Bad timing by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.
The federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. shifted most
of its $64 billion in assets from bonds to stocks and real estate last fall—just in time for the crash. The move led to billions of dollars in losses, leaving the agency underfunded as corporate pension-fund failures are rising.
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Credit Crunch bypasses midsize American cities
The credit crunch is bypassing many midsize American cities. Consumer loan balances in Huntsville, Ala., (pop. 376,000), increased 13.2 percent in last year’s fourth quarter, while balances in Yakima, Wash., (pop. 84,300), rose more than 8 percent.
The Wall Street Journal
All is well at Apple’s online App Store
In the year or so since Apple’s online App Store opened, it has sold more than 800 million applications for its iPhone, at prices ranging from free to $10. Apple keeps 30 percent of each sale, with 70 percent going to the application’s developer. Rivals BlackBerry and Palm now plan app stores of their own.
CNNmoney.com
Topps to release cards on hoaxes and hoodwinks
Baseball-card company Topps this year will release a set of cards devoted to “the world’s biggest hoaxes, hoodwinks, and bamboozles.” Among the people and companies featured are Bernard Madoff, Charles Ponzi, and Enron.
Fortune.com
Bad timing by companies in the S&P 500
In 2008, companies in the S&P 500 spent $340 billion repurchasing their own shares. That’s a 42.3 percent decline from 2007, when they spent a record $589 billion, just ahead of a 38.5 percent decline in stock prices.
USA Today
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'With every technological advance, there are risks'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
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5 of the best platonic TV friendshipsthe week recommends Maintaining boundaries has proven tricky for all but the most committed of buddies on the small screen
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Why are global postal services cutting off package delivery to the US?Today's Big Question 'Uncertainty' around new tariff rules halts small-dollar imports
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The bottom linefeature Sedentary habits keep rising; A new home for Twinkies; Taco Bell's new hit; Companies stretch the workweek; Women's wages still fall short
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The bottom line
feature Where to stash your cash; Facebook's tax refund; The value of old phones; The wealth of America's megabanks; Grateful alumni
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The bottom line
feature High cellphone taxes; Companies shore up pension funds; The bite of high gas prices; More dads stay home; Americans' scarce savings; Clorox sales hit a peak
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The bottom line
feature Taxi drivers with college degrees; Morgan Stanley's revealing nicknames; Sleep deprivation and lost productivity; A retreat for Barnes & Noble; Signs of a stabilizing economy
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The bottom line
feature Companies cut spending because of fiscal cliff; Administrative bloat and tuition costs; Market for new and existing homes improves; Annual federal deficit as share of GDP decreases; Federal rules for contracts get flouted
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The bottom line
feature No-growth small businesses; Swift sales for Taylor's new album; Predicting doctors' costs; Airlines face shortfall in qualified pilots; Will Japan slip into recession?
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The bottom line
feature Apple's corporate tax rate; A housing market still in the tank; Boeing's Dreamliner earns rave reviews; Billions owed in child support; Goldman Sachs trims its ranks
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The bottom line
feature No new jobs in August for small business; Lowest corn harvest in 17 years; Louboutin wins battle over red soles; The growing American lower class; U.S.'s competitive ranking drops; The expanding wealth gap