| Payday lending reform needed
Ohio's 1995 legislation that enabled the practice of payday lending now looks like a classic case of good intentions gone awry. The idea was to allow people with modest incomes and checking accounts to take out small, two-week loans from check-cashing outlets, giving them quick access to cash to tide them over until their next paychecks. Lenders were permitted to charge high fees, $15 per $100 loaned, on the theory that people would make one-time use of this service in emergencies. But too often, it hasn't worked that way for cash-strapped Ohioans who use payday lending as a last resort. By the time they get their next paychecks, they find themselves unable to pay back the loan plus fees, so they end up taking out a second loan to pay the first one, and on and on.
Banks hope cut eventually lifts demand for loans
The bad: Short-term pressures will remain. Banks have already been socked hard by the mortgage crisis and quarter after quarter of asset write-downs as investors try to figure out what banks' loan portfolios are really worth. And the cost of getting deposits — what banks pay in interest on savings, checking and certificate of deposit accounts — will remain higher than what they can charge on loans in the immediate future. For some banks, the rate cut means that they will lower their prime rates in tandem — SunTrust Banks did so Tuesday — but they won't be able to cut deposit rates as quickly because of competition for those deposits. The ugly: Consumer confidence is a wild card for the economy and for banks. If the Fed cuts don't ease consumer concerns, economic growth would be stifled, and there would little new demand for loans.
A 'Bradley Effect' for Blacks?
The Missing Mexcians, Part XVIII: Instapundit observes the changing American workforce firsthand. ... 12:44 P.M. ___________________________ The conservatives at The Corner sense general election vulnerability in Hillary's it-makes-sense-but-I-don't-support-it answer on Gov. Spitzer's plan to issue drivers licenses to illegal immigrants. (Video here.) She loses her calm and gets mildly imperious. ... Hillary does quite consistently and unflipfloppily say she supports "comprehensive immigration reform." But a) even if no Democrat will call her on that (as Dodd called her on the drivers' license issue) a Republican might. Unfortunately for Republicans, only one of their top five contenders (Thompson) is well-positioned as a clear opponent of "comprehensive" reform's mass legalization plan.
NBA ALL-STARS: No Pistons starters as fans fail to support Detroit
It feels like I'm over the hump now and people are starting to realize the hard work that I put in to get here," he said. "It's all because of the fans. They're obviously liking what they've been seeing out of me and the production that I'm giving out there on the court this season. It's finally starting to pay off."
Garnett, another perennial starter, will experience the game from the other conference for the first time.
The Boston forward will appear in his 11th straight All-Star game, second among active players to Shaquille O'Neal's 14, and ninth start. The longtime Minnesota Timberwolves star is a leading MVP candidate at midseason for the impact he has made on the Celtics, who own the NBA's best record at 33-7 after winning only 24 games last season.
"It's appreciated," he said earlier Thursday of his expected selection.
School results - Daugherty wins UPDATED
When we called the race earlier, the only official results available for the runoff were for early and absentee voting, which Daugherty carried 113-107. But workers for both candidates -- gathering votes by checking posted totals at individual precincts -- were coming up with similar tallies giving Daugherty the victory. This turnout was an increase of more than 50 percent over the first election, which Daugherty led 808-806. Two other candidates picked up 193 more votes in the first election. (The Pulaski County Election Commission had problems with its Internet provider, which hampered reporting of vote totals Tuesday night.) I drove around to a few polls myself to gather some early votes. I checked the biggest individual poll for Daugherty and Swaim in the first election and a large box with a split vote.
Pay Rs 100 to encroach upon MC land
Imtiaz, a 25-year-old worker in a hosiery, used to iron clothes. In the Shingar blast, his right arm was burnt and had to be mutilated. Now, he is without any livlihood. Twenty-year-old Pawan Kumar lost his left leg with which he operated a sewing machine while working in a hosiery. These victims have been scarred for life. The government has played a cruel joke on the victims. The relief amount is meagre. Each time Intiaz looks at his shoulder with no arm, he begins to shiver. We are trying everything to keep hope alive in him. But he is disappointed and has lost the will to live, says Mohammad Ishrafil, brother -in-law of Intiaz. Pawan Kumar has a vacant look in his eyes. Still in hospital, he wishes he had died. Without a leg, I am useless. Ive got three unmarried sisters.
MPs demand new regulator as FSA stands condemned
A cross-party committee of MPs yesterday called for a new office to monitor British banks, saying that the Financial Services Authority should not be permitted any additional powers.
The Commons Treasury Select Committee’s report on the Northern Rock scandal said that the City regulator has "systematically failed in its duty" to oversee the troubled bank’s activities. "The FSA did not supervise Northern Rock properly," the report said. "The failure of Northern Rock, while a failure of its own board, was also a failure of its regulator."
The 183-page report will sour the exit of Sir Callum McCarthy, who is due to step down as chairman of the FSA in September. It recommends that a Bank of England deputy governor and head of financial stability be introduced to oversee a new protection scheme for bank deposits, keep a look out for banking problems and oversee the rescue or "orderly failure" of troubled banks.
ITT Educational confident in 2008 view
CARMEL, Ind. - Post-secondary education provider ITT Educational Services Inc. said Thursday it is "confident" it can achieve 2008 earnings per share of $4.50 to $4.60 despite the reduction in lender subsidies under federal student loan programs and tight credit markets which are pressuring students. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial expect full-year profit of $4.47 per share, on average. The company said it expects to continue to improve student retention, but believes future increases in the quarterly persistence rate will moderate from 2007 levels. "Recently, there has been a lot of speculation in the market with respect to the ability of our students to obtain the financing needed to pay their education costs," said Chief Executive Kevin Modany in a statement. "This speculation was caused by a recent reduction in lender subsidies under the federal student loan programs and the current credit crunch that arose from the subprime mortgage crisis." ITT said it has arranged for Bank of America, Chase Education Finance and Citibank, The Student Loan Corp.
|
