They're No. 1 Since the start of the economic downturn, North Carolina's ranks of the uninsured have grown more than in any other state. The number of the uninsured in North Carolina has grown by 322,000 to 1.8 million since 2007.

They're No. 2 North Carolina is the second best state

to do business in, according to Chief

Executive magazine, and Texas is the best. South Carolina is ninth best, and Georgia is fourth. The worst is California, and the second worst is New York.

Unemployment The unemployment rate in South Carolina reached 11 percent in February. The North Carolina unemployment rate for February hit 10.7 percent. The nation's unemployment rate for March was 8.5 percent, meaning 13.2 million Americans were unemployed. The nation has lost 5.1 million jobs since the recession began in December 2007.

Putt'n out the Ritz With its three Columbia locations, Ritz Camera Centers Inc. has heard approval from its federal bankruptcy judge to sell 400 stores, keeping about 375 stores after the sales.

How did your bank do? In the last quarter of 2008, U.S. banks lost $32.1 billion, according to the FDIC.

Hotel business Charleston County hotels had a February average occupancy rate of 61%. In January, the rate was 49%. Last year's February rate was 69%. A state judge ruled that hotel booking company Expedia.com failed to properly pay sales and hotel taxes. Expedia owes South Carolina more than $4.7 million.

National home count Builders' housing starts jumped in February to a 583,000 annual pace from 477,000 in January. New sales of single- family homes rose 4.7 percent in February, up to 337,000 from January's 322,000. However, February 2008 had new home sales of 572,000, leaving February 2009 41 percent lower in sales.

Growth The Charlotte- Gastonia- Concord metropolitan area ranks seventh among the 100 fastest growing in the country. For the year ended July 1, the growth rate was 3.4 percent. The Raleigh- Cary area was the nation's fastest growing at 4.3 percent. The slowest growth was the Seattle- Tacoma- Bellevue, Wash., area at 1.4 percent. Hedge your bets According to Hedge Fund Research, during the fourth quarter of 2008, investors withdrew a record $150 billion from hedge funds, and 778 funds liquidated. The total number of liquidations in 2008 was 1,471, a 70 percent increase from the earlier record of 848 liquidations in 2005.

Charleston buses The Charleston Area Regional Transportation Authority plans to buy as many as 15 new buses with $4.5 million in stimulus money.

North Carolina Railroad Co. The NCRR is conducting a commuter rail ridership and market study for 140 miles of track between Goldsboro and Greensboro. There is already a successful commuter line between Charlotte and Raleigh. South Carolina has no commuter rail line.

A different Trane Trane, a leading global provider of indoor comfort systems and services, plans to expand its Richland County operations. The company will invest $10 million to improve its manufacturing capabilities. In Richland County, Trane employs 395 people.

Atlanta loses to Charlotte GMAC Financial Services recently picked Charlotte over Atlanta for a relocation of several hundred jobs. GMAC is also reportedly looking for a new corporate headquarters location, leaving Detroit for Atlanta, possibly, where GMAC already has 250 people.

Duke Energy moves into high- rise Duke will lease about a third of the space, 500,000 square feet, in a 48- story tower on South Tryon Street in downtown Charlotte. Columbia's SCANA, parent company of SCE&G, is vacating about 500,000 square feet on Main Street to move into its own buildings on a Cayce campus next to the freeway and the Congaree River.

Belk down Charlotte- based department store Belk lost $213 million for its fiscal year ended January 31. The company earned about $96 million for fiscal 2008.

Mercury Florence- area physicians plan to start their own mercury testing program among the people of the Pee Dee region. Santee- Cooper's proposed coal- burning power plant is suspect, according to the volunteer physicians, for its potential emissions of mercury in an area that already has a high mercury count. The physicians are in partnership with the Conservation Voters of South Carolina, the Sierra Club, and the South Carolina Wildlife Federation.