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News In Brief

MID-DAY UPDATE: Happy July. Lots of data today. Most of it sad.

Melissa Kaplan Jul 1, 2010

The Mid-Day Update is a five-day-a-week podcast from the Marketplace Morning Report co-hosted by Bill Radke and Steve Chiotakis that wraps up the morning news in a fun little package. Listen here every day at 10 a.m. PT or download it to your iPod by subscribing to the Morning Report Podcast:

  • National Association of Realtors: Pending home sales plunged 30 percent from April to May to a new record low. That’s despite mortgage rates which today ALSO hit a new record low — about 4.5 percent for a 30-year fixed.

  • New unemployment benefit claims rose last week by 13,000. Analysts were expecting a small drop. Speaking of which, Congress did not extend unemployment benefits. Maybe after the July 4 vacation. Maybe not. A big employment report comes out tomorrow.

  • Toyota is considering another recall, a quarter million vehicles. Engines in some Toyota and Lexus models sometimes stall while driving. Toyota says there’ve been no accidents or injuries from this.

  • The once-rich BP is said to be trying borrow $5 billion to fill its Gulf of Mexico escrow account. BP stock shot up yesterday after analysts suggested that Exxon-Mobil should make a bid for it.

  • Microsoft rolled out its new Kin cell phone a few months ago with a big ad campaign. Sales disappointed. There will be no next of Kin.

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