Rosie, dog lost during I-75 crash, back home with family New information has been released about Rosie, the dog that went missing in a car crash last weekend and was found Wednesday.
Gatorama owner loses fingers at feeding show The owner of Gatorama in Palmdale was bitten by one of his gators during a feeding show over the weekend, losing two fingers.
WWII Veteran hits 100th birthday milestone Hundreds of people came to celebrate WWII veteran Vernon Nelson’s 100th birthday.
FORT MYERS Volunteers boost Harry Chapin Food Bank’s reach The Harry Chapin Food Bank relies heavily on its volunteers to make a significant impact in the community.
SOUTH FORT MYERS Twins’ superfan attends Spring Training for more than two decades Twins’ superfan Neil Pierce lives more than one thousand miles away from Hammond Stadium and never misses a game in Lee County.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers gears up for Edison Festival of Light with safety in focus The parade will begin at Fort Myers High School, travel up U.S. Highway 41, and conclude in downtown Fort Myers.
Byron Donalds accused of voter fraud U.S. Congressman Byron Donalds is being accused of voter fraud. A fellow lawmaker on Capitol Hill is making the allegations.
NAPLES FWC seeks Naples community’s help for derelict boat removal The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is searching for derelict boats in Southwest Florida and is asking for community assistance.
FORT MYERS Red dye ban and Valentine’s Day Red is synonymous with Valentine’s Day, seen in everything from roses to candy. However, some red sweets may not be as appealing this year due to a recent ban on a common dye linked to cancer risks.
FORT MYERS Savannah Bananas at JetBlue Park this weekend Are you heading out to watch the Savannah Bananas this weekend? This is what you need to know.
Punta Gorda Historic District home set for demolition, rebuild When builder T.J. Thornberry was hired by clients to demolish and build two new homes on their Chasteen Street properties within the Punta Gorda Historic District, little did he realize he would be embarking on an odyssey laden with roadblocks lasting nearly three months.
PORT CHARLOTTE Rays begin Spring Training ahead of season away from home The Charlotte Sports Park is home to the Tampa Bay Rays for the next six weeks for, but after that they don’t actually get to go home.
Eligible taxpayers in Florida file for free with IRS Direct File The Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers in Florida they can file their taxes for free with the agency using IRS Direct File.
TALLAHASSEE (AP) DeSantis signs sweeping immigration bills after a feud with Florida Republicans Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis approved a package of sweeping immigration bills.
Registration for Lee County Parks and Recreation Summer Camp to open Lee County Parks and Recreation Summer Camp has announced that registration will open to the public in two weeks.
Rosie, dog lost during I-75 crash, back home with family New information has been released about Rosie, the dog that went missing in a car crash last weekend and was found Wednesday.
Gatorama owner loses fingers at feeding show The owner of Gatorama in Palmdale was bitten by one of his gators during a feeding show over the weekend, losing two fingers.
WWII Veteran hits 100th birthday milestone Hundreds of people came to celebrate WWII veteran Vernon Nelson’s 100th birthday.
FORT MYERS Volunteers boost Harry Chapin Food Bank’s reach The Harry Chapin Food Bank relies heavily on its volunteers to make a significant impact in the community.
SOUTH FORT MYERS Twins’ superfan attends Spring Training for more than two decades Twins’ superfan Neil Pierce lives more than one thousand miles away from Hammond Stadium and never misses a game in Lee County.
FORT MYERS Fort Myers gears up for Edison Festival of Light with safety in focus The parade will begin at Fort Myers High School, travel up U.S. Highway 41, and conclude in downtown Fort Myers.
Byron Donalds accused of voter fraud U.S. Congressman Byron Donalds is being accused of voter fraud. A fellow lawmaker on Capitol Hill is making the allegations.
NAPLES FWC seeks Naples community’s help for derelict boat removal The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission is searching for derelict boats in Southwest Florida and is asking for community assistance.
FORT MYERS Red dye ban and Valentine’s Day Red is synonymous with Valentine’s Day, seen in everything from roses to candy. However, some red sweets may not be as appealing this year due to a recent ban on a common dye linked to cancer risks.
FORT MYERS Savannah Bananas at JetBlue Park this weekend Are you heading out to watch the Savannah Bananas this weekend? This is what you need to know.
