BUSINESS - The Salt Lake Tribune

At quiet Salt Lake shareholder meeting, Goldman works on its image

Thu, 23 May 2013 22:46:35 MDT

At quiet Salt Lake shareholder meeting, Goldman works on its image

By Paul Beebe The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 23, 2013 10:46PM MDT

In an otherwise routine shareholder meeting in Salt Lake City, Goldman Sachs on Thursday released a report detailing actions the Wall Street firm has taken to improve its business practices after a series of embarrassing missteps that stained its reputation in the aftermath of the financial crisis. CEO Lloyd Blankfein announced publication of the report, which makes 39 recommendations for change, covering client service, financial products it sells and employee incentives. The changes were impl...

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Business news briefs

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:51:03 MDT

Business news briefs

staff and news services

Updated May 23, 2013 06:51PM MDT

Gap’s 1st-quarter profits up 43% After years of struggling, Gap is back in style. Gap Inc., which owns the Gap, Old Navy and Banana Republic clothing chains, reported a 43 percent increase in its fiscal first-quarter net income, as the company continues to reap benefits from the turnaround plan that it began early last year. The Gap also reiterated its full-year earnings outlook. Japan gyrations show vulnerability Japan’s financial markets fluctuated wildly Thursday, underscoring the shakin...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Goldman classes a big boost for Utah small business

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:26:27 MDT

Goldman classes a big boost for Utah small business

By Paul Beebe The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 22, 2013 06:26PM MDT

It took just 11 sessions of intense education for Frank Dsouza to feel on top of the world. Dsouza was one of 33 Utah small-business owners in the first class to graduate Wednesday from Goldman Sachs’ 10,000 Small Businesses program, an educational initiative that aims to create jobs and spur growth in Utah and elsewhere in the U.S. The ceremony, attended by Lloyd Blankfein, CEO of the Wall Street banking giant, was held at the ornate Union Pacific Depot in The Gateway. “One of the things they m...

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Business news briefs

Wed, 22 May 2013 18:16:03 MDT

Business news briefs

staff and news services

Updated May 22, 2013 06:16PM MDT

Walmart hires new chief image maker To continue burnishing its image, Walmart has replaced a former Clinton White House aide with a former Bush staff member. It said Dan Bartlett, an adviser to President George W. Bush, will be its new executive over corporate affairs. He succeeds Leslie Dach, who played a role in reinventing Walmart’s image in the face of attacks by labor groups and others during his seven-year tenure. HP 2Q earnings top expectations Hewlett-Packard’s recovery efforts got...

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SBA starting new lending program for veterans

Tue, 21 May 2013 21:48:41 MDT

SBA starting new lending program for veterans

By JOYCE M. ROSENBERG The Associated Press

Updated May 21, 2013 09:48PM MDT

New York • The Small Business Administration says it has lined up pledges from more than 120 banks to increase lending to veterans. The agency said Tuesday it’s starting a program, the SBA Veteran Pledge Initiative, aimed at increasing lending to veteran-owned businesses by 5 percent a year for the next five years. The 20 major banks known as SBA National Lending Partners are making the pledge along with about 100 regional banks across the country. The program is expected to help an additional 2...

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Business news briefs

Tue, 21 May 2013 18:29:02 MDT

Business news briefs

staff and news services

Updated May 21, 2013 06:29PM MDT

Best Buy reports first-quarter loss Best Buy Co. reported a loss of $81 million, or 24 cents per share, for its fiscal first quarter as it sold its stake in Best Buy Europe and worked on a turnaround plan that included cutting costs and closing some stores. Revenue fell nearly 10 percent, to $9.38 billion. Best Buy has been working on a turnaround plan as it faces increased competition from online retailers and discount stores. Home Depot sees rise in 1Q profit Despite a chilly and wet spri...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Donors help after girl’s stand shut down at Indy track

Tue, 21 May 2013 23:54:32 MDT

Donors help after girl’s stand shut down at Indy track

The Associated Press

Updated May 21, 2013 11:54PM MDT

Indianapolis • A 10-year-old girl has raised much more money for a charity than she expected after her lemonade stand was shut down at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Morgen Morris says she had a line of customers during Saturday’s qualifications day when a track employee told her she had to shut down. Morgen was at the speedway as part of Lemonade Day activities teaching children about running a business. Speedway spokesman Doug Boles tells WTHR-TV that shutting down her stand was a mistak...

