Economy & Business

The bad weather currently blanketing the northeast did not keep our intrepid business contributor, Rebecca Harris from making it to the nation's capital Monday.  She sat on a business roundtable at the White House which focused on the government's interest in local businesses. 

Harris received the invitation from Sam Brown, Director of the White House Business Council, a part of the Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs.

Some of the leading minds in sustainable business models will gather in Pittsburgh Tuesday for a rapid-fire event exploring what has become known as the triple bottom line.

“This is the essence of sustainability,” said Court Gould, Sustainable Pittsburgh executive director. 

The group is putting on the conference, Sustainability EXPOsed.

After more than three years without a hospital, Braddock is set to get another medical facility.

On Friday, ground was broken on a new commercial development that will include a Highmark and Allegheny Health Network full service urgent care center, to serve the more than 2,100 people who live in the borough.

“They’ll have access to health care services as well as good, positive development on the main drag of Braddock,” said Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald.

UPMC Braddock closed its doors in early 2010.

It might not a huge shopping mall, but the State Treasury is offering shoppers a way to find unusual presents this holiday season.

Treasurer Rob McCord suggested holiday shoppers log onto the Treasury’s eBay auction site.

“One reason why it’s great at this time of the year is people start to look around for unusual gifts and great buys, great discounts,” McCord said. “And I’m very proud that Pennsylvania was the first state to have a continuous eBay auction for unclaimed property.”

Tattoos were once the domain of sailors and bad guys in movies and television. Over the past two decades the art of inking has increased.

Tattoo parlors are everywhere and they’ve achieved the ultimate pop culture status of reality shows devoted to the craft.

Business contributor Rebecca Harris says Millennials are driving the trend.

Black Friday and Buy Local Saturday have come and gone, and Cyber Monday is just around the corner, but nonprofits across the region are hoping Pittsburghers will still have a little something in their checking accounts come Tuesday.

More than 7,800 organizations across the world are encouraging people to donate to charities and nonprofits to mark what has become known as Giving Tuesday.

The United Nations Foundation and 92d Street Y launched the initiative last year, and it trended globally on Twitter as #GivingTuesday.

Each year the holiday shopping season kicks off with the huge savings and massive crowds of Black Friday — or is it Black Thursday?

The unofficial holiday for all things retail is the single most important day of the year for merchants, though increases in online sales and disappointing predictions have some jumping the gun.

The National Retail Federation is predicting a 3.9 percent growth in holiday retail sales over last year, a disappointing forecast that has some retailers opening their doors early.

The week leading up to Thanksgiving is always a high volume time for liquor sales, and the action in the Pittsburgh area is always among the heaviest in the state. In fact, PLCB stores in Allegheny County sold more wine and spirits in all of 2012 than any other county in Pennsylvania.

According to the state Liquor Control Board (LCB), the county made up 13.4 percent of state sales, bringing in more than $260 million; Philadelphia was second at $231 million.

A company known as a “Taiwanese tech giant” is investing in Pennsylvania.  

Foxconn, a major supplier of Apple products, plans to spend $30 million in the commonwealth on what it’s calling a new “high end technology manufacturing facility.”

The company, alternately known as Hon Hai, will invest another $10 million into a joint research and development effort with Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh.

If you have ever wondered where your call has been sent when you dial up customer support you might be happy to learn that legislation moving through Washington would force the operator to answer just that question.

The U.S. Call Center and Workers Protection Act of 2013 has been dubbed the “Dial one for America” bill.  Among its provisions is a requirement that call center operators handling calls from the U.S. identify their location as part of the call.

A new regulation slated to go into effect in early 2014 would tighten lending requirements for those seeking a home loan. The Qualified Mortgage Rule is aimed at preventing another housing crisis like the one that hit the U.S. in 2008.

But some in the financial community and on Capitol Hill worry that rule is too broad and will have unintended negative consequences.

Thanksgiving week is one of the busiest when it comes to travel, and this year will be no exception. AAA forecasts that nationally 43.4 million people will travel during the holiday week. In the mid-Atlantic region, which includes Pennsylvania, 5.01 million people are expected to travel, a 2.4 percent decrease over last year.

