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SF had 7,031 bachelor and graduate degrees per square mile, more than another city in the nation.
LA Biz Observed archive
Mark Lacter covered business, the economy and more here from 2006 until his death on Nov. 13, 2013.
The entire LA Biz Observed archive — more than 10,000 blog posts by Mark —
remains online and available.
May 2010
SF had 7,031 bachelor and graduate degrees per square mile, more than another city in the nation.
Ah, those Friday afternoon pre-holiday weekend jams.
Turns out that Villaraigosa has received free courtside seats from none other than Anschutz Entertainment Group.
So much for a calm, pre-holiday trading session. Dow was down 122 points....
A technician involved in the massive plugging effort tells the NYT that pumping operations have been suspended.
The city is looking to move on after the electric car company Tesla bailed out of a pending deal.
Gas prices tumble in time for holiday, more Californians oppose oil drilling, celebs had suspicions about Starr, and Mercury on the way out.
The market stories will have all kinds of cockamamie explanations -- stuff like how China says it isn't planning to sell its European bond holdings.
How bad is the shortage of movies about women characters and situations that go beyond relationships and sex? Pretty bad....
Check out this very cool video of the unmanned X-51 WaveRider that was detached from a B-52 off the coast near Point Magu.
The much-beloved burger chain is looking to open a few locations in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area.
The average L.A. household spent almost $3,600 in March, compared with a little over $3,000 for the same period a year earlier,
Top Kill looking good, Tiffany profit more than doubles, widespread fraud within L.A. County government, and small business gets smacked by high health costs.
Whether it's a sustainable rebound or just a quickie buying opportunity remains to be seen.
Thanks to our old trusty mortgage interest rate deduction, Californians saved an average of almost $19,000 from their tax bills in 2008.
As a rule, newly arrived immigrants do not take jobs away from native-born Americans,
Good back and forth between David Brooks and Gail Collins of the NYT on the oil spill and the rage that it has stoked.
The "Top Kill" procedure got going a few hours ago and involves pumping thousands of pounds of fluids into a five-story stack of pipes.
This one is making the rounds. Well, what do you expect when BP comes up with such a silly name for its oil-plugging operation?
Tack off another 69 points, to 9974....
Min had been the high-profile editor-in-chief of Us Weekly. She'll be in charge of various platforms.
An appellate panel reverses a federal judge's ruling that struck down the city of L.A.'s billboard ban.
The SEC has charged an administrative assistant to a Disney executive with trying to profit from unreleased earnings results.
Oil rig was in trouble before blast, Apple faces music inquiry, ad spending increases, and LAX overhaul is complete.
That's how Philippe Cousteau Jr. describes what's underwater in the Gulf of Mexico.
When it comes to budget gimmickry, the Assembly Democrats deserve some kind of prize.
The council is picking up a $600,000 tab for a consulting firm's extra work on the proposed utility surcharge.
What started out in 2007 as an L.A.-based boutique investment bank is now up to 325 employees in offices all over the world.
One wacky day, with the Dow falling around 250 points in the first few minutes of trading and finally closing down about 22 points.
Doesn't the Federation have more constructive things to do, what with L.A.'s social safety net in tatters?
The Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation, gained a whole 0.2 percent in the L.A. area between March and April, which is basically nothing.
Yale Professor Robert Shiller tells Bloomberg Television that it's "a time of extraordinary uncertainty for home prices."
L.A. home prices fall, airlines add summer fees, LAX area enterprise zone created, and MGM debt holders are ruling the roost.
The talks collapsed because of the complex structure of the acquisition, which was to have been financed largely by L.A. billionaire Ron Burkle.
Dow is down about 275 points in the first minutes of trading. The overseas financial markets took a licking....
The billionaire philanthropist had six architecture teams coming up with designs for the proposed downtown site next to Walt Disney Concert Hall.
The L.A. numbers are still higher than the national average of $2.79 a gallon, but they have fallen almost a dime in the past two weeks.
Looks like the computers kicked in once again during the final hour of trading. Dow finished at 10.066, down 126 on the day.
The governor is pushing for pension reform, and his proposal seems reasonable. But don't get your hopes up.
Time out from his high-level talks in China....
