JOBLESS RATE: Los Angeles County’s unemployment rate rose to 12.4 percent in July from 12 percent in June as budget cuts took their toll on government payrolls and more people were looking for work. The state Employment Development Department said that a survey showed the county lost about 30,000 jobs in July. The July figures are still better than the year-ago unemployment rate of 12.7 percent, with 15,000 fewer payroll jobs.
AIRPORT ACTIVITY: Passenger traffic at Los Angeles International Airport rose more than 6 percent last month, but the struggling economy took a toll on air cargo. Los Angeles World Airports, which operates the facility for the city, said both domestic and international traffic were up by roughly 6.6 percent in July as 6.07 million passengers flew through LAX. Roughly 4.4 million domestic passengers traveled through the airport, compared with 1.6 million international travelers, according to LAWA. Air cargo traffic continued to decline, down 7 percent in July.
NO NEW TRIAL: A federal judge has tentatively denied motions for an acquittal and a new trial for Brentwood real estate investor Ezri Namvar, who was found guilty in May of federal wire fraud charges. Namvar’s attorneys argued that he had not received a fair trial, citing alleged misconduct by prosecutors and the exclusion of defense evidence exhibits from the jury room during deliberations. Judge Percy Anderson plans to issue a written ruling, and announced he would move Namvar’s sentencing date from Sept. 26 to Oct. 11. Namvar’s $2.5 billion real estate portfolio collapsed in 2008 amid allegations of a Ponzi scheme. He had solicited investments from hundreds of members of the Iranian Jewish community in and around Beverly Hills.
3-D ACQUISITION: Burbank’s 3ality Digital, a provider of 3-D production technology and services, acquired Element Technica of Los Angeles, which makes motorized 3-D camera rigs, for an undisclosed amount. The company will change its name to 3ality Technica as a result of the acquisition, which it said will make the company the world’s largest provider of stereoscopic 3-D camera rigs, image processors, and accessories used by the motion picture and broadcast industry.
PAYING UP: Long Beach health care real estate investment trust HCP Inc. said that it will pay a $102 million judgment resulting from a 2009 jury verdict awarding compensatory damages to Ventas Inc. of Chicago. The judgment pertains to HCP’s interference in Ventas’ acquisition of Sunrise Senior Living, another health care REIT. HCP said it already set aside the full amount of the $102 million award in third quarter 2009, so the payment will have no impact on current earnings.
HEALTH TESTING: Lockheed Martin Corp. will acquire QTC Holdings Inc., a Diamond Bar provider of medical testing for U.S. government employees. QTC is considered the largest outsourced provider of medical evaluation services to the federal government and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. It processed more than 450,000 evaluations last year. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
BANK MERGER: First General Bank of Rowland’s merger with Golden Security Bank of Rosemead has been completed. The two banks announced the deal in late May. First General, the surviving bank, paid Golden Security shareholders $10 per share, for a total of about $4.4 million.
AUTO DATA DEAL: TrueCar Inc., a Santa Monica online publisher of new- and used-vehicle pricing, said that it has acquired ALG Inc. of Santa Barbara, a provider of automotive residual value information. The transaction is structured as a tax-free reorganization. ALG’s owner, DealerTrack Holdings Inc. of Lake Success, N. Y., will receive 15 percent equity interest in TrueCar with the ability to later increase its stake to 20 percent. Other terms were not disclosed.
NEW COO: Jakks Pacific Inc. promoted Jack McGrath to chief operating officer of the Malibu toymaker. McGrath joined Jakks in 1999 as vice president of marketing and product development. He advanced up the ranks to senior vice president of operations in 2000 and executive vice president of operations in 2008. He was previously director of marketing at Mattel Inc. in El Segundo. He takes over the COO job from company co-founder and Chief Executive Stephen Berman, who kept the title after becoming CEO in February 2010.
CFO HIRED: City of Industry online electronics and technology retailer Newegg Inc. has hired veteran e-commerce executive Robert Bellack as chief financial officer. Bellack is a co-founder and former chief executive of Zetabid.com, an Irvine online auction site specializing in foreclosed real estate.
EARNINGS: Guess Inc. reported fiscal second quarter net income of $60.7 million, 9 percent lower than in the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose 17 percent to $677 million. … OSI Systems Inc. reported fiscal fourth quarter net income of $12 million, 50 percent higher than in the same period a year earlier. Revenue rose 11 percent to $183 million.
