March 2012
190 posts
23 tags
Big moves in bonds, gold, silver; Stocks end flat
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — While stocks ended slightly lower, Wednesday’s biggest market moves were in the bond, commodity and currency markets — with 10-year Treasury yields surging higher and the price of...
17 tags
Uncle Sam wants you to rent out its foreclosed...
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Want to become a landlord in one of the nation’s hardest-hit foreclosure neighborhoods? Well, Uncle Sam has a deal for you.
Fannie Mae (FNMA, Fortune 500) will offer up nearly 2,500...
9 tags
It's time to give college a rethink
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(MONEY Magazine) — The best part about winter is that I no longer have to endure the fall conversations with parents about how well their freshmen are “fitting in” at college.
I may lose a few friends for...
20 tags
GDP: Economy grew faster at the end of 2011
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Economic growth was stronger than originally thought at the end of 2011 as consumers increased their spending and businesses stocked up their inventories.
Gross domestic product, the broadest...
24 tags
New Romney tax cuts would cost $3.4 trillion
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Mitt Romney made two big changes to his tax plan last week, and according to a new analysis, they will be very expensive.
Like $3.4 trillion expensive.
Previously, Romney had said he would...
17 tags
U.S. shuts down gambling site Bodog, indicts...
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BALTIMORE (AP) â The sports gambling site Bodog was shut down and four Canadians indicted, including founder Calvin Ayre, for illegal gambling that generated more than $100 million in winnings, federal prosecutors...
13 tags
Wells Fargo, Goldman face SEC scrutiny on mortgage...
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SAN FRANCISCO (AP) â Wells Fargo and Goldman Sachs Group said Tuesday they may face federal enforcement action by the Securities and Exchange Commission related to mortgage-backed securities.
San...
14 tags
Martin Feldstein: Economic Growth Won’t Continue...
The U.S. economy grew 3 percent in the fourth quarter of 2011, faster than expected although don’t expect such pleasant surprises to continue in 2012, says Harvard economist Martin Feldstein.
“My personal view is that we’re not going to see the kind of 3 percent GDP growth that some people are calling for. I think we’ll be lucky if we have 2 percent,” Feldstein...
13 tags
Leon Cooperman: Stocks Are the Best Place to Be
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Stocks are the best investment out there right now, while government bonds are returning less than inflation, says Omega Advisors CEO Leon Cooperman.
“We...
22 tags
The Latest Way to Save on Airfare: Crowdsourcing
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Want to save some money on your next travel plans? A new service called FlightFox is taking off, and itâs promising to land you satisfying savings.
OK, the puns are a bit obvious, but so is this Australian...
10 tags
5 Tips for Writing a Terrific Cover Letter
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In the age of LinkedIn, where some people apply to jobs through smartphone apps and email, do cover letters still matter? A new survey of hiring managers gives a pretty clear answer: Heck, yeah.
Staffing agency...
22 tags
The 10 Golden Rules of Scam Prevention
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If youâve ever fallen victim to a scam â and who hasnât â youâd probably like to avoid repeating the experience. Well, Iâm here to offer you a money-back guarantee that if you follow the 10 Golden Rules of Scam...
24 tags
General Motors marks 2011 as its most profitable...
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General Motors earned its largest profit ever in 2011, two years after it nearly collapsed into financial ruin.
Strong sales in the U.S. and China helped the 103-year-old carmaker turna...
8 tags
Community banks are getting stronger, Fed chairman...
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Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said Thursday that the health of the nation’s community banks has strengthened, despite what he described as a frustratingly slow economic recovery.
In remarks to a...
11 tags
Nordstrom profits climb 1.7 percent, meeting...
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Upscale department store operatorNordstrom Inc. said Thursday that its affluent shoppers continued to spend in the fourth quarter and its profit rose 1.7 percent from a year earlier.
The...
14 tags
Target's earnings drop 5.2 percent as it cut...
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Target Corp. reported a 5.2 percent drop in earnings for the fourth quarter, as big discounts to get tight-fisted shoppers to buy during the holiday season eroded profits.
The discounter,...
8 tags
Consumer confidence climbs to highest mark in a...
