Epic snows have meant economic woes across all industries

BOSTON — Ignore anyone who tells you snow is free.

Every work day lost during New England's historic winter has meant millions of dollars taken out of the regional economy.

IHS Global Insight, an economic analysis firm, estimates Massachusetts alone suffered roughly $1 billion in lost wages and profits, as storm after storm pummeled the region, delivering over eight feet of snow in roughly a month.

Retailers and restaurants were among the hardest hit, as customers held off on big purchases or chose to stay at home rather than enjoy a night on the town.

A survey released this week by Massachusetts business groups representing those and other industries reported sales dropped an average of 24 percent and payroll dropped about 7 percent among their small businesses members.

Car dealers and real estate agents complained the poorly-timed storms -- many of which hit on or around weekends -- were disastrous to business. And with the exception of the region's famed ski resorts, many New England hotels, transportation companies and other businesses in the travel and tourism trade say they've struggled too.

"January and February are always tough months for us because people just don't want to travel," said Christopher Crean, a vice president at Peter Pan, a Springfield-based long distance bus company. "But when you add in all the snow and cold and highway closures, that just compounds the injury. It's hard to make a profit."

Manufacturers, meanwhile, report they're just starting to catch up on nearly a month of lost productivity.

During the worst of the storms, assembly lines shut down, work orders were delayed or cancelled outright and treacherous roads and iced-over rail lines hindered transport of finished products.

"Not only were we losing sales on the front end of the storms, now we're paying a lot more on the back end to get product out," says Michael Tamasi, CEO of AccuRounds, a Massachusetts maker of shafts, valves and other parts for medical, defense, aerospace and IT companies. "We've been adding hours, stretching out the work day, working on Saturdays, whatever we need to do."

Business leaders say the storms, if anything, laid bare the shortcomings of two critical pieces of the regional economy: greater Boston's road and transit systems.

"We still have congested streets and longer commutes and that's meaning lost productivity," says Timothy Murray, president of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce. "The system has really been no match for Mother Nature."

Economists expect the ripple effects of New England's storms will be felt nationally, but it's too early to say to what extent.

Doug Handler, chief North American economist at the Massachusetts-based IHS Global Insight, says the storms likely won't have the economic punch of last year's winter, when a "polar vortex" exposed large swaths of the country to subzero temperatures and snow. That weather phenomenon caused widespread economic disruptions. Estimates for its overall economic impact have been pegged at anywhere from $15 billion to $50 billion.

"This is much more localized and in a region that can handle it, to a degree," Handler said, acknowledging that parts of the South and Mid-Atlantic are also seeing snows this week, albeit nothing on the scale of what New England has seen this winter. "We're prepared for it in New England, whereas last year, some regions just weren't."

Indeed, U.S. employers added 295,000 jobs in February, exceeding expectations, the Labor Department reported Friday. Within that data, Handler noted the number of workers in nonagricultural jobs that were unable to work because of inclement weather was roughly on par with February's historical average.

Elsewhere, Autodata Corp reported U.S. car sales in February were up about 5.3 percent from January but still fell short of expected gains. Analysts predict lost sales should be made up as the weather warms; U.S. new car sales are still on track to hit their highest level in more than a decade.

Economists also expect many New England industries will recover most lost productivity.

The region's population centers are now largely built around hospitals, universities, and the financial, health care and information technology sectors — industries that are somewhat resilient to weather-related shutdowns. Many workers can work from home or simply spend more time in the office catching up. But even among those high skill industries, there are limits to what can be done to soften the blow of bad weather.

Many drugmakers, research labs and other large health care and biotech institutions maintained 24/7 operations through the storms, taking on overtime costs or covering hotel stays and other travel expenses that likely won't be recouped, industry officials said.

"There's certain research that you just can't stop," said Peter Abair, of the Massachusetts Biotechnology Council, which represents more than 650 biotechnology companies and academic institutions. "To stop a project midstream is very difficult. All your expenses go out the door. You have to start from scratch."

