Archive for December 2010
How much did we spend on Christmas?
Consumers spent $36.4 billion in the 2010 holiday shopping season, a 15.4 percent increase from the prior year, according to a new survey, MarketWatch.com reported. The survey from MasterCard Advisors SpendingPulse tracked national retail and …
Read MoreTax service will not get funding for short-term taxpayer loans
H&R Block Inc. said HSBC Holdings plc will not provide funding for the tax preparer’s refund-anticipation loans, or RALs, after U.S. regulators ordered the lender to terminate the contract, Reuters reported. Instead, H&R Block will …
Read MoreEMC completes purchase of Hub Tower
Hub Tower has sold for slightly more than half of its assessed value of $13.2 million, according to a property record filed Wednesday.
Employers Mutual Insurance Co. (EMC) paid $7 million for the 20-story structure …
Read MoreLatest numbers show positive economic trends
Based on the most recent numbers, it might be OK to spend a little more on your last-minute holiday shopping.
Applications for unemployment benefits fell 3,000 to 420,000 for the week ending Dec. 18, according …
Read MoreDes Moines ranks high on brainpower
Des Moines placed No. 35 out of the 200 largest metro areas in the United States in national brainpower rankings, which were compiled by Portfolio.com and American City Business Journals Inc.
Des Moines’ brainpower index …
Read MoreDes Moines to help with sustainability efforts
Des Moines joins eight other cities as beta communities for the STAR Community Index sustainability-rating system.
The communities will collaborate with ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability to try to design performance management software that …
Read MoreIowa home prices should appreciate in 2011
Home prices in Iowa should appreciate during the next 12 months, according to a report by Santa Ana, Calif.-based Veros Real Estate Solutions.
The company provides a 12-month price forecast on national real estate marketing …
Read MoreWellmark awards school exercise program grant
The Wellmark Foundation, a nonprofit foundation of Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Iowa, has awarded a two-year, $49,639 grant to the Great River Foundation to fund a new school-based exercise program at two …
Read MoreApple drops WikiLeaks; Google doesn’t yet
Apple Inc. took a stand Wednesday against the controversial release of confidential information by WikiLeaks, removing a WikiLeaks application from its online mobile store.
Google Inc., though, has kept several apps on its Android Marketplace …
Read MoreReport shows low unemployment rate in Des Moines
Des Moines had the lowest metro unemployment rate of the 27 cities included in the 2010 Hunger and Homelessness Report released by the U.S. Conference of Mayors on Tuesday.
The study reported that Des Moines …
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