Newsome front-runner for new state ports CEO

After a nearly five-month search, the State Ports Authority has zeroed in on a choice for its new chief executive: Jim Newsome, president of German-based container carrier Hapag Lloyd's America division.

Though SPA officials would not release any details of the potential hire, sources close to the process said the agency narrowed its list to five candidates, with Newsome as the clear front-runner.

The SPA board had not yet approved the new hiring, but that is expected to happen at its next meeting. Newsome declined to comment.

Positive growth

South Carolina's economy grew in 2008 despite the recession, but economists said the state will continue to face challenges during the next year. The state's gross domestic product increased 0.6 percent last year to $127 billion, the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis reported. That was on par with the national average of 0.7 percent.

Bill blasting

Gov. Mark Sanford nixed legislation that would restructure the State Ports Authority and, among other provisions, strip him of the authority to remove board members at will.

Lawmakers will take up the bill again when they reconvene June 16. If the bill receives a two-thirds vote from the Senate and the House, it becomes law.

Lopped branch

Bank of America notified customers that it is shutting down its longstanding Charleston Medical Center Branch at Calhoun and Gadsden streets for good Aug. 21, but it declined to give a specific reason.

The move will leave the lender with one location on the peninsula: about a mile away at 200 Meeting St.. The next nearest full-service branch is about two miles away across the Ashley River.

Auto response

Some General Motors dealers in the Charleston area said they did not expect GM's historic bankruptcy filing to significantly affect their operations.

W. Harold Arnold Jr., president of Sentry Buick Pontiac GMC, said he understands customers' concerns but that they should not worry. "I'm a local dealer, and we're not General Motors," Arnold said. "We're a South Carolina corporation, and we see no problems."

Rob Marchant, dealer-operator of Marchant Chevrolet in Ravenel said he predicts possible delays on some reimbursements to businesses such as his own. "If a customer comes in for a warranty repair, we might have to wait a few days to get paid back," he said.