L.A.'s wealthiest, more Californians exhaust jobless benefits, "Shrek" underwhelms, and Karatz puts up home.
Some minor scuffles broke out after the City Council sent back to committee a proposed moratorium on rent hikes.
The NYT and LAT say it's over, the WSJ says it's "on the rocks," and The Wrap says it's still alive.
It would appear that it can - if the city files for Chapter 9 bankruptcy protection. The courts say so.
If you're still trying to figure out what the legislation is all about, here is a good primer.
It's a decent but unspectacular month, with L.A. County adding just 400 jobs in April.
He tells Bloomberg that he'll have to make a decision sometime next year (Villaraigosa is termed out in 2013).
I've been trying to find a coherent argument on how the Greek debt disaster will spread across the Atlantic. I'm still looking.
It's an eight-acre oceanfront estate known as La Villa Contenta. Price: $250,000 a month.
Financial regulation likely to pass, one in three out-of-work Californians don't have jobless benefits, Toyota's deal with Tesla, and more DWP shenanigans.
April payrolls fell by 14,200, but the state's unemployment rate was unchanged at 12.6 percent.
Well, it depends on a bunch of factors - employment status, credit standing, size of nest egg - but there is a measurement that can help.
A Manhattan movie theater will be charging 20 smackers for an adult ticket to IMAX showings of "Shrek Forever After."
The electric car company will team up with Toyota to build the cars at the shuttered NUMMI plant in Fremont.
State Assembly Speaker John Pérez isn't buying into the need - so far - to be boycotting Arizona.
After being down around 250 points for most of the session, the Dow took a big tumble in the last 30 minutes or so.
The Senate voted 60-40 to end debate on the reform package, which means that a final vote could happen as early as tonight.
City officials believe their airport has been getting short shrift from LAWA, and they would like the place back.
Stock prices are way down, Treasury prices are way up, and the only reason gold is down is because investors are using it to raise cash.
Deal on extended jobless benefits, oil arrives in Louisiana, developer asks city for loan, and Calpers retreats.
Dow is down 280 or so points after an hour of trading....
Vast majority of Americans participating in an online poll say Arizona has the right to pull the plug on L.A.
The big burger chains aren't planning to raise prices because they don't want to lose customers.
Well, it's actually a truck. Ford sold 30,000 of its F-150 pick-ups in April. The Camry and Corolla also did well.
They're the two utility crew workers that Channel 2 found drinking beer and patronizing a strip club while on the job.
The L.A.-based clothing manufacturer reported an operating loss of $17.6 million as it tries to amend its $80-million loan agreement.
Forwarding emails each morning with the latest bargain has become a kind of social networking sport.
Five new series are scheduled, with "Survivor" moving to Wednesday and a block of sitcoms is slated for Thursday.
CA tax hike recommended, Calpers needs more state money, Villaraigosa takes another trip to D.C., and Oprah hires Eli Broad's money manager.
If the city wants to cut off ties, why not go all the way by giving up all the power that L.A. gets from the state?
The current plan is to replace some of the movie company's top executives.
BP now says that the leak will have only a "very modest" environmental impact.
The network will be focusing on five new dramas. One of them is about a family that gains superpowers.
The new projections put the number at anywhere from 7.03 percent to 7.7 percent, which could be a big deal for a $205-billion fund.
Don't expect much clarity from the April numbers - there are just too many crosscurrents.
Council approves budget cuts, mixed signals on consumer spending, summer vacation plans picking up, and Estee Lauder buys Smashbox.
A barrel of crude fell to its lowest level since December - $70.08 on the NY Mercantile Exchange.
The financial and administrative overhaul could cut expenses across the 10 campuses by $500 million.
More than one out of 10 makes over $100,000 a year, according to La Opinion. That's 7,100 City Hall employees, or 14 percent of the workforce.
The executive producer of "Law & Order" is seeking "other offers" for the show that NBC canceled after 20 years.
Does anyone believe that if Meg Whitman gets elected she will magically scale back public pension and improve the schools?
More euro jitters, GM posts profit, L.A. Council to vote on layoff plan, and networks announce fall schedules.
That would be Alan "Ace" Greenberg, the former chairman of Bear Stearns, who doesn't do email or cell phones.
