The worldwide casino company run by billionaire Boston native Sheldon Adelson will bypass the chance to build a casino in Massachusetts, saying the state’s plan to license up to three casinos and a slot parlor is going to dilute the market, according to a spokesman. Adelson, who had spent nearly $500,000 lobbying lawmakers on the casino bill approved last November, is known for building lavish gambling resorts, some costing several billion dollars. “With multiple facilities being proposed, it didn’t synch with our business model,’’ Ron Reese, a spokesman for Adelson’s company, Las Vegas Sands Corp., said Monday. The confirmation that Adelson will skip the Bay State comes just two weeks after another Las Vegas casino developer, Steve Wynn, abandoned his plans to build a resort ... Continue reading →

Auto insurance rates, which tumbled after Massachusetts opened the state to more competition four years ago, are marching steadily upward again. Many of the state’s largest auto insurers have raised rates in each of the past two years, citing the need to keep pace with the rising cost of claims for car accidents, theft, and injuries. In addition, some companies say they could not make enough money after they dropped rates in 2008 to compete with rival insurers or to gain market share. Quincy Mutual, for instance, raised rates by 7.5 percent last month on top of a 5.6 percent increase last year after initially cutting rates by 10 percent in 2008. Overall, its rates are 3.3 percent higher than four years ago, when the ... Continue reading →

sleung02186 19 photos · 19 followers “Cable car ride up mountain with view of Buddha below” Continue reading →

sleung02186 16 photos · 19 followers “Goseong region of Korea. Wish could say it is a fine mist but likely smog from China” Continue reading →

sleung02186 13 photos · 18 followers “Chinese botanical garden at Honolulu airport. Good way to relax before an international flight” Continue reading →

The excitement surrounding Facebook Inc.’s forthcoming Wall Street debut arrived in Boston Tuesday as the company’s top executives pitched the massive social media company to hundreds of potential investors, and Mark Zuckerberg, its 27-year-old celebrity chief executive officer, met privately with some of the city’s premier money managers. It was the second stop in a nationwide “roadshow’’ ahead of the social network’s initial public offering, when it will sell shares on public markets for the first time. The company could begin trading as early as May 18, and is expected to raise up to $11 billion in the biggest-ever stock launch for a technology company. Last week, it set a $28-to-$35 price range for its shares. Zuckerberg skipped Tuesday’s main presentation of the roadshow, an ... Continue reading →

Steve Ruark for The New York TimesJoseph Quigley, a 32-year-old insurance sales manager, would like to buy Facebook shares.Facebook, which plans to make a market debut this month that could value it at $86 billion, is the stock that everyone seems to want.If you are a small investor, lots of luck. Typically, shares of the hottest initial public offerings go almost entirely to the biggest clients of the Wall Street banks that oversee the stock sale. And no I.P.O. is as big or as eagerly awaited this year as Facebook’s.Yet there may be a sliver of hope. Facebook’s executives and underwriters have discussed raising the number of shares that will go to retail investors, say people briefed on the matter who were not authorized to ... Continue reading →

Facebook on Track for I.P.O. Roadshow By EVELYN M. RUSLITony Avelar/Bloomberg NewsFacebook’s chief financial officer, David Ebersman, is expected to play a large role in the roadshow.Facebook is still on track for a mid-May I.P.O.Despite whispers of delays, the world’s largest social network is in the process of finalizing its prospectus with regulators and may begin its roadshow as soon as early next week, according to two people briefed on the company’s plans. The presentation to investors — which should span New York, Boston, San Francisco, Chicago, Baltimore and possibly Los Angeles — is expected to last eight to nine days, these people said. Based on that time frame, Facebook will be ready to go public near mid-May.These people cautioned that the company’s plans could ... Continue reading →

Actress Jessica Alba came to Cambridge on Tuesday to talk diapers. The 31-year-old “Fantastic Four’’ actress recently added technology entrepreneur to her resume when she cofounded the Honest Co., an e-commerce site focused on selling biodegradable diapers. She was in Harvard Square for General Catalyst Partners’ annual gathering of companies in the venture capital firm’s portfolio. In March, General Catalyst led a $27 million round of funding for Alba’s company. Alba, who is president of the Honest Co., was the keynote speaker at the event, which drew hundreds of entrepreneurs and investors to the Charles Hotel. The company will use the funding from General Catalyst to expand its line of products, which include organic baby oil and chemical-free laundry detergent. The company, which was launched ... Continue reading →