|
Advertising
Customer Service
• Register
|
MORE FROM NJBIZ
Dow Jones Industrial Average
NASDAQ Composite
S&P 500
AMEX Composite
PEOPLE WHO READ THIS...
Also read these stories:
 This Week's Most Read Articles
Most Recent Articles
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
By Martin C. DaksDespite the good news, the number of institutions on the FDIC’s “problem list” rose to 552 — the highest level in 16 years and up from 416 in the second quarter. The federal agency did not name the banks on the problem list.
Business borrowing also fell, as loans to commercial and industrial borrowers dropped by $89.1 billion nationally — and by about $100 million, to $6.1 billion, in New Jersey.
“Today’s report shows that while bank and thrift earnings have improved, the effects of the recession continue to be reflected in their financial performance,” said FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair.
“The results indicate that New Jersey and the nation are beginning to emerge from the recession,” said economist Joel L. Naroff, president of Naroff Economic Advisors, of Holland, Pa. “But with more bankruptcies likely on the way, we’re not out of the woods yet.”
With regard to the decline in loan balances, “there is no question that credit availability is an important issue for the economic recovery,” Bair said. “We need to see banks making more loans to their business customers. This is especially true for small businesses that rely on FDIC-insured institutions to provide over 60 percent of the credit they use."
E-mail Martin C. Daks at mdaks@njbiz.com
By Martin C. DaksThe economy topped the list of business owner concerns, with 90 percent of respondents citing it as the biggest national issue, according to an announcement. In New Jersey, 44 percent said taxes in general were a top challenge, followed by property taxes, unemployment and political corruption.
More than half of last year’s poll responses were “optimistic” about then-newly elected Obama’s economic team, but this time, 51 percent answered “none” when asked to name the best decision the national administration had made in 2009.
“This reflects cautiousness consistent with our survey a year ago, when 93 percent felt the economy was the nation’s biggest concern,” said Ren Cicalese, managing partner of the CPA firm.
Nearly half the respondents said the federal stimulus program has not yet helped the economy, compared to 36 percent who said it has. Also, 44 percent said their firm’s conditions were stable, while 27 percent said they were slipping and only 22 percent saw improvement.
“Some of the responses were not surprising, since President Obama’s numbers have been slipping in national polls,” said Richard Harris, director of the Senator Walter Rand Institute for Public Affairs at Rutgers University’s Camden campus.
But he questioned the way some of the survey questions were phrased, calling one that asked if government economic intervention is a temporary necessity or a move toward socialism “a loaded question that creates a false dichotomy,” artificially limiting the choice of answers.
Despite that caveat, Harris said there appears to be “a sense of populist outrage — apparently among small business, too — that Wall Street financiers got bailed out, but small-business owners and working people were left to fend for themselves.”
When the president took office, he “set expectations that were incredibly high,” Harris added. “Some of Obama’s solutions are geared to long-term change, but some people appear to be upset that we haven’t seen more short-term results.”
E-mail Martin C. Daks at mdaks@njbiz.com
By Beth FitzgeraldThe survey, now in its 51st year, surveyed 1,400 NJBIA member firms representing every major industry and all 21 New Jersey counties, and confirmed the view that this is New Jersey’s worst recession since World War II, offering only faint hope for a modest turnaround in the year ahead.
A small manufacturer of precision metal products in Passaic County put it succinctly: “We’re still bumping along the bottom.”
Survey respondents collectively reported the biggest drop in survey-data history for sales, profits and spending in 2009, while predicting a tight lid on hiring and spending in 2010.
“Our member companies don’t believe the economy is going to bounce back quickly from this terrible recession,” said NJBIA President Philip Kirschner. As they have for many years, respondents complained about New Jersey’s business climate, giving record low marks to New Jersey as a place to expand.
Kirschner said a smaller percentage of businesses reported profits than reported sales increases, meaning companies are cutting prices to increase their cash flow.
“I think you’ll see a lot of bargains in this holiday selling season,” Kirschner said.