The governor is proposing the elimination of the state's welfare program and drastic cuts in in-home health care for the elderly and disabled.
It's all about cutting my taxes and keeping my Medicare. And nothing is my fault.
At a time of intense hand-wringing among L.A. politicians about the loss of TV and film production, it's ironic that this show is getting the ax.
Just days before leaving the apparel company, Michael Buckley sold 150,000 shares of stock worth $4.3 million.
There is no single culprit behind today's losses - just a combination of nagging concerns.
Looks like L.A. developer Mohamed Hadid,has a buyer for his monster 48,000-square-foot mansion in Bel-Air
Government's blind eye on drilling, Schwarzenegger releases bad news budget, local seafood prices start rising, and videogames take dive.
That is what's being reported this afternoon, But NBC has not made any announcement.
Here's a good take on why L.A. ranks at the bottom of the top 20 metro areas when it comes to personal debt.
California Sens. Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein are joining with senators from Oregon and Washington.
A ticket to Oliver Stone's "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" is supposedly going on the black market for $10,000.
A number of Web sites allow people to post their finances and compare them with everybody else.
Not all airlines are alike when it comes to redeeming your points for a free ticket.
Some very cool video of the effort by BP to cap that oil rig in the Gulf of Mexico.
Wall Street probes widen, CA foreclosures fall, port activity improves, and Arizona boycott complications.
What all this suggests is a sharply divided electorate that will make it next to impossible to resolve the immigration debate this year
Angelenos spend an average $8,310 a year on food and drink - $3,657 for dining out and $4,653 for groceries.
April's budget deficit was $82.7 billion, the largest imbalance for that month on record.
No, not the lawmakers - the people who elected them. And it's happening at all levels of government.
The 1,700 union workers at the Boeing plant in Long Beach are playing with fire.
Brace yourself for some monster cuts on Friday when the governor releases his May budget revision.
Tongue-in-cheek from Not the L.A. Times: Acting decisively, L.A. city officials today adopted a strongly worded resolution that wishes the city's budget deficit would "go away really soon, like in the next three months or so." Alleged Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa drafted the statement after rejecting calls for Los Angeles to declare bankruptcy or shrink its bloated pension system....
Morgan Stanley investigated, City Council consider AZ boycott, Disneyland business is soft, and Ralphs accused of overcharging.
This one comes from the City Council's top policy analyst, who says that 1,000 jobs would have to be cut on top of the 761 targeted by the mayor.
The city of Phoenix estimates that $90 million worth of convention and hotel business will be lost over the next five years.
Not your typical listing, considering that the median price in that part of town is $367,000.
Americans paid their lowest level of taxes last year since 1950, the result of the stimulus package and a series of credit and exemptions.
People who added three or more hours to a seven-hour day had a greater risk of heart attack than those with no overtime work.
More than 6,000 of them in L.A. County have not filed the required paperwork to maintain their tax-exempt status.
Jon Stewart's take on last Thursday's "flash crash."
Long Beach Boeing workers go on strike, L.A. must raise pay to lay off workers, finger-pointing over drilling disaster, and NBC to sell KWHY.
There's not much doubt about how the patterns have shifted over the past 40 years.
Guess we can all come out of the shelters....
"60 Minutes" interviews several folks in Arizona who have convinced themselves that it's all right not to honor their commitments.
Giveaways aren't all that they were cracked up to be, especially in tough times.
Hispanics remain a significant portion of the Inland Empire population, and it's creating a "cultural generation gap."
Oxy investors balk at CEO pay, L.A. to host big Microsoft convention, Wellpoint CEO talks back to Obama, and higher-end home sales picking up.
Dow is up about 400 points in the first 20 minutes of trading. European markets were sharply higher today after a nearly $1-trillion rescue plan was finalized over the weekend....
The business about how a trader mistakenly entered an order for $16 billion instead of $16 million has been pretty much ruled out,
Budget chief Miguel Santana says that L.A.'s financial mess is improving, and that it would be foolish to file for bankruptcy.
Still more than two hours to go in the session. Anyone for Paxil? *Just a few minutes before the closing bell, the Dow was down 164 points....
The state controller's office is still trying to figure out how April tax receipts were $3.6-billion below expectations.