Many have deemed shale drilling controversial due to concerns with groundwater contamination and even earthquakes, but the shale gas industry says it creates hundreds of thousands of jobs.

However, five research and policy organizations claim the shale industry is overestimating its impact.

China has one of the world's fastest growing economies. But, how do changes in China affect people in Pittsburgh?

PNC Vice President and Senior International Economist Bill Adams is co-author of the new book, In Line Behind A Billion People: How Scarcity Will Define China’s Ascent in the Next Decade.

Looking at the state of its current economy, and projections for the future, Adams is concerned about what happens if China runs out of the things it needs to keep growing.

For many Americans, the workplace is exceptionally challenging for all of the wrong reasons. Some employees hate their jobs because they’re not in a position where they can excel, or perhaps they're victims of workplace bullying. Essential Pittsburgh's Paul Guggenheimer explored these reasons with Sasha King, independent career consultant.

“There is a big issue in that a lot of employees are overqualified for their positions, yet because of such a highly competitive job market, people are sticking with jobs they normally would have moved on from already,” says King.

The number of Pittsburgh residents living at or below the poverty level has increased nearly 9% since the fall of 2007, according to the Urban Institute. 

The documentary, Inequality for All, focuses on the fact that one half of all Americans have zero wealth, no savings, no assets that outweigh their debts, no retirement savings or investments.

The film grew out of the economic lectures of former U.S. Secretary of Labor Robert Reich at the University of California at Berkeley.

The University of Pittsburgh is combining resources to spark innovation and increase support for entrepreneurial initiatives on and off campus.

Pitt Thursday launched the Innovation Institute, which consolidates the existing offices of Technology Management and Enterprise Development as well as the Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence.

The housing market in southwestern Pennsylvania continues to strengthen, according to numbers released by West Penn Multi-List.

In October, the number of residential homes placed under agreement increased 15.07 percent; new listings increased 8.69 percent, and average days on the market decreased 4.82 percent over the previous month.

Lost and stray animals are finding their way to better homes, according to a recent trend at animal shelters.

According to business contributor Rebecca Harris of the Center for Women’s Entrepreneurship at Chatham University, fewer pets are landing in animal shelters and the number of euthanized dogs and cats has decreased. What has emerged is a trend toward adopting these unwanted animals, instead of going to a pet shop or breeder.

Three years after the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania began divesting from companies taking part in “scrutinized activities” in Iran or Sudan, it has not resulted in a loss of investment revenue but rather a net gain.

The Allegheny Conference on Community Development welcomed their new chair at the organization’s annual meeting Wednesday evening.

Morgan K. O’Brien, CEO of Peoples Natural Gas, chair of the Greater Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce and current vice chair of the conference, will take over as chair on Jan. 1, 2014.

O’Brien said he looks forward to continuing the mission of the conference to improve the quality of life in the greater Pittsburgh region.

Many Americans dream of owning their own business, but too often statistics and a fearful economy stop their progress- not Gary Bredow.

He started his own production company after quitting his desk job and he now hosts the public television program, START UP, where he talks with American entrepreneurs.

According to a new report by the National Consumer Law Center, Pennsylvania gets a failing grade when it comes to protecting low-income families from debt collectors.

This is due, in part to outdated laws that have not been changed since the 19th century says Robert Hobbs, Deputy Director of the National Consumer Law Center who worked on the report.

Gas prices in Pittsburgh are lower than they’ve been since 2010. According to Gregg Laskoski, Senior Petroleum Analyst at GasBuddy.com, prices could stay low throughout the holiday season.

Right now gas in Pennsylvania is roughly $3.40, down from $3.70 just a couple years ago, reports Laskoski. He attributes the price drop to the changing of the seasons.

Pennsylvania’s senior U.S. Senator has authored a bipartisan letter to the White House that he hopes will put money in the hands of needy families who need help heating their homes.

Sen. Bob Casey’s letter calls for the expedited release of heating assistance funds for seniors and low-income families through the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP.)  The Democrat said he has recruited 40 members of the Senate as co-signers calling on the Department of Health and Human Services to release the funds.