Retail and Business

Of the 100 largest U.S. cities, these lost the fewest manufacturing jobs from 2000 to 2010:

1 Modesto, Calif., 400
2 Las Vegas, 800
3 Charleston, S.C., 1,100
4 Honolulu, 1,400
5 Fresno, Calif., 2,500…

Applications for unemployment benefits rose by 3,500 to 445,000 last week, according to figures from the U.S. Department of Labor.

The four-week moving average of new claims rose by 5,500, leading experts to believe it …

Pella Corp. has selected the national nonprofit organization Homes for Our Troops as its charitable partner for its The Pro Expo, a program held in 30 U.S. and Canadian markets from January through May.

The …

The U.S. Small Business Administration and Agility Recovery Solutions will host a series of free webinars titled “Starting Fresh – Assessing Risk & Threats to your Business in 2011.”

The first hour-long session will be …

Interstate Power and Light Co. (IPL), a subsidiary of Alliant Energy Corp., said today it expects Iowa customers’ electric bills will be lower this year as a result of a decision by the Iowa Utilities …

January 2011 soybeans were trading 61 cents higher per bushel, and March corn was trading 24 1/2 cents higher today after the U.S. Department of Agriculture released its Crop Production and World Agricultural Supply and …

The Greater Des Moines Partnership and Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines will hold the first public meeting for the Capital Crossroad visioning project at 5 p.m. on Jan. 19 at the Des Moines Botanical …

The Greater Des Moines Partnership and the Ames Chamber of Commerce and Economic Development Corp. announced yesterday that they will lead a business mission trip to Brazil from Oct. 2-9.

The groups will explore new …

John Pappajohn has announced the launch of the 2011 John Pappajohn Iowa Business Plan Competition. This is the sixth annual business plan competition for Iowa sponsored by the venture capitalist, who, since 2006, has awarded …

Retail employment experienced a net gain of 646,300 jobs between October and December, according to a Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. analysis of employment data released today by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). …