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☆ US single-family homebuilding, permits rise in April
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Summary Single-family housing starts rise 1.6% in AprilSingle-family building permits increase 3.1%Overall housing starts climb 2.2%; permits fall 1.5%WASHINGTON, May 17 (Reuters) - U.S. single-family homebuilding increased in April, but data for the prior month was revised sharply lower, suggesting that the housing market slump was far from over even as some segments show signs of stabilizing. The rise in single-family housing starts last month reported by the Commerce Department on Wednesday was concentrated in the West, with the rest of the three regions reporting big declines. Single-family housing starts, which account for the bulk of homebuilding, rose 1.6% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 846,000 units last month. Single-family housing starts plunged 28.1% on a year-on-year basis in April. The single-family homebuilding backlog increased 4.5% to 139,000 units, while the completions rate for this segment dropped 6.5% to a rate of 971,000 units.

☆ Ford is finally bringing the beastly Ranger Raptor truck to the US, and it costs $57,000 — see it here
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Tim Levin | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The 2024 Ford Ranger Lariat. The 2024 Ford Ranger Lariat. FordThe Ranger RaptorThe 2024 Ford Ranger Raptor. The 2024 Ford Ranger Raptor. The 2024 Ford Ranger Raptor.

REUTERS/Dado RuvicLONDON, April 19 (Reuters) - Crypto firms have been left scrambling to find banking partners after the collapse of three crypto-friendly lenders in the U.S. last month, creating a risk their business will become concentrated in smaller financial institutions. Mainstream banks have become increasingly wary of crypto clients following a series of high-profile collapses, including the bankruptcy of major exchange FTX in November last year, and a lack of regulation. "Crypto and Web3 start-ups are telling us they simply cannot get a business bank account," said Marcus Foster, head of crypto policy at Coadec, a body representing UK start-ups. A spokesperson for ING said the bank does not "target or focus actively on crypto firms" so its exposure is "very limited." But for smaller crypto start-ups, securing a banking partner could be more difficult, said Ricardo Mico, the U.S. CEO of Banxa (BNXA.V), a payment and compliance infrastructure provider for crypto.

☆ Ford's first quarter sales increase 10.1% on improved F-Series truck production
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

REUTERS/Brendan McDermidDETROIT – Ford Motor on Tuesday reported a roughly 10% increase in its quarterly U.S. sales, led by jumps in its critical F-Series pickups and Bronco SUVs. Sales of Ford's trucks increased by nearly 20%, while car sales were up by 5.1% and SUVs increased by less than 1%. Ford reported sales of 170,377 F-Series pickups, up about 21% compared to a year earlier. Ford's sales increase comes as Wall Street analysts monitor rising vehicle inventories and incentives for the U.S. automotive industry following historically low levels of both during the past three years. Morgan Stanley estimates industry sales last month increased 8.7%, as automakers increase production levels following several years of significant supply chain problems.

[1/2] New York Police Department (NYPD) officers are pictured as protesters rally against the death in Minneapolis police custody of George Floyd, in Times Square in the Manhattan borough of New York City, U.S., June 1, 2020. FollowNEW YORK, March 1 (Reuters) - New York City has agreed to pay millions of dollars to demonstrators who sued the police department, saying they had been mistreated during a June 2020 racial justice protest that followed the killing of George Floyd. In a statement, the New York City Police Department said the demonstration occurred at a "challenging moment" when officers -already dealing with the strains of the COVID-19 pandemic - attempted to balance the right of people to protest with safety concerns. The total payments could amount to around $7 million, not including attorneys' fees, but a precise accounting was not yet available. Some of the protesters pursued individual claims and reached separate settlements, making them ineligible for additional payments, according to court filings.

