NPR 2010-08-25

Sales of previously 1 occupied homes are down sharply by 27 percent in July to the lowest level since 1995. Those figures come from the National Association of Realtors. NPR's Paul Brown reports some analysts 2 think sales and prices could go still lower.

Home sales are down; prices are down; and there are still plenty of problem mortgages. Economist 3 William Wheaton of MIT points out that inventories 4 of unsold homes are higher than during the housing bubble. He doesn't expect a big improvement until the mortgage situation reaches better balance.

"I think what we have to do is figure out a way of getting all these mortgages that in some sense were ridiculous when they were originated in the last five years back down to some reasonable amount."

Wheaton says one idea is for lenders to rewrite mortgages at more realistic amounts in exchange for a share in gains if home prices improve. The lead economist with the National Association of Realtors says the market needs a dose of confidence but predicts it won't get that if unemployment remains 5 high. Paul Brown, NPR News.

And we're seeing an effect on US stocks. Dow’s down 138 points at 10,036. NASDAQ down 36 at 2,124.

The Obama administration says it is exploring all options to restore federal funding for embryonic 6 stem cell research. As NPR's Scott Horsley reports, the administration's effort(s) to boost research funding have been blocked by a federal judge.

The judge ruled the government cannot legally bankroll embryonic stem cell research because that research necessarily involve the destruction of human embryoes. White House spokesman Bill Burton says the administration is still reviewing the judge's order. But he says President Obama has not given up on the promise of embryonic stem cells to treat diseases such as Parkinson's and diabetes 7.

"This is important lifesaving—potentially lifesaving research that can have an impact on millions of Americans and people all around the world."

Burton suggests the judge's strict interpretation 8 of the law would have prohibited even though more limited research funding that was allowed during the Bush administration. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.

Recovery from floods in Pakistan could take years. That grim assessment 9 today from President Asif Ali Zardari, who's faced with rebuilding a country while also trying to stave off rising Taliban threats. Nearly a month after the floods struck, hundreds of thousands of people in southern Sindh province are still in danger. NPR's Julie McCarthy has more.

The Sindh province, the southernmost to be hit in this flood, is now one devastating 10 scene after the next. Nearly four million affected 11 and two million have been displaced. Camps have been set up. Some are orderly; many are not. There are many complaints about the lack of clean water, the lack of food and the lack of proper shelter. NPR's Julie McCarthy reporting.

This is NPR News.

In Chile, cheers from family members as they heard the voice of miners who've been trapped underground for 19 days. Rescuers are trying to dig an escape tunnel, meanwhile, to get the 33 miners out, but they warn it could take months.

Former President Jimmy Carter's traveling to North Korea to negotiate the release of an American in prison there. From Seoul, Doualy Xaykaothao has more on the 31-year-old prisoner.

Aijalon Gomes knew little about the Korean Peninsula two years ago when he arrived in the South Korean capital. During his time teaching English, he started to understand more about the two Koreas and about the stark 12 differences between them. Ji Chul-ho, a North Korean refugee, says he talked a lot about religion with Gomes. Ji says he told Gomes about how ignorant he was of Christianity because in North Korea, he points out, people know the word but cannot talk about it for feared individuals could be put in a prison camp. Friends and former students speculate that Gomes went to North Korea to try and improve the lives of North Koreans. Gomes is currently serving an eight-year prison sentence for trespassing 13 into the North. For NPR News, I'm Doualy Xaykaothao in Seoul.

Chinese authorities are reporting at least 42 death(s) from today's plane crash in the northeastern province of Heilongjiang. Local media say dozens of people were injured.        

There are now fewer than 50,000 American troops in Iraq in line with President Obama's desire for the end of this month. The US mission will shift September 1st from a combat role to one of advising and assisting Iraqi security forces.