Archives

October 27, 2009 - Oregon Tax Bill Rises at Local Level, Property.

By Oregon Tax News, Often overlooked, smaller tax increases will be facing thousands of Oregon homeowners, in addition to possible new taxes in Multnomah County, Hood River and Ashland. Recent local proposals include an extension of the Ashland meals tax, along with increased driver registration fees and higher property taxes […]


October 26, 2009 - Housing Starts: Media mixed messages

By Bill Conerly, Conerly Consulting LLC, Businonmics I try not rant in this blog.  I really try.  But here’s the Wall Street Journal headline:  “Housing Starts Rise, but Remain Subdued.”  On the other hand, CNBC says, ” Producer Prices, Housing Starts Post Surprise Drops.” Huh?  Did housing starts rise, or […]


October 25, 2009 - Over-the-Year Job Losses Top 100,000

By Oregon Employment Department, Oregon’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped to 11.5 percent in September from the revised August figure of 12.0 percent. September’s rate was the lowest since the 10.7 percent rate in February, and was down from the high of 12.2 percent in May. Nonetheless, the rate is […]


October 24, 2009 - State Treasurer has treatment for cancer recurrence

State Treasurer Ben Westlund receiving treatment for recurrence of cancer, is confident of recovery.  The flare-up was detected early and Westlund remains at work while undergoing therapy BY State Treasurer Office, SALEM – Oregon Treasurer Ben Westlund is receiving treatment to combat a recurrence of cancer, he disclosed today in […]


October 23, 2009 - Oregon Business Top 10 Complaint List by Industry

By Oregon Better Business Bureau, See full top 20 list here, Top 10 Complaints 1. Auto Dealers – New Cars 2. Television – Cable, CATV & Satellite 3. Auto Dealers – Used Cars 4. Auto Repair & Service 5*. Property Management 5*. Furniture – Retail 7. Video Tapes & Discs […]


October 22, 2009 - Corporate apologies prevent lawsuits, save millions

By Oregon Business Report, A simple apology saved a business millions and satisfied customer complaints.  New studies show businesses can improve customer relations without dropping a rebate check in the mail.  Researchers at Britain’s Nottingham School of Economics tracked 632 customer complaints posted on a German eBay site.  In an […]


October 21, 2009 - Oregon Tax Amnesty ends soon for 40,000 filers

Oregon Provides Short Window for Taxpayer Amnesty; Those That Don’t Comply Get the Stick Written by Morgan Smith Miller Nash Oregon and Washington Law Firm Taxpayers having a tax deficiency and flying under the radar of the Oregon Department of Revenue were given a break when Governor Kulongoski signed Senate […]


October 21, 2009 - Phil Knight sells $150 million in Nike stock

MSN Money reports, “Nike Inc. co-founder and Chairman Phil Knight has sold more than $150 million of Nike stock in the past week, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday. Knight sold 2.3 million shares for prices ranging between $64.13 and $66.34 starting Oct. […]


October 20, 2009 - Technical debt trips up many businesses

By Bill Conerly, Businomics, Conerly Consulting LLC “Technical debt” does NOT mean, “Technically, we’re in debt.”  Technical debt is what happens when a business puts up an application that isn’t perfect, then has to clean up bugs and scale issues in the future.  I heard the phrase for the first […]


October 20, 2009 - World stocks at 14 month high, Dollar 12 month low

Reuters reports, “World stocks hit a new 12-month high on Tuesday, powered by strong results from Apple Inc and Texas Instruments and helping to push the dollar to a new 14-month low against a basket of currencies. The strength in global stocks, up 75 percent from crisis-lows in March, boosted […]