Business

Better wages ‘not a radical idea’ Sen. Sanders tells Walmart execs

Walmart executives spent a majority of time during the no-frills shareholder business meeting touting progress made in raising worker wages more than 50% and the $4.5 billion in additional pay…

Manufacturing profits rose 7.2% in first quarter, from previous period

U.S manufacturing companies’ seasonally adjusted after-tax profits rose 7.2%, or by $11 billion, to $164.2 billion in the first quarter of 2019, from $153.2 billion in the fourth quarter of…

ASU’s maker space ‘Garage’ moving onto campus

The Arkansas State University Innovation System’s Garage is moving onto campus this week to make the unit more accessible to students, executive director Ty Keller said. Aside from proximity, the…

Delta towns get Winrock International, USDA help for economic development

Winrock International is implementing a USDA-funded program to provide training and resources for three rural Arkansas municipalities to pursue economic development opportunities and confront challenges specific to each community. The…

Growth slow at Walmart’s African business unit Massmart

Wal-Mart acquired a 52% stake of South African-based Massmart in 2011 for $1.58 billion as part of the retailer’s emerging market strategy. But eight years later the retail giant rarely…

Trump administration restricts non-family, recreational travel to Cuba

The U.S. Departments of Commerce and Treasury on Tuesday (June 4) moved forward with plans to fully implement President Donald Trump’s foreign policy changes on Cuba first unveiled two years…

NWACC receives $1 million gift from Washington Regional

Washington Regional Medical System in Fayetteville has donated $1 million to NorthWest Arkansas Community College (NWACC). The money will support the two-year Bentonville college’s health professions and nurse training programs….

UCA hires Arkansas Coding Academy director

The Arkansas Coding Academy (ArCA), a program of the Division of Outreach and Community Engagement at the University of Central Arkansas, has hired Dr. Donald Walker as its director. In…

Big River Steel closes on $800 million debt-equity financing package to expand scrap metal capacity

Big River Steel on Monday (June 3) announced it had closed on a debt-and-equity financing arrangement to expand its scrap metal recycling and flat-rolled steel production facility in Osceola, doubling…

HGL production, exports rose in 2018

U.S. production of hydrocarbon gas liquids (HGLs) rose 13%, or by more than 500,000 barrels per day, to 5 million barrels per day in 2018, from 2017, according to the…

Fort Smith ‘data walk’ an attempt to address high level of food insecurity

The Urban Institute is in Fort Smith this week to share data, gather comments and generate ideas to fight food insecurity. Sebastian County is one of six counties selected from…

Solar plant to meet all electricity demand for Arkansas school district

Solar power developer Scenic Hill Solar of North Little Rock announced plans Tuesday (June 4) to build a 585-kilowatt (kW) solar power plant that will meet all the electricity demand…

Arkansas gross tax revenue up 5.5% year-to-date, 3.1% above forecast

Gross tax revenue for 11 months of Arkansas’ fiscal year totaled $6.401 billion at the end of May, up 5.5% compared to the same period in 2018 and 3.1% above…

Walmart shareholders week underway, Sen. Sanders to attend business meeting

The first Friday in June is the standing time for Walmart’s annual shareholders’ celebration with its employees. Again this year, the retail giant has opted to divide its formal business…

Georgia-Pacific to lay off 655 workers by closing Crossett, Hope facilities

Georgia-Pacific announced Tuesday (June 4) it is permanently shutting down the equipment and processes supporting the bleached board operations at its Crossett facility in south Arkansas as of October 2019….

Survey reveals NWA residents’ health concerns

A survey conducted last year across Northwest Arkansas indicates more concern regarding diabetes, obesity and mental health than previous issues of cancer, drug use and aging. The Northwest Arkansas Community…

U.S. Chamber says Trump tariffs on Mexico would impose $45 million tax on Arkansas firms

If President Donald Trump moves forward with his plan to impose a 5% tariff on all goods from Mexico starting on June 10, the impact would be equal to a…

Leslie Parnell named SVP of Treasury Management at Simmons Bank

Simmons Bank has named Leslie Parnell as senior vice president of treasury management and strategic development. Parnell will have direct oversight of Simmons’ Treasury Management team, including sales, product, customer…

Walmart expands education benefits to employees

Walmart is often beaten up in the media for being “big business” making profits on the back of its hourly workforce, but the retail giant is working hard to change…

NIH: Overall cancer mortality rate continues to decline

The latest annual report from the National Institutes of Health shows that cancer death rates continued to decline in men, women and children across the U.S. from 1999 to 2016….