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Economy Watch: CPI, Food Prices on Rise
The U.S. Consumer Price Index jumped 0.5 percent from February to March, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, and was up 2.7 percent compared with March 2010. The monthly increase was twice as much as in both January and February, when the CPI was up 0.5 percent.
Industrial Firm NFI Inks Massachusetts Lease
The supply chain solutions firm took 135,000 square feet at the Devans Industrial Park.
Lehman-Seized Office Asset Fetches $60.3M
Some investors may shun an office property burdened by a sizable mortgage that is soon to expire. However, a debt-laden property with a full tenant roster such as One Fair Oaks in Fairfax, Va., is nothing to sneeze at, according to First Potomac Realty Trust.
JLL Inks Lease Renewal on 980 Madison Ave.
The Gagosian Gallery signed a 10-year agreement on slightly more than 50,000 square feet in the Class A office building.
Economy Watch: Budget Plans, Beige Book
Is President Obama’s plan to reduce the deficit through cuts in spending and increases in taxation the path to U.S. fiscal solvency? It depends on whom you ask.
CBRE Realty Trust-Duke JV Closes on 3 MSF Portfolio
The majority of assets in the entire 20-building group are located in the Midwest, a region that accounts for 72 percent of its total square footage.
SL Green Nails Down $260M Loan on 3 Columbus Circle
News of the financing comes three months after SL Green recapitalized the 83-year-old property, located at 1775 Broadway across from the AOL Time Warner Center and Central Park. With the recapitalization, SL Green became part owner of the asset through the creation of a joint venture with The Moinian Group, which had acquired a former partner’s 90 percent stake for $250 million in 2004.
Economy Watch: Discount Rate, Spending
Is the Fed planning to tighten monetary policy? Some of its member banks have been asking for a modest increase in the discount rate: 25 basis points, which would take that rate up to 1 percent. According to minutes of discount rate discussions released by the Fed, the banks of Kansas City and Dallas asked for such an increase at meetings in January, February and March.
Williams-Sonoma Leases 411,700-SF Facility
Kelly Boulevard Associates L.L.C. filled the empty tenant roster for its industrial property at 2973 Kelly Blvd. in Claremont, N.C., in one fell swoop. The business entity, a joint venture involving JER Partners and Fulcra Enterprises, got the home furnishings specialty retailer to sign on the dotted line.
Economy Watch: Shutdown Averted, Retail Sales Up
As the world well knows, the federal government didn’t shut down over the weekend. A deal was done practically at zero hour, meaning that federal employees will be at work, $39 billion (or about one one-thousandth) of the federal budget will disappear, and tourists will have something to do in D.C. this week.