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Yahoo! News: Business News
Stocks fall slightly in early trading (AP) AP - Investors are entering the new trading week tentatively after Moody's Investors Service said the U.S. could eventually lose its top-notch credit rating. Stocks fell slightly in early trading Monday.
Industrial production rises 0.1 percent in Feb (AP) AP - Industrial production edged up 0.1 percent in February, beating expectations and marking the eighth straight monthly increase. But the key manufacturing sector produced less, showing that economic recovery is still a ways off.
China trims holdings of Treasury securities (AP) AP - China retained its spot as the biggest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury debt in January although it trimmed its holdings for a third straight month. The string of declines are likely to underscore worries that the U.S. government could face much higher interest rates to finance soaring budget deficits.
Gov't says it cannot explain runaway Toyota (AP) AP - The federal government said Monday it cannot explain a reported incident of sudden, high-speed acceleration in a Toyota Prius on a San Diego, Calif., freeway last week and acknowledged it may not be able to solve the mystery of what happened to the hybrid.
Tyson Foods spent $625,865 lobbying gov't in 4Q (AP) AP - Tyson Foods Inc. spent $625,865 in the fourth quarter to lobby the government on diesel tax credits, energy and other issues, according to a recent disclosure report.
Phillips-Van Heusen to buy Tommy Hilfiger for $3B (AP) AP - Clothing maker Phillips-Van Heusen Corp. said Monday it has agreed to buy privately held Tommy Hilfiger in a cash-and-stock deal valued at about $3 billion, creating one of the world's biggest clothing companies.
Summary Box: Stocks cap week with modest moves (AP) AP - QUIET DAY: Major stock market indexes were little changed a day after the Standard & Poor's 500 index closed at a 17-month high. Mixed reports on consumer sentiment and retail sales kept trading subdued.
Texas ed board vote reflects far-right influences (AP) AP - A far-right faction of the Texas State Board of Education succeeded Friday in injecting conservative ideals into social studies, history and economics lessons that will be taught to millions of students for the next decade.
Nortel Networks posts profit in 4Q (AP) AP - Bankrupt telecom equipment maker Nortel Networks Corp. said Friday it posted a profit in the fourth quarter, thanks to a large gain related to an asset sale.
EU finance ministers talk help for Greece (AP) AP - Eurozone finance ministers will discuss Monday whether to guarantee a financial lifeline to Greece if it can't borrow from wary bond markets and to check that its austerity measures are going far enough to reduce its massive debt load.
Conn. would waive student loans in 'green' jobs (AP) AP - Paul Goulet hopes Connecticut will help him get from under nearly $8,000 he's borrowed for college after losing his job in a paper manufacturing plant.
Tax rises hit Greece as EU meets on debt crisis (AP) AP - A wave of new tax hikes hit Greece on Monday, raising the cost of consumer goods despite recession and high unemployment, as European Union finance ministers gathered in Brussels to discuss the country's debt crisis.
Business Highlights (AP) AP - Retail sales show surprising gain in February
Borrowers wait for answers on Obama loan plan (AP) AP - Hundreds of thousands of homeowners are in limbo waiting to find out if they will be accepted for the Obama administration's foreclosure prevention program.
OPEC has little wiggle room at upcoming meeting (AP) AP - With U.S. demand for oil lackluster, even traditional OPEC price hawks like Iran and Venezuela are happy with present prices near $80 a barrel as they head into Tuesday's meeting of the 12-nation organization.
Investigators say no explanation yet for Calif. Prius claim (Reuters) Reuters - Safety investigators have found no evidence so far to support or disprove a California motorist's claim his Toyota Motor Corp Prius sped out of control on its own, and cautioned the case may never be explained, U.S. regulators said on Monday.
Caution: Stats May Be Slippery (BusinessWeek) BusinessWeek - Peril permeates a steel mill. Molten metal explodes when exposed to water. Overhead cranes hoist steel coils weighing up to 80,000 pounds. Heavy vehicles roll within feet of high-voltage wires. "We have a work environment that presents every hazard known to man," says Alan H. McCoy, vice-president and spokesman at AK Steel in West Chester, Ohio.

Yahoo! News: Personal Finance News
Conn. would waive student loans in 'green' jobs (AP) AP - Paul Goulet hopes Connecticut will help him get from under nearly $8,000 he's borrowed for college after losing his job in a paper manufacturing plant.
