The Times of Trenton Business News

Local NJ business news and economics

• Property taxes hit and praised by experts
EWING -- Property taxes: Can't live with them, can't live without them, can't decide what to do about them.

• Hamilton notables look for 'another boom'
HAMILTON -- Rising unemployment and a recession may be dominating the news, but nobody told the crowd at the township's Economic Development Advisory Commission awards dinner that it was time to be pessimistic.

• Station goes digital
HAMILTON -- Television station WZBN launched a digital television signal on Nov. 20, becoming the first Class A low-power station in the Northeast to do so, the station reported.

• Who else will pull out of their 401(k)s?
Sometime early next year, after the holiday cards have all arrived and the reality of 2009 starts to sink in, many investors will get something in the mail that could ruin a lot of resolutions.

• In volatile stock market times, perception of risk is paramount
Does your gut tighten every time the Dow makes another dramatic move? Of course, that is a rhetorical question. However, it does point to an issue that is critically important to everyone in all aspects of life, particularly with regards to investing.

• Merck finds fighting hunger sticks to its corporate ribs
There are lots of problems in the world, and Merck is already working on some of them -- cancer, diabetes, HIV -- but during the past year, the company added a long-standing social issue to its list of causes. It's spending time and money to help fight hunger in communities across the United States.

• In down economy, NJPAC sees boost
Bobbie Arbesfeld, the chief financial officer at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center for nine years, was recently promoted to executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Newark institution.

• Executive Moves
MANASQUAN SAVINGS BANK, Wall Township, said Dina Gibson has been promoted to branch manager of the Spring Lake Heights branch. Previ ously, Gibson was assistant branch manager of the Manasquan branch.

• Couple can easily realize their retirement dreams
Claire and John, like most families, were rattled when the stock market took a dive this fall. But they have a long-term outlook, and they know they'll need exposure to equities to reach their long-term goals.

• As the economy contracts, some firms are expanding
An economic downturn, while fraught with pain and problems for so many small businesses, can also have some upsides for companies. Some are to be expected -- a tough economy motivates businesses to find new ways to work more efficiently -- while others are serendipitous, coming in the form of opportunities for expansion.

• Fiscal ills may ground overseas shoppers
Overseas shoppers who once ar rived in the United States with empty suitcases to take back their holiday loot may decide to stay home this year amid high-priced airline tickets, unfavorable exchange rates and lingering economic woes.

• Video games hit all the right buttons in poor economy
DALLAS -- Bailouts, bankruptcies, liquidations and layoffs have been the business buzzwords over the last few months, but the video game industry remains stubbornly resistant to the gloom enveloping the rest of the economy.

• Outlook for N.J. business: Mostly cloudy
New Jersey employers -- most of them with 49 or fewer workers -- are gloomy about the financial condition of their businesses and think the economy will only get worse next year, a survey released yesterday said.

• Helping hands
for fledgling websites Building a website can be a confusing, frustrating process, especially for small-business owners and independent consultants.

• Obama
choices may alter transit

• Biz Buzz: Can kids' next focus be the housing bubble?
Bubble Wrap is an innocent looking sheet of plastic. But it's the source of one of the most uncontrollable human addictions: bubblewrappoppingophilia.

• Financial ills plague New Jersey's hospitals
PRINCETON BOROUGH -- NRG Energy said Monday its board rejected Exelon's unsolicited buyout offer, saying it "significantly undervalues" the company. It recommended its shareholders not tender their shares for the deal.

• Financial ills plague New Jersey's hospitals
PRINCETON BOROUGH -- NRG Energy said Monday its board rejected Exelon's unsolicited buyout offer, saying it "significantly undervalues" the company. It recommended its shareholders not tender their shares for the deal.

• Behind the Citigroup bailout
Another day, another big financial rescue.

• Market rallys on Citigroup bailout
Wall Street barreled higher yesterday for the second straight session, this time in a relief rally over the government's plan to bail out Citigroup -- a move it hopes will help quiet some of the uncertainty hounding the financial sector and the overall economy. The Dow Jones industrials soared nearly 400 points and the major indexes all jumped more than 4.5 percent.

• Alpharma agrees to King deal
Alpharma has finally agreed to King Pharmaceuticals' $1.6 billion cash takeover offer, ending the drugmakers' months-long battle.

• Biz Buzz: The gift that keeps on giving ... advice
A present? Oh, you shouldn't have. It's so nicely wrapped. What could it (shake, shake) be?

• Existing home sales continue to fall
WASHINGTON -- Nationwide sales of existing homes fell more than expected last month, as economic fears made buyers leery even though prices plunged to the lowest level in more than four years. And the decline is expected to get worse because October's results reflect sales contracts signed before Wall Street's nosedive.

• UBS clients prepare to face the tax man
Wealthy U.S. clients of UBS are offering to settle their tax liabilities with the Internal Revenue Service before the Swiss bank's possible disclosure of their names to government authorities, lawyers said.

• Retro toys stage comeback in troubled times
Counting dollars this holiday season, Tom De Santes wants to avoid buying high-priced techno gadgets as gifts for his two sons.

