QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Consumers continue to hold in despite all the uncertainty going into the shutdown.”
Millan Mulraine, TD Securities USA LLC director of U.S. rates research Article, 1D
Logistics firm to lease Whirlpool space
The former longtime home of Whirlpool Corp. in Fort Smith will soon have a new tenant - Spartan Logistics, a third-party logistics company that works for Owens Corning, also in Fort Smith. Tim Allen, president of the Fort Smith Regional Chamber of Commerce, made the announcement Tuesday.
Spartan has signed a short-term lease to occupy about 100,000 square feet, though there’s a chance the company will eventually extend its obligation in terms of time and space, Allen said in a release. Spartan was founded in 1988 in Columbus, Ohio, as a warehouse and distribution provider and now has centralized warehouse locations within one-day truck delivery to two-thirds of the population of the United States and Canada.
“The lease agreement between Spartan Logistics and Whirlpool is welcome news to our community,” Allen said.
“It will be great to see a company operating a business on the property again.
Judge OKs bankrupt Allens’ 21-day plan
A federal bankruptcy judge in Fayetteville temporarily approved motions Tuesday allowing Allens Inc. to pay its employees, keep the lights on and pay its bills after it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
Siloam Springs-based Allens Inc., known for its canned and frozen vegetables, filed for bankruptcy Monday in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Arkansas.
Chapter 11 bankruptcy allows a debtor, usually a business, to continue operations under court supervision while reorganizing its debts so creditors can be paid.
Preliminary court filings show the company has between $100 million and $500 million in assets and $100 million and $500 million in debt. The company employs nearly 1,200 workers across all of its U.S. operations, according to the filing.
Bankruptcy Judge Ben Barry approved first-day motions brought by Allens Inc. attorneys that allow the business to run its day-to-day operations for the next 21 days. It will become permanent if no creditors raise objections in the meantime.
Attorneys representing clients who have claims under the Perishable Agricultural Commodities Act were told there was a $7.6 million reserve set aside to pay those debts, if valid. When pressed by attorneys representing those creditors, Allens attorneys and the company’s primary lenders made assurances that the perishable commodities claims would be paid first if they exceeded the set aside amounts.
Barry said he was satisfied the arrangement will assure valid perishable commodities claims are paid properly.
Target cuts applications’ criminal query
Minneapolis-based Target Corp., the nation’s second-largest retailer behind Wal-Mart Stores Inc., said recently that it will no longer ask potential employees about their criminal history on job applications.
The move gives qualified applicants a fair shot at a job despite their criminal histories.
Ten states and more than 50 cities around the country have enacted “ban the box” policies, which eliminate the check-box that asks about an applicant’s criminal record.
Target joins a group of large private employers that have taken steps to end blanket hiring exclusions that make it nearly impossible for anyone with a criminal record to get a job.
A release from the company said the decision was prompted by a new Minnesota law and intense pressure from a grassroots campaign demanding that the company break down employment barriers faced by people with criminal convictions.
“Other large retailers around the nation need to follow suit, because their hiring policies send a strong message about whether they are committed to the communities that support their business,” said Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project, a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization that conducts research and advocates on issues affecting low-wage and unemployed workers.
- Cyd King
IBM approves $15 billion stock buyback
ARMONK, N.Y. - IBM’s board has approved the repurchase of $15 billion of its common stock.
The company still had about $5.6 billion remaining under a previous authorization as of last month.
This means IBM can now buy back approximately $20.6 billion of its shares.
IBM said Tuesday that it expects to request approval for more stock buybacks at its October 2014 board meeting.
The company’s board also declared a regular quarterly dividend of 95 cents. The dividend will be paid Dec. 10 to shareholders who are on record Nov. 8.
Shares of International Business Machines Corp. rose $4.77, or 2.7 percent, to close at $182.12.
Business, Pages 26 on 10/30/2013