Business Watch

Minimum wage was expected to jump to $13.03 an hour, but a Thursday court ruling blocks the increase. The Michigan Supreme Court will likely settle the issue.

John Hantz acquired cheap swaths of land on the east side with plans for an urban tree farm. Neighbors say the wealthy entrepreneur has fallen short but operates under a special deal not afforded to residents.

Public tech companies in major U.S. cities are shedding tens of thousands of jobs — just as Michigan firms need to fill similar positions. With tech leaders including Amazon, Microsoft and Salesforce retrenching, state business leaders say the time is right to move.

The largest outbreak of bird flu in history and inflation are causing egg prices to skyrocket across the country. Even though Michigan poultry farms haven't experienced many cases of the flu, state residents are feeling it when they go to the grocery store.

Quentin Messer Jr. will remain president and CEO of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. The deal was approved Tuesday.

Developers behind a slate of projects totaling $1.5 billion are looking for $797 million in public funding to get it done.

As inflation starts to moderate, used car prices are falling faster than most consumer prices. Yet high interest rates, still-limited supply and other factors mean they’re unlikely to be considered ‘low’ again for many years.

The latest review of the state’s dysfunctional unemployment office found that problems with oversight and fraud investigation persist. The agency’s director accused the auditor of rehashing old issues and not giving the agency enough credit for reforms.

The decline among the state’s largest publicly traded companies is steeper than leading market indexes, with some companies — including General Motors and Ford Motor Co. — losing nearly half of their stock value.

As the country competes for software developers, West Michigan is pushing even harder. Jeff Williams of Atomic Object offers insight into how the work, recruitment and competition are changing as Michigan communities vie to become tech hubs.

Michigan’s population declined by a few thousand, but experts say it should begin to grow again in a few years.

This month’s data on inflation, interest rates and real estate all show how Michigan’s economy may be changing in 2023 as the state adapts to the national trends. Auto sales, though, could soften the blow.

The chemicals have been used in hundreds of household products for decades, even as more studies became public showing their danger to human health and ubiquitous presence in water. Michigan has hundreds of identified sites of PFAS contamination.

A new tool to boost competitiveness for industrial land is under way in southeast Michigan. Communities can get property “verified” for marketing to site selectors, who are rushing to add space to support the EV industry.

The state approved a 15-year tax break on Tuesday for the mill in Escanaba. The Swedish company that owns the facility is considering the site as a ‘cornerstone’ of its U.S. expansion into more lucrative packaging products.

The state is now in the bottom 40 percent when ranked on factors that feed competitiveness and prosperity, according to Business Leaders for Michigan. The state’s lagging workforce is likely to get worse in the years ahead.

The pharmaceutical giant is enlarging its Portage facilities as part of a larger push to increase manufacturing as it rolls out new products to counterbalance declining sales of COVID-19-related products

Business leaders warn against picking a divisive fight and urge Democrats to work with Republicans to improve Michigan’s business climate. Data is inconclusive on how the anti-union law impacted Michigan.

President Biden and Democratic congressional leaders joined Republicans on Tuesday in supporting legislation that would avert a nationwide rail strike before the holidays.

Michigan’s minimum wage is set to spike to $12 in February. Some business groups want Republicans to rein in the increase before they lose control of Lansing.