Strictly Business

From Business Today:

First Niagara Financial Group will receive $5.7 million in state tax credits to help create 500 jobs in the state, most of them in Western New York. The bank has tripled in size during the past two years via several acquisitions. Now some of that far-away growth is going to yield more jobs at the bank's headquarters in the city's Larkin District.

Low cost airlines have helped boost use of the Buffalo Niagara International Airport and made the region an attractive location for many who travel regularly on business. Southwest Airlines is the 800-pound gorilla in this category, with support from Jet Blue, AirTran and others. But the merger just approved between Southwest and AirTran raises a bit of a worry. Will the combined giant trim back on flights out of Buffalo. Together the two now account for more than one of every three outbound flights. 

Moog Inc.'s second quarter profits jumped 22 percent, and the company raised its earnings forecast for the year. "We're back on track," said Chairman and CEO Robert Brady.

Who is getting hired, promoted and honored?