BUSINESS DIGEST || Anti-fracking group plans march today

Anti-fracking group plans march today

YOUNGSTOWN

Frackfree Mahoning is having a march today on the city’s North Side that will include former Pittsburgh City Council President Doug Shields as featured speaker.

Shields was council president when Pittsburgh passed a ban on hydraulic fracturing within city limits.

The “March to the Promised Land” rally will begin at 12:30 p.m. outside First Unitarian Universalist Church of Youngstown, 1105 Elm St.

Several extras from the upcoming film “Promised Land” also will appear at the rally.

Longshoremen’s strike looms

NEW YORK

In just a few days, a walkout by thousands of dock workers could bring commerce to a near-standstill at every major port from Boston to Houston, potentially delivering a big blow to retailers and manufacturers still struggling to find their footing in a weak economy.

More than 14,000 longshoremen are threatening to go on strike Sunday — a wide-ranging work stoppage that immediately would close cargo ports on the East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico to container ships.

The 15 ports involved in the labor dispute move more than 100 million tons of goods each year, or about 40 percent of the nation’s containerized cargo traffic. Losing them to a shutdown, even for a few days, could cost the economy billions of dollars.

“If the port shuts down, nothing moves in or out,” said Jonathan Gold, vice president of supply-chain and customs policy at the National Retail Federation. And when the workers do return, “it’s going to take time to clear out that backlog, and we don’t know how long it’s going to take.”

Shipments of such varied products as flat-screen TVs, sneakers and snow shovels would either sit idle at sea or get rerouted, at great time and expense. U.S. factories also rely on container ships for parts and raw materials, meaning supply lines for all sorts of products could be squeezed.

Joseph Ahlstrom, a professor at the State University of New York’s Maritime College and a former cargo- ship captain, called container ships the “lifeblood of the country.”

SeaWorld files to sell stock in IPO

ORLANDO, Fla.

SeaWorld is going public.

Under a new name — SeaWorld Entertainment Inc. — the Orlando-based theme-park operator has filed for an initial public offering aimed at raising $100 million.

The company, currently known as SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment, would trade under the symbol “SEAS.”

Private-equity giant Blackstone Group, which bought SeaWorld in late 2009 for approximately $2.5 billion, would retain a controlling stake in SeaWorld.

The target date for the IPO was not disclosed. SeaWorld said the precise number of shares it will issue and the price range it will charge has not yet been determined. The initial $100 million target could change.

Vindicator staff/wire reports