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3 reasons Apple's watch will _ or won't _ change the game

SAN FRANCISCO — No one can argue that Apple has changed the way people live their lives. The company's iPod, iTunes, iPhone and iPad have shaken up music, phone and computer markets worldwide. Is the Apple Watch going to be able to do the same?

The stakes are big for Apple CEO Tim Cook: the watch is the first brand-new Apple product to be launched without legendary co-founder Steve Jobs. But the market is awash in smartwatches that have gained little traction. Here are three reasons the Apple Watch will finally move the needle in the smartwatch industry — and three reasons it might not.

WHY IT WILL CHANGE THE GAME

MORE FEATURES THAN RIVALS: Along with email, texts and phone calls, Apple says its watch will present news, health readings and other notifications in creative ways that can be read at a glance. It will have a heart rate monitor and accelerometer, and an internal motor that can signal the wearer with a subtle "tap" on the wrist. And Siri and Apple Pay will be built in. Apple is working with outside companies to create more apps; Cook has talked about using the watch as an electronic "key" for hotel doors or even cars.

A POWERFUL BRAND: The world's biggest tech company has a reputation for quality and a direct conduit to customers — it operates more than 400 retail stores around the world. And it has deep pockets to spend on advertising — it is showcasing the watch this month with a sleek, 12-page insert in Vogue and other fashion magazines.

APPLE'S TRACK RECORD: This wouldn't be the first Apple product that revolutionized a market where rivals had struggled to break through. Other companies made digital music players before the iPod, smartphones before the iPhone and even tablets before the iPad. Most of those products failed to catch on until Apple made devices so appealing they set new standards and created new demand, said Forrester Research analyst J.P. Gownder.

OR NOT

WHAT'S THE NEED?: Most smartwatches — including Apple's — only work with a smartphone nearby, so you can't swap one expensive gadget for the other. "What we've seen is that it's not obvious why people would want a smartwatch," says Gownder. A recent Forrester survey found some respondents didn't see a reason to buy one because they already owned a less-expensive fitness band or a full-featured smartphone (although it also found Apple fans ready to buy the new watch).

CONSUMERS NOT EXCITED: You can already buy smartwatches made by giant tech companies like Samsung, Sony or LG, or from a tech startup like Pebble, that track your heart rate, show you email and deliver other online services to your wrist. None of them have really caught on. Only about 5 million smartwatches were sold worldwide last year, according to market researchers at Strategy Analytics. By comparison, Apple sold 74.6 million iPhones in just the last quarter.

PRICE AND OBSOLESCENCE: Many of today's smartwatches sell for $200 or less. Apple plans to sell three models, starting at $349, but Piper Jaffray's Gene Munster predicts the average buyer will pay $550 for a watch and extra, interchangeable bands. Apple's high-fashion "Edition" model, made with 18-karat gold, is expected to cost thousands. While affluent consumers might pay that for a watch they can wear for years, or even hand down to their children, it's a lot of money for something that could become outdated if Apple releases a new model every year or so — as it does with smartphones.

Cook will make his case for the Apple Watch at a press event Monday, where he's expected to show off more features and apps. Expectations are high.

But even the iPhone didn't become a mainstream blockbuster in its first year, notes Creative Strategies analyst Ben Bajarin. Of the Apple Watch, he says, "people need to understand more about what this product is, and what it does, and I think that will evolve over time."

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Stately living at Beacon Hill brownstone

A pristine renovation of an 1890 single-family brownstone at 14 Charles River Square on the flat of Beacon Hill awaits a buyer with deep pockets and a taste for Old World charm and modern amenities.

Nestled in a cul-de-sac off Storrow Drive, this $3.85 million townhouse comes with a deeded parking space and spans 3,020 feet on five levels, with four bedrooms, four baths and a private deck with Charles River views.

"It's an unbelievable blend of convenience and privacy," said broker P.T. Vineburgh of Charlesgate Realty Group. "You're smack in the middle of Beacon Hill and yet on this private cul-de-sac. It's your own private oasis in the city. And the true rarity is it's totally newly renovated, turnkey, ready to go."

