Body Central closes

Body Central closes

BOARDMAN

Body Central stores in Southern Park Mall and Eastwood Mall have closed.

The clothing retailer based in Jacksonville, Fla., announced Friday that all its 265 stores in 28 states would close Sunday. About 2,500 employees were affected by the announcement.

On Jan. 7, the company announced it was “experiencing significant liquidity challenges and has taken several steps to identify and evaluate potential strategic and financial alternatives.”

Those alternatives were not limited to the possibility of filing Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Body Central Corp. was founded in 1972. It targeted women in their late teens to mid-30s.

Building Wranglers

TOLEDO

The head of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles says it will take a sizable investment to keep production of the Jeep Wrangler in Toledo.

CEO Sergio Marchionne says no decision has been made on where the Wrangler will be built in the coming years.

Fiat Chrysler is considering moving the Wrangler assembly line out of Toledo so that it can be made with an aluminum body.

Marchionne said at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit on Monday that he’s committed to keeping the same number of jobs in Toledo because of how much he admires the workforce at the plant.

But he adds that the Toledo plant’s current design would make it difficult to switch over the Wrangler without moving it somewhere else.

Ohio gas prices up

COLUMBUS

Gas prices inched up slightly to start the week though Ohio drivers are still paying less than $2 per gallon.

The average was $1.97 per gallon of regular gas in Monday’s survey from auto club AAA, the Oil Price Information Service and WEX Inc. That’s seven cents more than a week ago and $1.43 cheaper than this time last year.

The state average has dropped below $2 in recent weeks for the first time in more than five years.

Oil slipped below $48 a barrel Monday and is down 44 percent in the past three months, reflecting high supplies and muted demand from much of the world.

The national average Monday was $2.13 for regular gas, up 7 cents from last week.

AmerisourceBergen makes $2.5B deal

Pharmaceutical distributor AmerisourceBergen will stretch its reach into veterinary medicine by spending about $2.5 billion to acquire MWI Veterinary Supply.

AmerisourceBergen Corp. said Monday that it will pay $190 in cash for each share of MWI, a premium of 8 percent to the closing price of MWI shares on Friday, the last trading day before the deal was announced. The deal value includes $76 million in MWI Veterinary Supply debt.

AmerisourceBergen distributes prescription drugs and also provides pharmaceutical consulting, but the Chesterbrook, Pa., company had no animal-health business before this deal.

Vindicator staff/wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 26.46 -0.13

Avalon Holdings,3.180.3

Clear Channel, .46 18.35 0.17

Cortland Bancorp, 15.800.05

Farmers Nat., .127.78 -0.19

First Energy, 1.44, 38.50-0.47

Fifth/Third, .5218.64-0.29

FirstMerit Corp., .64,17.43 -0.1

First Niles Financial, .32,9.400

FNB Corp., .48,12.31-0.07

General Motors, 1.2035.920.32

General Electric, .88,24.01-0.02

Huntington Bank, .20, 10.030.04

JP Morgan Chase, 1.60,58.85-0.49

Key Corp, .26,12.88-0.14

LaFarge, 17.16 0.02

Macy’s, 1.25, 66.170.25

Parker Hannifin, 1.92, 125.880.03

PNC, 1.92,86.25-0.52

RTI Intl. Metals,23.26-0.07

Simon Prop. Grp.,5.20,196.960.39

Stoneridge 12.06 -0.13

Talmer Bank, 13.52-0.18

United Comm. Fin., .04 5.32-0.06

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