Lobster lifts Maine to No. 3 for value of seafood harvest

A new report shows that Maine’s seafood harvest last year was the third most valuable among the states, thanks to lobster.

An annual report released Wednesday by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that Alaska’s seafood harvest was the nation’s tops by far in terms of value, followed by Massachusetts and Maine. Maine’s catch was worth $448 million, with lobster accounting for a majority of the value.

The report said Stonington was the No. 1 Maine port for the value of the seafood landed there, at $46 million. Virtually all of Stonington’s catch is lobsters.

Portland was the No. 2 port in terms of value, but was tops in Maine for volume of the catch.

LePage’s trade delegation continues on to Colombia

Gov. Paul LePage’s five-day trade mission aimed at expanding opportunities for Maine businesses has moved on to Colombia.

The Republican governor and the Maine delegation resumed meetings Thursday after arriving in Bogota, a day earlier.

They finished up their trip in Mexico on Tuesday night with a reception in Mexico City.

Exxon Mobil earnings drop as refining margins collapse

Exxon Mobil Corp. earned nearly $8 billion in the third quarter, but that was down 18 percent as the company made a lot less money refining oil into fuel.

Although Exxon increased oil and gas production slightly, it wasn’t enough to offset weakness in refining.

Refining margins have collapsed this year. An easing of transportation bottlenecks has boosted the price of some North American crude oil.

Anheuser-Busch benefits from Grupo Modelo takeover

Anheuser-Busch InBev, the world’s largest brewer, says its third-quarter profits rose as the takeover of new brands and higher selling prices offset the impact of lower sales volumes.

The company, based in Leuven, Belgium, said Thursday that net profit was up 31 percent to $2.37 billion, from $1.81 billion in the same period a year earlier. The gain largely reflects the company’s $20 billion purchase in June of the 50 percent of Mexico’s Grupo Modelo it didn’t already own.

Mastercard’s profit receives boost from overseas growth

MasterCard said its third-quarter profit rose 14 percent as it got a boost from overseas growth and processed more payments.

The payments network, based in Purchase, N.Y., on Thursday said its net income rose to $879 million, or $7.27 per share, for the three months ended Sept. 30. That compared with $772 million, or $6.17 per share, last year.

– From staff and news services