He also said Gov.-elect Chris Christie’s pledges to reduce taxes and review government red tape could address concerns with the business climate. And his tone in emphasizing an improved business climate also will be important, Kirschner said. He pointed to former Gov. James E. McGreevey, saying he hurt the climate by vilifying businesses.
Still, “it’ll be many years until we get back to the type of economy we had” at the peak of the most recent boom, Kirschner said.
One bright note: the survey found a glimmer of optimism for 2010, with 34 percent saying conditions in their industry will improve, 35 percent expecting no change and 31 percent predicting worse conditions next year.
A record 48 percent cut jobs in 2009, and only 8 percent hired, which formed what NJBIA called the most negative report on actual employment conditions in 26 years of survey data. The previous low point was reached during the 1989-92 recession, which until now was considered the worst recession since the Great Depression.
Among the other findings:
– Seventy-one percent said sales fell in 2009, and two-thirds of this group reported a double-digit decline sales drop.
– With the exception of the health care industry, which saw modest improvement in 2009, all major industries reported a deepening sales slump.
– Forty percent expect sales to improve moderately in the year ahead, 32 percent expect sales to fall and 28 percent expect them to remain flat.
– Seventy percent said their profits fell in 2009, with two-thirds of this group reporting a double-digit decline.
– In 2010, 36 percent expect profits to rise, 34 percent expect them to fall and 30 percent are planning for flat profits next year.
– To offset falling revenues, 69 percent of employers cut back on purchasing in 2009; only 14 percent increased spending.
– A majority of companies either did not give pay raises or lowered pay rates in 2009, and a majority don’t expect to give pay raises in 2010.
E-mail Beth Fitzgerald at bfitzgerald@njbiz.com
By João-Pierre RuthPennyTalk is a calling-card service for international calls. The new app brings the service to the iPhone without the need for a calling card.
The PennyTalk Mobile app is available free at the iTunes Store. Users can make international calls through PennyTalk for 2 cents per minute. PennyTalk Mobile follows the introduction of other apps for placing phone calls at a discount through the iPhone. Vonage Holdings Corp., in Holmdel, released in October an app, Vonage Mobile, for international and domestic calls on the iPhone and other mobile devices.
PennyTalk Mobile uses the carrier’s cell network to connect the calls rather than Wi-Fi, which some competing apps on the iPhone use.
E-mail João-Pierre Ruth at jpruth@njbiz.com
Follow me on Twitter @jpruth
By João-Pierre RuthNew Jersey Citizen Action said it wants Goldman Sachs to give its $23 billion in total bonuses to foreclosure prevention programs instead. New Jersey Citizen Action also said it wants the firm to increase lending to support job creation.
Last week, the firm — which has faced public mistrust in the wake of the financial meltdown — launched a $500 million venture to encourage small-business growth.
E-mail João-Pierre Ruth at jpruth@njbiz.com
Follow me on Twitter @jpruth
By João-Pierre RuthNRG made the acquisition through NRG Solar LLC. The Blythe project is a 21-megawatt solar power plant expected to go online by year’s end.
NRG acquired the solar power plant from First Solar Inc., in Tempe, Ariz. The Blythe plant is expected to have the capacity to meet the energy needs of some 17,000 homes, according to NRG. The solar power plant includes 350,000 solar modules spread across 200 acres.
NRG said it plans to build, finance and operate a portfolio of solar power assets through NRG Solar. The company plans to build commercial-scale solar thermal generation plants in New Mexico and California, with the first expected to begin operation in 2011.
E-mail João-Pierre Ruth at jpruth@njbiz.com
Follow me on Twitter @jpruth
To read the full story, click here.
U.S.: SC legislators begin Sanford impeachment hearings
To read the full story, click here.
WORLD: Philippines declares emergency after 46 killed
To read the full story, click here.
THE LIGHTER SIDE: Chef Paula Deen accidentally hit by charity ham
To read the full story, click here.
