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 DJIA 13,699.6 -228.8 / S&P 500 1,522.7 -26.7 / NASDAQ 2,8519 -40.1
 |  |  Tonight: Clear and cold. Low 36. Friday: Lots of sun, slightly milder. High 61.
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|  Thursday, November 1, 2007 |
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Shareholders clobber Conseco after report
CEO Jim Prieur is accentuating the positive after Conseco Inc.'s latest quarterly loss. But Wall Street investors concentrated on the negative this morning, punishing the Carmel-based company's shares yet again. "We've been through some of the pain and now we're coming out the other side," Prieur said in an interview last night. "The gross number doesn't look attractive yet, but we've got everything moving in the right direction." Everything except the company's stock price. Conseco shares fell more than 9 percent this morning, to $14.29. 
IU forecasts modest growth in 2008
Sounding downright Greenspanian, economists at Indiana University's Kelley School of Business said this morning they are "cautiously optimistic" that 2008 will be a year of modest growth. The U.S. economy will grow 2.5 percent, less than the 3 percent they expected for 2007, they said during the business school's annual breakfast meeting downtown. Indiana's economy will expand 2 percent. And real growth in the Indianapolis area will creep up as much as 1.5 percent.
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Indiana spared sweeping Chrysler job cuts
Chrysler LLC said today it plans to cut as many as 12,000 jobs, or up to 15 percent of its work force, as part of an effort to slash costs and match slowing demand for some vehicles. None of the announced cuts affect Indiana plants. The automaker will cut 8,500 to 10,000 hourly jobs and 2,100 salaried jobs through 2008. The company already had begun cutting 1,100 temporary workers yesterday. It will eliminate shifts at five North American assembly plants and cut four vehicle models from its lineup.
Big housing project delayed until next year
A 2,000-home housing development planned for near Bargersville south of Indianapolis has been delayed until next year, according to the Daily Journal of Franklin. Developer Mike Duke said five other projects he is working on must be finished before starting the Abbey, which is to have single-family houses, townhouses, condominiums and a golf course. If the housing market were stronger, the Abbey might be pushed forward, Duke told the newspaper.
Duke funds from operations beat outlook
Duke Realty Corp. reported late yesterday that funds from operations in the third quarter increased 4.6 percent, to $93.7 million. The 68 cents per share exceeded the 67-cent average anticipated by analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial. Late last month, Indianapolis-based Duke, one of the nation's largest industrial real estate investment trusts, said its leases hit a record 10.8 million square feet in the quarter.
Profit, sales down for truck trailer maker
Wabash National Corp. reported third-quarter profit of $3.8 million, down 24 percent from the year-ago period. Sales in the period ended Sept. 30 were $291 million, nearly 20 percent lower than last year. The Lafayette-based maker of semi-truck trailers echoed sentiment expressed last week by Indianapolis trucking firm Celadon Group Inc., which said a soft freight market is hurting the trucking industry. Wabash also blamed costs associated with a company realignment and a sluggish residential construction market, forcing trucking companies to buy fewer trucks.
Court hears arguments in property tax lawsuit
An attorney for several taxpayers who are challenging the constitutionality of Indiana's property tax system have asked the Indiana Tax Court to let the lawsuit proceed. Attorneys for the state, Marion County and Indianapolis argued Wednesday primarily that the lawsuit should be dismissed because the taxpayers who sued had not exhausted administrative remedies.
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Guidant settlement to jump by $45M, report says
Guidant has agreed to pay $45 million more than the $195 million it proposed in July to settle claims that it obscured problems with its heart defibrillators, according to Bloomberg, which cited anonymous sources. The company was based in Indianapolis until it was acquired last year by Boston Scientific Corp. of Natick, Mass., for $27.5 billion.
Firm: U.S. drug sales will fall 17 percent
Pharmaceutical sales in the United States will drop to a third of global sales in 2008 from a 50-percent share two years ago, a report released today says. Prescription drugs sales in emerging economies in China, Brazil, Turkey, Mexico and elsewhere are booming, but the gains will be offset by the loss of patent protection for profitable drugs worth $20 billion in annual sales in 2008, predicts health care research firm IMS Health.
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| Insurers seek growing ranks of early retirees
Health insurers trying to boost individual policy sales are making a new push into an older market-the roughly 7 million uninsured Americans between the ages of 50 and 64. Financially stable baby boomers who retire young or need coverage after a corporate downsizing are driving this push, experts say. Insurers also want to build ties to customers who may need Medicare-related insurance after they turn 65.
Skyrocketing land prices shackle farmers
The value of cropland is being driven up by higher prices for commodities such as soybeans, wheat and corn, which is getting an extra bump from the popularity of the corn-based fuel additive ethanol. Average cropland values in the U.S. rose by 13 percent, to $2,700 per acr,e this year, up from $2,390 last year, according to the Department of Agriculture. Howard Halderman, president of a farm real estate company in Wabash said rising land values cut two ways: They tempt some farmers to sell their land and retire with a big cash payout, but they give others incentive to keep farming by providing more collateral to buy livestock, equipment and other needs.
From IBJ staff and Associated Press-Compiled by Norm Heikens
Two wrong-way drivers slow morning commute
Two drivers heading the wrong way caused crashes this morning. In Morgan County, two people were seriously hurt in a head-on collision when a woman turned north into the south-bound lane of State Road 67. In Indianapolis, a driver who went north in the south-bound lanes of Interstate 65 is in custody after causing a minor accident near the 71st Street interchange. Fox 59 will have the latest at 10 p.m.
Investigation may widen in alleged murder plot
Indianapolis Metropolitan Police say a murder-for-hire plot could lead to a new investigation into a death. Officers say Robert Quarles, 56, plotted to have his wife killed so he could collect insurance money. Now, police say they're considering re-opening an investigation into a suspicious drowning of his 22-year-old daughter at his home. Her death carried a $1 million settlement.
Health department forms MRSA task force
Indiana State Health Department officials this morning announced the creation of a MRSA task force after cases of the bacteria have been reported across the state, including two more at Indianapolis Public Schools. The task force is an effort by multiple community partners to educate Hoosiers about illness caused by the bug and ways to prevent it. The bacteria is resistant to broad-spectrum antibiotics used to treat it.
NAACP rallies in downtown Indy
NAACP leaders and supporters rallied at the U.S. District Courthouse today, accusing Eli Lilly and Co. of racial discrimination. The rally came after former Lilly employee Cassandra Welch and other employees and former employees filed a lawsuit against the pharmaceutical company. Welch says she was fired in 2004 after complaining about lower wages for blacks compared to whites.
Metrics missionaries launch doctor visits
It's not exactly the Great Commission, but it's a start. The Indiana Health Information Exchange sent forth a handful of staff people last week to a small physician practice to show charts full of performance metrics, which are meant to help doctors improve the quality of care they provide. That visit to Community Pediatrics in Indianapolis, albeit a small step, marked a major transition for the program, called Quality Health First. After two-and-a-half years building the computer backbone to provide this information, the Quality Health First program is finally distributing its information to independent doctors. Armed with this information, doctors can be better caregivers. At least that's the belief of officials at the health information exchange. Their other hope is that better-quality care leads to less expensive care. 
Largest Indianapolis-Area Accounting Firms 
When someone has a business proposal for you, how do you prefer to be approached: via phone, mail or e-mail? Why? 
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