BUSINESS DIGEST || Mall gets new general manager

Mall gets new general manager

YOUNGSTOWN

Simon Property Group announced that Michele Meregaglia is taking over as general manager at Southern Park Mall.

Before joining Southern Park Mall in 2009, Meregaglia worked as the general manager at the Fashion Mall at Keystone in Indianapolis. He also has had assistant mall manager and mall manager positions.

In his new post, Meregaglia is responsible for managing mall operations, leasing, maintenance, business development, budgeting and monthly analysis. He replaces Pam Ferguson as mall manager.

Flynn ranked first in 2013 auto sales

YOUNGSTOWN

For the eighth-straight year, Flynn Auto Group ranked first in auto sales in 2013, according to data published by the Automotive Dealers Association of Eastern Ohio. Dealerships owned by David A. Flynn sold 6,774 new and used vehicles, outpacing the competition by 1,204 cars. Flynn Auto Group operates six area dealerships.

Microsoft names cloud computing chief next CEO

LOS ANGELES

As longtime Microsoft insider Satya Nadella takes the company’s helm, he is declaring a new focus on a “mobile-first, cloud-first world.” So far, he only has the latter half of the formula figured out.

Microsoft and its new CEO are at a crossroads: They are trying to catch rivals such as Apple, Google and Amazon, which are building a thriving ecosystem for mobile devices. At the same time, the company wants to expand its burgeoning business as a provider of software and services over the Internet.

Nadella, the head of Microsoft’s cloud computing business, was named Tuesday to be Steve Ballmer’s immediate replacement. He is only the third chief executive in Microsoft’s 38-year history.

The 22-year Microsoft veteran has enlisted the help of company founder and first CEO Bill Gates, who is leaving his role as chairman to serve a more hands-on role as an adviser at Nadella’s request. Gates will spend a third of his time working on products and technology.

Nadella, 46, led the company’s small but growing cloud computing unit, in which customers pay Microsoft to house data and run applications on distant servers connected to the Internet.

BP income declines

LONDON

The fourth quarter and full-year profit for British Petroleum, accounting for the re-evaluation of property, fell in 2013, compared with the previous year, the company announced in a statement.

Adjusted profit fell to $2.8 billion in the fourth quarter of 2013, compared with the same period a year ago. Profit on the year was down to $13.4 billion from $17.1 billion in 2012. BP attributed the lower earnings to higher drilling costs, less-profitable refineries and stagnant oil prices.

Vindicator staff/wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 23.38 .09

Avalon Holdings,5.50.00

Clear Channel, .61 21.46 .53

Cortland Bancorp, 10.65.00

Farmers Nat., .126.96 —.21

First Energy, 2.20, 30.93—.32

FirstMerit Corp., .64,19.72 .23

First Niles Financial, .32,6.20.00

First Place Fin., .00.0

FNB Corp., .48,11.64.15

General Motors,35.86.61

General Electric, .76,24.59.24

Huntington Bank, .20, 8.88.15

JP Morgan Chase, 1.52,54.96.65

Key Corp, .22,12.49.18

LaFarge, 17.55 .37

Macy’s, 1.00, 51.00.09

Parker Hannifin, 1.80, 110.971.58

PNC, 1.76,78.95.52

RTI Intl. Metals,30.45.2

Simon Prop. Grp.,4.60,153.332.15

Stoneridge 10.86 —.14

United Community Fin. 3.40.02

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Tuesday. Provided by Stifel. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.