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Pittsburgh Business Times
Mortgage rates are set to fall. Buyers should adjust their hopes.
Homebuyers frustrated by high mortgage rates may soon get some relief if the Federal Reserve begins to lower interest rates but they should temper their expectations, experts say.<\p> Although the Fed has signaled it could start lowering rates as soon as its July 31 meeting, industry experts believe rates will never go back to the historic lows seen during the Covid-19 pandemic, when some buyers snagged rates below 3%.<\p>
Here are some of the largest construction projects in the region
Massive construction projects are underway around the Pittsburgh region, with the new Pittsburgh International Airport terminal foremost in most Pittsburgher’s minds, along with the almost-completed FNB Financial Center taking its new position in the city’s skyline.<\p> The sprawling, decades-long effort to upgrade navigation on the Lower Monongahela River by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is finally in its final stages, with efforts to rectify a lower-than-expected water level in the basin ongoing. And downstream, the Corps has started work on a similar upgrade effort along the Upper Ohio River basin projected to top $2 billion in total costs and likely to lead this List of Active Pittsburgh-area Construction Projects for the next decade or so and have a major impact on river navigation commercially and recreationally.<\p>
The biggest law firm in Pittsburgh raised starting pay for 2024
The biggest law firm in Pittsburgh has upped starting salaries for 2024 associates at its U.S. offices by $10,000.<\p> Reed Smith LLP on Monday confirmed that, effective July 1, the starting pay was raised to $225,000, and it had a ripple effect for others at the firm.<\p>
Local lab test demonstrates improvements in Alzheimer's patients
A Pittsburgh-based clinical study of an experimental orally delivered Alzheimer's treatment demonstrated "consistent improvement" in patients with the progressive disease.<\p> The six-month study enrolled 153 adults with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease who were given either 100 milligrams of the medication, named CT1812, 300 milligrams of the medication or a placebo pill. The company behind the study, Cognition Therapeutics, was originally founded in Pittsburgh in 2007.<\p>
Southwest Airlines to return this seasonal service this winter
Southwest Airlines will be returning its Pittsburgh-Miami service beginning in January for the first time in three years.<\p> Southwest (NYSE: LUV) will operate the route on selected travel days in January, February and March 2025 for winter season and spring break travel plans.<\p>
Retired MSA CEO joins Highmark Health board of directors
Retired MSA Safety CEO Nish Vartanian is joining the board of directors of Highmark Health, and two other executives are joining the board of directors of subsidiary Highmark Inc.<\p> Vartanian retired earlier this year as CEO but remains chairman of MSA. During the Covid-19 pandemic, MSA (NYSE: MSA) and Highmark Health subsidiary Allegheny Health Network worked together on breathing apparatus for AHN's frontline staff. Vartanian is also on the board of directors of the Allegheny Conference on Community Development as well as Koppers Inc. (NYSE: KOP).<\p>
Purely Pittsburgh deal: Riverarch-backed Clayton Kendall buys printer
A Monroeville-based provider of promotional programs and company-branded merchandise services has completed its first add-on acquisition since it was staked last fall by the region's second-largest private equity firm. It was an all-Pittsburgh deal. <\p> Expect more transactions, though not necessarily on home turf.<\p>
Casual dress is just the start of Gen Z making offices less formal
The post-pandemic workplace has undergone a lot of change, with hybrid work and the implementation of more-casual dress codes among the biggest shifts.<\p> Newly available research spotlights how both business owners and employees have younger workers to thank — or blame — for an ongoing casual revolution in the workplace that extends beyond dress codes.<\p>
EQT Plaza no more: Highwoods drops skyline logo from downtown building
Three corporate initials that lit the city's skyline for nearly 15 years are gone even as the company represented by them will retain a much smaller presence in the building that's long carried its name. <\p> But at the very least, EQT Corp. (NYSE: EQT) is keeping its headquarters office downtown, a prospect once in doubt. <\p>
Beer's Viewpoint: 3 concepts that I always try to highlight
The importance of cross-sector collaboration. Regionalism as a strategic approach. Community-conscious leadership. <\p> When I was thinking about what to title this piece, those were the three phrases that stayed at the top of my mind. That is because when people ask me “What is Leadership Pittsburgh Inc.?” or “What is your vision for the organization now that you have a few years under your belt?,” those are three concepts that I always try to highlight. <\p>
