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Thu. Jan. 19, 2012 Bank of America reverses loss and earns $2b Bank of America made $2 billion in the last three months of last year, reversing a loss from a year earlier. It offset legal expenses over mortgages and losses in its investment banking business by selling debt and its stake in a Chinese bank. The bank, which has a large presence in Massachusetts, said today that it made 15 cents per share in the fourth quarter. That fell short of the 22 cents expected by analysts surveyed by FactSet, a provider of financial data, but was in line with other estimates.	Advertisement
Harvard Housing Studies’ report: Home remodeling should ‘trend up’ later this year Home improvement spending should accelerate from a slow start and trend up later this year, a sign that the housing market is finally starting its slow recovery, the Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University said today. The center issued the latest data from its Leading Indicator of Remodeling Activity survey, which it refers to as LIRA. The headline of the center’s press release: “Glimmers of hope for remodeling in 2012.”
Staples survey: Small businesses are upbeat but feel they need to market more Small businesses are optimistic about the future, and many are turning to social media, according to a survey from office-supplies giant Staples Inc. of Framingham. According to the 6th annual Staples National Small Business Survey, seven out of 10 small business owners are optimistic about the future. And just over half of the respondents --- or 52 percent --- said they would grow their business through advertising and direct marketing if they had a larger marketing budget.
Mass. unemployment rate falls to 6.8 percent, lowest in three years The Massachusetts unemployment rate last month fell below 7 percent for the first time in three years, but employers cut jobs -- a sign that the state’s economy may be slowing.. The state jobless rate declined to 6.8 percent from 7 percent in November. Employers, however, cut more than 6,000 jobs last month. Some economists said the Massachusetts recovery is likely leveling off after a period of particularly strong growth in earlier in 2011..
Study counts dollar loss to RI from Mass. casinos A study commissioned by Rhode Island Governor Lincoln Chafee says casino gambling in Massachusetts could siphon more than $100 million a year from the Rhode Island treasury. The Providence Journal reports that the study says Rhode Island’s share of video-slot play at Twin River and Newport Grand could fall from $301 million last year to $210 million in 2017. At best, the state’s cut drops to $257 million in 2017.
Constant Contact buys CardStar Constant Contact, a Waltham company that provides online marketing services to small businesses, said it has acquired privately owned CardStar Inc., a loyalty platform that helps shoppers stay connected to their favorite merchants. Boston-based CardStar develops mobile applications that extend the use of loyalty cards and mobile coupons among consumers. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Patrick adminstration seeks to employ profit motive to finance, improve social services The Patrick administration is taking the first steps towards a new way to finance social services by offering investors the chance to earn profits on programs they establish.
The SeaCoast Inn in Hyannis wins TripAdvisor’s Travelers’ Choice award -- again The SeaCoast Inn in Hyannis, a no-frills seasonal motel where the owners are known to greet guests with cups of tea, has won TripAdvisor’s annual Travelers’ Choice award for best bargain and best service in the country for the fourth year in a row.
Affinnova helps Sbarro test menu prices Affinnova Inc., a Waltham company that helps consumer-products company do market research, said it has helped the Italian restaurant chain Sbarro to optimize its menu pricing. Facing rising food costs and softening industry traffic, Sbarro concluded that relying on traditional point-of-sale tracking data would not be sufficient to provide enough guidance. So Sbarro turned to Affinnova, which was founded by two PhDs from the MIT who figured out that algorithms developed for genetic research could be modified and repurposed for the study of consumer behavior.
New Partners HealthCare, Tufts Health Plan pact lowers Partners’ reimbursements Partners HealthCare System Inc., the state’s largest hospital and physicians organization, this afternoon said it has torn up the last two years of its contract with insurer Tufts Health Plan, replacing it with a new four-year pact that will lower Partners’ reimbursements by more than $105 million from what they would have been under the former rate structure. The agreement with Tufts covers payments to all Partners doctors groups and hospitals, including the Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General and Brigham and Women’s hospitals in Boston.
Internet protest spurs flood of tweets, calls to Congress Today’s online protest against legislation to fight Internet piracy has led to scores of calls to Congress and a steady outcry via Twitter, after some of the biggest names on the Web -- including Google Inc., Wikipedia, Craigslist, and Mozilla -- blacked out their sites or posted messages opposing the legislation.