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Tuesday's Daily Pulse
What you need to know about Florida today
Economists see US growth pickup this year
The consensus of the 48 economists surveyed by the National Association for Business Economics is that bad weather cut first-quarter growth to a weak annual rate of 1.9 percent, but that growth could exceed 3 percent by year's end. [Source: AP]
Startup businesses have more office options
Some 7,000 startups and 30 startup organizations are currently in Florida, according to Gust.com, a global platform for management of early-stage companies. Startup companies seeking to lease month-to-month office space — and get guidance on growing their businesses at the same time — suddenly have more options in South Florida. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
The March Madness myth about productivity
Academic research has found that yes, work is affected by viewing games and filling out brackets, but not in a serious way. Charles Clotfelter, a professor at Duke University, wrote in 2012 that "the tournament has a profound and widespread impact on patterns of work" but wouldn't go so far as to say it had a big impact on productivity. [Source: Orlando Sentinel]
Catalina deal price pegged at $2.5 billion
Hellman & Friedman is selling Catalina Marketing Corp. to Berkshire Partners for about $2.5 billion. Catalina, a St. Petersburg company that provides customized consumer digital media, has been owned by H&F since 2007. [Source: Tampa Bay Business Journal]
» Curent gas prices in Florida
Gas prices continue slow climb
Gas prices continued to rise in the past week, but more slowly than they have been. Nationally, the average price for a gallon of regular gas rose 1 cent to $3.53, according to AAA. It went up 2 cents to $3.56 in Florida. More from the Florida Times-Union and WFTX.
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Small brewers cheer changes to beer measure
Small breweries may not be as mighty as Anheuser-Busch distributors, but they showed a little muscle on Monday by helping to reshape a House bill that could have put some out of business.
› Gainesville's oldest law firm is finding new life downtown
Dell Graham is a 10 lawyer firm with six of those 10 having board certification in civil trial, education, healthcare, and wills, trusts and estates. It is Gainesville’s oldest operating law firm, and one of a half-dozen of the oldest firms in Florida, having roots back 140 years.
› For Realtor, second job is representing industry in Tallahassee
Realtor Mike Bruno feels like he's working two jobs these days, but he's not complaining. In addition to his regular gig as a real estate agent with Michael Saunders & Co., Bruno is the 2014 vice president for District 13 for the Florida Realtors trade association.
› Florida lawmakers consider flood insurance changes
The Florida Legislature is moving forward on a plan to entice private insurance companies to sell flood policies in the state that's the most vulnerable to storm surge.
Go to page 2 for more stories ...
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