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A private research group says thatconsumer confidence in February rose dramatically to the highest level since a year ago when the U.S. economy’s outlook started to look brighter before souring again.
...
7 tags
Latest changes to the Oregon College Savings Plan...
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Oregon College Savings Plan made several changes last week aimed at lowering risks for kids nearing college and reducing expenses all investors pay, which a recent survey found to be less-than-ideal.
The plan’s...
18 tags
Fed chairman Bernanke reaffirms low interest rates
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Ben Bernanke says the Federal Reserve is sticking with its plan to hold interest rates at record-low levels until at least late 2014, despite a pickup in hiring that’s steadily lowered the unemployment...
13 tags
Washington unemployment falls to 8.3%
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OLYMPIA — Washington’s unemployment rate dropped to 8.3 percent in January, continuing a string of positive labor reports for the state.
“These numbers show that our economy is gaining strength, and that’s...
24 tags
Nasdaq reaches 3,000, yet stocks fall
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The Nasdaq composite index briefly touched 3,000 on Wednesday for the first time since the collapse in dot-com stocks more than a decade ago. Stocks ended lower, but it was still the best February on Wall Street in 14 years.
The...
20 tags
The 10 Commandments of Wealth and Happiness
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Iâve been doing TV news stories about saving more, spending less, and avoiding debt for more than 20 years. And Iâm now financially independent. But unlike most wealthy people youâve read about online or seen on Oprah,...
15 tags
How to Stop Getting Buried in Credit Card Offers
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This post is from partner site LowCards.com.
The volume of mail delivered by the U.S. Postal Service fell nearly 6 percent in fiscal 2011, butcredit card mailings last year jumped 37 percent, according to research...
24 tags
Lawsuits and Credit Cards: The Winners and Losers
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his post is from partner site LowCards.com.
Over the past four years, Congress and the Federal Reserve have passed and enacted many rules that changed the credit card industry. While the CARD Act and other reforms...
8 tags
9 Mistakes From the Personal Finance Anarchist...
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nce upon a time, no self-serving radical activist would be caught dead without The Anarchist Cookbook and its misguided recipes for making homemade bombs, tear gas, and other sinister items out of everyday...
15 tags
5 Great Credit Cards With No Annual Fee
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When the CARD Act of 2009 became law, many pundits believed that every credit card would soon have an annual fee â because greedy banks would try to make up for profits they had to give up elsewhere. Well, it didnât quite...
15 tags
The Single Best Tip to Beat High Gas Prices
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As youâre undoubtedly aware, gas prices are spiking â again. And as always happens when gas prices spike, the media will soon begin gushing tired and obvious advice on ways to save.
Iâve been watching, and...
12 tags
Tax Hacks 2012: 7 Smart Uses for Your Tax Refund
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ast year, more than 64 million Americans received an average tax refund of $2,985, the IRS says.
Where did they spend it? Everywhere. On everything from everyday expenses to vacations and big-ticket items like giant...
7 tags
How Coupons Can COST You Money
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The following post comes from Rich Finzer at partner site The Dollar Stretcher.
Weâve all heard the urban legends about coupon fanatics claiming to have bought $300 worth of groceries for $19. And maybe itâs true. But personally, I...
24 tags
Leap Year Trivia: 11 Things You Didn’t Know
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How many days are in a year? 365, of course, except when we add a leap day every four years.
Well, not anymore.
It takes Earth about 365.2422 days to revolve around the sun. So Julius Caesar rounded up to 365.25, or...
15 tags
Are Student Loans the Next Debt Crisis? 6 Ways to...
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Bankruptcy lawyers are warning that student debt could trigger an economic mess on par with themortgage crisis.
âAmericans now owe more on student loans than on credit cards,â says a study...
18 tags
Bernanke: Job market 'far from normal'
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke headed to Capitol Hill Wednesday to give Congress his semi-annual report on the economy, and what he had to say wasn’t exactly rosy.
The job...
10 tags
Blackstone CEO Schwarzman's $223 million year
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — It was a very good year for Stephen Schwarzman.
Schwarzman, the founder and chief executive of the private equity firm Blackstone Group, took in about $223 million in salary and...
14 tags
Average Wall Street bonus drops to $121,000
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Lower profits and layoffs resulted in Wall Street bonuses falling by nearly $3 billion last year to their lowest level since the 2008 financial crisis.
