Mortgage rates' dip a first for 2018
WASHINGTON -- Long-term U.S. mortgage rates fell this week for the first time this year as the spring home-buying season begins. The decline comes after nine straight weeks of increases that pushed borrowing costs higher.
Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac, formally known as the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corp., said Thursday the average rate on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages slipped to 4.44 percent from 4.46 percent last week. The new average rate remains at a high level, however, raising concern that home sales could be dampened. The benchmark rate averaged 4.30 percent a year ago.
The average rate on 15-year, fixed-rate loans declined to 3.90 percent from 3.94 percent last week.
Mortgage rates rose steadily in January, February and early March, as interest rates generally increased in response to higher levels of government debt and expectations of rising inflation.
In addition to higher mortgage rates, home affordability also has been affected by increases in average home prices that have eclipsed wage growth. And the number of homes for sale has been shrinking.
The government reported Tuesday that consumer prices increased at a modest pace in February, indicating that inflation pressures may be easing. Overall consumer prices rose 2.2 percent in February from a year earlier.
-- The Associated Press
Judge allots 8 weeks for AT&T trial
The Justice Department's court fight to stop AT&T Inc. from acquiring Time Warner Inc. could last as long as eight weeks, the judge hearing the case said, twice as long as the initial estimate.
U.S. District Judge Richard Leon said Thursday in Washington that he calculated the time frame for the trial, scheduled to start Monday, based on the number of people expected to testify and the volume of exhibits.
The U.S. government sued to block AT&T's planned $85.4 billion acquisition in November, arguing it would harm competition and increase costs for consumers. The deal would marry the biggest U.S. telecommunications company with the owner of Turner Broadcasting, CNN and HBO.
While the U.S. claims consumers nationwide would pay $36 million more a month for pay-TV, the companies countered that the price increase is just 45 cents a month per subscriber.
The trial starts with a legal battle over what evidence should be allowed in, while opening arguments where each side lays out its case will start Wednesday. Even if the trial runs for eight weeks, the companies should still be able to get a ruling in time for their June 22 merger deadline.
The case is U.S. v. AT&T Inc., 17-cv-2511, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia.
-- Bloomberg News
Dollar General's same-store sales surge
GOODLETTSVILLE, Tenn. -- Dollar General's light revenue during the fiscal fourth quarter was outshined by booming sales at established stores and a very strong outlook.
The 3.3 percent jump in same-store sales reported on Thursday easily surpassed expectations for 2.5 percent, according to FactSet.
Per-share profit expectations for the year, of $5.95 to $6.15, is also a surprise. Wall Street had been projecting profits of $4.49, according to FactSet.
Quarterly same-store sales were fueled by healthier spending per transaction by shoppers, according to Dollar General Corp.
The company earned $712.2 million, or $2.63 per share, for the period ended Feb. 2. A year ago it earned $414.2 million, or $1.49 per share.
Revenue rose to $6.13 billion from $6.01 billion, but was short of Wall Street projections.
-- The Associated Press
Court lifts stay on Louisiana oil pipeline
BATON ROUGE -- A company can resume construction of a crude oil pipeline in a Louisiana swamp that has been on hold for nearly three weeks, an appeals court ruled Thursday.
A lower-court judge had suspended construction of the Bayou Bridge pipeline in the Atchafalaya Basin, but a divided three-judge panel from the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed to lift that order.
On Feb. 23, U.S. District Judge Shelly Dick sided with environmental groups and issued a preliminary injunction stopping all Bayou Bridge pipeline construction work in the basin until a lawsuit the groups had filed against the project is resolved. Sierra Club and other environmental groups sued the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in January, saying it violated the Clean Water Act and other environmental laws when it approved a permit for the project.
The appeals court panel's majority opinion said the company is likely to succeed on the merits of its claim that Dick abused her discretion in granting the injunction.
The basin accounts for approximately 23 miles of the pipeline's 162-mile-long path from Lake Charles to St. James Parish. Dick's order only applied to the basin and didn't prevent the company from working elsewhere along the pipeline's route.
-- The Associated Press
U.S. chamber sounds alarm on tariffs
WASHINGTON -- America's largest business lobby is warning President Donald Trump against slapping big tariffs on Chinese imports. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is sounding the alarm as the White House weighs whether to punish China for forcing U.S. companies to hand technology to Chinese companies.
"Simply put, tariffs are damaging taxes on American consumers," Chamber President Thomas Donohue said in a statement Thursday. Citing reports that the administration is considering tariffs worth $30 billion a year, Donohue noted that such a tax on Chinese imports would wipe out much of the windfall American families are getting from December's tax cuts.
Donohue also warned that sanctions against China "could lead to a destructive trade war with serious consequences for U.S. economic growth and job creation." The administration last August launched an investigation into Chinese policies that coerce U.S. companies into transferring technology.
-- The Associated Press
Business on 03/16/2018