Business Updates

O'Malley proposes 6 percent increase in gas prices

Baltimore Sun - Measure would apply Maryland sales tax to price per gallon for the first time. Read more ...

Verizon’s wireless, marketing deal with cable firms to be considered at Senate hearing

Washington Post - Comcast and other cable firms have argued that a marketing deal should not be included in federal regulatory reviews of mergers. They say the purchase of airwaves should be reviewed specifically for how the transaction affects wireless concentration in certain markets. Read more ...

House prices hit post-bubble low

Washington Post - Data released Tuesday showed that seasonally adjusted housing prices have reached a post-bubble low, as the minor surge that began in 2009 fizzled, to be followed by the almost continuous slide of the past 18 months. The housing bust, in other words, appears to be even worse than it was at the nadir of the recession. Read more ...

Freddie Mac’s big bet against homeowners

Washington Post - Freddie Mac has used a complex derivative transaction to place large bets that rely on millions of American homeowners remaining in overpriced mortgages to pay off. The bets in Freddie’s investment portfolio — which totaled $3.4 billion in 2010 and 2011 — directly contradict the housing giant’s stated mission to provide affordable mortgages to Americans. Read more ...

How the Public Sees Business Rules

New York Times - AMERICANS are split almost down the middle on the issue of whether there is too much regulation of business or too little. Residents of most other countries are more likely to think more regulation is needed. But there is widespread agreement around the world on one point: the current level of regulation is not right. Read more ...

Time to consider mass mortgage refinancings

Washington Post - Main Street taxpayers have bailed out Wall Street. Now it’s time for Wall Street to return the favor by footing the bill to help millions of honorable Main Street borrowers pay lower interest rates on their mortgages, something that should have happened years ago. Wall Street giving back to Main Street — imagine that! Read more ...

Pentagon interest in cybersecurity may ease contractors’ pain from cuts

Washington Post - Plans by the Pentagon to invest more in cybersecurity and space-based capabilities may ease the blow for defense contractors such as Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin that are facing cuts in other programs. Read more ...

President weighs proposals to reward firms for returning jobs to U.S.

Washington Post - President Obama said Wednesday that he plans to put forward a series of tax proposals to “reward companies that choose to bring jobs home” and eliminate tax breaks “for companies that are moving jobs overseas.” Read more ...

Amid downturn, more older Americans employed than ever before

Washington Post - Though the recession has thinned the ranks of other generations in the workforce, more people older than 55 are employed than ever before, according to the latest figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Read more ...