CITIGROUP SET TO OPEN IRAQ OFFICE
baghdad Citigroup Inc. is set to become the first American bank to open an office of its own in Baghdad, highlighting financial firms’ growing interest in Iraq a decade after the U.S.-led 2003 invasion.
Citi has received preliminary approval for the office that will help support its corporate customers in Iraq and act as a liaison for companies looking to do business there.
British bank Standard Chartered is also making a push in Iraq with plans to open branches in three cities.
Whiting to sell energy assets.
Denver-based Whiting Petroleum Corp. announcedMonday that it is selling some of its oil and gas properties and related assets in Texas County, Okla.
The properties, in the Postle and North East Hardesty fields, are being sold to BreitBurn Energy Partners LP.
Whiting said it expects net proceeds of approximately $850.6 million.
Video ad provider to hire 50 engineers.
Westminsterbased SpotXchange, which manages a digital video-ad inventory, announcedMonday plans to hire 50 engineers in the greater Denver area. The move would more than double its engineering staff.
The company hopes to fill full-time positions that include software andWeb-application developers, software test engineers and data scientists.
Law firms combine.
Fox Rothschild announcedMonday that it is merging with Denver law firm Lottner Rubin Fishman Saul PC effective July 1.
Fox Rothschild said the 16 lawyers from Lottner— 10 partners, five associates and one counsel— will “significantly bolster Fox’s footprint” in theMountainWest less than a year after Fox established an office in Denver.
Lottner was established in Denver in 1931.
IHS buys Houston consultant.
Douglas County-based IHS Inc. saidMonday that it has acquired Intellichem, a Houston consulting firm that publishes a bi-weekly report on the olefin and plastics markets in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Mexico and Venezuela.
Intellichem also provides market intelligence on chemicals and plastics in Latin America. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Colorado improves manufacturing base.
Colorado has improved its human-capital global position, making it one of the stronger states in cultivating improving options for manufacturing, according to a Ball State University report.
The 2013 Manufacturing and Logistics Report Card, an indepth analysis from Ball State’s Center for Business and Economic Research, grades all 50 states on how they handle various economic factors.
Swine flu spikes in 13 states
chicago » A swine virus deadly to young pigs and never before seen in North America, has spiked to 199 sites in 13 states— including Colorado — nearly double the number of farms and other locations from earlier this month.
Iowa, the largest U.S. hog producer, has the most sites testing positive for porcine epidemic diarrhea virus.
Zimmer resigns from board.
George Zimmer, the ousted chairman ofMen’sWearhouse Inc., resigned from the company’s boardMonday, according to a letter he sent to its board of directors that was reviewed by TheWall Street Journal.
The resignation brings Zimmer’s 40-year association with the seller of discount suits to a surprising end.
Men’sWearhouse said last Wednesday that it had terminated Zimmer, the company’s co-founder, and was discussing what if any relationship he would have in the future.