Average BGE customers’ bills to drop $11 per month

The average BGE residential customer will pay $11 less per month starting June 1 thanks to low electric commodity prices and federal tax reform, the utility said Wednesday. Customers who buy their electricity from Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. can expect the reduction in their bills as a result of the lowest electric commodity prices in a decade and reductions in the electricity distribution rate thanks to tax reform, BGE said. “Customers are reaping the benefits of historic commodity prices,” and have better managed their energy use through smart meters, “which lowers their bills and helps us meet our efficiency goals,” said Rodney Oddoye, a BGE vice president and chief customer officer, in a statement. The reduction in the federal corporate income tax rate under President Donald J. Trump’s tax cuts has resulted in $103 million in savings annually for all BGE customers, the company said. BGE said the average residential customer’s total monthly bill will be lower than 2008 levels. BGE also said Wednesday that its customers saw the lowest average number of electric outages in company history last year. The average number of outages fell nearly 20 percent compared with the previous low set in 2014. When customers did experience an outage, BGE said it restored power an average of five minutes faster than the previous record, set in 2016. ing to appeal to shoppers who are spending more online than at department stores. Macy’s, the first of the group to release its results, has been expanding its store label brands, adding more of the off-price Backstage stores, and upgrading its checkout technology to make it faster and easier for shoppers. It’s also testing more curated merchandise displays and localized marketing. Chairman and CEO Jeff Gennette said the company saw strength across its Bloomingdale’s, Bluemercury and Macy’s brands. He said results are improving at its stores, coupled with robust online and mobile growth. Macy’s also said business got a lift from an increase in spending from international tourists, the first time since 2014. For the period ended May 5, Macy’s Inc. earned $139 million, or 45 cents per share. A year earlier, the company earned $78 million, or 26 cents per share. Stripping out impairment charges and other costs, earnings were 48 cents per share. Excluding asset sales gains, earnings were 42 cents per share. Revenue rose to $5.54 billion from $5.35 billion, also beating Wall Street’s view. Sales at company-owned stores open at least a year increased 3.9 percent. At owned and licensed locations, they climbed 4.2 percent.