Thursday, July 12, 2012

Friday July 13 Housing and Economic stories



TOP STORIES:

Stockton set to become largest US city to declare bankruptcy as officials say mediation failed - (www.washingtonpost.com) Stockton bankruptcy a hard hit for city workers, retirees who will see health benefits slashed. When Stockton becomes the largest U.S. city ever to file for bankruptcy, it will strike a hard blow to residents, especially city employees and retirees whose health benefits and pensions helped drive the city toward insolvency. City Manager Bob Deis said late Tuesday that officials were left with little choice but to recommend bankruptcy after failing to hammer out deals with creditors to ease the city’s $26 million budget shortfall. Deis expects the city to file for Chapter 9 protection by Friday. Stockton will join a number of other cities and counties across the nation that have plunged into financial crisis as the recession made it tough to cover rising costs involving current and former employees, bondholders and vendors.

Dark clouds are gathering over corporate America - (www.telegraph.co.uk)  Since hitting a low in the spring of 2009, the Dow Jones Industrial Average has surged 93pc and the S&P 500 has managed an even better 97pc gain. The Federal Reserve has had the back of the markets throughout. Ben Bernanke, the Fed's chairman, made it clear that one aim of the central bank's quantitative easing programme was to lift asset prices, including equities. As the US rolls into another summer darkened by signs of slowing growth, the officials at the Fed are facing renewed calls to embark on another round. Investors have more than the Fed to thank for helping stock markets rebound from the recession, defy a tepid recovery in the US and shrug off Europe's historic debt crisis.

Consumer Sentiment Hits Lowest Level of 2012 - (www.cnbc.com) U.S. consumer sentiment dropped to a six-month low in June as Americans' view of the economy soured, a survey released on Friday showed. The Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan's final reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment fell to 73.2 in June from 79.3 in May. It was the lowest level since December and fell short of economists' expectations for the index to hold at the same level as June's preliminary reading of 74.1. The deterioration in consumers' attitudes came mostly from households with incomes over $75,000; sentiment among lower-income households was little changed, the survey said.

Britain's recession deeper than feared - (www.telegraph.co.uk) Britain's double-dip recession has been deeper than first thought, according to official figures that showed the economy shrank by 0.7pc in the six months to March. The Office for National Statistics (ONS) confirmed the economy shrank by 0.3pc in the three months to March, unchanged on its previous estimate, but revised the data for the final quarter of 2011 from a contraction of 0.3pc to 0.4pc. The figures also revealed the toll the double-dip has taken on families. Household disposable income has fallen by 1.8pc in the six months of the recession, split evenly between the first quarter of this year and the final three months of 2011 – causing consumer spending to drop 0.1pc in the quarter.

This Is a Big Day for Millions With Student Loans - (www.cnbc.com) Congress was poised Friday to approve compromise legislation to keep loan rates low for millions of students and to fund transportation programs for two more years and maintain national flood insurance.  The bill came together this week, as lawmakers calculated the election-year impact of gridlock on measures affecting soaring consumer debt, jobs and help for people who need government underwriting for flood risk to buy a home. "It has indeed been a very bumpy road to get to this point," said Rep. John Mica, Republican chairman of the House Transportation Committee, who led negotiations on the bill.




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