The entry level has a gas fireplace and the flexibility of family living or formal dining, with an eat-in chef's kitchen with its own recessed gas fireplace, custom white Shaker cabinetry, white granite countertops and high-end appliances, including a six-burner Thermador gas range, built-in refrigerator, pot filler and large pantry. Classic detail and millwork complement the Jacobean-stained maple hardwood flooring.

The second level has a living room, which overlooks the square out to the river and boasts a maple wet bar and a gas fireplace with a classic mantel. A guest bedroom has a closet and a marble full bath.

The master level has a bedroom with a gas fireplace, two closets and flex space that could be used as a nursery, an office or a walk-in closet. The master bathroom has a cherry double vanity, a tiled carrara marble soaking tub and a marble, subway-tiled shower with frameless glass.

The penthouse level can house a fourth bedroom or a den. It has a fireplace, a full bath, a wet bar and access to a 300-square-foot private roof deck with Charles River views.

The lower level — ideal for an au pair or guest suite — has a bedroom, family room or play room, and a full bathroom. It also includes a walk-though mudroom with custom built-ins and has direct access to a private parking space.

Home Showcase

• Address: 14 Charles River Square
• Bedrooms: Four
• Bathrooms: Four
• List price: $3.85 million
• Square feet: 3,020
• Price per square foot: $1,274.83
• Annual taxes: $17,371
• Fees: $1,000 annually for landscaping and snow removal
• Location: On private cul-de-sac, one block from shopping and a three- minute walk to the Red Line
• Built in: 1890, completely renovated in 2015
• Broker: P.T. Vineburgh of Charlesgate Realty Group at 857-383-3111

Pros:

• Deeded parking space
• Surround sound throughout with iHome technology
• Tankless hot-water heaters and five-zone HVAC with Nest thermostats

Cons:

• The building has no elevator
• Rear windows face a narrow, brick-lined alley

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Charger’s performance matches racy look

With menacing looks and an intimidating front grille, the 2015 Dodge Charger SXT Rallye AWD is an exhilarating vehicle to drive.

Scalloped body sides and a chiseled front end with LED fog lights and high-intensity discharge wrap-around headlamps, coupled with seamless racetrack taillights, make it exhilarating to look at, too.

Its style and features make competitors like the Chevy Impala and Ford Taurus seem, well, not as exciting.

All new for 2015, the Dodge Charger is quiet and relatively fuel efficient (18 mpg city/27 highway) as equipped with a robust 300-horsepower, 3.6-liter V6 24-valve engine. The Charger packs plenty of punch even if it doesn't have the optional 6.2-liter 707-horsepower Hellcat supercharged V8 engine — though it's easy to imagine what the Hellcat engine could do in this car.

The Charger's all-wheel-drive system handles both dry and wet roads like a champion and it even excels in snow. The 19-inch polished aluminum wheels and all-season tires keep this car in touch with the road. Other safety features like blind spot and cross path detection, lane departure warning, and advanced braking assistance help ensure safe arrival at your destination.

Dodge redesigned the interior of its Charger for 2015. The cockpit has a clean look with a 7-inch customizable gauge cluster. A new electronic shifter compliments the heated leather-wrapped steering wheel, which has stereo, phone and cruise controls.

The 8.4-inch touchscreen GPS and stereo controller connects with the 552-watt stereo to pump great sound through its 10 Beats speakers located throughout the cabin. The stereo receives satellite, Bluetooth audio, AM/FM and HD radio signals. The Garmin-based GPS maps are simple and easy to read. The voice guidance system is also top-notch. As any $40,580 car should, the Dodge Charger SXT has keyless entry.

Dodge's UConnect system makes it easy to establish a connection with your phone, and the speakerphone performed clearly. SiriusXM's travel link shows current gas prices, weather alerts, sports, and movie information.