☆ ‘Vermeer’ Review: Small Focus, Wide Reach
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( Mary Tompkins Lewis | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

An installation view of the show with Vermeer’s ‘Girl With a Pearl Earring’AmsterdamWhen the Frick Collection announced plans several years ago for a major renovation, the Rijksmuseum here saw a once-in-a-lifetime chance to borrow its three magnificent paintings by the Dutch artist Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675), which normally would never leave their New York home. Museums around the world and two private collectors also agreed to lend, and a retrospective, the largest ever assembled of the painter’s surviving work, took shape. “Vermeer,” the first exhibition devoted to the artist in the Rijksmuseum’s history, consists of 28 paintings (with one, his magisterial “Girl With a Pearl Earring,” leaving town March 30) out of the roughly 36 known to still exist. Organized by the museum’s curators Gregor J.M. Weber and Pieter Roelofs and designed by the architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte , it is a staggeringly beautiful, brilliantly realized show unlikely to be repeated.

☆ New home sales rise as prices drop in January
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —New home sales rose in January from December, as mortgage rates eased off their highs of the past year at the start of 2023. Sales of new single‐family houses were at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 670,000 last month, up from a revised 625,000 in December. Mortgage rates eased in January and ended the month nearly a point lower than they were at the beginning of November when they topped 7%. But in addition to volatile mortgage rates, another challenge for many buyers has been finding homes on the market to buy. “The backlog of new construction homes continues to emerge into the market just in time for the spring shopping season,” she said.

☆ There are plenty of open jobs for tech workers — they're just not at tech companies
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Samantha Delouya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Demand for tech workers at non-tech companies has reportedly outstripped demand at tech firms. The findings come as tech companies continue to cut budgets and lay off workers by the thousands. Tech jobs, highly sought after for their high pay and cushy benefits, seem less secure than ever as nearly every major tech company has cut headcounts and slashed budgets in the past six months. The bloodbath shows no sign of slowing down: Nearly 95,000 tech workers have been laid off in the first few weeks of 2023, according to layoff tracker layoffs.fyi. A silver lining for tech workers?

☆ Google parent Alphabet is cutting 12,000 jobs
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Clare Duffy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

New York CNN —Google parent Alphabet is eliminating about 12,000 jobs, or 6% of its workforce, the company said Friday, in the latest cuts to shake the technology sector. “Over the past two years we’ve seen periods of dramatic growth,” Pichai said in the email. Google’s job cuts are just the latest in a bruising wave of tech layoffs, as inflation weighs on consumer spending and rising interest rates squeeze funding. “While layoffs from high-profile firms make the headlines, plenty of firms are desperate for more workers, especially tech workers. “The labor market is still so tight that many tech workers, and workers with other skills, are snapped up well before they need to collect an unemployment check.

☆ Ford pickup truck sales in December help narrow overall sales decline
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-05 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Andrew Frick, Ford vice president of sales, distribution & trucks, said the company is "well positioned heading into 2023." Ford's 2022 sales outpaced the industry, which was estimated to be down by roughly 9%. Regarding all-electric vehicles, Ford said it was able to maintain its status as the country's second best-seller of EVs. Despite more than doubling its EV sales, Ford trails industry leader Tesla by a wide margin. The Ford brand's sales were down 2.1% last year, while the company's Luxury Lincoln brand was off by 4%.

☆ ‘The Eveillard Gift’ Review: A Sketch of a Great Collection
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( Mary Tompkins Lewis | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

New YorkWhen its original building on East 70th Street eventually reopens after a renovation, the Frick Collection—now temporarily ensconced on Madison Avenue—will include a new gallery specifically designed to display the museum’s drawings. They will be shown on a rotating basis to avoid overexposure to light, humidity and other elements, and will feature a promised gift of 26 works on paper and sketches from the collection of Elizabeth “Betty” and Jean- Marie Eveillard that are currently on view at the Frick Madison. “The Eveillard Gift,” an exhibition of this munificent bequest, suggests the impressive caliber of the donors’ larger collection and the museum’s continued commitment to the study of European drawings.

