NEW YORK (AP) -- Pulte Homes
Inc. is buying Centex Corp. for $1.3 billion in stock in a deal that will
create the nation's largest homebuilder and could spark further consolidation
in an industry that is suffering the worst real estate recession in a
generation.
The transaction will combine
Pulte's strength in active-adult and retirement housing with Centex's hefty
market share of first-time homebuyers. The acquisition also will give Pulte
large tracts of land in Texas and the Carolinas, two of the most resilient real
estate markets, and a presence in 29 states and Washington, D.C.
Danger of worsening
recession drove Fed action
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The
Federal Reserve's decision last month to plow $1.2 trillion into the economy
reflected growing concerns about a vicious economic cycle in which rising
unemployment will curtail consumer spending, potentially into 2010.
Documents released Wednesday
provided insights into the Fed's decision to revive the economy by buying
long-term government debt and boosting purchases of mortgage-backed securities
from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Projections for economic activity in the
second half of 2009 and in 2010 "were revised down" by the Fed's
staff, who did not provide updated forecasts.
Housing deal, hope for
insurers lift stocks
NEW YORK (AP) -- Wall Street
broke a two-day slide Wednesday as investors cherry-picked insurance,
technology and homebuilding stocks on bits of welcome news for those
industries.
But jitters about weak
first-quarter corporate profit reports and a downbeat assessment of the economy
from the Federal Reserve held the market's gains in check.
Concerns over quarterly
results and company forecasts for the remainder of the year have rattled the
market this week, saddling the Dow Jones industrials with a nearly 3 percent
loss over Monday and Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Dow Jones industrials rose
47.55, or 0.6 percent, to 7,837.11.
Wholesale inventories drop
by most in 17 years
WASHINGTON (AP) --
Wholesalers cut their inventories in February by the steepest amount in more
than 17 years, while sales rose for the first time since the summer,
encouraging signs that companies may be getting their inventories under
control.
The Commerce Department said
Wednesday that wholesale inventories dropped 1.5 percent in February, the most
on records dating to January 1992 and more than double analysts' expectations.
Sales at the wholesale level
rose 0.6 percent, the first increase since June and a sharp reversal from
January's revised 2.4 percent drop. That shows retailers and other businesses
have begun to replenish their supplies.
Treasury: GM, Chrysler
launch supplier support
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The
Treasury Department opened a $5 billion financing support program on Wednesday
to help auto suppliers keep parts flowing to General Motors Corp. and Chrysler
LLC as they try to rebound with billions in government aid.
The program, first announced
last month, will provide government guarantees for the financing of auto parts
that have been shipped to the Detroit carmakers but have not yet been paid for.
The funds will be made available from the government's Troubled Assets Relief
Program, or TARP, in a financial entity similar to a revolving credit.
Chrysler president: 30 days
enough for Fiat deal
NEW YORK (AP) -- Chrysler
President and Vice Chairman Jim Press said Wednesday the government's May 1
deadline for the automaker to complete a deal with Fiat allows "ample
time" to reach a definitive agreement that is key to saving Chrysler from
bankruptcy.
He surprised reporters at
Chrysler's news conference to unveil a new Jeep Grand Cherokee by arriving on
the stage in an iconic Fiat 500 subcompact. The 500, one of the Italian
automaker's most successful models, would help fill the void of small vehicles
in Chrysler's lineup if Chrysler survives and brings Fiat cars to U.S.
showrooms by 2011, as planned.
Crew on US ship say Somali
pirates hold captain
NAIROBI, Kenya (AP) -- The
American crew of a hijacked U.S.-flagged ship retook control of the vessel from
Somali pirates Wednesday but the captain was still being held hostage in a
lifeboat, according to at least three people on board.
U.S. officials said an
American warship and a half dozen others were headed to the scene. One official
said the destroyer USS Bainbridge was headed there. Another official said there
were six or seven ships on the way.
The company that operates
the ship confirmed that it was back in the crew's hands and said the hijackers
had departed with a crew member.
Feds: US government won't
take Madoff money
NEW YORK (AP) -- The U.S.
government said Wednesday it will not try to keep any money recovered from the
sale of Bernard Madoff's assets, a message meant to reassure skittish investors
who feared some proceeds might land in the U.S. Treasury rather than their
pockets.
Federal prosecutors and the
Securities and Exchange Commission each filed papers with a federal judge to
say the proceeds would all go to investors.
US accountant granted bail
in UBS tax case
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP)
-- A wealthy accountant who is the first U.S. citizen charged in a wide-ranging
tax probe of Swiss banking giant UBS AG was granted release from jail Wednesday
on $12 million bail.
Federal prosecutor Jeffrey
Neiman said the unusually large amount was necessary because of the high risk
that Steven Michael Rubinstein might flee the country. Rubinstein, 55, is also
a citizen of South Africa and owns a condominium in Israel in addition to his
main home in Boca Raton.
Oil settles back, almost
where it started
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Oil
prices took off Wednesday after new government data showed bulging crude
inventories grew less than what analysts expected, but settled only slightly
above where they started the session.
Benchmark crude for May
delivery rose as high as $51.30 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange,
$2.15 above Monday's settlement. But prices beat a retreat by afternoon,
settling up 23 cents at $49.38.
Some analysts suggested the
initial rally came from traders covering bets that the price of oil would fall,
rather than any excitement about government inventory data.
By The Associated Press
The Dow Jones industrials
rose 47.55, or 0.6 percent, to 7,837.11.
The Standard & Poor's
500 index rose 9.61, or 1.2 percent, to 825.16, and the Nasdaq composite index
rose 29.05, or 1.9 percent, to 1,590.66.
Benchmark crude for May
delivery rose as high as $51.30 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
In other Nymex trading,
gasoline for May delivery fell 2.08 cents to $1.4396 a gallon, and heating oil
gained 0.7 cent at $1.3982 a gallon. Natural gas for May delivery rose 6.8
cents to $3.630 per 1,000 cubic feet.
In London, Brent prices
added 37 cents at $51.59 a barrel on the ICE Futures exchange.