New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli...
22 tags
At $500 billion, Apple is worth more than Poland
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Apple’s stock market value topped the $500 billion mark in early trading Wednesday, another record high for what was already the world’s most valuable company.
The half-trillion...
21 tags
'The Artist' of currencies: The euro's silent rise
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — The euro is “The Artist” of currencies. It’s winning raves and is the feel-good hit of the season! Don’t laugh, but the euro has quietly (get it?)...
February 2012
134 posts
8 tags
More customers leaving big banks
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — New fees and poor customer service have sparked an exodus among big bank customers, many of whom switched to smaller institutions last year.
The defection rate for large, regional and midsize banks averaged...
21 tags
$100K manufacturing jobs
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — What’s uncool about a $100,000 factory job? These days not much. In fact, factory jobs — once considered back-breaking and low-paying — have become high-tech and high-salaried.
Still young people...
16 tags
Find Top 6-Month CD Rates At 2 Banks
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Although the top 6-month CD rates havenât changed since we last looked at this term, two different banks are now touting that 0.85% APY.
Hopefully, this promises at least a little stability for the term on our CD Rates...
13 tags
Online Bank Debuts With Top Savings Rate
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TIAA-CREF, the large retirement services provider, is moving into online banking.
Last week, it launched its online bank, TIAA Direct, which offers the best nationally available savings and money market account rates at 1.25%...
7 tags
Kentucky Deal On 30-, 48-Month CD Rates
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Kentucky savers will find two CD rates at West Point Bank that top the best nationally available deals on our CD Rates Leaderboard.
With a $100 minimum deposit, itâs paying:
1.76% APY for 30-month CDs.
2.17% APY for...
14 tags
For Once, Points Beat Cash In Credit Card Rewards...
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Pentagon Federal Credit Union, which offers some of the best credit cards, has anew rewards card that presents customers with a dilemma: Which is better, cash back or points?
On the surface,...
8 tags
Delaware Deal On 5-Year CDs, Checking
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Members of Del-One Federal Credit Union in Delaware will find 60-month CD rates far above the norm.
Itâs paying 2.32% APY with a $500 minimum deposit.
Thatâs nearly two-fifths of a percentage point higher than the top...
9 tags
Connecticut Bank’s Odd-Term CD Rates Dwarf Top...
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Start Community Bank has two special CD rates for Connecticut savers with new money to invest.
With a $500 minimum deposit of cash not already on deposit at this New Haven bank, itâs...
13 tags
Two Banks Tied For Top 2-Year CD Rates
The most you’ll earn on nationally available 24-month CD rates is just 1.26% APY.
That’s a bit less than you could have earned earlier this month before American Express Bank slashed its rates.
Both CIT Bank and Broadway Federal Bankare paying that rate and co-leading the term on our CD Rates Leaderboard.
Broadway Federal Bank (www.broadwayfed.com), which has five branches in Los Angeles and...
13 tags
Good Start To ING, Capital One Marriage
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In June, I suggested four ways that online bank ING Direct could keep this longtime customer.
The post was prompted by the news that Capital One had agreed to buy ING Direct USA for $9 billion in cash and stock.
The partnership...
11 tags
Security Service Federal Credit Union Offers A Few...
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While nearly all of Security Service Federal Credit UnionâsCD rates are above average, its 60-month CDs are the best of the bunch.
Since Security Service Federal Credit Union varies CD rates...
9 tags
Porsche Cayennes recalled for bum headlights
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — Porsche is recalling more than 100,000 of its Cayenne SUVs worldwide due to a headlight problem.
The issue affects Cayenne, Cayenne S, Cayenne S Hybrid and Cayenne Turbo Vehicles from model years...
17 tags
4 ways to stave off the cell phone apocalypse
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This is part four of a week-long series the cell phone capacity crunch.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — It’s easy to get frustrated about the effects of the spectrum crunch. Higher bills, fewer choices, and dismal...
7 tags
New home sales exceed expectations
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) — New home sales exceeded forecasts in the latest government readings Friday, another sign of a long-awaited recovery in the battered housing market.
The Census Bureau reported that the pace of new home...