• Citigroup bailout a gamble for government
WASHINGTON -- Taxpayers may be wondering why they're forking over more money to rescue yet another behemoth, Citigroup, even as their own nest eggs crack and jobs evaporate.

• Owner of 4 malls could go bankrupt
Drowning in debt, and citing a weak retail and credit market, the owner of four New Jersey malls has hired bankruptcy lawyers and warned it could file for legal protection as it tries to dig itself out of a financial hole.

• Shopping center plans holiday get-together
PRINCETON BOROUGH -- Merchants here will throw a holiday party Dec. 6.

• Reducing your property taxes possible, but not likely
Turns out there may be an upside to the prolonged downturn in home prices.

• Lending a hand
When it comes to loans between friends or family members, financial planner Steven Kaye has two perspectives, depending on whom he's advising.

• Justices
e are all quite fascinated by the rumor mills swirling around President- elect Obama's likely choices for White House staff and Cabinet positions.

• Corporate CEOs fly into controversy
Some in Congress pounced last week on what they view as the hypocrisy of auto executives flying on corporate jets to Washington to ask for public help. Corporations insist riding on private planes is not a lavish perk, but rather a necessary security requirement for top officials that also helps them be more efficient.

• Doggie day care pampers pooches
Elizabeth Gruen is living proof that you can teach an old dog new tricks.

• Executive Moves
COLE, SCHOTZ, MEISEL, FORMAN & LEONARD, Hackensack, said Michael Weinstein joined the firm to head its White Collar Practice Group. Previously, Weinstein was a trial attorney and federal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington D.C.

• Wall Street could rally on Obama cabinet picks
WASHINGTON -- Why aren't the government bailouts working?

• Reining in needless purchases can boost debt reduction plan
Sami, 44, is tired of being weighted down by debt. She knows her financial situation isn't pretty, and she wants to fix her past money mistakes and look to the future.

• The rules of rolling over
I've watched my IRA investments take a major hit over the last few weeks. In trying to plan for the long run, is now a good time to roll over what's left of my IRA into my Roth IRA? Am I taxed for the current value of my IRA?

• GET A CLUE ABOUT: HOLIDAY BUDGETING
If you're not there already, you will be soon: holiday shopping. Whether the phrase makes visions of sugarplums dance in your head or gives you a headache, it's time to face the impending holiday spending spree.

• Utility pushing regulation changes
If Gov. Corzine wants utilities to aggressively invest in helping customers cut energy consumption, then the state needs to radically overhaul its regulatory system to allow rapid recovery of the money they invest in conservation, a top utility executive said yesterday.

• Retailers cut prices and wait
After pushing steep discounts throughout November that are usually reserved for the day after Thanksgiving, retailers from Kohl's to Toys "R" Us are offering even bigger cuts and promotions for Black Friday in a frantic bid to pull in shoppers.

• When is the time to start collecting Social Security?
My wife and I are retired and live comfortably on income from pensions and investments. Next year I turn 62 and can collect Social Security. Should I start or delay it? We're in good health, have no children and no debt.

• Biz Buzz: Hard times may be bad for your health
Americans have a lot on their minds.

• Prince ups stake as Citi trades below $5
Citigroup shares tumbled below $5 a share yesterday for the first time in 15 years, a sign a Saudi prince's decision to boost his stake in the bank failed to galvanize confidence among increasingly anxious investors.

• JPMorgan to slash 3,000 jobs
JPMorgan Chase, the largest U.S. bank, plans to fire about 10 percent of its investment banking staff, or about 3,000 people, as the global economy slides into reces sion, a person familiar with the bank said.

• Roche to pay $12.9M in Accutane lawsuits
Roche Holding must pay $12.9 million to plaintiffs who blamed the Accutane acne medicine for their inflammatory bowel disease, a New Jersey jury ruled, handing the company its fourth trial loss in the case.

• For Children's Place, third-quarter profit is magical
The Children's Place today said its profit almost doubled in the third quarter, in part because of the sale of its Disney Stores business.

• Dow dips below 8,000 on automakers' woes
U.S. blue-chip stocks sank below 8,000 points and benchmark indexes slid to their lowest levels in five years on growing concern over the health of the financial system and survival of the nation's car industry.

• Casino profits freefall
Resorts, one of the smallest and hardest-hit casinos in Atlantic City, is so tight on cash it failed to make an interest payment earlier this month, according to records released yesterday by the New Jersey Casino Control Commission.

• Learning to save
Paula Vroman is still on track to retire in three years. Despite the stock market's volatility, Vroman has been saving 15 percent of her annual income in her 401(k) retirement account with her employer.

• Southwest coming to La Guardia
Southwest Airlines will pay $7.5 million for the landing slots at La Guardia Airport that are held by bankrupt ATA Airlines, a move that will make Dallas-based Southwest a competitor in the nation's largest air travel market.

• The hottest new product is ... um, we forget
People are consumed with worries about the economy. So, it should come as no surprise consumers are having trouble focusing on anything else, according to a study of Americans' awareness about new products.

• Home builder confidence hits new low
WASHINGTON -- Construction of new homes plunged last month to the lowest level on record going back nearly 50 years as U.S. builders slashed production while Wall Street nose dived.