Caterpillar Inc. said Friday that it’s building a manufacturing plant close to Athens, Ga., bringing at least 1,400 jobs, and more in related production jobs. The company will relocate production of small excavators and backhoes from Japan. The plant is the largest creation of jobs in Georgia since Kia Motors moved to West Point, Ga. in 2009, Gov. Nathan Deal said in a press conference Friday morning. The announcement is a big win for Georgia, as Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) has been courted by other Southeast states, including North Carolina, where the company has a division headquarters in Cary, near Raleigh. Atlanta Business Chronicle The announcement is a big win for Georgia, as Caterpillar (NYSE: CAT) has been courted by other Southeast states, including North Carolina, where the company has a division headquarters in Cary, near Raleigh. Atlanta Business Chronicle
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Four of the nation's 50 most poverty-stricken metropolitan or micropolitan areas are in Alabama, according to a new report from On Numbers. Selma (No. 12), Tuskegee (No. 40), Troy (No. 42) and Eufaula (No. 49) all had poverty rates of more than 20 percent. Selma's rate was 27.3 percent, Tuskegee's was 20.7 percent, Troy's was 20.5 percent and Eufaula's was 20 percent. Mobile (15.7 percent) had the worst rate among the state's largest metros. Birmingham (10.3 percent) had the third lowest rate in the state, followed by Daphne-Fairhope-Foley (9.1 percent) and Huntsville (9 percent). The rankings were based on data from the U.S. Census Bureau. Birmingham Business Journal
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NEW YORK — Oil prices have climbed to the highest level since May on concerns that Iran will cut off more oil to Europe. Benchmark crude rose by $2.65, or 2.6 percent, to end the day on Tuesday at $106.25 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That’s the highest price for oil since May 4. “People are just scared about Iran,” independent analyst and trader Stephen Schork said. “They’re concerned about supply.” The Tennessean
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Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich will meet with GOP lawmakers and members of the media next week inside the old Supreme Court chambers. The former Speaker of the House will address lawmakers whose support he is trying to garner in advance of the March 6 Super Tuesday primary. Analysts have said it is essential for Gingrich to perform well in southern states in order to keep pace with his fellow rivals for the GOP nomination. The Tennessean
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It can take as little as 10 minutes for someone to go through your Facebook profile and predict how you’ll perform in the workplace. In a new study to be published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology, researchers asked a university professor and two students to spend 10 minutes looking through the Facebook profiles of employed college students. They were then asked a series of personality-related questions about those students, like whether they thought the students were dependable or emotionally stable. Time Magazine
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President Obama’s proposal to raise the tax on corporate dividends should leave investors trembling. It has the ability to affect anyone with an interest in equities, from the executive in the c-suite to the grandmother next door. You pay 15% on dividends right now. Under Obama’s plan, the wealthy would see a total personal tax rate of nearly 45%. And before a company gives a dividend, that money is taxed as corporate profit. Obama would like to lower the corporate tax rate to 28%. By the time the dividend reaches your bank account, it has been taxed twice, a total of 73%. The corporate dividend tax hike is part of Obama’s broader restructuring of America’s corporate tax structure. As a whole, the plan is a game-changer for American business. But the dividend tax increase is the plan’s most striking element, since it’s hard to identify who it would help. Forbes
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Home prices fell to their lowest point in more than a decade in January, which helped to lift the pace of home sales, according to a report from an industry trade group. The National Association of Realtors reported that the median home price in January fell 2% from December to $154,700. That's the lowest price reading since November 2001, before the run-up in home prices that became known as the housing bubble. CNN
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An amendment in the works to a bill dealing with records at the Department of Economic and Community Development will make clear that ownership information will remain public, a change that should help the bill clear the state legislature. The Tennessean
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If your company is undergoing a site search in the American South, this digital magazine of the South's best economic development law firms is a valuable asset. Southern Business & Development magazine recently conducted a survey of the region's economic development community and the results of the survey can be found in this digital magazine. Find out which law firms are considered the best in the practice of economic development. Click on the headline above. SB&D
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Athens-Clarke and the surrounding counties should soon see a boost from one of the world’s leading manufacturers. Caterpillar, a manufacturer of industrial equipment, expects to break ground for a new plant within the next several weeks said Jim Dugan, a spokesman for the company. RedandBlack.com
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