July | featured news

U.S. home prices rose a seasonally adjusted 0.3% in July, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said, as some of the worst-hit housing markets showed signs of recovering.

Orders for durable goods rebounded sharply in July, up 4.9%, staging their biggest gain in two years on demand for planes and capital goods.

Wholesale prices dropped sharply in July, and over the past 12 months fell by the largest amount in more than six decades of record-keeping.

Consumer prices were flat in July as energy costs retreated following a big surge in June. Over the past 12 months, prices dropped the most in nearly six decades as the recession and lower energy costs kept a lid on inflation.

U.S. home loans failed at a record pace in July despite ongoing federal and state programs to avoid foreclosures, which have severely strained housing and the economy.

Retail sales unexpectedly fell 0.1% in July despite the debut of the government's "cash for clunkers" program. Separately, weekly jobless claims rose a bit.

Disappointing performance underscores concerns about the timing and durability of a recovery.

If it wasn't bad enough that Facebook bought FriendFeed on Monday and turned on real-time search to better compete against Twitter in the Stream Wars, and is playing around with a lite version that resembles Twitter even more, now Twitter really has something to worry about. Facebook is growing faster than Twitter in the U.S., even though it is more than four times larger.

Even as the July numbers came in better than expected, the job market remains shaky in the months ahead.

Mall-based chains continue to be hit hardest as consumers focus on necessities, but the warehouse club operator Costco’s results also missed analyst estimates.