The Dow Jones industrial average rose 34.95 points to close at 15,529.73 Tuesday. The S&P 500 rose 7.16 points to close at 1,704.76. The NASDAQ composite rose 27.85 points to 3,745.70.
Friskies’ new 'Spokescat Grumpy Cat' is from Phoenix
The frown-faced Internet sensation known as Grumpy Cat, real name Tardar Sauce, is now the “spokescat” for a Friskies brand of cat food, Nestle Purina PetCare announced Tuesday. The St. Louis-based company didn’t release terms of the deal. Grumpy Cat’s own Facebook page has more than 1.3 million likes. The dour animal also has more than 111,000 Twitter followers. In addition to the relationship with Nestle Purina, which featured Grumpy Cat in an online video game series in March, the 1 1/2-year-old mixed-breed feline has a merchandise line and reportedly has a movie deal in the works.“She’s very busy,” Friskies spokeswoman Julie Catron said. “The first thing she’ll do for us is receive the lifetime achievement award.” And Catron isn’t kidding. The feline will receive the award Oct. 15 in New York as Friskies honors the best cat videos of the year as chosen through an online vote. Grumpy Cat is owned by Tabatha Bundesen, who lives in Phoenix. For more information click here.
US builder confidence steady, watching rates
LOS ANGELES — U.S. homebuilders’ confidence in the housing market held this month at its highest level in nearly eight years. But builders are starting to worry that sales may slow if mortgage rates continue to rise. The National Association of Home Builders (NABH) builder sentiment index released Tuesday registered at 58 this month. That’s unchanged from August, which was revised down from an initial reading of 59. Readings above 50 indicate more builders view sales conditions as good, rather than poor. In the latest survey, which included 264 respondents, a measure of current sales conditions was unchanged, while a gauge of traffic by prospective buyers rose one point. But builders’ outlook for single-family home sales over the next six months fell three points. For full report click here
Safeway Adopts Poison Pill to Avert Takeover
New York - Tuesday Safeway adopted a plan to prevent a hostile takeover after learning of a significant accumulation of its stock by an investor. The announcement sent shares of the grocer up 8% to a five-year high. The “poison pill” plan allows existing shareholders to acquire more stock at a discounted rate to discourage a takeover by an outside entity. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission late Tuesday, Jana Partners, a New York-based activist investor disclosed that it had amassed a 6.2% ownership in Safeway’s outstanding shares.
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CPI rose just 0.1%. in August
WASHINGTON - The Labor Department’s CPI Report Tuesday reported U.S consumer prices barely rose last month, the latest sign that slow economic growth is keeping inflation tame. The consumer price index increased just 0.1% in August, after a 0.2% increase in July. Excluding food and energy costs, core prices also rose just 0.1%. In the past 12 months, prices have risen 1.5%. That’s down from the 2% year-over-year gain in July and below the Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target. Core prices are 1.8% higher than a year ago, the largest 12-month gain since March. The increase in core prices could help persuade the Fed to start pulling back on its low interest rate policies. But significantly lower inflation would pressure the Fed to keep stimulating the economy. The Federal Reserve will be meeting today to discuss. Today might be the day the Fed starts pulling back stimulus. Click Here for full report.
Poverty stuck at 15% — record 46.5 million
WASHINGTON — The U.S. Census Bureau reported Tuesday, the nation’s poverty rate remained stuck at 15 per cent last year despite America’s slowly reviving economy, a discouraging lack of improvement for the record 46.5 million poor and an unwelcome benchmark for President Barack Obama’s recovery plans. More than 1 in 7 Americans were living in poverty, not statistically different from the 46.2 million of 2011 and the sixth straight year the rate had failed to improve,. Median income for the nation’s households was $51,017, also unchanged from the previous year after two consecutive annual declines, while the share of people without health insurance did improve but only a bit, from 15.7 per cent to 15.4 per cent. Click here for full report.
Slower holiday store traffic predicted for 2013
CHICAGO — According to Chicago-based research firm ShopperTrak, coming off of a weak back-to-school shopping period, the research firm said Tuesday that it expects retail sales will increase this holiday season, but retailers will have to work to earn their share. When compared to the same period last year, retail sales are forecast to rise 2.4% during the holiday season of November and December. However, shoppers are expected to visit fewer stores and do more research online. ShopperTrak, the leading provider of shopper analytics, anticipates that while sales will rise, total retail store traffic will decrease slightly compared to last year. Click here for full report.