U.S. Steel's shuttered Illinois site to get new, high-tech life
The U.S. Steel South Works site, which has been vacant for decades after steelmaking near Chicago for more than a century, will soon get a new life.<\p> The City of Chicago and the State of Illinois announced Thursday the 500 acres that housed the former steel plant will become the Illinois Quantum and Microelectronics Park and house a commercial quantum computer. It’s being built by PsiQuantum with its own $1.09 billion investment along with $500 million in state funds for development of the site, a cooling center for the computer, and economic incentives.<\p>
How Columbia Gas is partnering to ensure talent pipelines
With the announcements several weeks ago made by Pittsburgh Technical College and Triangle Tech that both schools would be closing their doors, the number of available pathways for individuals looking to start a career in the skilled trades and obtain hands-on training shrank. <\p> But Columbia Gas, one of the region’s largest utility providers, and its parent company, NiSource, are looking to build up its own talent pipelines in spite of this via some recent strategic partnerships. <\p>
Bill would give even more help to abandoned well cleanup
A bill just introduced in the U.S. Congress would give Pennsylvania and other states more weapons in the battle to find and clean up abandoned oil and gas wells.<\p> Abandoned wells are a huge problem in Pennsylvania, where there are at least 27,000 that have been found but estimates of many times more that have not been found. Abandoned wells can leak methane, destroy soil and groundwater, and also cause other problems. Estimates are that most Americans live within a mile of an abandoned well.<\p>
Tech sector struggles to keep pace with talent
Pittsburgh's tech sector has emerged as a key industry to watch in the region, but it faces a problem — it isn't retaining talent.<\p> Not only does Pittsburgh generate more tech talent than jobs, but the region is losing them — the sector lost approximately 4,000 jobs last year. The city is home to office spaces of several of the world's largest tech companies, including Google, Meta, Microsoft and Apple, but these office spaces are primarily in the fields of research and development.<\p>
Federated Hermes CEO won't shy from 'big hairy deals'
Federated Hermes' feel for deals remains solid despite a hit to second-quarter earnings tied to a 2018 transaction, guesstimating the impact of interest rate cuts and persistent questions on acquisition.<\p> Then again, after reporting record managed assets of $782.7 billion, up 11%, and money market assets that hit a new high of $586.6 billion, the Pittsburgh-based international investment management firm can back up its stance.<\p>
Two tech companies make expansion plays on the North Side
Scott Beatty is quick to remember pulling out of an office move to Cranberry Township just before the pandemic shut down the world. <\p> Now, a little more than four years later, Beatty and the company he leads, SoftWriters Inc., are preparing to move from its established office at McCandless Corporate Center to a new headquarters in the opposite direction, taking a 25,000-square-foot floor in the SAP Building on the North Shore.<\p>
New insurance agency growing fast by acquisitions
A newly formed insurance business, Fern Rock Risk Partners, is poised to grow further in the coming months after making its first acquisition earlier this year.<\p> Fern Rock Risk Partners, based in Beaver, was co-founded by Bryan Wright, CEO of the Wright family of businesses, and Marty Muchnok, an insurance industry veteran who had formerly been president of the First National Insurance Agency and has three dozen years experience in the property and casualty insurance industry.<\p>
WesBanco back on acquisition path with Ohio bank buy
WesBanco on Friday announced a $959 million all-stock deal as it returns to the acquisition path.<\p> According to a definitive agreement, Premier Financial Corp of Defiance, Ohio, will merge with and into WesBanco. Pending regulatory and other approvals, the transaction is expected to close in early 2025. <\p>
This Butler County home and barn is for sale for $2.15M (photos)
A 15-acre property is for sale in Butler County for $2.15 million.<\p> The property is located in the town of Portersville, Pennsylvania in Worth Township. Located at 242 Cornelius Rd., it is surrounded by woods and borders Moraine State Park and Lake Arthur. It is also located in close proximity to I-79, Cooper's Lake Event Venue and Campground and Slippery Rock University. <\p>
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