U.S. consumer confidence rises more than expected
Consumer confidence rebounded more than forecast in December as Americans grew more optimistic about the current state of the economy and job market.
Bloomberg News
Articles
Lender discrimination might be bankrupting black churches
Of the 654 congregations to file for bankruptcy protection between 2006 and 2013, 60 percent had black pastors or predominantly black membership, according to an associate professor at the Indiana University Maurer School of Law.
Lilly could pay $800M-plus in pact with drug-tech firm
The companies will work on coupling therapies from Lilly with technology from Halozyme Therapeutics that helps the body disperse and spread medicine.
Student debt may be the next crisis facing older Americans
Twenty-seven percent of education loans held by people age 65-74 were in default in 2013, meaning they hadn’t made a payment in 270 days or more. More than half of education loans held by people 75 and older were in default.
Autism likelier when antidepressants taken during pregnancy
A new study says women who took a common class of antidepressants during the second and third trimesters were more than twice as likely than other women to have children who later developed autism.
Main Street’s muni-market fight with Fed gains force in Congress
Main Street and Wall Street are fighting the U.S. Federal Reserve over municipal bonds—and they’re gaining ground.
Notre Dame endowment jumps to $10.5B in value
University endowments with some of the highest one-year gains in fiscal 2015 were boosted by investments in private equity, venture capital and real estate, including the fund at Notre Dame.
Simon partner to buy Oslo shopping center for $578M
The Oslo City shopping mall in the Norwegian capital of Oslo has about 355,000 square feet of retail space and 366,000 square feet of offices.
Dow, DuPont agree to combine in historic merger of equals
Dow and DuPont plan to divide the combined company into three publicly traded businesses, one of which would focus on agricultural products including herbicides and genetically modified seeds—the core business of Dow's Indianapolis-based Dow AgroSciences unit. DuPont also has a large ag unit.
Dow Chemical, DuPont said to be in late-stage merger talks
The transaction would combine two of the most storied names in U.S. industry and create the world’s second-biggest chemical company. What it means for Indianapolis-based Dow Agro is uncertain.
Lilly separating manufacturing of animal health drugs
Eli Lilly and Co. is in the process of separating the manufacturing of its animal health drugs from the facilities used to make its traditional pharmaceuticals, a move that potentially could make it easier to spin off the division one day.
Keurig to be acquired by investment group for $13.9B
The purchase price of $92 a share is 78 percent higher than the company’s closing price on Friday. The premium would be the largest in beverage-industry history for any deal above $5 billion.
Trade deficit unexpectedly widens on drop in U.S. exports
A strong dollar and weaker global growth caused exports to slump to the lowest level in three years, one reason why American manufacturers are struggling.
Former Republic unit Frontier Airlines exploring IPO
Frontier Airlines Inc.—a no-frills carrier that was sold off by Indianapolis-based Republic Airways Holdings Inc. two years ago is considering starting a formal IPO process as early as next year.
Subway taps Coca-Cola exec to revamp battered brand
Subway Restaurants has given Coca-Cola Co. veteran Joseph Tripodi the job of burnishing the brand after the death of the company’s co-founder and a child-pornography scandal involving former spokesman Jared Fogle.
UnitedHealth says it should have waited on Obamacare
UnitedHealth Group Inc. should have stayed out of Obamacare’s new individual markets longer, the CEO of the health insurer said Tuesday. The company expects losses from the plans this year and next to total more than a half-billion dollars.
Boost of biofuel levels pleases neither refiners nor growers
The EPA’s rule could revive a congressional debate over the Renewable Fuel Standard and spill over into the presidential campaign, as candidates stump in Iowa and other corn-belt states.
Obamacare official makes tweaks as insurer complaints grow
To reduce turbulence in Obamacare’s fledgling insurance markets, the Obama administration’s top health official is pushing to get more information to consumers about what they’ll actually pay for health care.
Ex-Colt Freeney OK’d to pursue fraud claims against BofA
Former Indianapolis Colts player Dwight Freeney can proceed with his lawsuit alleging that Bank of America Corp. was complicit in a fraud scheme that caused him to lose more than $20 million, a judge ruled.
Fed’s Bullard says investors should prepare for uncertainty
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis President James Bullard said the Fed is “going to return to an era where there is a bit more uncertainty about what the committee is going to do, meeting to meeting.”