Florida adds private-sector jobs in March

Florida added 18,600 private-sector jobs in March, a fairly strong performance but down about 8 percent from February. Dominating the jobs added in March was the trade, transportation and utilities sector — with 4,400 — and construction, which added 2,600. More from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Florida Politics, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, and the Tampa Bay Times.

Number of women-owned businesses growing at highest pace since the recession

The sixth annual State of Women-Owned Businesses Report finds more than 1,000 women-owned businesses are formed each day. Plus, the number of firms owned by women of color more than doubled over past nine years. In Florida, it's estimated that 971,000 women-owned businesses will bring $96,207,600 in revenue to the state during 2016. Go to story.

Election, economy hit vacation homebuyers where they live

A sharp drop in vacation home sales last year may just be the tip of the iceberg. With the nation's political future uncertain, real estate agents say buyers are leery of the economy and more hesitant to put money down on a discretionary purchase like a vacation home. [Source: CNBC]

GOP’s social, fiscal conservatives at odds over gay rights

State legislative efforts have exposed deep rifts between the GOP's social conservatives and its pro-business wing. Business leaders worry that such measures will allow discrimination and scare away companies and major events. [Source: AP]

Hispanicize spotlights growing Hispanic buying power

Marketing to Hispanics doesn't just mean talking to them in Spanish — businesses can effectively reach them via English advertisement as long as their Hispanic culture is embedded in the message, emphasized marketing strategists Wednesday at the Hispanicize conference in Miami. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Forecaster predicts potentially busier hurricane season [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
A private weather forecasting service is predicting that this year will be slightly busier than normal for tropical storms and hurricanes. AccuWeather is predicting that there will be 14 named storms during 2016, two more than average.

› Bidders line up to design UCF downtown campus [Orlando Sentinel]
The University of Central Florida's downtown Orlando campus is expected to be the school's most competitive bid-selection process in at least the past decade.

› Online broker in Fort Lauderdale purchased [South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
TradeKing Group, an online broker based in Fort Lauderdale, is being sold to Ally Financial of Charlotte, N.C., for $275 million.

› ERwin Inc. to move headquarters to Long Island [Newsday]
ERwin Inc., a Tampa, Florida, software company recently sold by CA Inc. to a private equity firm, plans to open executive offices on Long Island, the company’s new chief executive said Wednesday.

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› Workers-compensation case heard in Florida Supreme Court [Orlando Sentinel]
Florida Supreme Court justices Wednesday tried to sift through arguments about the constitutionality of the state's workers-compensation insurance system — and whether they should decide the issue.

› Manatee County to host Business Recovery Expo for disaster planning [Bradenton Herald]
With hurricane season a couple months away, Manatee County is hosting a Business Recovery Expo on April 28. The free event, billed as the first of its kind in Manatee, will be from 8:30 a.m.-11 a.m. at Bradenton Area Convention Center.

› Cryos sperm bank opens egg bank in Orlando [Orlando Sentinel]
Cryos International sperm bank is getting into the egg banking market by opening its first egg bank in Orlando next to its 1-year-old sperm bank near UCF.

› Green Sea Turtles Of Florida, Mexico Reclassified From Endangered To Threatened [HNGN]
Green sea turtle populations in Florida and Mexico are now considered a threatened species instead of endangered, although they still require protection under the Endangered Species Act.