Bankruptcy filings running behind last year's pace

Despite a national upturn in the number of people filing for bankruptcy protection, the local U.S. Bankruptcy Court reports a slight decrease when compared with 2007. As of Monday, 1,588 people and businesses had filed for bankruptcy in the Middle District of Louisiana, compared with 1,634 filings as of Nov. 17, 2007.

Bankruptcy lawyers say there are several reasons the national trend is being bucked. For one, the economy in the Capital Region is still strong. "You haven't seen as big of a decline in home prices here as you have in other regions," says Eric Lockridge with Kean Miller. Lockridge, who generally represents creditors, says his regional clients call Louisiana "a bright spot" since they're having more trouble getting money back from people in other areas. James Herpin, a veteran bankruptcy lawyer with Herpin & deGeneres, says another factor could be the change in federal bankruptcy laws that happened in October 2005. That led to a rash of filings by people who were trying to meet the deadline. "There's still a lot of misinformation about the new laws," Herpin says. "There are people who still think that no bankruptcy laws exist." The weak economy also is making lenders more willing to work with people who owe them money. "It's so bad nationally, they're receptive to something that gets them money," Herpin says.

Lockridge and Herpin say local filings could increase in the next six months, when Louisiana businesses feel the impact of the nationwide economic crisis. "Things may get tighter for Louisiana companies with out-of-state customers," Lockridge says.—Timothy Boone

Dow restructuring worldwide operations

Dow Chemical will restructure operations worldwide, says CEO Andrew Liveris. “Difficult economic times are forcing Dow to take immediate action to remain financially strong,” says Gary Cambre, spokesman for Louisiana operations. “As part of that we are proactively looking at all options to reduce costs, including the current staffing of our contractor workforce at our locations around the world, including here in Plaquemine.” Cambre says the cutbacks could affect Dow's other Louisiana facilities in Grand Bayou, Hahnville, Sterlington and Greensburg. Collectively, the Louisiana facilities have 6,000 company and contract employees, about half work at the Plaquemine and Grand Bayou facilities. Cambre says he cannot specify how the cutbacks will affect any company facilities because Dow is still determining where and how they will occur. Overall, Liveris says Dow is cutting 2009 spending, pulling back on expansion and could accelerate closing older and more costly facilities. The Plaquemine complex includes facilities from a year old to 50 years old. Calling the global recession "as bad as we have ever seen it in our lifetimes,” Liveris projects the global recession will linger through most of 2009 and possibly early 2010. Dow, the largest chemical maker in the U.S. has been hard hit by downturns in the domestic housing and automotive markets, as well as double-digit decreases in China. Dow isn't the only chemical company feeling the pain of the worldwide economic crisis; BASF has cut production at its Geismar plant, but does not plan to lay off local workers.--Anna Thibodeaux

Juban Crossing shopping center still in the works

Apparently, south Louisiana’s love of shopping trumps a slumping economy. Two large mixed-use developments slated for construction along the Interstate 10/Interstate 12 corridor—the 471-acre, $751 million Juban Crossing in Denham Springs and the 400-acre, $900 million Summit Fremaux in Slidell—still are forging ahead. Livingston Parish President Mike Grimmer tells 10/12 magazine that Juban Crossing plans to open its first shops in 2009, provided the project receives final approval from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. “I sometimes think the Corps is out to torpedo projects by taking so long to make a decision,” he says. “If the salaries of those decision makers were based on performance like everyone else, they would turn their projects over in 60 days.” Meanwhile, Bayer Properties founder Jeffrey Bayer told a gathering of St. Tammany Parish leaders and economic development officials the complex along I-10 between Fremaux Avenue and Old Spanish Trail in Slidell could experience some delays, but remains viable. To read the full story, click here.

Publisher: Buck stops on Obama's desk

Regardless of how you voted, Nov. 4 was an exciting day for our nation, Business Report Publisher Rolfe McCollister says. President-elect Barack Obama shows that every American has the same opportunities to succeed, if they work hard, get a good education and follow their dreams. Now it's time to stop bashing President George W. Bush and for Obama to step up. "If things aren’t going well in six months or a year—blame Obama," McCollister says. "He is now your commander in chief calling the shots." Plus: The bond vote a missed opportunity for Baton Rouge to grow up, and Rep. William Jefferson continues to embarrass. Read the column here. Send comments to editors@businessreport.com.

