By Alyssa Williams, Biz Reporter With the recent announcement of Starbucks’ new evolution of card rewards that “takes the next step in putting money back in loyal customers’ wallets,” one may think Starbucks needs the money in its own back pocket after a 97 percent profit drop. However, Starbucks is […]

By Bill Conerly, Businomics, Conerly Consulting LLC A reporter called yesterday for a retrospective on my forecast of a year ago.  I groaned, thinking the headline would be “Gotcha!”  Be the actual quotes he had weren’t so bad.  Apparently I said that we had overbuilt housing and that it would […]

Test your knowledge on what happened this week. 1. What economic index saw its largest single month fall since before World War II this week? 1) Consumer Confidence 2) Consumer Prices 3) Oil prices 2. Which Oregon museum announced 10% layoffs this week? A) OMSI B) Evergreen Aviation C) Portland […]

From Oregon Petroleum Association, PORTLAND, Ore.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–For Oregonians who use home heating oil, the struggling economy has delivered at least one bright spot: heating bills are dropping along with the temperatures. Crude oil prices, which reached a record high of $145 a barrel in July, fell below $56 a barrel […]

By Moore Information, As economic conditions have continued to worsen throughout 2008, voters have grown more concerned about protecting jobs than protecting the environment. Asked which issue they are more concerned about today, 65% of U.S. voters say they are more concerned about protecting jobs, while only 27% are more […]

By Economist Dr. Eric Fruits, Econinternational The BBC reports that the European Commission has scrapped rules that prevent oddly-sized or misshapen fruit and vegetables being sold in Europe. The EU’s agriculture commissioner called it “a new dawn for the curvy cucumber and the knobbly carrot.” Proponents of the scrapped rules […]

By Bill Conerly, Businomics, Conerly Consulting, TARP is, of course, the Treasury plan to provide capital to banks.  There are terms of the deal described in the press and in official documents from the Treasury.  However, the deal is subject to any modification that Congress wants to make.  Section 5.3 […]

Test you knowledge on these current affairs questions 1. Which Oregon County has moved to a four day work week? A) Multnomah B) Clackamas C) Washington D) Jackson 2. Researchers announced that ______ was a better indicator of premature death than traditional weight measurements. A) Cholesterol level B) Alcohol consumption […]

By Allyssa Williams, BIZ Reporter. A comprehensive citizens’ report detailing the root causes and basic problems of prostitution along Northeast 82nd Avenue should be released in early December, according to Dawn Rasmussen, president of the Save Northeast 82nd Avenue Coalition. The report would help guide businesses and neighborhoods in the […]

BIZ REPORT — Portland based Columbia Sportswear announced this month it is laying off 75 employees which is 4% of their workforce.  At the same time Columbia is opening a store at Portland International Airport and also at three other locations in Minneapolis, Seattle and Chicago. President Tim Boyle stated, […]