September 17, 2016 at 1:11 a.m.

New Adams county economic development chief

Business Roundup

Adams County has hired a new economic development director.
Trevor Hobbs, who holds both a law degree and a master’s in business administration, has been named executive director of the Adams County Economic Development Corporation, succeeding Larry Macklin, who retired at the end of August.
Hobbs grew up in northeast Indiana. He received his bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from Vanderbilt University, his law degree from Washington University in St. Louis and his MBA from Indiana University.
Prior to returning to Indiana, he worked for a company that assisted in site location for firms seeking to expand or relocate.

Speaker set
Hal Tavzel, manager of Portland Municipal Airport, will be the speaker at the September networking luncheon of the Jay County Chamber of Commerce.
Tavzel will provide an update on airport activities at noon on Tuesday, Sept. 27, in the conference room of Jay County Hospital.
To reserve a seat, contact the chamber at (260) 726-4481 by noon Friday, Sept. 23. The cost of the lunch is $8.

Two interns
TLS By Design of Portland hosted two Jay County High School students as interns through Conexus Indiana’s internship program.
The program, which is aimed at helping students transition from high school to the workforce, involved 230 students at 79 Indiana companies this year.

Growth forecast
Executives at Tyson Foods Inc., parent company of Tyson Mexican Original of Portland, are forecasting sales volume growth along with higher, more stable earnings in the year ahead.
“As stated on our last earnings call, our adjusted earnings guidance for fiscal 2016 of $4.40-4.50 per share is 40 percent more than last year and represents a four-year compound annual growth rate of approximately 22 percent, and we’re confident we can achieve high single digit growth in fiscal 2017,” Donnie Smith, Tyson Foods’ chief executive officer, said in a prepared statement.
The company has increased dividends and repurchased 31 million shares in the past year. “Beyond dividends and share buybacks, we’ll use our substantial cash flows to invest in our business or make strategic acquisitions,” he said.

New publisher
Jesse Lindsey has been named publisher of The Decatur Daily Democrat, succeeding Ron Storey, who is retiring.
Lindsey has most recently been publisher of The Lebanon Democrat in Lebanon, Tennessee.
He has also served as publisher in Selma, Alabama, and Suffolk, Virginia. Born in Richmond, he spent part of his youth in Winchester.

No Visa
Wal-Mart and Visa are continuing to squabble over credit card transaction fees in Canada.
As of Thursday, the retailer will not accept Visa cards at any of its 16 stores in Manitoba.
Walmart and the credit card firm have been arguing over fees for some time, and this week’s action is seen as the latest escalation in that dispute.

Big hire
Dollar General has announced plans to hire 10,000 new workers within the next month in connection with its expansion plans.
Based in Tennessee, the retailer is expecting to open 900 new stores in fiscal 2016 and another 1,000 in fiscal 2017. It will be hosting hiring events around the country.

No burgers
When in Paris, do as the Parisians do.
McDonalds has opened a new location in France, but it doesn’t sell burgers, fries or McNuggets.
Instead, the new McCafe in Paris offers a menu that’s decidedly more French: Club sandwiches, soups and salads.
Other McDonalds outlets in France — there are more than 1,300 of them — offer the more familiar burger and fries menu.

Nervous investors
Allegheny Technologies Inc., parent company of Portland Forge, is struggling to convince investors that it’s on the right track.
Its per-share price dropped aboiut 10 percent this week to less than $16 per share.
ATI chief executive officer Rich Harshman told investors there are a number of positive signs for the business.
PORTLAND WEATHER

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