On Thursday December 9, 2010, 5:49 pm EST
Borrowers wait for lower
mortgage rates and lose
NEW YORK (AP) -- Homeowners
who delayed locking in super-low mortgage rates -- think close to 4 percent for
a 30-year fixed -- may have waited too long.
Rates are creeping back up,
in part because of the tax-cut deal in Washington. Now those in the market to
buy or refinance have to decide whether to take what's available or risk making
the same mistake twice.
Freddie Mac, the
government-backed company that buys and sells mortgages, said Thursday that
average rates on 15- and 30-year fixed loans increased sharply from last week.
It was the fourth straight weekly rise. Fixed rates had been the lowest in
decades.
Kids go on expensive buying
sprees in iPhone games
NEW YORK (AP) -- "The
Smurfs' Village," a game for the iPhone and other Apple gadgets, was
released a month ago and quickly became the highest-grossing application in the
iTunes store. Yet it's free to download.
So where does the money
come from? Kelly Rummelhart of Gridley, Calif., has part of the answer. Her
4-year-old son was using her iPad to play the game and racked up $66.88 in
charges on her credit card without knowing what he was doing.
Parents are incensed that
kids are able to rack up hundreds of dollars in purchases, without having to
enter a password, while playing games such as "The Smurf's Village."
Procter & Gamble moves
from soap operas to tweets
CINCINNATI (AP) -- Goodbye,
"Guiding Light." Hello, YouTube.
Procter & Gamble Co.,
whose sponsorship and production of daytime TV dramas helped coin the term
"soap operas," has pulled the plug after 77 years. Instead, the maker
of Tide detergent, Ivory soap and Olay skincare is following its customers
online with a big push on YouTube, Twitter and Facebook.
Bank complaints soar even
after law changes
NEW YORK (AP) -- Complaints
against banks are soaring, suggesting that new laws and regulations put in
place since the financial crisis two years ago aren't dampening Americans'
anger over overdraft fees and foreclosure practices they view as unfair.
If the trend continues,
experts say, it will set banks on a collision course with their customers and
lead to tougher rules that will hurt their earnings.
The Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency estimates that complaints from customers of the
1,500 banks it regulates will hit 80,000 this year. That would be the highest
level in the 15 years it has recorded them and more than double the 2008 total.
The Better Business Bureau and state attorneys general also report big
increases.
Mass-transit tax break to
shrink while fares rise
Just about everyone is
about to get a tax cut, but one tax break about to expire will force hundreds
of thousands to pay more for a daily expense: Their commute to work.
Mass transit riders can
save up to $1,000 a year under a federal tax break that will be reduced after
Dec. 31. Unless Congress acts, their savings will be cut nearly in half. The
squeeze will be especially painful because it comes on top of increased transit
fares in New York, Washington and other cities.
The tax break works like
many health savings accounts. Workers can set aside up to $230 a month to cover
transit costs. The money isn't taxed. It goes into a separate account to pay
for mass transit costs.
Stocks end mixed as tax
compromise stalls in House
NEW YORK (AP) -- Stocks
closed mixed Thursday as traders waited to see whether a tax compromise
brokered by the White House and Republicans will pass the Democratic-controlled
House.
House Democrats pledged
Thursday to reject the tax deal as it is currently written. The compromise
reached by President Barack Obama and Republican leaders would extend tax cuts
at all income levels for two years. House Democrats want tax rates for the
wealthiest Americans to revert to their previous levels.
The White House has been
pushing Democrats to back the tax measure, arguing that a defeat could knock
the economy back into recession.
Economists expect the tax
package to boost the U.S. economy and are already raising their estimates for
economic growth next year.
Jobless claims fall, near
lowest level of the year
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Applications for unemployment benefits dropped last week to the second-lowest
level this year, fresh evidence that companies are cutting fewer jobs.
First-time claims for
jobless aid fell by 17,000 to a seasonally adjusted 421,000 in the week ending
Dec. 4, the Labor Department said Thursday.
The four-week average of
claims, a less-volatile measure, dropped for the fifth straight week to
427,500. That's the lowest since August 2008, just before the financial crisis
intensified with the collapse of Lehman Brothers.
Facebook's Zuckerberg
pledges to give away wealth
NEW YORK (AP) -- Another 17
of America's richest people, including Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, junk bond
pioneer Michael Milken and AOL co-founder Steve Case, have promised to give
away most of their wealth.
At 26, Zuckerberg has put
himself on the map not only as one of the world's youngest billionaires, but
also as a prominent newcomer to the world of philanthropy. Earlier this year,
he pledged $100 million over five years to the Newark, N.J. school system. Now,
he's in the company of media titans Carl Icahn, 74, Barry Diller, 68, and others
who have joined Giving Pledge, an effort led by Microsoft founder Bill Gates
and investor Warren Buffett to commit the country's wealthiest people to step
up their charitable donations.
The group has signed up 57
people and their families since launching the campaign in June. The list also
includes New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, CNN founder Ted Turner and film
director George Lucas.
Americans' wealth grew 2.2
pct. last quarter
WASHINGTON (AP) -- After
declining in the spring, Americans' wealth grew 2.2 percent in the
July-September quarter as a rebound on Wall Street boosted stock portfolios.
Household net worth rose to
nearly $55 trillion, even though the value of real estate holdings sank 3.7
percent, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.
That's far above the bottom
hit during the recession: $49 trillion in the first quarter of 2009. Yet net
worth would have to rise an additional 20 percent to regain its pre-recession
peak of $66 trillion. That's a reminder of Americans' vast loss of wealth over
the past three years.
Borders Group 3rd-quarter
loss widens
ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) --
Borders Group said Thursday its third-quarter loss widened as its book sales
continued to fall due to tough competition from online retailers and discount
stores.
The No. 2 traditional book
seller in the U.S. also said the amount it can borrow under its credit facility
has been reduced because the value of its inventory has fallen and it could
violate its credit agreement by the next year's first quarter if its liquidity
doesn't improve.
Borders' reported a loss of
$74.4 million, or $1.03 per share. That compares with a loss of $37.7 million,
or 63 cents per share last year. Its revenue fell 18 percent to $470.9 million.
The report comes after
activist investor William Ackman offered to finance a Borders bid for its much
larger rival, Barnes & Noble Inc.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones Industrial
average fell 2.4, or less than 0.1 percent, to 11,370. The Standard and Poor's
500 index rose 5 points, or 0.4 percent, to 1,233. The Nasdaq composite rose
7.5, or 0.3 percent, to 2,617.
Natural gas slipped 17.4
cents to settle at $4.435 per 1,000 cubic feet on the New York Mercantile
Exchange.
Benchmark oil for January
delivery added 9 cents to settle at $88.37 a barrel.
Heating oil rose 0.61 cent
to settle at $2.4668 a gallon, gasoline gained 3.59 cents to settle at $2.3405
a gallon.
In London, Brent crude rose
22 cents to settle at $90.99 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.