Content about Wall Street Journal

A Chinese bank funding two huge Lennar Corp. housing developments has attached a condition to the loan, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal: Lennar must work with a Chinese state-owned contractor.

An Oct.

Daikin Industries,  a small presence in the U.S. air-conditioning market, has purchased Goodman Global for $3.7 billion, putting the Japanese firm just ahead of Carrier in the global HVAC business, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

Daikin is buying Goodman from a private equity firm named Hellman & Friedman, which paid $2.7 billion, plus the assumption of debt, to take the company private in 2007, the newspaper reported.

An opinion piece in today’s Wall Street Journal by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) has prompted the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA) to issue a point-by-point refutation of the essay, entitled “No Internet Taxation without Representation.” 

The battle over online purchasing and sales tax might be winding to a close as more Republican governors are dropping their opposition to a mandatory state tax on Internet sales. The turning point may have been in May, when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie cut a deal with Amazon.com: Residents of New Jersey would pay a 7% sales tax on Amazon.com purchases, and the nation’s largest e-tailer would build two distribution centers in the state.

Stanley Black & Decker, the tools giant that made a splash with a blockbuster merger two years ago, is now attempting to sell a unit of its tool empire, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

The unit on the block includes Baldwin, Price Pfister and Kwikset brands, making builders hardware, door locks, bath fixtures and other home products. 

After a failed attempt at a merger, Martin Marietta Materials has launched a hostile $4.8 billion offer for its rival Vulcan Materials Co., according to the Wall Street Journal. The deal combines the two largest suppliers of construction aggregates -- one of the chief ingredients of concrete -- in the nation.

Sears Holdings is looking for other retail outlets to sell its Kenmore-branded appliances, the Wall Street Journal reported. According to a LinkedIn job posting, Sears is searching for a chief marketing officer for its appliance line who will promote appliance purchases through “external groups” such as Costco. 

Home-building businesses may be at risk for consolidation if home sales don’t pick up soon, according to an analysis by the Wall Street Journal.

Scotts Miracle-Gro, its sales hurting from the pullback in big-box expansion, is looking into new sources of revenues for its lawn and garden products. One of them, according to CEO Jim Hagedorn, is medical marijuana. 

“I want to target the pot market,” Hagedorn told the Wall Street Journal in an interview published June 14. “There’s no good reason we haven’t.”

In an effort to recapture lost customers, Walmart will launch a promotional “It’s Back” merchandise campaign next month, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal. 

In what could be called a sign of recovery, some long-dormant commercial and multi-family projects have kicked back into gear thanks to an infusion of new lending, according to an article in the Wall Street Journal.

Some of the largest U.S. banks are slowly wading into commercial lending, including J.P Morgan Chase & Co., which has financed as much construction in the first six weeks of 2011 as it did in all of last year.