☆ New home sales rose in November, defying expectations
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Meanwhile, the median price for a new home dropped to $471,200, down from $493,000 the previous month. But it was still higher than the median price a year ago, which was $430,000. “New home sales rose more than expected, but the big picture still is bleak for most Americans looking to buy,” said Robert Frick, corporate economist at Navy Federal Credit Union. In early November, mortgage rates reached their high for the year – an average of 7.08% for a 30-year fixed-rate loan – and have been falling since. But for the first time since April, builders registered an increase in future sales expectations this month, according to the National Association of Home Builders.

☆ U.S. consumer confidence rebounds; existing home sales sink
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Lucia Mutikani | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

"The outlook for consumer confidence in 2023 will hinge on the Fed's ability to deliver a soft landing on what could be described as a narrow runway." The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index increased to 108.3 this month, the highest reading since April, from 101.4 in November. While the survey places more emphasis on the labor market, the rebound in confidence matched a similar rise in the University of Michigan's sentiment index. The improvement, which mostly reflected lower gasoline prices, was in line with recent data showing consumer prices increasing moderately in November. But with the housing market in the doldrums, economists believe the labor market will loosen and unemployment increase next year.

☆ New home building retreated in November
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Washington CNN —Home building pulled back in November, as buyers faced spiking mortgage rates topping 7% that make homes increasingly unaffordable. Housing starts bounced back a bit in August while mortgage rates briefly retreated. But since that time, mortgage rates have been on the rise, hitting a 20-year high in October. One number that beat estimates was housing starts, he said, but those were weighted to apartments, not single-family homes. “Potential homebuyers should see some relief next year in the form of lower mortgage rates and possibly lower home prices,” said Frick.

☆ Consumer prices rose less than expected in November, up 7.1% from a year ago
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

watch nowStocks initially roared higher following the report, with futures tied to the Dow Jones Industrial Average up more than 800 points initially before easing a bit. Falling energy prices helped keep inflation at bay. Food prices, however, rose 0.5% and were up 10.6% from a year ago. Even with its monthly decline, the energy index was higher by 13.1% from November 2021. Real average hourly earnings rose 0.5% for the month, though they were still down 1.9% from a year ago.

☆ Swear words in different languages have one thing in common
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-10 | by ( Scottie Andrew | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

What they found, though, was that in several languages, swear words are missing the l, r, w and y sounds. The only discernible pattern they could find among the swear words were the missing sounds throughout: the approximants l, r, w and y. (The researchers made up many of the words for this part of the study, based on existing words in different languages.) The participants were “significantly less likely” to select the words with approximants when asked to identify swear words, McKay and Lev-Ari wrote. Those almost-but-not-quite-curses are called “minced oaths,” words that sound similar to, but still notably different from, swear words.

☆ Premarket stocks: Why the stock market is channeling Goldilocks
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-02 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

It’s rough out there, but there is a silver lining: Persistently high Inflation is showing signs of slowing. “This morning’s data was a Goldilocks report,” wrote Chris Zaccarelli, chief investment officer for Independent Advisor Alliance, in a note Thursday. Gas prices also dropped between October and November, which means that inflation could keep slowing. A range of factors have led to the drop in gas prices – and not all of them are positive. The bottom line: Gas prices are still relatively high for this time of the year, but looking ahead, some forecasters see gas prices continuing to dip.

☆ Mortgage rates fall for the second week in a row
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-23 | by ( Anna Bahney | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Mortgage rates dropped again this week, after plunging nearly half a percentage point last week. Mortgage rates have risen throughout most of 2022, spurred by the Federal Reserve’s unprecedented campaign of hiking interest rates in order to tame soaring inflation. But last week, rates tumbled amid reports that indicated inflation may have finally reached its peak. The average mortgage rate is based on mortgage applications that Freddie Mac receives from thousands of lenders across the country. As a result of the drop in mortgage rates, both purchase and refinance applications picked up slightly last week.