Seating is incredibly comfortable in the Charger. The driver and passenger seats are eight-way adjustable with power controls. The Nappa leather sport seats are heated and ventilated, and have metallic leather accents with tungsten-accent stitching.

The cabin is roomy and has plenty of space in both the front and back seats. A power sunroof enhances the roominess. The trunk provides ample storage and has a pass through to the main cabin for oversized items.

The bottom line is that this Dodge will put a charge into any mundane driving task, yielding a thrilling driving experience.

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FDA’s OK opens the door to ‘biosimilar’ drugs

The Food and Drug 
Administration yesterday approved its first "biosimilar" drug — a lower-cost version of an expensive, complex medication — which could boost market competition and lead to billions of dollars in savings for insurers and patients.

"I think this helps promote innovation, and the companies will have to look for the next new product," said Dr. Aaron Kesselheim, an associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "This is how health care moves forward."

The drug, called Zarxio, was developed by Swiss pharmaceutical company Novartis and is modeled after Amgen's Neupogen, which increases white blood cells in patients receiving cancer treatments. Novartis has a research 
facility in Cambridge.

The medication falls into the category of "biotechnology" drugs, which are made from living cells.

A biosimilar differs from a generic, in that it's not a replica of the original drug, but it's close enough to be used in its place.

Zarxio is the first drug to gain FDA approval through the 351(k) pathway, a mechanism for biosimilars created in 2010 legislation.

This makes the approval a "historical moment," according to Kesselheim.

Dr. Andreas Klein, 
assistant director of the bone marrow and cell transplant program at Tufts Medical Center, said the hospital charges about $350 for each dose of 
Neupogen, and that will 
likely be cut 15 to 20 percent.

"We're going to see a lot of these drugs coming, these biosimilars appearing," Klein said. "This proves that this pathway works. It opens a door and it shows to the manufacturers who want to get into the business that the FDA knows how to accept these drugs now."

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Staples sales slide again

Staples Inc.'s sales dropped for the eighth consecutive quarter, but its profit beat analysts' estimates, as the No. 1 office supplies chain said it is pleased with progress toward its proposed $6.3 billion acquisition of No. 2 Office Depot Inc.

"We've met with the rating agencies and our lenders, and we're in the process of syndicating the debt financing," CEO Ronald Sargent said.

Staples has kicked off its integration planning, and Sargent said he has even greater confidence that it can reach $1 billion-plus in net savings by the end of the third year after the merger.

"This target is net of investments in pricing to provide increased value to our customers," he said.

Staples' fourth-quarter sales of $5.7 billion were down 4 percent from the same period last year; analysts expected $5.76 billion in sales. The company posted a net loss of 
$260 million, compared to net income of $212 million in the prior year.

Sargent also commented on the move this week by shareholder Starboard Value to push for Staples to "improve the composition" of its board. Staples will add two members of Office Depot's board, and lead independent director Robert Nakasone will be replaced by Paul-Henri Ferrand, Google's vice president of U.S. sales and operations, in June.

"We think he's going to be a terrific addition … as we kind of move from the big-box revolution of 10 to 15 years ago to the digital revolution," Sargent said.

"Certainly I'm not going to apologize for our board, because I think it's been a terrific board for a long time," he said. "It is composed of great diversity in terms of background and experience."

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Environmental advocates suing state over greenhouse gas law

BOSTON — A top environmental advocacy group is heading to court to ask a judge to order Massachusetts to move forward with a key provision of a landmark global warming law.

The Conservation Law Foundation said it will present oral arguments in Suffolk County Superior Court on Monday afternoon, arguing that the state has failed to live up to the 2008 Global Warming Solutions Act.

The group said the law requires the state Department of Environmental Protection to adopt regulations setting declining emissions goals for greenhouse gasses.

The group said the regulations, which have yet to be adopted, were supposed to have taken effect by January 2013.

In the lawsuit the group asks the court to order state environmental officials to establish the regulations with an effective date of Jan. 1, 2015.

