Biz Buzz

LONG ISLAND

Mortgage help forum on tap

Nassau County homeowners at risk of losing their homes can get free housing and legal advice on Monday, Oct. 1 at the Nassau County Bar Association's monthly foreclosure clinic, from 3 to 6 p.m. at 15th and West streets in Mineola. Volunteer attorneys will offer one-on-one guidance about foreclosure, loan modification and bankruptcy. Federally certified housing counselors will also be available. Residents who meet income guidelines can meet with Nassau-Suffolk Law Services, which provides reduced-fee legal services. Attorneys who speak Spanish will be on site, and those fluent in other languages can be made available upon request. To make a reservation, call 516-747-4070.-- Maura McDermott

Comtech revenue down 21%

Comtech Telecommunications Corp., the Melville-based defense-electronics contractor, said Wednesday its fiscal fourth-quarter revenue declined 21 percent, to $112.8 million, on sagging sales to the U.S. Army. The company's net income fell 33 percent during May, June and July, to $7.9 million, or 45 cents per share. Comtech said the drop in sales was expected because of a falloff in orders from the military for mobile data communications equipment. The company released its earnings after the market closed. Comtech stock was up nearly 4 percent in after-hours trading, to $29.45 per share. -- Joe Ryan

NATION

CEOs less likely to be hiring

A survey of U.S. chief executives shows a sharp drop in the number of large companies that plan to add jobs or hire more workers. The Business Roundtable said Wednesday that only 29 percent of its member CEOs plan to increase hiring over the next six months. That's down from 36 percent in June, when the group last released its quarterly survey. It's also much lower than the 52 percent of CEOs in early 2011 who said they planned to boost hiring, the highest percentage since the survey began in 2002. Jim McNerney, chairman of the Roundtable and CEO of The Boeing Co., said CEOs are worried about the impact of budget cuts and tax increases that are set to take effect at the start of next year. The pending U.S. budget changes, known as the "fiscal cliff," throw "cold water on long-term business planning," he said.

More banks with website woes

Two more major American banks, U.S. Bank and PNC, reported problems with their customer websites Wednesday after a financial services security group warned about possible cyberattacks. U.S. Bank spokesman Tom Joyce said some customers experienced intermittent delays. He said the bank was working to fix the problem and was working with law enforcement. A spokesman for PNC, Fred Solomon, said its online operations were mostly normal but some customers had trouble accessing PNC.com. He said the bank was aware of a similar threat for Thursday and was taking precautions. The U.S. Bank spokesman said the issue appeared to be related to problems at other banks in the past week. JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America both had site problems last week; Wells Fargo reported problems Tuesday.

Feds: Parking-lot firms must sell

The Justice Department is requiring the two largest parking management companies in the U.S. to sell 107 of their garages and lots in the central business districts of 28 cities in order to proceed with a merger. If the deal is approved by a federal court, Chicago-based Standard Parking Corp. will acquire Central Parking Corp. of Nashville, Tenn., in a transaction valued at $345 million. Standard and Central each operates some 2,200 parking facilities. Cities where they would sell facilities include New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Houston and Philadelphia. -- AP