☆ Ford October sales slide 10% largely due to supply chain issues
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Michael Ballaban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +1 min

New York CNN Business —Ford saw its October US sales slump 10% over the last year as the company continued to battle supply chain difficulties. Ford sold 158,327 vehicles last month, down from almost 176,000 vehicles in the same period last year, the company said Wednesday. Not all automakers saw sales declines, however. Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia reported strong sales for the third month in a row, and Japanese automaker Toyota saw year-over-year sales rise 28% in October. Issues getting cars delivered to customers aside, “Ford continues to see strong demand for its vehicles,” Ford’s vice president in charge of sales for gasoline-fueled vehicles, Andrew Frick, said in a statement.

☆ Ford's October sales slide 10% amid supply chain issues
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Michael Wayland | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

DETROIT – Ford Motor's U.S. sales last month declined by 10% as the automaker battled through supply chain issues that delayed shipments to dealers. Ford has experienced unique supply chain issues lately, including sourcing of its blue oval badges for highly profitable pickup trucks and SUVs. Ford said orders for 2023 model-year vehicles totaled 255,000. Ford's 2022 all-electric vehicle sales totaled roughly 47,500 units through October, accounting for about 3% of the automaker's sales. Ford is among a handful of automakers to report new monthly vehicle sales.

☆ Premarket stocks: Big Tech can't save your investments
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

But disappointing earnings from Big Tech stocks have the tendency to turn the broader market south thanks to their immense market value. Beyond determining market sentiment, tech earnings also offer important clues about where the economy is heading. In particular, sales growth in the cloud business – one of the company’s biggest bright spots in recent years – was lower than analysts had hoped. Its fiscal second-quarter forecast came in short of Wall Street estimates, sending shares down 8% on Wednesday. A slowing economy, geopolitical chaos and heightened inflation have all worked to dry up the number of IPOs and mergers and acquisitions made on Wall Street.

☆ European inflation less worrying than in U.S., says asset manager
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailEuropean inflation less worrying than in U.S., says asset managerFiona Frick, chief executive of asset management firm Unigestion, says European companies are priced well, but investors have little visibility on earnings, making cash an attractive short-term solution.

☆ Job openings plunged by more than 1.1 million in August
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-04 | by ( Jeff Cox | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The number of job openings plunged by more than a million in August, providing a potential early sign that the massive U.S. labor gap is beginning to close. One primary area of interest for the central bank has been the ultra-tight labor market, which had been showing about two job openings for every available worker. "Job openings took a major dive in August, falling by more than about 1 million, but they still total more than 10 million. The rate remains one full percentage point below where it was in February 2020, just prior to the pandemic. Markets still expect the Fed to push forward with a fourth consecutive 0.75 percentage point interest rate hike at its next meeting.

New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge belted his 61st home run of the season in Toronto on Wednesday night, tying the American League record set by fellow pinstripe great Roger Maris. Judge has still very been productive in his homerless stretch, drawing 12 walks and scoring five runs as the Yankees went 6-1. Mark McGwire hit 70, then a record, in 1998 for the St. Louis Cardinals. Now Maris' name is linked to baseball's well-liked 2021 home run leader, Judge, 30, a native of Linden, California. Judge has been an elite home run hitter from his first full season in the Bronx, when he hit 52 homers in 2017.

☆ Aaron Judge slams 61st home run of 2022, tying the single-season AL record
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-29 | by ( David K. Li | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees hits a solo home run in the fifth inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Yankee Stadium on April 22, 2022 in the Bronx borough of New York City. New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge belted his 61st home run of the season in Toronto on Wednesday night, tying the American League record set by fellow pinstripe great Roger Maris. The historic home run ball was picked up by Blue Jays bullpen coach Matt Buschmann, who gave it to the Yankees. Now Maris' name is linked to baseball's well-liked 2021 home run leader, Judge, 30, a native of Linden, California. Judge has been an elite home run hitter from his first full season in the Bronx, when he hit 52 homers in 2017.

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