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Goldman, Zions take Salt Lake City stage this week

Mon, 20 May 2013 18:03:20 MDT

Goldman, Zions take Salt Lake City stage this week

By Paul Beebe The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 20, 2013 06:03PM MDT

When it comes to local news about banking, it’s not likely to get more rousing than what happens in Salt Lake City later this week. In a first on Thursday, Goldman Sachs, the giant New York investment bank, beginning at 9:30 a.m. will hold its annual shareholder meeting at its offices at 222 S. Main St. Leading the show will be Chairman and CEO Lloyd Blankfein, one of the most powerful — and highly paid — bankers on Wall Street. On Friday beginning at 1 p.m., Zions Bancorp will stage its annual...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Live and let love

Tue, 21 May 2013 01:01:03 MDT

Live and let love

Updated May 21, 2013 01:01AM MDT

A major issue being discussed is gay rights. As a mere high school student, I hear people tell me that I don’t understand the issue and haven’t “matured” enough to fully grasp the subject. That is a load of horse manure. Every day, teenagers proclaim they are “in love.” Some just happen to be in love with the same gender, and they shouldn’t be judged for that. Walking down the halls at Bingham High School, I lose count of all of the “public displays of affection.” That is perfectly normal. But ...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Business news briefs

Mon, 20 May 2013 18:03:02 MDT

Business news briefs

staff and news services

Updated May 20, 2013 06:03PM MDT

Food ordering startups to combine forces Online food ordering startup GrubHub is merging with rival Seamless, creating a combined network of 20,000 local takeout restaurants in 500 cities. The two connect diners to restaurants online that offer takeout and delivery, taking a cut of transactions. United restarts 787 flights after grounding United Airlines put its 787 back in the air on Monday, with the airline and Boeing hoping to put the plane’s four-month grounding behind them. The Hou...

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Marijuana firms form investment network for pot-related startups

Sun, 19 May 2013 16:39:01 MDT

Marijuana firms form investment network for pot-related startups

By Steve Raabe The Denver Post

Updated May 19, 2013 04:39PM MDT

Legal marijuana’s sensational evolution is helping crack open a previously closed door: money to start and grow cannabis businesses. Marijuana entrepreneurs routinely are turned down for bank loans or deposit accounts and have struggled to attract financing from private investors. But thanks largely to recreational pot’s new legal status in Colorado and Washington and more states approving medical marijuana, checkbooks are opening and investment partnerships are being signed. Colorado business o...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

In Bloomberg uproar, ethics flags for new media

Sun, 19 May 2013 00:41:03 MDT

In Bloomberg uproar, ethics flags for new media

By ADAM GELLER The Associated Press

Updated May 19, 2013 12:41AM MDT

New York • Launching his namesake company’s news division in the 1990s, Michael Bloomberg largely rejected long-held rules of the journalism trade that insist on keeping thick firewalls between reporters and the profit-making workings of their companies. Now, a byproduct of Bloomberg’s widely admired and novel business model has ensnared his company in a problem of its own making. But the uproar — revolving around specialized computer terminals unknown to most news consumers, and the reporters w...

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Business events in Utah this week

Fri, 17 May 2013 17:01:03 MDT

Business events in Utah this week

THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

Updated May 17, 2013 05:01PM MDT

Convention Calendar Sunday Society for Industrial & Applied Mathematics Snowbird Attendance • 600 Runs through • Saturday Monday Azteca Systems Inc. 2013 Cityworks User Group Salt Palace Attendance • 500 Runs through • Thursday Friday Conduit 2013 Science Fiction & Fantasy Convention Radisson Hotel Salt Lake City downtown Attendance • 350 Runs through • May 27 Economic Calendar New economic numbers to be released this week include: Wednesday National Association of Realtors • E...

