4Q decline is under 1%
Maryland home prices fell at the end of the year, the first dip into negative territory since 1995, according to new government figures. Prices in the state dropped just under 1 percent in the final three months of 2007, compared with fourth quarter of 2006. The conditions for sellers worsened as the year progressed.
Utility disputes `windfall'
Part of the settlement that was designed to open the state's electricity market to competition could turn into a "billion-dollar windfall" for the Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.'s parent - one paid for by the utility's customers, regulators said. Constellation Energy Group said the settlement was agreed to by company and state leaders.
Write-downs grow at bank
A month after Provident Bankshares Corp. wrote off nearly $48 million in soured mortgage-related investments, the Baltimore bank announced it could take additional charges of up to $47.7 million in the first quarter. Actual write-downs will be determined at the end of the quarter, the bank said.
FluMist plans to make more
Gaithersburg's MedImmune Inc. plans to triple production of FluMist, its inhaled flu vaccine, to a record 12 million doses. The decision came after a federal panel that advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended flu vaccinations for children from six months to 18.
New baggage system at BWI
State aviation officials expect to seek the Board of Public Works' approval in March for a $32 million baggage screening system that could allow Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport's second-largest carrier, AirTran Airways, to double its number of daily departures. The project should begin this spring.
