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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 18, 2008

TAMPA BAY AREA

Tampa IndyMac Closing

Tampa is one of five cities where IndyMac Bancorp will close regional wholesale mortgage centers as the Pasadena, Calif.-based home lender eliminates 2,400 jobs, or 24 percent of its remaining work force. A company spokesman on Thursday would not disclose the number of affected employees in Tampa or when layoffs would occur. The company, which has said its layoffs nationally will occur in the first quarter, opened the Tampa office in May 2006, saying that it would employ 140 here.
Ethanol Blend In Tampa

Marathon Oil Corp., the nation's fourth-largest energy company, has started selling ethanol-blended gasoline at newly built distribution terminals in Tampa and Fort Lauderdale. Wholesalers can receive the fuel for sale at filling stations in the state, Dan Moenter, the Houston-based company's Southeast manager of state and government affairs, said Thursday. The federal government mandates that 9 billion gallons of the ethanol be produced this year.

STATE

FPL Invests In Wind

FPL Group, the nation's largest operator of wind-power facilities, plans to build a $350 million wind-power farm by year's end in North Dakota. Juno Beach-based FPL, the largest electric utility in Florida, said it would use 133 wind turbines on 35 square miles of leased private land five miles northeast of Valley City, N.D.

NATION

NYSE Acquires Amex

The New York Stock Exchange agreed Thursday to buy the American Stock Exchange, ending a once-intense rivalry that began in colonial times. The Amex, unable to compete as it once did, has focused in recent years on trading options and smaller companies that are often too illiquid to meet bigger rivals' standards. NYSE Euronext said it would pay Amex's seatholders $260 million in stock. The deal would make NYSE the No. 3 U.S. options market.

WORLD

Canadian Dollar Falls

Canada's dollar fell to a four-month low Thursday on concern that slower U.S. growth will weigh on the nation's economy. The United States is Canada's largest trading partner. "We're seeing a sign of spillover from the U.S.," said Shaun Osborne, of TD Securities in Toronto. The loonie is down 2.9 percent this month, the most among the 16 most-traded currencies. It gained 17 percent last year, trailing only the 20 percent gain in the Brazilian real.

A staff and wire report

Watch the Tribune's Business report at 5, 6 and 11 a.m. Tuesday-Friday and 9 a.m. Saturdays on WFLA-TV.

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