Baldor income, hospital downgrade part of busy business news week

The City Wire economic review for the week of Feb. 2 – Feb. 6:

REGIONAL
• Fort Smith-based Baldor Electric Co. survived 2008 with a 6% increase in net income, but was hit with a 20% net income decrease in the fourth quarter of 2008. The company reported Thursday afternoon that its net income for 2008 was $99.42 million, up 6% over the $94.1 million in 2007. Total sales in 2008 were $1.95 billion, up 7% over the $1.82 billion in 2007.

• On Feb. 3, Moody’s Investors Service again downgraded Sparks Regional Medical Center’s bonds to Caa1 from B2. The Caa1 rating means the hospital’s bonds — collectively an issuance of about $53.1 million — are “of poor standing” and hold “extremely poor credit quality.” The B2 rating implies that the bonds are speculative and have “poor credit quality.”

• Fort Smith building activity slowed more than 32% in January compared to December and more than 45% compared to January 2008, according to building permits issued by the city. The city issued 293 permits in January for construction valued at $7.37 million, compared to 308 permits valued at $10.76 million in December. The city collected $44,480 in fees on the January permits and $57,700 in fees on the December permits.

• Van Buren issued 54 permits with a value of $193,000 (The city does not list values for repair work or minor remodel work.).

• The city of Greenwood issued 8 permits with a value of $1.17 million. The bulk of the value came from two duplexes, valued at $337,230 each, to be built at 1320 Clinic Lane by Bransen Harris Properties.

STATE
• Bentonville-based Wal-Mart Stores Inc. posted a 2.1% increase in January same-store — stores open at least a year. Dillard’s reported its January sales at $377 million, well below the $435 million in January 2008.

NATIONAL
• The index of pending home resales climbed 6.3 percent to 87.7, the first increase since August, according to the National Association of Realtors. The group said foreclosure-driven price declines are helping attract buyers back into the home market.

• U.S. job cuts in January were recorded at 598,000, the most in 34 years, according to a report from the Commerce Department. U.S. manufacturing jobs were shed at the highest rate in January in more than 26 years, with 207,000 workers being cut. About 162,000 manufacturing jobs were cut in December.

• Consumer credit fell by $6.6 billion, or 3.1 percent at an annual rate, to $2.56 trillion, according to a Federal Reserve report. The report measures the pace of consumer borrowing. Credit decreased by $11 billion in November, more than previously estimated and the biggest drop since records began in 1943.

• Consumer spending in the U.S. fell in December for a record sixth consecutive month, capping the worst year since 1961, according to the Commerce Department. The 1 percent spending drop followed a 0.8 percent decrease in November.