NEW YORK (AP) — Business has picked up. Yet American companies are too nervous to step up hiring. The economy seems so gripped by uncertainties that many employers have decided to manage with the staff they have. They aren’t convinced their customer demand will keep growing. Or they worry that Europe’s festering debt crisis could […]
economy
Posted inBusiness, Nation / World, sj-web
Jobs report weakens Obama’s election argument
The economy, Obama conceded Friday, “is not growing as fast as we want it to.” Taking a harsher tone, presumed Republican rival Mitt Romney declared that the country appeared to be “moving backward.” He sought to drive home a political point from the nation’s first increase in joblessness in almost a year. After a winter […]
advertisement
Posted inBusiness, Local & State, sj-web
Maine home sales, prices go up in April
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A realty group says home sales in Maine have gone up for the ninth straight month. The Maine Association of Realtors says home sales rose by nearly 9 percent in April while the median sales price increased more than 4 percent, to $167,950. The group says home sales nationally rose about […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Moody’s revises Maine bond outlook to negative
AUGUSTA, Maine (AP) — Moody’s Investors Service rating agency has affirmed Maine’s bond credit rating but revised its ratings outlook from stable to negative ahead of an upcoming sale of $55 million of bonds. State Treasurer Bruce Poliquin said Friday that the revised outlook is not good news, but will have no financial impact on […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
LePage touts accomplishments in first 500 days
PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — Regardless of what critics might say, Republican Gov. Paul LePage has done much of what he promised he’d do, pushing through tax cuts, reducing the state pension fund shortfall, paying back money owed to hospitals, and cutting Medicaid benefits that he said were too generous. And he’s commemorating his accomplishments in […]
Posted inLocal & State, sj-web
Maine police departments have difficulty recruiting officers
PORTLAND, Maine — A bright red “ we’re hiring” advertisement comes flashing forward when the Portland Police Department’s website is opened. The Maine State Police website has a “***now hiring***” line in red and also a crawler across the top of its site that states the hiring process is now open. The state’s largest police forces are not alone […]
Posted inOpinion
Let voters speak on 2012 bond proposal
Maine has gone one year without passing a bond package and we should not go another. That’s why it is critical for legislators to act to pass the $95.6 million package put together last month by legislative committee. Gov. Paul LePage, who adamantly opposed last year’s package, should then stand clear and allow voters to […]
Posted inBusiness, sj-web
Maine job market may be thawing, say human resource experts
PORTLAND, Maine — The employment picture in Maine appears to be strengthening and companies may want to start thinking about recruiting and retaining employees, according to some front-line experts. Ed McKersie, founder and president of Pro Search Inc., a Portland-based recruiting and employment firm, said his company had its best year yet for recruiting in […]
Posted inNation / World, sj-web
American’s faith in economic recovery fading
WASHINGTON — Americans are growing more pessimistic about the economy and handling it remains President Barack Obama’s weak spot and biggest challenge in his bid for a second term, according to a new Associated Press-GfK poll. And the gloomier outlook extends across party lines, including a steep decline in the share of Democrats who call […]
Posted inBusiness, New England, sj-web
Sturgeon health is new threat to fishing industry
BOSTON (AP) — The health of the ancient Atlantic sturgeon has emerged as the latest problem for a New England fishing industry already facing serious threats to its future. On Wednesday, regional fishery managers discussed protecting sturgeon, two months after federal officials listed the fish in the Gulf of Maine as “threatened” under the Endangered […]