Follow LA Observed on Twitter here
Mixed market: October should turn out to be another strong month on Wall Street, though the Dow was down a few points at last check.
GDP revised upward: The economy grew at an annual rate of 2 percent in the third quarter, slightly better than the 1.7 percent pace in the previous three months. Growth of around 3 percent is generally needed to keep an economy humming (and post-recession economies require more than that). From the NYT:
In recent weeks, the economy has presented two faces, which is reflected in the latest G.D.P. numbers. There have been fledgling signs of growth: home sales and chain store sales are up bit, a swelling stock market has raised consumer confidence a few notches, and jobless claims fell noticeably last week, albeit to a still high and painful level. At the same time, the steroidal effect of the stimulus spending is fading. City and state governments have shed tens of thousands of employees, and states face a sea of red ink as they look at next year's budgets.
Foreclosure sales slowing: The freeze by several major banks might be having an impact: The number of trustee sales in Arizona, California and Nevada fell to 4,151 for the week ended Oct. 22 from 7,142 four weeks earlier, according to ForeclosureRadar. But the data is inconclusive. From Bloomberg:
Rick Sharga, RealtyTrac's senior vice president for marketing, said his company hasn't seen an "appreciable" dropoff in foreclosure activity so far this month. "It could just be that these delays will be delayed a little bit before they hit the numbers," Sharga said yesterday in an interview on Bloomberg Television. "Or it could be that the falloff isn't going to be nearly as big as people have been predicting."
Did Toyota keep quiet?: The automaker is being accused in a federal lawsuit of not reporting evidence of sudden acceleration to regulators. The suit also alleges that Toyota bought back vehicles from disgruntled owners in exchange for confidentiality agreements. (LAT)
DWP workers accused of fraud: Criminal charges were filed against two employees who allegedly set up a scheme to buy at least $3 million worth of products for the utility at an inflated price and then pocket the difference. (LAT)
Latest polls: Field Poll out this morning has Boxer over Fiorina by 8 points, 49-41. Independents are breaking solidly for Boxer. (Sacramento Bee)
Call it an "events center": That's how AEG's Tim Leiweke describes a proposed football stadium and convention center next to Staples Center that he says could bring the NFL back to L.A. Leiweke says various aspects of the plan might be finalized in 30 to 60 days. (Daily News)
New deadline in Tribune bankruptcy: Creditors have until midnight tonight to submit their own reorganization plans that would compete with the one filed by Tribune on Oct. 22. Several plans are expected, though many of the biggest players have signed onto Tribune's plan. (Chicago Tribune)
Southwest to Mexico: Sort of - the airline will be working with low-cost carrier Volaris in offering service from L.A. to Cancun, Guadalajara, Morelia, Zacatecas and Toluca. (Daily Breeze)
Slight drop in gas prices: Average gallon in the L.A. area is $3.119, about two pennies less than last week, according to the Auto Club,
Upheaval at Bon Appetit: Not much of a local story anymore since the operations are moving to NY, but if you're interested the publishing director, Carol Smith, has left after a stormy 6-month run. (NY Post)
Mark Lacter created the LA Biz Observed blog in 2006. He posted
until the day before his death on Nov. 13, 2013.