64 million plan to build a 300-bed nursing home on the Buffalo Niagara Medical Campus has won positive reviews from the chairman of the city’s Planning Board.
The four-story structure will occupy a city block that is bounded by Michigan Avenue and Maple, East North and High streets. When it’s completed in early 2012, the Kaleida Health facility will be among the region’s largest nursing homes and the first such facility to be built in Buffalo in decades.
- Lake Shore Bancorp plans to open more new branches in Erie County - Jonathan D. Epstein/The Buffalo News
Lake Shore Bancorp plans to open one new branch every 12 to 18 months in Erie County over the next three to five years, while expanding its commercial lending as it pursues further growth in the Buffalo area, executives said Wednesday.
The Dunkirk-based parent of Lake Shore Savings Bank is pinning hopes for growth on newer markets in Erie County rather than its saturated home market in Chautauqua County.
- 3rd Price-Rite store to open
No-frills, deep discount grocer Price-Rite will cut the ribbon on its third area location Sunday.
The 44,000-square-foot store occupies the former Linens ’N Things store at 1700 Walden Ave. in Walden Consumer Square.
So, why 11?
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
From today's Business Today section:
- Greatbatch primed for the recovery - David Robinson/The Buffalo News
Greatbatch Inc. Chief Executive Officer Thomas J. Hook is waiting for the payoff.
Since taking over as the top executive at the Clarence medical products manufacturer, Hook has used a series of seven acquisitions to broaden Greatbatch’s offerings beyond the medical batteries that long accounted for the bulk of its sales.
Last year, it focused on integrating those new acquisitions, while consolidating five of its facilities to reduce costs and bolster efficiency. It continued on its five-year push to invest heavily in new products and technology, doubling the company’s research and development spending from 2005 levels. ...
For now, though, Hook and other Greatbatch executives are waiting for the payoff from the company’s cost-cutting and research investments. Profits slid by 18 percent in the first quarter, while sales were off by 14 percent, but Hook said those results were an improvement from the fourth quarter, and he predicted that the upward trend would continue throughout the year.
- Servotronics’ quarterly profits soar - David Robinson
Servotronics Inc.’s first-quarter profits soared fivefold as the Elma company’s cutlery business returned to profitability.
The Elma motion-control equipment and cutlery manufacturer’s strong profits, which came on a 5 percent increase in sales, were a major turnaround for a company whose earnings had plunged by 77 percent during the final three months of last year on a 16 percent slide in revenues.
- New housing for seniors on track in Southtowns - Jonathan D. Epstein/The Buffalo News
Niagara County developer Calamar Enterprises moved a big step closer to making its new independent senior living community in Orchard Park a reality, as it snapped up the land it needed in three purchases late last week.
The Wheatfield developer is planning to build a 90-unit, 82,000-square-foot complex called Eagle Crest Senior Village on 22 acres along Weiss Avenue.
Meanwhile, out in the rest of the world:
- Stocks slide after investors focus on Europe woes - AP/Buffalo News
- Walmart’s net income up 10% in 1st quarter - Anne d’Innocenzio/AP/Buffalo News
Walmart’s first-quarter net income rose by 10 percent as the world’s largest retailer benefited from cost-cutting and robust growth in its international business.
But Walmart said a key measure of revenue dropped for the fourth consecutive quarter as it continued to see a decline in customer counts at its U.S. namesake stores.
-- George Pyle/The Buffalo News
Bidding on the Olympic Towers has not gone very high since an online auction opened on Tuesday.
As of late Wednesday morning, the price was up to $1.25 million. The starting bid price for the 300 Pearl St. property was $1 million, and bids on auction.com must be made in $250,000 increments.
Visitors to the Web site are informed the property has not yet met its reserve price -- the unpublished, minimum selling price set by the seller. To become the winning bidder, a buyer will have to meet or exceed the reserve price, have the highest bid, and have that price be accepted by the seller, auction.com says.
Bidding on the Olympic Towers is set to end on Thursday.
-- Matt Glynn
