Home equity borrowing is up as well. A lot of this borrowing is spurred by people consolidating high-interest debt into loans with lower monthly payments. The Federal Reserve reports that half the extra cash Americans get from mortgage refinancing is used for new consumption or to pay off other debts such as credit card bills. Hear more as Steve Tripoli of member station WBUR reports for Morning Edition . A half-billion dollar settlement ended one civil class action lawsuit in April.
Overseas cases are likely.
The current indictment reportedly accuses the auction houses of working together to set the rates they charged customers to sell works at auction during a six-year period that ended in 1999. Hear more as Morning Edition host Bob Edwards discusses the developments with NPR's David D'Arcy. S. Africa Drugs Airline Lawsuit Longwall Mining High Tech Companies Change Course on Recruits High tech firms who were hot on the heels of college graduates just months ago now find themselves reversing field as the national economic slowdown cuts into profits. Companies like Intel are achieving job cuts by paying recent recruits a bonus to walk away from the position that had been offered. The recruits wind up with two months' salary and companies are able to reduce payroll in a relatively painless manner.