Fruits and veggies lead CPI increase

http://www.credit.com/news/personal-finance/2010-04-14/slight-increase-in-cpi-driven-by-costs-for-fruits-vegetables.html

Although prices for most goods remained steady in March, a sharp increase in the costs for fruits and vegetables accounted for a slight increase in the consumer price index.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the consumer price index increased 0.1 percent during the third month of the year, driven by a 4.6 percent climb in the price for fresh fruits and vegetables. In the "all items" category from the BLS data set, 60 percent of the increase was accounted for by a rise in produce prices.

One factor that may have played in to the increase in the price for fruits and vegetables could have been the weather experienced in some parts of the country. Both rain and snow storms may have impeded the process of producing fruit and vegetables, which might have led to the jump in prices.

"The index for food away from home, which had increased every month since January 2003, was unchanged in March," the BLS said. "In contrast, the index for food at home rose 0.5 percent, its largest increase since September 2008."

Indices for energy and all goods not counting food and energy remained steady from February to March. The price of electricity went up, which was made up for by a decline in costs associated with gasoline and natural gas.

For other items, increases were seen in medical care and for used and new vehicles. However, expenses for home-related costs like shelter and furnishings - along with clothing - went down in March.

Overall for the last 12 months, the consumer price index has increased 2.3 percent, as the costs for goods and services continue to rise as people continue to try and handle debt.

Wal-Mart issue resurfaces with living wage ordinance, plan commission vote

Wal-Mart issue resurfaces with living wage ordinance, plan commission vote

http://newsblogs.chicagotribune.com/clout_st/2010/04/wal-mart-aldermen-chicago.html

The long-running Wal-Mart issue is resurfacing this week in Chicago, with an alderman once again pushing a living wage ordinance and a city panel set to consider a new store on the Far South Side.

Ald. Freddrenna Lyle, 6th, today proposed an ordinance that would require many large retailers to pay a “living wage” of $11.03-an-hour --- a measure supported by unions who oppose more Wal-Marts within city limits.
On Thursday, the Chicago Plan Commission is slated to consider a large-scale development on the far South Side that includes homes and stores, anchored by Wal-Mart. That project is backed by Ald. Anthony Beale, 9th.

The jousting over the so-called living wage and whether to allow the Wal-Mart resurrects a political battle that took place four years ago, leaving the city with just one Wal-Mart in the Austin Neighborhood on the far West Side.

In 2006, pro-union aldermen passed a living-wage ordinance affecting so-called big-box stores, including Wal-Mart. Mayor Richard Daley vetoed the ordinance, setting up an electoral battle in 2007, when unions successfully backed several aldermanic candidates.

Although Daley’s administration has the right to sanction new Wal-Marts in some areas, it has refrained from doing so. The mayor has said he wants a majority of aldermen to sign off on the stores. But unions say they do not pay enough, and aldermen haven’t approved new ones.

The new proposal, so far backed by Lyle and 17 of her colleagues, would require businesses with 50 or more employees that receive $250,000 or more in direct or indirect city financial assistance to pay wages of at least $11.03-an-hour.

"That is what we have calculated to be a reasonable wage for a person's labor, and we're saying if you get a city benefit -- if you get TIF funding, if you get land write downs -- if you get anything from the city to bring your development in, then your response should be to pay the residents of the city of Chicago a living wage," Lyle said.

Beale, meanwhile, says he believes he has sufficient backing to win approval for a 270-acre project in the Pullman Park neighborhood that includes the Wal-Mart and other large stores.

“It’s a solid plan that’s going to bring jobs and revenue to the city of Chicago,” he said. “This is badly needed for the city of Chicago. More than anything, it’s needed for the South Side, to address the food dessert.

“You know, we still don’t have access to fresh produce. We still don’t have access to quality groceries, so that will address all these issues, and it will bring jobs into the community.”

The project would create nearly 4,000 jobs once it’s complete in 12 years, including nearly 700 at Wal-Mart, Beale said. Meanwhile, all of the construction jobs would be given to union members, he said.

The development also would include restaurants and 800 homes, he said. “We’re not just talking about Wal-Mart,” he added. “We’re talking about a large development.”

Even if the plan commission recommends approval of the Wal-Mart development, both the council's Zoning Committee and the council itself would have to sign off. And it's unclear whether aldermen want to run for re-election in February with the Wal-Mart issue as a major backdrop. In 2007, the unions helped several challengers defeat or mount tough campaigns against sitting aldermen.

Stop & Shop rocked by reorg

Stop & Shop rocked by reorg
http://boston.bizjournals.com/boston/blog/mass_roundup/2010/04/stop_shop_rocked_by_reorg.html

Stop & Shop Supermarket Co.'s parent company has launched a corporate reorganization that could lead to the loss of many jobs in the supermarket chain's Quincy offices, the Patriot Ledger reports.

A spokeswoman for Ahold USA Retail did not provide many details of the shakeup to the Ledger, but confirmed that there is a new structure for the company’s U.S. retail merchandising and marketing organization, and that its nonperishable and fresh merchandising functions will be based in Carlisle, Pa.

Read more: Boston Business Journal: Stop & Shop rocked by reorg