CHARLOTTE – Wachovia Preferred Funding Corp. (NYSE: WNAPr) announced today that its board of directors has declared a regular quarterly dividend on its Series A 7.25 percent preferred securities.

RANDLEMAN – To kick off the 2006 NASCAR racing season at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Atlanta-area Polaris dealerships have joined forces to raise money for Kyle and Pattie Petty's Victory Junction Gang Camp.

DUNN – G&D Transportation, a trucking company that transports shipping containers from seaports in the Carolinas and Virginia, has purchased the office complex, maintenance shop and 26 acres of land at the former Alliance Truck Driving School.

RALEIGH – The deadline for the Touchstone Energy Sports Camps Scholarships sponsored by North Carolina's Touchstone Energy cooperatives is fast approaching. This year scholarships are being offered to the Kay Yow Basketball Camp for female students in 6-8th grades and to the Roy Williams Basketball Camp for male students in 6-8th grades. Applications for both camps must be submitted or postmarked by March 31, 2006.

SANFORD – The Pantry, Inc. (Nasdaq: PTRY), the leading independently operated convenience store chain in the southeastern U.S., today announced that it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Shop-A-Snak Food Mart, Inc., which operates 38 convenience stores in Alabama.

RALEIGH – North Carolina tops the Southeast in attracting new industrial plants and ranks 5th nationally in business growth, according to Site Selection magazine’s annual ranking.

GARNER – The U.S. Small Business Administration will host a free workshop on April 11 that will allow small business owners to apply for loans.

GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. – SmartCare Family Medical Centers and Kerr Drug Inc. have entered into an agreement to open medical centers in select Kerr Drug stores in North and South Carolina. As part of the agreement, SmartCare Family Medical Centers will design, build and operate its medical centers within select Kerr Drug stores. The centers are scheduled to open during the second quarter of 2006 and will offer consumers in North and South Carolina a convenient complement to their important physician relationships.

ASHEBORO – Randolph Hospital received approval today from the North Carolina Division of Facility Services to build a $16 million Outpatient Center adjacent to the existing hospital.

RALEIGH – Progress Energy (NYSE: PGN) today released its report on global climate change, saying that there is enough understanding of the issue to warrant action by the private and public sectors. The company also called for the development of a national climate change policy and a balanced solution to address the challenge.

RALEIGH – Progress Energy's (NYSE: PGN) board of directors today declared a dividend on the company's common stock. The quarterly dividend was declared at 60.5 cents per share, payable on May 1, 2006, to shareholders of record as of April 10, 2006. This represents a total annual dividend of $2.42 per share

FAYETTEVILLE – The annual Around the World Run, which is a celebration of cultural and international diversity, will take place on April 1, 2006, at Ft. Bragg. The run is US Track & Field accredited, and features a 5k and 10k race through the Mata-mile course, used historically by Special Forces and Airborne Soldiers as a training area. Paraclete is a proud Around the World Donor, and feels honored to support such causes that help military families whose loved ones are deployed all over the world making it a better place to live for the diverse peoples whom they help.

DUNN – New Century Bank announced today that it has created a separate mortgage division under a new name – NC Bank Mortgage.

RALEIGH – Three small towns in the Sandhills are among 20 applicants selected to take part in the three-year N.C. Small Towns Economic Prosperity, or NC STEP, demonstration program.

SOUTHERN PINES – Delta Air Lines announced today that it would begin round-trip service between Atlanta and the Moore County Airport on June 22.

RALEIGH – Department of Defense procurement spending in North Carolina increased 33 percent last year to nearly $3 billion, with the spending benefiting several areas outside the state’s traditional military centers, according to Gov. Mike Easley.

RALEIGH – Business people and economic developers in the Research Triangle Region can learn how to capitalize on opportunities in foreign markets when Wake Technical Community College hosts a seminar March 29 on U.S. foreign trade zones.

ASHEBORO – The Board of Directors of FNB Corp. (NASDAQ:FNBN) has declared a regular quarterly dividend of $.15 per share, which is the same rate as paid in the prior quarter. The dividend will be paid on April 14, 2006 to shareholders of record on March 30, 2006.

TROY – First Bancorp (Nasdaq: FBNC), the parent company of First Bank, has announced an upward revision of $1,982,000, or 14 cents per diluted share, to its previously announced fourth quarter and full year 2005 earnings.

NORWOOD – A list of notable Olympians are among the world-class athletes scheduled to compete at The Fork Farm in Norwood, North Carolina during "Outdoor Heritage Days," April 6-9, 2006. Also participating are some of the brightest new stars in the Olympic sport of eventing -- a triathlon of dressage, cross country jumping, and show jumping.

SANFORD – Central Carolina Community College announced today that it has negotiated with the Watson families who own land on Kelly Drive adjacent to the college to obtain the 56 acres and all structures on the property for $2,194,408, or 25 percent less than the original $2.9 million asking price.