Louisiana ranks low for attracting businesses

Louisiana ranked 49th in a report that measures how well states do in attracting and retaining businesses that contribute to economic growth. The state fared poorly on the Beacon Hill Institute's Competitiveness Report, which is based on 43 indicators that evaluate government and fiscal policy, security, infrastructure, human resources, technology, business incubation, openness and environmental policy. The report lists competitive advantages and disadvantages for each state. Low taxes, air quality and a strong export market were listed as the advantages for Louisiana, but the state's high crime rate, large number of uninsured workers, poor educational system and low bond ratings are listed as disadvantages. Massachusetts ranked first on the report, while Mississippi ranked last for the second consecutive year. David G. Tuerck, BHI's executive director, says Louisiana and Mississippi should promote their advantages, such as the low cost of living, warm weather and affordable housing in an effort to attract high-tech companies.

America's Wetland Foundation releases progress report

It's been six years since America's Wetland Foundation launched its campaign to save coastal Louisiana. The foundation has released a progress report, listing its achievements and outlining goals for the future. During that time, the foundation has received broad bipartisan support for coastal restoration, including passage of a Congressional bill that dedicates oil and gas revenue to restoring the vanishing wetlands. The group has also built up a broad grassroots network of supporters. Now, plans are to get leaders from other Gulf Coast states involved in the campaign to protect the area and the benefits it delivers to the rest of the U.S. For a copy of the report, click here.

Jobless claims jump to 16-year high

New claims for unemployment benefits jumped last week to a 16-year high, the Labor Department said today, providing more evidence of a rapidly weakening job market expected to get even worse next year. The government said new applications for jobless benefits rose to a seasonally adjusted 542,000 from a downwardly revised figure of 515,000 in the previous week. That's much higher than Wall Street economists' expectations of 505,000, according to a survey by Thomson Reuters. That is also the highest level of claims since July 1992, the department said, when the U.S. economy was coming out of a recession. The four-week average of claims, which smooths out fluctuations, was even worse: it rose to 506,500, the highest in more than 25 years. In addition, the number of people continuing to claim unemployment insurance rose sharply for the third straight week to more than 4 million, the highest since December 1982, when the economy was in a painful recession.

Oil dips below $50 as investor confidence sinks

Oil dived under $50 a barrel this morning to hit the lowest level since May 2005, deepening losses as financial markets reflected ever lower confidence in the world economy and evidence mounted of falling fuel demand. U.S. crude fell $3.26 to $50.36 a barrel after earlier touching $49.75, marking the lowest level since May 25, 2005, when prices hit $49.58. Deutsche Bank on Wednesday said oil could fall to as low as $40 a barrel next year, and fears about their falling revenues have prompted some members of OPEC to urge further cuts as soon as possible and ministers are to gather for informal talks on Nov. 29 in Cairo.

News roundup: Amedisys shares drop on downgrade … Mall parent reportedly hires bankruptcy firm … Shaw awarded U.S. Post Office contract

Analyst concerned about people not paying bills: Shares in Amedisys dropped this morning after a Deutsche Bank analyst downgraded shares of the home nursing company. The outlook was changed from "buy" to "hold" because of concerns about a growing number of patients who aren't paying their bills. As of 11 a.m., Amedisys shares were down more than $7, or 16%, trading at just under $37. A week ago, the stock closed at $53.34.

Trying to fix a mess: General Growth Properties, the parent company of the Mall of Louisiana, has hired a bankruptcy attorney as it tries to restructure its debt and stave off filing for Chapter 11, The Wall Street Journal report. The move doesn't mean a filing is imminent; firms often hire bankruptcy advisers and don't take the step. General Growth has $900 million in mortgages due next week for two Las Vegas malls and $658 million in bond payments due by April.

Deal calls for work at Mid-Atlantic post offices: The Shaw Group's environmental & infrastructure division has been awarded a contract with the U.S. Postal Service for architect-engineering services. The value of the contract was not disclosed. Under the deal, Shaw would do survey and design work for post offices in Maryland, Virginia and the District of Columbia. The contracts cover a wide range of potential issues, from underground storage tanks, hazardous waste management, environmental health and indoor air quality.

Are you the fittest exec in the Capital Region?

Business Report launches its first Fittest Execs competition, in which Capital Region business executives compete in four categories (men under 50, men over 50, women under 50 and women over 50). The competition is limited to C-level, president, vice president, owner, partner, executive director or retired executives of companies or corporations with more than five employees. Fitness appraisals will take place at Bally Total Fitness Baton Rouge through Friday, Dec. 19, with the results to be announced in the Jan. 13 issue of Business Report. The deadline to enter is Monday, Dec. 15. Click here to register or for more information.