SDB Club Benchmark Real Estate

Stocks mostly fell Thursday as gains in technology stocks failed to lift the broader market after days of steep gains. The technology-heavy Nasdaq composite index outpaced other indicators as 3Com Corp. surged after agreeing to a $2.7 billion takeover by Hewlett-Packard Co. and as Intel Corp. said it would pay $1.25 billion to Advanced Micro [...]

Saudi Arabia’s decision to start using a new benchmark to price the oil it sells to the U.S. is setting up a battle between the two leading commodities exchanges, each hoping to become the dominant market for derivatives linked to the new benchmark. IntercontinentalExchange Inc. and New York Mercantile Exchange parent CME Group Inc. are [...]

The Federal Reserve said U.S. banks kept tightening lending standards for companies and consumers last quarter, reinforcing the central bank’s decision to leave its benchmark interest rates at record lows for a long time. At the same time, the number of banks making it tougher to borrow diminished, the Fed said yesterday in its quarterly [...]

Beijing continued a delicate balancing act yesterday (Wednesday), vowing to keep stoking its economy with funding from its $787 billion stimulus program even as it implements new controls on bank lending. After spending three days visiting the restive eastern province of Zhejiang, Premier Wen Jiabao argued for maintaining the loose economic policies implemented under the [...]

Rates for 30 year mortgages rose for the second-straight week, Freddie Mac said Thursday. The average rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage was 5.25 percent this week, up from 5.2 percent last week. Last year at this time, 30 year mortgages averaged 6.52 percent, Freddie Mac said. Earlier this year, rates on 30 year mortgages [...]