In today’s news update we will hear from AIG, Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae, Toyota and updates on the job market.
AIG Plans to Sell Remaining Transatlantic Stake
American International Group Inc. plans to sell its remaining 13.8% stake in casualty reinsurer Transatlantic Holdings Inc. held by its American Home Assurance Co. subsidiary.
The 9.19 million shares AIG wants to sell would be worth about $494 million based on Translantic’s closing share price on Thursday.
Transatlantic shares were down 3.7% in recent trade at $51.77, while AIG rose 4.3% to $27.87 amid a broad market gain.
Rep. Frank questions safety of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac investments
An influential voice on Capitol Hill has unexpectedly called into question the safety of investing in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, raising the specter that investors who have lent money to the two firms or bought their mortgage-backed securities could one day suffer losses.
The comments by Rep. Barney Frank (D-Mass.), chairman of the House Financial Services Committee, come despite the assumption of many investors that investments in the two mortgage finance giants are risk-free. Until now, federal officials — who took over Fannie and Freddie two years ago to save them from collapse — have signaled to the market that lending the companies money is just about as safe as lending to the U.S. government itself.
Toyota incentives rouse would-be buyers
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Toyota’s new incentive plan appears to have piqued the interest of buyers looking to snag a good deal, reports showed Thursday, even as the automaker’s recall woes linger.
Edmunds.com and kbb.com, Web site of Kelly Blue Book, both reported significant increases in traffic among users expressing serious interest in Toyota vehicles since the automaker announced a new incentive plan on Tuesday.
Jobs report shows unemployment unchanged
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — As severe winter storms crippled East Coast cities, the U.S. economy shed thousands of jobs in February, according to a government report released Friday. But the unemployment rate remained unchanged.
The Labor Department said the economy lost 36,000 jobs in the month, fewer than the 68,000 jobs economists were expecting, according to a survey conducted by Briefing.com.
In today’s news update, we provide links regarding the U.S. job market, AIG Payouts and health care priorities.
Obama Returns to Job One — Jobs
President Obama hoped to put the Christmas Day terror scare behind him — at least temporarily — by saying Thursday that the “buck stops with me” and setting in motion a streamlining of intelligence efforts and a ramping up of passenger screening.
Today, he returns his focus to jobs after the latest unemployment report showed the jobless rate stuck in double digits.
N.Y. Fed Told AIG to Shield Payouts
The Federal Reserve Bank of New York told American International Group Inc. not to disclose key details of their agreements to make big payouts to banks in the insurer’s regulatory filings in late 2008, according to a set of email exchanges released Thursday.
House Democrats discuss health care priorities
Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives briefed party members on Thursday on healthcare talks with the Senate, with competing approaches on taxes and the shape of new insurance exchanges topping the list of priorities.
