Business
Record Low Rates Push Mortgage Activity Up
WASHINGTON (UPI) — The Mortgage Bankers Association said U.S. mortgage activity rose 9.2 percent in the week ended Friday with interest rates hitting record lows. The trade group’s Refinancing Index also rose significantly, up 13 percent, the MBA said. Interest rates for 30-year, fixed-rate conforming mortgages fell from 4.01 percent to 3.96 percent with average [...]
Eurozone CPI At 2.6 Percent
BRUSSELS (UPI) — The 12-month consumer price index in the 17-member eurozone rose 2.6 percent in April, the European Union’s data office said Wednesday. The inflation rate is 0.1 percentage points lower than March, Eurostat said. For the 27-member European Union, the annual rate of inflation in April was slightly higher at 2.7 percent. Sweden, [...]
Industrial Production Rose In April
WASHINGTON (UPI) — Industrial production rose 1.1 percent in April after two months of holding unchanged, the U.S. Federal Reserve said Wednesday. In April, manufacturing output increased 0.6 percent after falling 0.5 percent in March. Manufacturing gains were pushed by a 4 percent gain in automobile production. Excluding vehicles, manufacturing production rose 0.3 percent in [...]
Home Construction Starts Rose In April
WASHINGTON (UPI) — New home construction starts in the United States rose in April, but permits that predict future business fell, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. Housing starts rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 717,000, up 2.6 percent compared with a revised figure for March of 699,000. The rate of single-family housing starts [...]
Report: GM Dropping Facebook Ads
DETROIT (UPI) — General Motors Co. will drop high-flying Facebook from its U.S. advertising program due a lack of impact on its customers, sources told The Wall Street Journal. The venerable automaker will maintain its Facebook page, which costs GM nothing, but will no longer buy ads on the booming social media site, which is [...]
In Europe, Recessions Abound
BRUSSELS (UPI) — Eurostat, the statistical agency of the European Union, confirmed Tuesday the economies of the Europe were stagnant in the fourth quarter. In the 17-member eurozone, the gross domestic product was unchanged. In the 27-member European Union, it was up 0.1 percent. Both figures are part of a flash estimate, a preliminary report [...]
Retail Sales Up Marginally In April
WASHINGTON (UPI) — Retail sales rose 0.1 percent in April over March with motor vehicle sales up 0.5 percent, the U.S. Census Bureau said Tuesday. The gain was shy of expectations with economists predicting a 0.2 percent rise and short of March’s gain, which was 0.7 percent. Retail sales, including food service sales, adjusted for [...]
Congress Panel Backs Higher Arms Buys
WASHINGTON (UPI) — A U.S. House of Representatives committee wants $5.3 billion more allocated for defense spending in 2013 to enable the government procurement agencies to buy more aircraft, ships, vehicles and weapons, news reports said. There was no immediate independent comment on the report from Gannett news outlets, which said it sourced the information [...]
Consumer Price Index Unchanged In April
WASHINGTON (UPI) — The Consumer Price Index was unchanged in April on a seasonally adjusted basis, the U.S. Commerce Department said Tuesday. On a 12-month basis, the CPI for all items rose 2.3 percent before seasonal adjustment, the lowest figure since February 2011. The index for all items minus food and energy also rose 2.3 [...]
Builder Confidence Hits 5-Year High
WASHINGTON (UPI) — U.S. builder confidence in the market for new homes is on the rise in most of the country, the National Association of Home Builders said Tuesday. The National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index for May was 29, up five points from last month and the highest reading since May [...]
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