Every hear of the Minerals Management Service? It's the tiny government agency that is supposed to oversee offshore drilling, but really doesn't.
No it's not the crazy stock market - it's the Goldman Sachs annual meeting.
Markets remain shaky, fat-finger trade theory not holding up, Council looks at Villaraigosa/Riordan rumble, and Boeing workers in Long Beach talk strike.
Government reports an increase of 290,000 jobs in April, but the news isn't all good.
So far traders are brushing aside the strong jobs report for April, with the Dow down 30 points in early trading.
The current mayor isn't exactly thrilled with comments by the former mayor about the city's deteriorating finances.
Here's what can happen when your fingers are too fat. Earlier: So what happened?...
What was building into a bad day turned outrageous, with a 550-point tumble in the space of five or 10 minutes.
Dow is down about 270 points with 10 minutes to go. *CNBC is reporting that a trading error at a major firm is being blamed for the market plunge. Story developing... A possible culprit for the drop was a trader error in which someone entered a "b" for billion instead of an "m" for million in a trade. Multiple sources confirmed the report to CNBC and CNBC.com...
You're read right. The index just sunk like a rock over or so over new concerns about Greece. It's been starting to recover, but is still down 500 points on the day....
Even in these bad economic times, there are plenty of folks in Russia, China and the Middle East who have huge amounts of discretionary cash.
At least when compared with, say, London's West End where office space last year went for $183 a square foot.
Retailers stumble in April, Hispanics hit hard during recession, summer travel will be tough, and C-17 workers in Long Beach reject contract.
A City Council committee voted 3-1 to take the namby-pamby approach by supporting a four-month prohibition on rent increases.
Red states are the heaviest users (no comment), green states the lightest, and purple in the middle.
The Bev Hills philanthropist was one of early high-tech financiers, selling Scientific Data Systems to Xerox in 1969 for $1 billion.
One of every five men 25 to 54 isn't working - and WH adviser Larry Summers says that it five years it'll be one in six.
Sarah Palin's latest gem. Here's to 'merican oil.
The rest of the year will be solid, but look out for 2011 and 2012 when the federal stimulus packages begin to phase out.
L.A.'s former mayor anticipates that the city will likely declare bankruptcy between now and 2014.
Better odds on finding work, movies cost more, DWP finally pays up, and Cal Worthington gets loan to stay in Long Beach.
The celebrated "Nu au Plateau de Sculpteur (Nude, Green Leaves and Bust)," sold in NY tonight for $106.5 million
The folks at News Corp. are no doubt pleased about a big boost in operating profits at the film and TV unit. But what about net?
Debt worries in Europe are being cited, but there have been warnings for weeks that stocks were due for a fall.
This latest round of discussions has been going on for a couple of months, according to NY magazine.
Some chains are starting to charge for Internet access, storing bags and cutting short scheduled stays.
Stocks take another tumble, plunge in CA tax revenue, governor drops oil drilling, and L.A. to start shutting pot shops.
This time, it's a $2-billion offering from the California Department of Water Resources.
Transit projects always face delays. The more complicated the project, the more lengthy the delay. Just see what's happening with the Expo Line. As posted by Curbed LA, Phase 1 of the light rail project from downtown to Culver City was supposed to be up and running this summer. But design and legal holdups have pushed back the opening by at least 58 weeks (you can be sure it will be a lot more)....
The chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs acquitted himself quite nicely on Charlie Rose.
And you thought California was in trouble.
More jobs are a plus, of course, but prison employees usually live some distance from the facility.
Today Wall Street chooses to believe that the economic glass is half full instead of half empty.
There's just a little overlap on routes (Honolulu and Houston stand out), and United is by far the bigger local player.
Try spending some time in Greece, where tax evasion is practically a national pastime.
United-Continental deal announced, iPad sales top 1 million, Hollywood Video shutting down, and council lapses on DWP called "staggering."
Calling Detroit a more livable city than London seems a bit nutty, but that's the point: Rankings can be very misleading.
He tells his Berkshire Hathaway shareholders that the embattled Wall Street bank was not involved in improper activity.
Mark Lacter
Mark Lacter created the LA Biz Observed blog in 2006. He posted until the day before his death on Nov. 13, 2013.The multi-talented Mark Lacter
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