NPR 2008-06-27

President Bush today eased some economic sanctions against North Korea in exchange for a North Korean declaration on details of its nuclear weapons program. NPR's Mike Shuster reports.

The president moved to rescind 1 North Korea's designation as a state sponsor of terrorism imposed in the 1980s. There is a 45-day interim 2 period while Congress looks at the issue before it goes into effect. The president also lifted sanctions imposed by the Trading with the Enemy Act, which date(s) back to the Korean War and restricted much trade between the US and North Korea. President Bush eased these sanctions because North Korea released a declaration that reveals crucial details of its nuclear weapons program, including an accounting 3 of how much plutonium it has produced over the past twenty years. That would give the US a precise count on how many nuclear weapons North Korea may possess. Other sanctions against North Korea remain in effect, including those imposed for human rights violations 4 and alleged 5 currency counterfeiting 6 and those adopted by the UN Security Council. Mike Shuster, NPR News.

Sales of existing homes actually rose last month, up 2%. That is a sign the housing market may be beginning to stabilize 7. NPR's Chris Arnold reports.

Home sales edged up a bit as sellers cut their prices. The National Association of Realtors said prices were down 6% from a year ago. A different housing index showed prices down as much as 15% nationally. And that's brought buyers back into the market. Mark Zandi heads up Moody'sEconomy.com. He thinks the pace of sales has probably found a bottom, but: "I think there is still a mountain of inventory 8 out there for sale and we are adding to it because foreclosures continue to rise. So, prices will continue to come down throughout all of the remainder of this year and well into next in most places across the country. " But with sales now leveling off, Zandi expects the market will be in a better position to start working through that inventory of unsold homes. Chris Arnold, NPR News.

And if investors 9 on Wall Street were heartened at all by the slightly stronger home sales numbers last month, they didn't show it today. Financial markets took a major hit amid downgrades of some big banks and automaker General Motors on concerns about future profits. Investment bank Goldman Sachs forecast more write-downs for Citigroup and Merrill Lynch and shifted its rating on GM to "sell". David Wyss is an economist 10 at Standard & Poor's and says there is a lot of pessimism 11 out there. "Goldman downgraded their reports for the financial companies. People are beginning to worry that the losses will be even bigger than they thought, and that they could spread beyond just the mortgage market into other parts of consumer finance. After all, if people can't pay off their mortgage, it will make you think they can't pay the credit card bills of their car loans. " Market sell-off was exacerbated 12 by a big run-up in crude oil prices which climbed more than five dollars a barrel today to settle at just below 140 dollars a barrel.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 358 points to close at 11, 453. The NASDAQ lost 79 points. The S&P was down 38.

This is NPR.

Defense 13 Secretary Robert Gates today expressed growing concerns about the rising levels of attacks by insurgent 14 forces in eastern Afghanistan. Speaking at the Pentagon today, Gates said that there is a real concern it reflects infiltration 15 of fighters from neighboring Pakistan. Gates' comments came in response to questions about reports that insurgent attacks in eastern Afghanistan have risen by 40% this year. The defense secretary says the ability of fighters to easily cross the border is a major factor. He says the US will raise the issue with the new government of Pakistan.

In Los Angeles, a jury has convicted a man of first-degree murder in the deaths of 11 people who were killed after the train they were on derailed. The man intentionally 16 parked his jeep on the tracks during a botched suicide attempt. NPR's Carrie Kahn reports.

The jury reached its verdict on the second day of deliberations in the case of Juan Manuel Alvarez. Alvarez parked his jeep on the train tracks in the city of Glendale. The 29-year-old man said he had intended to commit suicide. He says he changed his mind but then couldn't get the jeep off the tracks. Prosecutors 17 said Alvarez was set on causing a catastrophe 18 in order to get attention from his estranged 19 wife. It was in January of 2005 that Alvarez drove his car onto the tracks, setting off a chain reaction of collisions between commuter 20 trains. Along with the 11 people who died, nearly 200 were injured in the accident. Prosecutors say they will seek the death penalty. Carrie Kahn, NPR News.

Just what residents in the States' mid-section don't need--- more rain, which has been falling in already-soggy parts of Missouri and Illinois, threatening to again  raise still-high river levels in the town of Polk City, Iowa. Five inches of rain has fallen since yesterday, with forecasters saying even one more inch could cause flash flooding.