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US job market faces hurdles even with 5.5 pct. unemployment

WASHINGTON — Unemployment in the U.S. has dropped to a seven-year low of 5.5 percent — a level normally considered the mark of a healthy job market. Yet that number isn't as encouraging as it might sound.

While U.S. employers added a solid 295,000 jobs in February, and the jobless rate fell from 5.7 percent, it went down mostly because many people gave up looking for work and were no longer officially counted as unemployed, the government reported Friday. What's more, wage gains remained sluggish.

Those trends suggest that the job market, while improving rapidly, isn't quite as healthy as it looks.

That complicates the Federal Reserve's task of figuring out when the economy has strengthened enough to withstand higher interest rates. The Fed is considering a rate increase as early as June.

With Friday's report, employers have now produced 12 straight monthly job gains above 200,000. It's the longest such stretch since 1994-95.

The U.S. is easily outshining most other major economies. For example, the unemployment rate in the 19 countries that share the euro is 11.2 percent, or twice the U.S. rate.

The robust U.S. job gains appear to have convinced many investors that the Fed will soon raise the short-term interest rate it controls. Investors on Friday sold ultra-safe U.S. Treasurys, a sign that many anticipate a rate increase. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note rose to 2.24 percent from 2.11 percent.

And they dumped stocks. The Dow Jones industrial average plummeted 276 points in afternoon trading.

A 5.5 percent unemployment rate is typically consistent with what economists call "full employment" — when the proportion of unemployed people has fallen so low that employers must raise pay to find enough qualified workers.

Companies then raise prices to pay for the higher wages. And the Fed usually follows suit by raising its benchmark short-term rate to cool growth and ward off inflation.

But the scars of the Great Recession have made the process hazier and more complicated.

"5.5 percent doesn't mean what it once did," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial. Full employment "is always a moving target, and it has moved down."

Since the recession ended in June 2009, the percentage of adults working or looking for work has fallen to a 37-year low of 62.8 percent. It has hovered around the mark for most of the past year.

Economists calculate that about half that decline reflects the aging of the population as the baby boom generation retires.

But another factor is that many Americans have become discouraged about their job prospects and have given up looking. Those out of work aren't counted as unemployed unless they are actively looking for jobs.

That has helped artificially lowered the rate since its peak of 10 percent in October 2009.

Many economists also argue the economy can't be near full employment if wages aren't growing. And average hourly earnings rose just 3 cents to $24.78 in February from the previous month.

Megan Greene, chief economist at John Hancock Financial Services, noted that hourly pay fell in February from January in the construction and mining industries. Such figures will outweigh the falling unemployment rate in Fed chair Janet Yellen's mind, she said, and perhaps discourage a rate increase soon.

Yet many other economists expect the Fed will put a rate increase into effect in June or September.

The short-term interest rate is usually at 3 percent or 4 percent when the economy is at full employment. It is now at a record low of zero, and inflation is practically nonexistent.

Tim Hopper, chief economist at TIAA-CREF, said that if unemployment keeps falling and inflation starts to pick up later this year, "the Fed will be behind the curve if they haven't already started raising rates."

Nearly 3.3 million more Americans are earning paychecks than 12 months ago. That has boosted U.S. consumer spending and the broader global economy. Many leading exporters, particularly China, Germany and Japan, depend on Americans' spending for a chunk of their growth.

February's hiring gains were broad-based. Some of the industries with the biggest gains include mostly low-paid work: Hotels and restaurants added 60,000 jobs, retailers 32,000.

But higher-paying fields also added jobs: Professional and business services, which include accountants, engineers and lawyers, gained 51,000, construction 29,000 and financial services 10,000.

Growth slowed in the final three months of last year to an annual rate of 2.2 percent after roaring ahead at nearly 5 percent last spring and summer. But consumer spending rose, a sign demand remains strong.

Dave Long, chief executive of Orangetheory Fitness, said the improving economy has given a boost to his fast-growing exercise studio business. He opened the first location five years ago in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The company now has nearly 200 sites in the U.S.

