Week In Review: Xinbang Pharma Acquires Chinese Peptide Co. For $323 Million
May 09, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Deals and Financings Guizhou Xinbang Pharmaceutical (SHE: 002390) paid $323 million to acquire Chinese Peptide Company, located in Hangzhou, from the nine companies that owned it (see story). In addition, Xinbang raised as much as $106 million, which it will use to expand CPC’s peptide production capacity. Founded in 1997, CPC describes itself as a high-quality, […]
Income Inequality Is Costing the U.S. on Social Issues
May 04, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Thirty-five years ago, the United States ranked 13th among the 34 industrialized nations that are today in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development in terms of life expectancy for newborn girls. These days, it ranks 29th. In 1980, the infant mortality rate in the United States was about the same as in Germany. Today, […]
Shared Solar Tries Again To Light Up CT
Apr 07, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Saared solar, a concept that could make solar power available to the 80 percent of homes in Connecticut that are otherwise unsuited for it, appears headed for another rocky run through the state legislature. Last year a bill authorizing shared solar melted down in end-of-session dramatics marked by bickering and finger-pointing over who was to […]
2016 Race: Fixing our dysfunctional, unfair, economy-strangling tax system must be top GOP priority
Mar 23, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Our country is in trouble and the American people know it. The economy, despite improvements here and there, remains sluggish. We’ve never had such a punk recovery from a sharp economic downturn in our history. Incomes are stagnant, and millions of people have either dropped out of the labor force or have been forced to […]
Ways to slash your monthly expenses
Mar 09, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
It can often seem like your monthly income flows right back out. If you feel like your money is gone before you even have a chance to choose where it goes, you may need to get a handle on your finances. Regular monthly expenses can fill your budget easily, leaving less money to spend now […]
No dogs allowed: San Francisco’s pet housing crisis
Feb 23, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance, Real Estate
The housing crunch in San Francisco isn’t just forcing out lower income renters, it’s forcing out Fido, too. According to San Francisco animal welfare nonprofit SF SPCA, there’s been a surge in owners abandoning their pets due to an inability to find pet-friendly housing. Over the last year, one in four people who left pets […]
The Only 3 Things You Need to Know About Money and Happiness
Jan 28, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
The final word on whether money truly makes people happier still eludes us. But here’s what we know so far. Maybe you’ve watched Citizen Kane recently—or just heard the truism that “money doesn’t buy happiness.” Either way, you may not be surprised by a new study showing that more income doesn’t seem to make people […]
Will 2015 Be Any Better? Ten Numbers to Watch
Jan 14, 2015
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
Enough with the debate over whether 2014 was a bad year (Islamic State, Ebola, Crimea) or a good year (homicide rates are falling). Time to take a look at the shiny new coin in the palms of our hands: 2015. How will it measure up? Here are 10 numbers to watch: U.S. unemployment rate in […]
How Holiday Shopping Can Help You With Home Shopping
Dec 15, 2014
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
When holiday shopping heats up, home shopping cools down. December is consistently one of the slowest home sales months of the year, according to real estate website Zillow.com. It’s almost as if consumers don’t have enough mental bandwidth to focus on both at the same time. But if you hope to buy a house in […]
4 Black Friday scams to avoid
Nov 24, 2014
Jeremy Parkinson
Finance
You may have heard about the typical tricks retailers use on Black Friday — marking up prices just to mark them down, for example — but you may not know about other possible rip-offs that threaten to spoil your savings. Here are some scams that have the potential to turn the best day of the […]