Canadian Automakers, Lumber Producers Still a Drag on Economy

Canada's slumping manufacturers continue to act as a drag on the world's eighth-biggest economy, two government reports showed today, bolstering the case for the Bank of Canada to cut interest rates again.
Exports of automotive products dropped 4.9 percent in March, while forestry-related exports declined 7.7 percent, Statistics Canada said today. Meanwhile, the jobless […]

Icahn raises stake in Motorola to 7.6%

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn on Wednesday reported increasing his stake in Motorola Inc. to 7.6% from 6.4% in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Icahn now owns about 172.2 million shares, or a 7.6% stake based on 2.26 billion shares outstanding as of March 14.
Icahn previously reported owning about 144.6 million shares, representing […]

Bernanke Wants Fed to Pay Interest on Bank Reserves

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke, seeking ways to stabilize money markets, will ask Congress for authority to pay interest on commercial-bank reserves this year, a person familiar with the discussions said.
The central bank isn't authorized by Congress to begin making such payments until 2011. Allowing interest on bank reserves may allow the […]

What Uncle Sam Gives in Rebates, OPEC Takes, Stalling Economy

Wal-Mart and OPEC are battling for the tax rebates the U.S. government began handing out last week. The result may be a draw for the economy.
While consumers might spend enough of the $117 billion stimulus at retailers to keep the U.S. economy afloat in the months ahead, the boost from their purchases will […]

Genetic discrimination ban

Companies would no longer be able to use genetic information like a person’s predisposition for breast cancer, sickle cell anemia or diabetes to make insurance or job decisions under a bill passed by Congress on Thursday.
The House voted 414-1 for the legislation a week after it passed the Senate on a 95-0 vote. The […]

Australia's Building Approvals Fall 5.7% on Rates

Australia's home-building approvals fell six times as much as economists forecast after the central bank raised borrowing costs to the highest in 12 years.
The number of permits granted to build or renovate houses and apartments dropped 5.7 percent in March from February, when they fell a revised 0.8 percent, the Bureau of Statistics […]