"As people have a little extra money ... it opens up their minds to spending a little more on a product like ours," he said.

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New concept in solar energy poised to catch on across US

MINNEAPOLIS — A new concept in renewable energy is catching fire across the country, allowing customers who might find solar panels too expensive or impractical to buy green energy anyway.

Community solar gardens first took off in Colorado a few years ago, and the model — also known as community or shared solar — has spread to Minnesota, California, Massachusetts and several other states. Capacity is expected to grow sharply this year, and interest is up among both residential customers who just like the idea and large companies that want to cut their carbon footprints.

The gardens feed electricity to the local power grid. Customers subscribe to that power and get credit on their utility bills, with contracts that typically lock in for 25 years and shelter against rate increases. Some developers say customer bills will drop below regular retail rates within a few years; others say the savings begin immediately.

"This is really the year that community solar becomes mainstream," said David Amster-Olszewski, CEO of Denver-based solar garden developer SunShare LLC, which runs two operations in Colorado and is developing more with Xcel Energy Inc., including in Minnesota.

Rooftop solar panels are becoming more popular among homeowners as the cost comes down, but that market is limited to only about one-fourth of U.S. residences, according to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, an arm of the U.S. Department of Energy. Community solar opens the door to many more, including renters, customers with shaded roofs and those who can't afford solar panels.

It's friendly to big customers, too. Ecolab Inc. is the first major corporate customer to commit to Minnesota's program. The Fortune 500 sanitation technology company will get enough electricity from a project in the suburbs to provide most of the power for its St. Paul headquarters.

At least 10 states promote ways for multiple customers to share renewable energy systems, according to the advocacy group Vote Solar, and a dozen states are actively promoting community solar.

California issued community solar regulations in late January, requiring three of the state's largest utilities to contract for 600 megawatts of new solar capacity. San Francisco-based Pacific Gas and Electric Co. will build the largest share, which could supply 30,000-50,000 customers, spokesman Jonathan Marshall said.

"A large number of our customers simply can't go solar on their own," Marshall said. "This is a tremendous opportunity for them to go to 100 percent solar if they want it."

In Massachusetts, Clean Energy Collective expects to complete three community solar facilities in June in Uxbridge that'll provide enough juice for 400-500 residential and commercial customers in the southern part of the state. Colorado-based developer CEC has two other facilities in Massachusetts that serve about 100-200 customers and expects to announce more projects soon, spokesman Tim Braun said.

Minnesota's Legislature passed a community solar gardens law in 2013, and solar backers were amazed when Xcel Energy got a flood of proposals soon after opening the approval process in December.

But Xcel complained to regulators that many turned out to be "utility-scale projects," saying it didn't believe that's what the Legislature had in mind. The law defines a garden as 1 megawatt or less, and Xcel said developers simply planned multiple small gardens next to each other to get around it. Xcel worried that its grid might need expensive upgrades to handle all that new electricity.

Solar developers and advocates dismissed Xcel's concerns, saying the more solar that displaces electricity from coal and gas the better.

One solar garden powering up this summer is at Bethel Evangelical Lutheran Church in Minneapolis, where roof panels will serve both the church and other subscribers. Pastor Brenda Froisland said her congregation has a progressive theology and wants to be good stewards of the Earth.

"As we learned more, it became a no-brainer for us," Froisland said. "We talked about using the power of the sun, s-u-n, to glorify the power of the Son, S-o-n."

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Will Apple Watch make time for Hollywood?

After revolutionizing the way Hollywood gets its content in front of mobile consumers with the iPod and iPad, the time has come for Apple to prove whether it has developed another viable distribution platform with its smallest screen yet: a watch.

With a press event scheduled for March 9 -- before a retail rollout in April -- Apple will reveal the partners behind the first round of apps on its smartwatch.

In the past, Disney has been an early adopter, making its films and TV shows available on Apple's mobile devices before other studios through the iTunes Store. The deal was a feather in the cap of Disney CEO Bob Iger, who has always tried to keep his company on the cutting edge.

