Business briefs | Wells Fargo settles bid-rigging claims

Wells Fargo settles bid-rigging claims

CHARLOTTE, N.C. Wells Fargo & Co. and regulators announced Thursday a $148 million settlement to resolve accusations that Wachovia, which was purchased by Wells, participated in a bid-rigging scheme that hurt state and local governments.

It's the fourth major bank to settle with the consortium of federal agencies and state attorneys general. Bank of America Corp. settled for $137 million last December.

The settlement is also the second Wells Fargo has made on the issue in as many months.

Lowe’s to open support center in N.M.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. Home improvement retail giant Lowe's will open a customer support center in Albuquerque and invest around $15 million in the new facility, the N.C. company announced Thursday.

Company officials said it will renovate a 65,000 square-foot building on Jefferson Avenue in northeast Albuquerque for the planned call center, expected to open early next year. The company said the new center will create 250 jobs by March and a total of 600 jobs by the end of next year.

Don Easterling, a Lowe's vice president, said Albuquerque was chosen because the city is located in the mountain time zone and had a suitable building.

The new center will provide customer care, store support, internet sales support and repair services for Lowe's customers. It will be the company's first corporate office outside of its headquarters in North Carolina, according to company officials. The company, which is based in Mooresville, has a similar office in Wilkesboro, N.C.

Ford to resume paying dividend

DETROIT Ford Motor Co. said Thursday it will resume paying a dividend in March, more than five years after it halted payments because of financial problems.

The company's board approved a quarterly dividend of 5 cents per share. It will be paid on March 1 to shareholders of record as of Jan. 31.

Senate blocks consumer finance nominee

WASHINGTON As expected, Senate Republicans on Thursday blocked a confirmation vote on President Obama's choice to lead the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The continued GOP filibuster against former Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray comes after a week of political pressure from the Obama administration for a straight up-or-down vote on Cordray's fate. The Senate voted 53-45 to proceed with a confirmation vote, but that was seven votes shy of the 60 votes needed under Senate rules to break the GOP filibuster. Among senators from the Carolinas, only Democrat Kay Hagan of North Carolina favored proceeding.

From wire reports