Business in brief: Wages rise in Washington
The annual wage in Washington increased by 4.2 percent in 2014 to $54,829, the largest percentage increase since 2007, a state Employment Security Department news release said.
These figures only cover wages eligible for unemployment insurance. The average number of workers covered by unemployment insurance also grew by 62,942 to more than 2.9 million.
Wages in the information sector grew by 10.3 percent; in art, entertainment and recreation grew by 6.5 percent; and in retail trade grew by 4.3 percent.
Because of the overall increase, the minimum weekly unemployment benefit rose to $158. The maximum weekly benefit also rose to $664.
Shakeup continues at Target
NEW YORK – Target’s reinvention plan continues.
In the latest move by new CEO Brian Cornell to reshape the retailer, the discounter said that its chief merchandising and supply chain officer is exiting her post.
The retailer said Thursday that Kathryn Tesija, who also served as executive vice president, will move temporarily to a strategic adviser role on July 6 and plans to leave the company in April 2016. The move signals how serious Cornell is in making the company more nimble and reclaiming its position as a “cheap chic” retailer.
Icahn’s pullout hurts Netflix
Netflix Inc.’s stock continued to fall in early trading Thursday after billionaire investor Carl Icahn revealed he sold the last of his shares in the video-streaming company.
The stock was down $17.94, or 2.6 percent, at $660.67 a share.
Icahn, the 79-year-old activist investor, said Wednesday on Twitter that he had sold the last of his Netflix stock, an investment that earned him a profit of more than $2 billion in three years.
His tweet came as Los Gatos, Calif.-based Netflix was trading near a high of $706 a share Wednesday, so the stock has now lost about 6 percent since he made the disclosure.
Icahn later told CNBC that his action partly reflected his concern the stock market overall is “overheated” but that “Netflix is still a great company.”
Match.com group plans IPO
NEW YORK – Match.com and Tinder are looking for a Wall Street hookup as their parent group spins off the dating sites as a publicly traded company.
IAC/InteractiveCorp, which is controlled by billionaire Barry Diller, approved a proposal for an initial public offering.
Diller said Thursday it’s “healthy” to give companies “independence from a mother church.”
IAC said it expects the Match Group to issue less than 20 percent of its shares in the IPO, so the company will still be majority-owned by its parent. The IPO is planned for the fourth quarter of this year.
The Match Group had revenue of $239.2 million in the first quarter.
Increased holiday travel likely
NEW YORK – A stronger economy, rising consumer confidence and cheap gasoline likely will have Americans traveling in big numbers this Independence Day.
Travel agency and car lobbying group AAA estimates 41.9 million people will travel 50 miles or more from home during the holiday weekend, up 0.7 percent from last year and the most since 2007, right before the recession.
As usual, the vast majority of travelers will be using their cars: about 85 percent. Gas currently costs $2.78 a gallon, down 88 cents from the same time last year. That means a family driving 200 miles on highways will save about $7.30 for their holiday gas this year.