The Mouse House could lead the charge in some form again; an Apple Watch version of the iconic Mickey Mouse watch already has been promised as an option for purchase. ESPN could also become a significant player given that up-to-the-minutes scores from the latest games would be a natural application. The sports broadcaster is launching a complete overhaul of its online presence this spring.

Another company that featured prominently in Apple's device launch plans was News Corp. When a subscription option was introduced to Apple's iPad, CEO Rupert Murdoch joined Apple for a joint press conference in 2011 to unveil the first publication, The Daily, created exclusively for that line of tablets. But that didn't go over too well; Daily was shuttered by the end of 2012.

Expect Facebook and Twitter to step forward and plant their social media presence on the Apple Watch screen. And CNN could also be a potential partner for Apple Watch, with breaking-news alerts an obvious feature. The Time Warner-owned news network was an inaugural content partner for another innovative device, Google Glass, though in retrospect that didn't really help the product get off the ground.

But Apple isn't necessarily banking much on traditional content to power its new device's screen this time around. It's not as if it's large enough to provide more than short bursts of texts or photos: The Apple Watch screen measures 1.5-1.7 inches. It's not yet clear if it can play video.

In its initial announcement of the device, Apple introduced an app from American Airlines that will enable travelers to use the watch to check into their flights. Since then, an app from hotel operator Starwood will let wearers do away with the traditional room key and open their doors digitally, while one from Panera Bread will serve as a digital wallet to pay for food, a feature that will promote Apple Pay.

With heart rate and motion sensors built into the Apple Watch, the company is clearly looking to enter -- and dominate -- a wearables market mostly made up of fitness trackers and smartwatches produced by companies like FitBit.

Apple also is targeting the $3 trillion health care market. Any apps sold for the watch, including those that can monitor glucose levels, would boost sales for the App Store, which generated $15 billion last year, up from $10 billion in 2013.

Yet with an iPhone required to make or receive calls, listen to music, interact with an iPhone camera, or control and Apple TV set-top box, the Apple Watch could also interact with versions of apps that appear on the smartphone, opening the door to potential new entertainment uses for the small device.

Whether they are tied to the entertainment biz or not, early app makers are expected to reap the financial rewards of appearing on the Apple Watch.

Analysts expect as many as 15.4 million Apple Watches to ship around the globe this year. That's compared to 12.7 million smartwatches from all other manufacturers like Pebble, Motorola and LG combined, according to research firm Strategy Analytics.

Compare that to only 4.6 million smartwatches shipped in 2014. Apple has requested manufacturers to have 5 million smartwatches ready for the first quarter alone, when the device will become available to consumers.

Apple won't feel much of an impact should its watch not dial up buyers.

The company is sitting on $178 billion in cash and investments. Its iPhone buisness drives much of its bottom line, with the company selling 25 million iPhones each month during the fourth quarter of 2014.

But should interest in its watch translate to sales, Apple could easily capture 55% of the smartphone market around the globe this year, analysts say -- and make more consumers pay attention to the overall wearables market.

"The Apple Watch is the catalyst to ignite the global smartwatch market," said Strategy Analytics executive director Neil Mawston. "Apple's famous brand, loyal fan base, deep retail presence and extensive apps ecosystem will ensure healthy uptake for its Watch."

Apple has had time to line up partners since unveiling the watch last September, with over 100 developers said to have been invited to design apps for the April launch.

Originally pitched as a fitness and activity tracker, the base model will be priced at $349, while one made of gold will come with a hefty pricetag, that many say will could be as much as $5,000.

Analysts like Mawston do have their concerns, however.

"Apple's Watch hardware design is arguably less attractive than some rival models such as the Huawei Watch, battery life may not be as long as many traditional wristwatch owners are used to, and Apple's premium pricing may be challenging for mass-market consumers," he said. "Apple will need to upgrade tangibly its second-generation Watch to stay ahead of competitors later this year."

© 2015 Variety Media, LLC, a subsidiary of Penske Business Media; Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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