CONCORD – CT Communications, Inc. (Nasdaq: CTCI) today announced that Palmetto MobileNet, L.P. ("Palmetto"), a limited partnership that has a 50% ownership interest in ten wireless partnerships covering approximately two million people in North and South Carolina, has sold its ownership interests in the ten wireless partnerships to Alltel Corporation for approximately $455 million in cash.

GREENSBORO – RFMD(R) (Nasdaq: RFMD), a leading provider of proprietary radio frequency integrated circuits (RFICs) for wireless communications applications, today announced an $80 million wafer fabrication facility (fab) expansion. The planned expansion, located on the Company's Greensboro campus, is expected to increase RFMD's wafer manufacturing capacity by approximately 40% from current levels - enabling continued robust growth in wireless markets utilizing RFMD's market leading GaAs HBT and GaAs pHEMT process technologies.

CHICAGO – Did you know that the average American who loses their job to outsourcing takes a pay cut of 20% when they are re-employed? Ouch!

MOUNT GILEAD – McRae Industries, Inc. (OTC Pink Sheets: MRINA; MRINB) reported consolidated net revenues from continuing operations for the second quarter of fiscal 2006 of $20,424,000 as compared to $15,525,000 for the second quarter of fiscal 2005. Net earnings from continuing operations for the second quarter of fiscal 2006 amounted to $1,276,000, or $.55 per diluted Class A common share as compared to net earnings from continuing operations of $484,000, or $.23 per diluted Class A common share, for the second quarter of fiscal 2005. Earnings per share were impacted by the reduction in outstanding shares resulting from the completion of the reverse/forward stock split in December 2005. Approximately 194,000 common shares were purchased in the transaction for approximately $2.8 million.

DURHAM – The Triangle Chapters of the National Investor Relations Institute (NIRI) and The Association for Corporate Growth (ACG) announce SouthEast Invest 2006, which will be held April 5-6, 2006, at the Washington Duke Inn and Golf Club in Durham, NC. This is the fourth annual institutional, invitation-only investor conference featuring presentations by chief executive officers and chief financial officers of the SouthEast's leading public companies.

TROY – First Bank, the bank subsidiary of First Bancorp (Nasdaq: FBNC), announces today its intent to remain at its current location at Eastgate Mall, Albemarle, North Carolina. First Bank currently leases the land at this location and has a pending agreement to acquire this same land in May 2006.

ASHEBORO – Michael C. Miller, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of FNB Corp. (FNB) (NASDAQ: FNBN) and W. Alex Hall, Jr., President and Chief Executive Officer of Integrity Financial Corporation (Integrity) (NASDAQ: IFCB) today announced the approval of FNB Corp. shareholders and Integrity Financial Corporation shareholders to complete the merger of Integrity into FNB. Pending receipt of regulatory approval, the transaction is expected to close in April. FNB will be known as FNB United Corp. following the merger.

Central Electric Membership Corporation and Cooperative Council of North Carolina are sponsoring Cooperative Leadership Camp for rising sophomores or rising juniors in high school whose parents or guardians receive service from Central Electric.

DURHAM – Optimism from chief financial officers jumped this quarter. Even though CFOs expect higher inflation, they say that rising prices will not hurt their businesses and that the Federal Reserve should not raise interest rates anytime soon. Companies will continue to accumulate cash during 2006 and U.S. firms are willing to pay more than $70 per barrel to reduce U.S. dependency on Middle Eastern oil.

PITTSBORO – Biolex Therapeutics was awarded special merit recognition in a global competition for excellence in pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities. Biolex was presented the award in New York at the INTERPHEX 2006 Conference and Exhibition, the world's largest and most comprehensive pharmaceutical manufacturing conference. Biolex was recognized for the 2005 expansion of its Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP)-certified production facility in Pittsboro, N.C.

MOCKSVILLE – Bank of the Carolinas (Nasdaq: BCAR) announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a cash dividend of $0.05 per share of common stock, payable on April 19, 2006, to shareholders of record on April 5, 2006.

CHARLOTTE – On March 22, 2006, a jury in federal court in the Southern District of New York decided in favor of Bank of America, N.A. and S1 Corporation in a patent infringement lawsuit brought by TradeCard, Inc. over Bank of America's use of S1's Purchase Order Processing System (POPS), an electronic tool that facilitates global trade letter of credit and open account transactions.

WINSTON-SALEM – For the fourth year in a row, BB&T Corporation (NYSE: BBT) has been named to Training magazine's "Training Top 100" list in its March 2006 issue. The list is a national survey of organizations that excel at workforce training and development.

ORLANDO – Gasoline prices are at their highest levels since last November 9 with the current nationwide average price of self-serve, regular gasoline at $2.363 per gallon, AAA's daily, online Fuel Gauge Report (http://www.aaafuelgaugereport.com) shows.