On Wednesday December 8, 2010, 6:03 pm EST
AP IMPACT: Caught by
mistake in foreclosure web
A new species of homeowner
is getting pushed into foreclosure hell.
These homeowners paid their
mortgages -- or loan modifications -- on time. Some even paid off their loans.
Worse, those on the receiving end of a bad foreclosure claim tell similar
stories of getting bounced from one bank official to the next with no resolution
while the foreclosure process continues apace.
Many have to resort to
paying a lawyer, even after presenting documentation. They say they have to sue
not only to stop the wrongful foreclosure but also to attempt to win back their
costs.
Tax deal offers enticements
at all income levels
Political discussion about
Monday's tax-cut compromise has focused on how much money the wealthy might
save. Yet if the deal is approved by both houses of Congress you're bound to
see more money in your wallet, whatever your income.
That's because the package
provides a bonus, in addition to the widely anticipated extension of the
Bush-era tax cuts. The surprise perk is a one-year reduction in Social Security
payroll taxes.
Nearly every worker should
take home more money starting in January. The deal also includes an extension
of unemployment benefits through the end of 2011.
AIG takes key step to pay
off largest bailout
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Bailed-out insurance conglomerate American International Group Inc. is taking a
key step toward paying off a bailout that was at one point worth $182 billion,
the largest of the financial crisis.
The company says in a
public filing Wednesday that it will pay off a loan from the Federal Reserve
Bank of New York. AIG says that will clear the way for the Treasury to sell off
the government's stake.
Treasury's stake in AIG
will temporarily rise from roughly 80 percent to 92 percent as part of the
deal.
Back to basics at Citi as
government exits
NEW YORK (AP) -- For the
first time in more than two years, Citigroup Inc. is no longer partly owned by
the U.S. government.
U.S. taxpayers made out
well when the Treasury Department sold off the last of its stake in the giant
banking company Tuesday, netting a profit of $12 billion on the government's
investment of $45 billion.
CEO Vikram Pandit now has
to work on pleasing his other shareholders. For Pandit, who has seen Citi
through the two most tumultuous years in the company's history, it's time to
get back to basics. Investors are keen to hear Pandit articulate a vision for
one of the largest and most embattled banks in the world.
Stocks edge higher,
Treasurys fall on tax-cut plan
NEW YORK (AP) -- The
compromise backed by President Barack Obama and Republican leaders on extending
tax cuts crushed bonds Wednesday as traders expected the plan to lead to higher
budget deficits and a pickup in economic growth. Stocks posted modest gains.
Congressional Democrats
could still scuttle the tax agreement, but bond traders are acting like it's a
done deal. Treasury prices dropped sharply, sending their yields higher for a
second day.
Part of the reason bonds
are selling off is that investors now expect the tax package, which also
includes an extension of unemployment benefits, to lead to better growth in the
U.S. economy. That means less incentive to keep money parked in ultra-safe
investments like Treasurys and also a greater likelihood of inflation, which
would erode the value of the fixed payments from bonds.
Publishers say ad trends
improving
NEW YORK (AP) -- The
country's biggest newspaper publishers say advertising trends continue to
improve in the fourth quarter -- even if they are still not ready to predict
when or if traditional print revenue will start growing again.
Gannett Co., publisher of
USA Today and other dailies, and McClatchy Co., which owns The Sacramento Bee
and The Miami Herald, said Wednesday that smaller print declines and cost
cutting will help results in the last three months of 2010.
Newspapers are struggling
to arrest a nearly four-year slide in ad revenue as more advertisers turn to
online destinations like Google and Facebook. Print circulation is dropping as
well, as readers turn to the Web for news.
Hackers strike at credit
card sites to support WikiLeaks
LONDON (AP) -- Hackers
rushed to the defense of WikiLeaks on Wednesday, launching attacks on
MasterCard, Visa, Swedish prosecutors, a Swiss bank and others who have acted
against the site and its jailed founder Julian Assange.
Internet
"hacktivists" operating under the label "Operation Payback"
claimed responsibility in a Twitter message for causing severe technological
problems at the website for MasterCard, which pulled the plug on its
relationship with WikiLeaks a day ago.
MasterCard acknowledged
"a service disruption" involving its Secure Code system for verifying
online payments, but spokesman James Issokson said consumers could still use
their credit cards for secure transactions. Later Wednesday, Visa's website was
inaccessible.
The online attacks are part
of a wave of support for WikiLeaks that is sweeping the Internet.
Costco's 1Q profit rises 17
pct as revenue climbs
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) --
Costco Wholesale Corp. said its first-quarter net income rose 17 percent --
even faster than revenue -- with help from higher gas prices and rising sales
of high-profit items.
The nation's biggest
wholesale club operator has done well compared with many retailers during the
weak economy, as Americans increasingly turned to it for deals on everyday
necessities such as food. Recently, shoppers have made more discretionary
purchases in the clubs too.
Costco said Wednesday that
its net income jumped 17 percent to $312 million, or 71 cents per share, for
the period ended Nov. 21. It was $266 million, or 60 cents per share, a year earlier.
Revenue rose 11 percent to
$19.24 billion.
Jim Beam, Titleist maker to
split into 3 companies
NEW YORK (AP) -- Consumer
products maker Fortune Brands Inc. plans to split into three companies, keeping
its liquor business led by Jim Beam bourbon while shedding the units that make
Titleist golf balls, Moen faucets and Master Locks.
Fortune Brands said
Wednesday it will focus on its spirits business, which generates annual revenue
of $2.5 billion and also includes brands such as Canadian Club and Maker's
Mark.
The home and security
business, which also includes MasterBrand cabinets, will be spun off on a
tax-free basis to shareholders. Fortune's golf business, Acushnet, based in
Fairhaven, Mass., which makes Titleist golf equipment and FootJoy golf shoes
and gloves, will be either spun off or sold.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrial
average edged up 13.32 points, or 0.1 percent, to 11,372.48.
The broader Standard &
Poor's 500 index rose 4.53 or 0.4 percent, to a new yearly high of 1,228.28.
The index last traded at this level in late September 2008. It is now up 10.1
percent for the year.
The Nasdaq composite index
rose 10.67, or 0.4, to 2,609.16.
Benchmark oil for January
delivery lost 41 cents to settle at $88.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile
Exchange. On Tuesday, prices briefly topped $90 a barrel. Several analysts
believe oil prices will remain between $85 a barrel and $90 a barrel in the
near future.
In other Nymex trading in
January contracts, heating oil slipped 0.95 cent to settle at $2.4607 a gallon,
gasoline futures lost 1.84 cents to settle at $2.3046 a gallon and natural gas
added 21.3 cents to settle at $4.606 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent crude fell
62 cents to settle at $90.77 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.