Middle-class NYC apartment complex sold at auction (AP) AP - The developer of a high profile middle-class Harlem apartment complex has lost ownership of the property after defaulting on the mortgage.
Democrats look to resurrect college aid plan (AP) AP - Congressional Democrats want a stalled overhaul of college aid programs to get strapped onto a fast-track health care bill, giving both Obama administration priorities a better chance of passage.
Borrowers wait for answers on Obama loan plan (AP) AP - Hundreds of thousands of homeowners are in limbo waiting to find out if they will be accepted for the Obama administration's foreclosure prevention program.
Obama's proposed student loan overhaul gets boost (Reuters) Reuters - President Barack Obama's stalled bid to overhaul the federal student loan program by cutting subsidies to private lenders and increasing aid to students received a boost on Friday.
Wells Fargo, Baltimore in talks after mortgage suit (Reuters) Reuters - Wells Fargo & Co said on Friday it is in talks with Baltimore officials that could avert further litigation by that city over the bank's mortgage lending practices.
"Cash for keys" aids home borrowers, investors (Reuters) Reuters - Jon Daurio, chief executive officer of mortgage investor Kondaur Capital Corp., recently offered a $4,000 check to Barry Culver for the deed to his Bryan, Ohio house.
BofA mortgage modifications jump in March (Reuters) Reuters - Bank of America Corp completed 20,666 mortgage modifications in March under a U.S. government-backed program, up 61 percent from February, the bank said on Friday.
Student loans to be in healthcare package: Pelosi (Reuters) Reuters - House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi said on Friday the final version of a broad healthcare overhaul would include a revamp of the student loan program but not a government-run health insurance option.
UK home loans fall by half in January (AP) AP - The value of home mortgage advances in January fell by half from December, when there was a late rush to complete deals before a tax break ended at the New Year, the Council of Mortgage Lenders said Friday.
Summary Box: Citi CEO sees return to profitability (AP) AP - BULLISH OUTLOOK: Citigroup Inc. says its returning to "sustained profitability" after losing billions on bad loans and taking a federal bailout. CEO Vikram Pandit says the bank is shedding risky mortgage assets and shifting focus to emerging markets like Latin America and Asia.
Fannie Mae to offer $6b in notes (AP) AP - Fannie Mae on Thursday said it will offer $6 billion of new 3-year notes due May 7, 2013.
Gov't official warns on home down payment hikes (AP) AP - The head of the Federal Housing Administration is warning that boosting the minimum down payment borrowers must provide to qualify for home loans backed by the agency could threaten the housing market.
Stocks Are Quiet While Currencies Scream (The Motley Fool) The Motley Fool - After a down January, the stock market is again positive for the year. The much-fabled January effect barometer didn't work in 2009, and it remains to be seen if it will work in 2010. Economic data has continued its slow improvement, keeping stocks fairly calm. The wild action so far this year has been in the currency markets.
Mortgage rates remain below 5 percent (AP) AP - Mortgage rates held below the 5 percent threshold for the second straight week, a report said Thursday, weeks before a government program that has been keeping rates low is scheduled to expire.
Foreclosures drop for 2nd month in February: RealtyTrac (Reuters) Reuters - U.S. mortgage foreclosure filings dropped for a second straight month in February, and notched the smallest annual increase in four years as housing-rescue efforts contained activity, a report released on Thursday showed.
Quinn seeks income tax hike for schools (AP) AP - Calling himself a realist, Gov. Pat Quinn on Wednesday scaled back his proposal to raise income taxes, shifting to a call for an increase of just one percentage point to be used solely for preventing deep cuts to education.
Home loan demand nudges higher in latest week (Reuters) Reuters - U.S. mortgage applications nudged higher last week, reflecting increased demand for home purchase loans even as interest rates trekked higher, data from an industry group showed on Wednesday.
Nationalized UK bank Northern Rock back in profit (AP) AP - Nationalized mortgage lender Northern Rock said Wednesday that it returned to profit in the second half of 2009 as interest income rose and losses on loans fell.
One Congressman's Solution for Boosting Small Business Loans (The Motley Fool) The Motley Fool - The first Friday of every month brings the all-important employment report. February's numbers were better than anticipated. The United States lost only 36,000 jobs, versus the 68,000 that experts expected. This compares with 651,000 jobs lost in February 2009. Still, the unemployment rate held steady at 9.7%, with the unofficial rate stuck around a whopping 16%.

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