In brief: In bruising tale, GMO potato OK for planting
BOISE – The U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved commercial planting of a potato that is genetically modified to resist bruising and to produce less of a chemical that has caused cancer in animals.
Boise-based J.R. Simplot Co. developed the potato, and it was approved by the USDA Friday.
Simplot is a major supplier of french fries, hash browns and other potato products for restaurant chains like McDonald’s Corp.
The company altered the potato’s DNA so it produces less acrylamide, which is suspected to be a human carcinogen. Potatoes naturally produce the chemical when they’re cooked at high temperatures.
The potato also is engineered to resist bruising.
California bank is 17th to close
WASHINGTON – Regulators have closed a small lender in California for the 17th bank failure in the U.S. this year after 24 closures in 2013.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said Friday that it has taken over Frontier Bank FSB, based in Palm Desert.
The bank is better known as El Paseo Bank and operated two branches. It had about $86.4 million in assets and $82.1 million in deposits as of June 30.
Frontier Bank’s failure is expected to cost the federal deposit insurance fund $4.7 million.
Berkshire’s earnings down
OMAHA, Neb. – Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway reported a 9 percent drop in third-quarter profit versus the same period a year ago, when the company had large investment gains.
Berkshire said Friday it earned $4.62 billion, or $2,811 per Class A share. That’s down from $5.05 billion, or $3,074 per share, last year. Revenue grew 10 percent to $51.2 billion.
Berkshire wrote down the value of its investment in British retailer Tesco by $678 million. Buffett told CNBC in an interview last month that the Tesco investment was a mistake. Berkshire has begun selling some of the shares.
JPMorgan plans more job cuts
NEW YORK – JPMorgan, the nation’s largest bank by assets, is cutting 3,000 more jobs this year than previously planned in its card and mortgage business units.
The bank said in February that it was planning to eliminate about 2,000 jobs this year in its card, merchant services and auto unit, but now says that it will have cut a total of 4,000 jobs in the unit by the end of 2014. JPMorgan also will eliminate more jobs in its mortgage unit, reducing up to 7,000 positions in that part of the bank, compared with an earlier target of 6,000.
JPMorgan Chase & Co., which reported net income of $5.6 billion in the third quarter, is seeking to cut expenses at its consumer banking unit by $2 billion from 2014 to 2016, according to the presentation.
The lender is cutting costs in its mortgage unit as demand for home refinancing has waned as rates have started rising. The bank also is trying to cut costs through greater use of technology.
U.S. consumer borrowing rises
WASHINGTON – U.S. consumers increased their borrowing in September with gains in credit card debt and auto and student loans.
The Federal Reserve said overall borrowing rose $15.9 billion following a $14 billion gain in August and a $22.8 billion July increase. The gains have pushed total consumer debt to a record level of $3.27 trillion.
The category that includes credit cards showed a $1.44 billion increase in September after having dropped by $201 million the previous month. The category that covers auto loans and student loans increased $14.48 billion after a $14.23 billion increase in August.