BUSINESS NEWS MARCH 14TH, 2016
COAL IS ALREADY DYING
On Sunday night, Hillary Clinton showed that she has no love for the coal industry, promising to “put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business". However, despite Clinton’s assurances, the coal industry does not have a lot for her to fight. The industry is dying. Employment is at 57,700 people, an all time low. One of the places where this loss is most evident is Boone County, West Virginia. Kris Mitchell, Director of Development at Boone County, said that the once thriving coal market has lost 4,500 jobs in the county alone. Across West Virginia, nearly 10,000 jobs have been lost.
IRAN OIL INDUSTRY WELCOMES U.S. DOLLARS
Iranian oil minister Bijan Namdar Zangeneh said that Iran has no problem with the presence of American oil companies. He went on to say that the only thing preventing companies from moving to Iran was the restriction of the American government. In the wake of the groundbreaking nuclear deal that Iran made with the United States, tensions between the two countries have eased for the first time in decades. As a result, Iran’s economy is making a comeback, starting with their oil and gas industries. In order to catch up with other oil powerhouses in the Middle East, Iran desperately needs investment from Western powers, says Majid Rafizadeh, a Middle East scholar at Harvard.
BOND MANAGER SET TO PURSUE $200 MILLION PIMCO LAWSUIT
Bill Gross co-founded Pacific Investment Management Co and left it in 2014 amid reports of weak management and unsubstantial returns. However, he has recently filed a lawsuit against the company, claiming that it owes him $200 million. California Superior Court Judge Martha Gooding ruled that Gross’ case was strong enough to go ahead to trial. However, this ruling was tentative, and the judge declined to comment on the lawsuit itself. Pimco has been given a deadline of April 4 to file a response to the lawsuit.