NPR 2012-02-10

 President Obama says the big mortgage settlement reached today with major banks helps turn the page on an era of recklessness. NPR's Scott Horsley reports the 26-billion-dollar deal will settle claims stemming from fraudulent foreclosures.

 
President Obama hailed what he called a landmark 1 settlement surrounded by some of the state attorneys general who helped to broker 2 with the deal. People who lost homes, the faulty foreclosures will be eligible 3 for small cash settlements. Mr. Obama says other borrowers still in their homes could get loan reductions or lower interest rates.
 
"All told, this isn't just good for these families, it's good for their neighborhoods, it's good for their communities and it's good for our economy."
 
A billion dollars from the total will go to settle a separate claim unrelated to the robo-signing. While Mr. Obama called the settlement a big help, he warns millions of other homeowners could use additional relief, and he urged Congress to okay a major refinancing proposal that he spelled out last week. Scott Horsley, NPR News, Washington.
 
New jobless claims are among the lowest levels in four years. The Labor 5 Department says applications fell by 15,000 last week to a seasonally 6 adjusted 358,000, and the less volatile 7 four-week average is also the lowest it's been since spring of 2008. This comes a week after the government reported the unemployment rate dropped to 8.3%.
 
Two executives credited with revamping Ford 8 and its finances are retiring. Lewis Booth and Derrick Kuzak reportedly are stepping down April 1st.
 
The Greek coalition 9 government has finally agreed to a deal for a new bailout to save Greece from a messy default and a possible exit from the eurozone. But the deal has more austerity measures, and as Joanna Kakissis reports from Athens, unions are calling for strikes and protest tomorrow and Saturday.
 
Unions are protesting a 22% cut in the minimum wage which is currently about 1,000 dollars per month before taxes. They say Greeks can't take any more austerity. The labor minister agrees and has resigned over the new measures. Unemployment is now at 20% and at 48% for young people. But the government says it's either austerity or a catastrophic default and a return to the drachma, the old currency. The new bailout is about 171 billion dollars. Greece needs this deal and a separate bond swap 10 that would cut the country's debt by at least 50% to stay solvent 11. Parliament is said to vote on the new bailout on Sunday. For NPR News, I'm Joanna Kakissis in Athens.
 
The US market seemed to be responding positively 12 with the Dow up 27 points at last check at 12,911 in trading of more than 2.5 billion shares; NASDAQ gaining 12, it's at 2,928; S&P 500 up four at 1,354.
 
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The Mississippi Supreme 13 Court is taking up controversial pardons granted by former Governor Haley Barbour in the days before he left office. NPR's Debbie Elliott reports that issue is whether state law gives the governor absolute power to grant clemency 14.
 
It might seem crazy that the inventor of the hand-held camera won't make cameras any more. But these days, Kodak moments need to be more profitable, and that means focusing more on on-line and retail-based photo printing, as well as desktop 15 printing. Kodak also wants to expand its brand licensing 16 program. That means other companies can put the iconic Kodak name on cameras and digital photo frames, but Kodak doesn't have to make the stuff itself. These steps are expected to save the company more than 100 million dollars annually 17. But Kodak will take a 30-million-dollar charge to dump the business lines in question. Annie Baxter, NPR News.
 
Well, obviously, that was not a story about the Mississippi Supreme Court considering whether former Governor Haley Barbour's pardons of inmates 18 were legal. Let's go more into that story. Attorney General Jim Hood 4 argued today that if those who received pardons did not run required public notification ads in daily papers for 30 days or in weekly papers for five weeks, the pardons are invalid 19 under the state's constitution. Victims' advocates were outraged 20 when inmates including murderers were pardoned, but Barbour says he stands by his decision.
 
At last check on Wall Street, Dow Jones Industrial Average up 30 points, it's at 12,914; NASDAQ gaining 13, nearly 0.5%, at 2,929.