Consumers late payers on most loans since recession

(Reuters) - Americans are falling further behind on consumer loans, with late payments rising to the highest level since the nation's last recession in 2001, data released Thursday show.

In its quarterly study of consumer borrowing, the American Bankers Association said the percentage of loans at least 30 days past due rose to 2.44 percent in the July-to-September period from 2.27 percent in the previous quarter.

The delinquency rate, which covers eight loan categories, was the highest since a 2.51 percent rate in the second quarter of 2001. Late payments on some types of loans rose to levels not seen since the 1990s.

The ABA attributed some of the summer increase to rising oil prices and the inability of thousands of homeowners to keep up with mortgage payments.

 

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Oil majors' winnings from $100/barrel seen limited

(Reuters) - Crude prices at a $100/barrel should boost major international oil companies' profits, but increasing competition from governments and suppliers for a bigger share of the bonanza will cap their gains.

Shares in European oil companies opened higher on Thursday after U.S. crude hit a record $100/barrel on Wednesday.

The DJ Stoxx European oil and gas sector index was up 1.9 percent at 8:40 a.m. EST on Thursday, echoing a smaller rise across the U.S. oil industry on Wednesday.

 

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Tata in Talks to Buy Ford's Jaguar, Land Rover Units

(Bloomberg) --Ford Motor Co. selected Tata Motors Ltd. as the preferred bidder for Jaguar and Land Rover, putting India's largest truckmaker in a position to take over two of the best-known luxury auto brands.

Tata and the U.S. automaker ``will proceed with further substantive discussions,'' Ford Executive Vice President Lewis Booth said in a statement today. ``There is still a considerable amount of work to do.''

Buying the iconic British brands would give Mumbai-based Tata a presence outside Asia and provide access to new technology. A sale would allow Ford, the world's third-largest automaker, to focus on revamping its North American operations, the biggest cause of a record $12.6 billion loss in 2006.

``Tata gains an entry into the prestige market, although the snob factor says an Indian Jaguar will be a tough sell,'' said Stephen Pope, chief global markets strategist at Cantor Fitzgerald in London. Ford, of Dearborn, Michigan, may get 1 billion pounds ($1.98 billion) from a sale, he estimated.

The talks comes less than a year after the 139-year-old Tata group, led by Harvard-educated Ratan Tata, bought steelmaker Corus Group Plc. for $12.9 billion. That made Tata Steel Ltd. one of the world's top 10 steel producers.

 

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U.S. Stocks Rise on Factory Report; Exxon Mobil, Monsanto Gain

(Bloomberg) - U.S. stocks rose, led by oil companies, after a government report showed orders to petroleum refiners climbed by the most in two years.

Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp., the largest U.S. energy producers, gained after the Commerce Department said a 16 percent jump in demand at refiners helped boost factory orders by three times the forecast rate. Monsanto Co., the largest seed maker, led commodity companies to the biggest gain in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index after profit topped analysts' estimates.

The S&P 500 added 4.97, or 0.3 percent, to 1,452.13 as of 11:13 a.m. in New York, following its worst decline in two weeks yesterday. The Dow Jones Industrial Average increased 52.76, or 0.4 percent, to 13,096.72. The Nasdaq Composite Index advanced 1.24, or 0.1 percent, to 2,610.87.

Orders to U.S. factories rose 1.5 percent in November, the most in four months, and were higher in October than first reported, according to the Commerce Department. A report from ADP Employer Services showed companies in the U.S. added 40,000 jobs in December, more than projected. The reports helped assuage concern the U.S. economy is headed for a recession.

``It is a relief to have factory orders not only increase threefold greater than expected but also have a revision up of last month,'' said Thomas Sowanick, who helps manage $10 billion as chief investment officer at Clearbrook Financial LLC in Princeton, New Jersey.

 

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Newcrest, Zijin Rise After Gold Surges to Record

(Bloomberg) - Newcrest Mining Ltd., Australia's largest gold-mining company, rose to a record and led gains in Asian producers including Zijin Mining Group Co. after the price of the metal reached its highest ever.

Bullion extended a seven-year rally as the dollar weakened and crude oil reached $100 a barrel for the first time, stoking expectations for inflationary. Gold surged to a record $860.10 an ounce yesterday.

Rising jewelry demand in China and India and from investors seeking a hedge against inflation helped gold more than double in the past five years. Gold miners in China and Australia, the world's second and third-largest producers, are opening new mines and hunting for acquisitions to meet demand.

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Platinum hits record highs

Spot platinum hit a record high at $1,543.00 an ounce in Europe on Wednesday, tracking a rally in gold prices, traders said.

The metal was quoted at $1 543/1 547 an ounce by 1503 GMT (17:03 South African time), compared with $1 520/1 525 in New York late on Monday

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