Menu

Among US affluent heads of household surveyed, those with annual household incomes of $250,000 and over spend the most time online, according to a study conducted from March through July 2008 by Ipsos Mendelsohn.

Merrill Lynch and Lehman Brothers are the latest corporate casualties in the financial crisis caused by abusive loans from reckless lenders. Even the former chair of the Mortgage Bankers Association now concedes that brokers, lenders and investors "forgot about [their] customers" because "making money and our commission checks were more important." In short, these loans never should have been made. The failure of Lehman and forced sale of Merrill underscore the need for stronger regulation of the mortgage market to prevent this from recurring, and, if we want to fix the economy, the need to modify the millions of bad loans that created this mess.

Fitch Ratings has completed an initial review of the investment exposure to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac held by U.S. life and property/casualty (P/C) insurers. Based on that review, Fitch believes that the impact on the insurance companies' ratings will be limited.

A new economic study issued by Navigant Consulting, Inc., shows that more than 1.2 million employment opportunities, including 440,000 permanent jobs, and $232 billion in investment would be supported in the U.S. by the solar energy sector alone through 2016 if Congress extends the solar investment tax credit (ITC) for 8 years.

Seventy one percent of American employees are living paycheck to paycheck, according to results released from the 2008 "Getting Paid In America" survey.

Despite a sluggish economy, recent 2008 graduates looking for their first foray into the world of work will find many employers nationwide looking to fill entry-level positions. MonsterTRAK released the top five industries for entry-level workers based on a review of job openings posted on its site over the last year.

Consolidation of payments, cash and trade into a single transaction banking function is well underway as banks focus on growing their
transaction banking businesses, but the delivery of a joined-up service is not there yet, according to research published by Misys, the global application software and services company.

Compared to last year,fewer consumers are willing to pay more for green products despite growing consumer interest in the environment, green behaviors and green lifestyles,according to Yankelovich.

The Deloitte Research Leading Index of Consumer Spending fell in August, due primarily to a continued soft housing market and a worsening labor market. The Index attempts to track consumer cash flow as an indicator of future consumer spending.

Bank of America Corporation announced it has agreed to acquire Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. in a $50 billion all-stock transaction that creates a company unrivalled in its breadth of financial services and global reach.