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About The Bulletin. (Bend, OR) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 6, 2021)
A11 B USINESS THE BULLETIN • WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 6, 2021 p DOW 30,391.60 +167.71 BRIEFING Amazon buys 11 jets for speedy delivery Amazon said Tuesday it bought 11 jets from Delta and WestJet airlines to boost its growing de- livery network and get or- ders to shoppers faster. The company said it’s the first time it has purchased planes for its delivery network. Over the past couple of years, Amazon has been leasing planes to build its fleet. “Having a mix of both leased and owned air- craft in our growing fleet allows us to better man- age our operations,” said Sarah Rhoads, vice pres- ident of Amazon Global Air, in a blog post. Seattle-based Ama- zon has been working to deliver most of its pack- ages itself and rely less on UPS, the U.S. Postal Service and other carriers. Besides its fleet of planes, Amazon has also built several package-sorting hubs at airports, opened warehouses closer to where shoppers live and launched a program that lets contractors start busi- nesses delivering pack- ages in vans stamped with the Amazon logo. p bendbulletin.com/business p NASDAQ 12,818.96 +120.51 S&P 500 3,726.86 +26.21 p 30-YR T-BOND 1.70% +.05 p CRUDE OIL $49.93 +2.31 p p GOLD $1,952.70 +8.00 The Oregon Employment De- partment said Monday it has be- gun paying a $300 weekly unem- ployment bonus that Congress authorized last month as part of a $900 billion coronavirus relief package. Congress first approved a $600 weekly unemployment bonus last March. The program expired in July and was replaced briefly with a $300 weekly bonus from federal disaster funds. That, too, lapsed, ending the sup- plemental payments while Congress was deadlocked over the scale of any additional relief program. Re- publicans and Democrats compro- mised on the $900 billion package at the end of last month and Pres- ident Donald Trump — after de- crying the congressional package — backed down and signed the bill on Dec. 27. A day earlier, benefits had expired for 72,000 Oregonians who were re- ceiving benefits through temporary programs for the self-employed or were on a program that extended their benefits eligibility. Congress extended most of those programs, too. The employment department, relying on an obsolete computer Some find federal relief checks sent to wrong account system, was unable to pay benefits to hundreds of thousands of job- less Oregonians during the early months of the pandemic. But the new payments funded last month simply restore programs that had lapsed and payments are flowing much more smoothly this time. However, the employment de- partment warned last week that some more complicated programs may require additional computer programming that could delay ben- efits to about 1,500 self-employed Oregonians nearing the end of their 46 weeks of eligibility. Congress funded the new, $300 weekly benefits through March 13. BY SARAH SKIDMORE SELL Associated Press A number of taxpayers who use tax preparation services, such as H&R Block and TurboTax, say their second relief payments were sent to incorrect bank ac- counts, forcing them to wait longer . The IRS and the Treasury Department began issuing the economic impact pay- ments last week. The payment is $600 for each eligible adult and dependent for people earning up to $75,000, or $150,000 for married couples filing jointly. Those earning more than that are eligible for a reduced payment. See Payments / A12 PORTLAND Landmark Pittock building sells for $326M No support animals on American flights American Airlines is banning emotional-sup- port animals in a move that will force most own- ers to pay extra if they want their pets to travel with them. The airline said Tues- day it will allow animals in the cabin free of charge only if they are trained service dogs. The move is likely to be copied by other carri- ers. The U.S. Transporta- tion Department cleared the way for the crack- down against companion animals last month. American said passen- gers with a service dog will need to complete a government form vouch- ing for the dog’s health, training and tempera- ment. Other animals, includ- ing dogs not trained as service dogs, will only be able to fly in the cargo hold or a kennel that fits under a seat in the cabin. Either way, American will collect a pet fee ranging from $125 to several hun- dred dollars. Jessica Tyler, Ameri- can’s president of cargo, said the rules will help passengers with service animals and protect em- ployees on planes and in airports. U.S. factory growth fastest in 2 years American factories grew in December at the fastest pace in more than two years as manufactur- ing continued to weather the pandemic better than the battered services sector. The Institute for Supply Management reported Tuesday that its gauge of manufacturing activity rose to 60.7% last month, the highest reading since it stood at 60.8 in August 2018. The gauge was up 3.2 percentage points from a November level of 57.5. Any reading above 50 indicates expansion in the manufacturing sector. The U.S. economy col- lapsed from April through June but since that time manufacturing has posted solid gains, while the services sector, which includes restaurants, bars and the travel industry, has been harder hit. — Bulletin wire reports EURO $1.2303 +.0051 COVID-19 aid Oregon begins paying $300 weekly unemployment bonus BY MIKE ROGOWAY The Oregonian p SILVER $27.57 +.29 BY MIKE ROGOWAY The Oregonian Zbigniew Bzdak/Chicago Tribune file Paul Becvar, 38, prepares to buy a weapon from Barry Torphy, owner of Bat Arms gun store in Plano, Illinois, in March. FAIR ACCESS OR FORCED BANKING? all Street banks are asking a key regulator to drop a proposed rule that would force them to do business with energy and fire- arms companies that could subject them to public scorn, questioning the legal basis for a measure they say is being un- fairly fast-tracked. The “fair access” rule pro- posed by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency on Nov. 20 would create undue burdens for lenders and could threaten their business models, banking industry groups said in comment letters to the agency. The industry groups also chal- W See Pittock / A12 Homebuyers face worst affordability squeeze in 12 years Banks blast federal rule that would force lending to gun and oil firms BY JESSE HAMILTON Bloomberg News The Pittock Block, a downtown Portland land- mark that serves as the city’s primary telecommunications nexus, has sold for $326 mil- lion. The deal underscores the value of communications infrastructure and contin- ued interest in downtown real estate. The historic, 302,000-square-foot building is a networking hub for many telecom providers, a data cen- ter and has expansive office space. Alco Investment Com- pany, which bought the site in 1986 and rehabilitated it, sold the eight-story building to a pair of real estate firms — Harrison Street and 1547 Critical Systems Realty. The site, at the corner of SW Ninth and Washington, was once home to former Oregonian publisher Henry Pittock, for whom the build- ing is named. Completed at a cost of $1 million in 1914, the building housed Port- land’s first electrical substa- tion in its basement. lenged OCC’s authority to issue the rule and argued that the 45- day comment period that ended Monday gave them insufficient time to respond. Brian Brooks, the OCC’s in- terim chief, wants to bar banks from refusing to serve legal busi- nesses — such as those in the oil, prison and firearms industries — that they might otherwise avoid because of the potential for rep- utational harm. The OCC’s ef- fort was initiated after Republi- can lawmakers complained about banks declining to finance energy projects, citing climate-change concerns. Lenders including Citi- group Inc. and Bank of America Corp. have also limited ties to the gun industry. BY PRASHANT GOPAL Bloomberg See Banking / A12 Bloomberg file photo Record-low mortgage rates were supposed to make it easier for homebuyers. In- stead, they’ve helped push affordability to a 12-year low. Buyers in the fourth quar- ter needed to spend almost 30% of the average wage to afford a typical house, the biggest share for any three- month period since 2008, according to preliminary fig- ures from Attom Data Solu- tions. Low borrowing costs, now below 3% for a 30-year loan, have spurred a buying frenzy, driving up prices across the country as shoppers com- pete for a shrinking supply of listings. See Homebuying / A12