Punta Gorda Historic District home set for demolition, rebuild When builder T.J. Thornberry was hired by clients to demolish and build two new homes on their Chasteen Street properties within the Punta Gorda Historic District, little did he realize he would be embarking on an odyssey laden with roadblocks lasting nearly three months.
PORT CHARLOTTE Rays begin Spring Training ahead of season away from home The Charlotte Sports Park is home to the Tampa Bay Rays for the next six weeks for, but after that they don’t actually get to go home.
Eligible taxpayers in Florida file for free with IRS Direct File The Internal Revenue Service reminds taxpayers in Florida they can file their taxes for free with the agency using IRS Direct File.
TALLAHASSEE (AP) DeSantis signs sweeping immigration bills after a feud with Florida Republicans Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis approved a package of sweeping immigration bills.
Registration for Lee County Parks and Recreation Summer Camp to open Lee County Parks and Recreation Summer Camp has announced that registration will open to the public in two weeks.
NEW YORK, NY – APRIL 15: Pedestrians pass a Chase bank branch in lower Manhattan on April 15, 2016 in New York City. As global markets continue to be rattled by the fall in energy prices and the easing of the Chinese economy, JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America and Wells Fargo announced on Thursday that their profits fell in the first quarter. At JPMorgan revenue fell 13 percent from a year earlier. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) In 2018, the largest US banks made more than $120 billion, an all-time high. Last year may have been even better. We’ll find out soon. This week, the top six US banks — JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citigroup, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs — are scheduled to report earnings for the final three months of 2019. Analysts are optimistic that a healthy US economy, a steadier picture for interest rates and solid loan growth powered banks to another year of records. “We’re expecting the fourth quarter [last year] to do better than the fourth [quarter the year before], and that would put them in record earnings territory,” Stephen Biggar, director of financial institutions research at Argus Research, told me. For banks, the recent challenge has been to fend off the impact of lower interest rates, which eat into their lending profits. But lower rates also encourage more customers to borrow money — perhaps by issuing corporate debt, or taking out a mortgage. Meanwhile, jobs growth has been steady and consumer spending remains strong, so the cost of issuing credit is lower than it would normally be at this point in the cycle, according to Biggar. “If you have a job, [or] you lose one and can easily find another one, then you’re current on your bills and you don’t have those defaults,” he said. Investor insight: Bank stocks rallied in the final quarter of 2019. The KBW Bank Index rose roughly 13%, while the S&P 500 gained 9%. Driving those gains, in large part, is clear messaging on interest rates from the Federal Reserve. The central bank signaled in December that after three cuts in 2019, it intends to hold rates steady in 2020. That helps banks since it gets borrowers off the sidelines who may have been waiting for rates to fall even lower. The bigger picture: US banks kick off a busy earnings season. FactSet forecasts that overall earnings for the S&P 500 will decline by 2%. Should that outlook pan out, it would be the first time the index has had four straight quarters of year-over-year earnings declines since mid-2016, per analyst John Butters. One step forward in the US-China trade fight Nearly two years into the trade fight between the United States and China, the signing of the “phase one” US-China trade deal, expected Wednesday, will be a symbolically important moment — even if the reaction from investors is muted. The latest: China said last week that Liu He, the country’s top trade negotiator, will travel to Washington to sign the agreement. Trump has said the signing will occur on Wednesday or “shortly thereafter.” US officials and others familiar with the agreement have said it includes some cuts to existing tariffs and a pledge from China to purchase more American goods and services. China is also said to have agreed to make structural changes to how it deals with intellectual property rights. A big caveat: It’s hard to know for sure what’s been agreed to since the text of the “phase one” agreement still hasn’t been released. The deal also doesn’t mean the standoff between the world’s two largest economies is over. “Phase two” is expected to involve deeper issues that could be more difficult to resolve. Plus, the United States continues to lobby allies to avoid Chinese telecom equipment company Huawei when building out next-generation 5G networks. No truce will be stable while the battle over technology continues behind the scenes. Up next Monday: New Boeing CEO starts Tuesday: China trade data; US inflation data; Delta Air Lines, Citigroup, JPMorgan Chase and Wells Fargo report earnings Wednesday: Bank of America, BlackRock, and Goldman Sachs report earnings Thursday: US retail sales; Charles Schwab and Morgan Stanley report earnings Friday: China GDP; State Street reports earnings