Copyright 2013 The Salt Lake Tribune. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Small Talk: Retiring boomers driving sales of small businesses

Sat, 18 May 2013 01:01:08 MDT

Small Talk: Retiring boomers driving sales of small businesses

By JOYCE M. ROSENBERG The Associated Press

Updated May 18, 2013 01:01AM MDT

Baby boomers preparing for retirement are driving a surge in small business sales, as they find more and more buyers confident enough in the improving economy to expand their own businesses through acquisitions. In the first three months of this year, the number of sales that closed jumped 56 percent from the same time in 2012, according to BizBuySell.com, an online marketplace for small businesses. Retirement was the No. 1 contributor to business sales in the fourth quarter of last year and th...

SLCC’s role in small business

Sat, 18 May 2013 01:01:07 MDT

SLCC’s role in small business

By cynthia a. bioteau

Updated May 18, 2013 01:01AM MDT

Small business is big business in Utah. Our state is home to more than 58,000 small employers with 500 employees or fewer. Salt Lake Community College, the governor’s office and regional business-service providers are working together through the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses initiative to bolster Utah’s economy and provide business resources for the creation, growth and recruitment of companies to Utah. Gov. Gary Herbert has taken on the tremendous task of creating 100,000 jobs in 1,00...

Business avarice

Sat, 18 May 2013 01:01:06 MDT

Business avarice

Updated May 18, 2013 01:01AM MDT

If, as some say, a war is being waged against the American working class (evidenced by political union-busting and businesses outsourcing American jobs to countries such as China, India and, ironically, Mexico), then the Senate’s “Gang of Eight” immigration reform proposal seems a serious escalation (”Hatch warns of tech industry clout in immigration debate,” Tribune, May 13). Apparently, giving legal status/residency to illegal immigrants is imperative because they fill jobs Americans won’t do....

Provo police looking for business robber

Sat, 18 May 2013 09:05:12 MDT

Provo police looking for business robber

By Michael McFall The Salt Lake Tribune

Updated May 18, 2013 09:05AM MDT

Provo police are looking for the man who allegedly robbed an insurance company. About 5 p.m. Friday, a man walked into Advanced Insurance at 363 N. University Ave. and pointed what a 27-year-old female employee described as a 9-mm handgun at her, according to a police news release. The suspect then demanded money from her. She tried to stand up, but he pushed her to the ground and fled with an undisclosed amount of money, the release adds. Police describe the suspect as a Latino male in his 30s,...

Tradewinds — Companies on the go, people moving up

Fri, 17 May 2013 18:37:16 MDT

Tradewinds — Companies on the go, people moving up

THE SALT LAKE TRIBUNE

Updated May 17, 2013 06:37PM MDT

The Salt Lake City law firm of Jones Waldo has elected Adam T. Mow and Travis Marc Wilson as its newest shareholders. Mow, a graduate of the University of Utah’s S.J. Quinney College of Law, has been practicing construction law in the real estate department. Wilson has practiced business and real estate law at Jones Waldo since he graduated from Creighton University School of Law in 2003. The National Association of Credit Management, Intermountain Business Credit Services, announced that cred...

Disappointing Q1 puts brakes on Walmart’s surge

Thu, 16 May 2013 18:38:02 MDT

Disappointing Q1 puts brakes on Walmart’s surge

combined news services

Updated May 16, 2013 06:38PM MDT

New York • Despite several months of controversy over bribery allegations in Mexico and other issues, Walmart’s profitable earnings and strong sales in recent quarters made it a Wall Street darling, with its stock price hitting a record high Wednesday. On Thursday, though, the company’s financial picture worsened as it reported quarterly results that missed analysts’ expectations, citing factors ranging from a cold spring to late tax refunds, and the stock price began to slightlydecline. The wo...

Dow, S&P 500 close at record highs, again

Tue, 14 May 2013 14:25:02 MDT

Dow, S&P 500 close at record highs, again

the associated press

Updated May 14, 2013 02:25PM MDT

New York • The stock market is back in record territory after an upturn in small-company stocks. A survey released Tuesday by the National Federation of Independent Business found that small business owners were slightly more optimistic in April. That helped send the Russell 2000 index of small company stocks up 1.3 percent, more than other market indexes. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 123 points to close at a record 15,215 Tuesday, a gain of 0.8 percent. It was the 18th straight Tuesday...