September gross revenues at Pennsylvania's nine casinos were up 29.9 percent over the year-ago period, which included seven casinos, according to figures released by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. The nine casinos last month generated $172.8 in gross revenue; last year, the seven casinos operating at the time generated $133.1 in revenues. Taxes in September, based on the 55 percent assessment, were $95,068,077, the state said. The casinos collectively retained $77.8 million of the gross revenues for the month. - Inquirer Staff
Federal authorities have charged a former DuPont Co. chemist with downloading confidential company documents after he resigned. Authorities said Hong Meng, 43, transferred hundreds of documents involving organic light-emitting diodes to his personal computer. Meng faces up to five years in prison and a fine of $250,000 if convicted of exceeding authorized access from a protected computer. Authorities say Meng resigned from a DuPont facility in Wilmington to take a job with the company in China. However, a DuPont spokesman says Meng was fired because he violated his employment agreement. Authorities say he had also accepted a position at Peking University in Beijing and may have planned to commercialize the technology there. Meng referred questions to his attorney, Joseph Bernstein, who did not immediately return a telephone message. - AP
Amkor Technology Inc., which provides chip assembly and testing services, said president Ken Joyce assumed the additional title of CEO as part of a succession plan announced in June. Joyce replaces founder James Kim, who was named executive chairman. Joyce also joined the board. Philadelphia-area resident Kim, who has spent time on the Forbes lists of wealthiest people, is a South Korean immigrant and former economics professor who launched the company from his Paoli garage in the early 1970s. - AP
Molecular Detection Inc., Wayne, says it has completed $3.3 million of financing and named a new CEO. The company is developing molecular diagnostic tests to detect infectious diseases. Todd M. Wallach, the new chief executive, is a life-sciences entrepreneur. He replaces Aryeh Gassel, who remains president. Gassel founded the company in Israel and moved it to the United States, although research and development and manufacturing operations remain in Israel. MDI is preparing to launch its first product, a test to rapidly detect methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). This latest round of financing was led by MentorTech Ventures II L.P. and included new investors Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania, Robin Hood Ventures, and the Mid-Atlantic Angel Group Fund I and II L.P. As part of the financing, Peter Linder, chairman of the Mid-Atlantic Angel Group's executive committee, is joining MDI's board. - Inquirer Staff
Glenmede Trust Co., the Philadelphia money management firm, said it would open an office in New York to serve wealthy clients. They will include endowments, foundations, and high-net-
worth families. Glenmede, which manages $17 billion in assets, was founded to manage the Pew Trusts, which were established by the children of Sun Oil Co.'s founder. It also has offices in Delaware, New Jersey, and Ohio. -Paul Schweizer
Regulators have shut down Warren Bank in Warren, Mich., a small bank in Minnesota, and a small bank in Colorado, boosting the number of failed U.S. banks this year to 98. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. took over Warren Bank, with about $538 million in assets and
$501 million in deposits as of July 31. The Huntington National Bank, Columbus, Ohio, agreed to assume the deposits and about $83 million of the assets of the failed bank. The FDIC will retain the remaining assets for later disposition. Regulators also shut Jennings State Bank, Spring Grove, Minn. Central Bank, Stillwater, Minn., agreed to assume the bank's $52.4 million in deposits and essentially all the bank's assets, which totaled $56.3 million on
July 31. Regulators also closed Southern Colorado National Bank, Pueblo, Colo., which had assets of $39.5 million and deposits of $31.9 million. Deposit accounts were transferred to Legacy Bank, Wiley, Colo. - AP
General Motors Co. said it restored contributions to a retirement savings plan for U.S. salaried employees while shifting them to health-care coverage that will hold down the automaker's costs. The company match of as much as 4 percent for 401(k) plans was restored effective Thursday, said Brenda Rios, a GM spokeswoman. Starting Jan. 1, the workers will change to medical coverage that has high deductibles and health savings accounts to which GM will contribute $1,300 per employee, she said. - Bloomberg News
New orders to U.S. factories fell in August by the largest amount in five months, as American manufacturers struggle to emerge from the recession. The Commerce Department said demand for manufactured goods dropped 0.8 percent, much worse than the 0.7 percent gain that economists had expected. The August decline reflected plunging demand for commercial aircraft, a category that surged in July. Economists worry that factories will remain under pressure because of weak consumer spending as American households deal with continued layoffs and rising unemployment. - AP
The Securities and Exchange Commission will give small firms until next year to comply with a Sarbanes-Oxley Act provision requiring auditors to assess whether they have adequate controls to prevent misstatements. The SEC, in a statement, said companies with less than $75 million in shares available to the public must adhere to the audit rule by June. Small companies had been slated to start complying with the requirement by the end of this year. Congress approved Sarbanes-Oxley in 2002 after accounting frauds at Enron Corp. and WorldCom Inc. - Bloomberg News
Bank of America Corp. said its board authorized a $713 million dividend payment on preferred stock issued to the Treasury Department as part of the U.S. bank-rescue program last year. The government launched the $700 billion Troubled Asset Relief Program last fall, providing banks with capital. - AP
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Haven't filed your income tax forms yet? Time is running out. Forms are due by the end of April 15. Click here for what you'll need to know, where you can turn for advice or to ask questions of local CPAs Mark Zinman and Jim Newhard.
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