Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.banks,americast.usa-today.banks From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: banks Tue, Oct 20 1992 Date: Tue, 20 Oct 92 04:35:16 EDT Message-ID: 10-20 0000 DECISIONLINE: Banking & Economy USA TODAY Update Oct. 20, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network JAPAN THREATENED WITH REPRISAL: Commerce Secretary Barbara Franklin says Japan must change its trading practices and buy more U.S. goods or face retaliation. Franklin, speaking to a U.S.-Japanese trade forum, Monday said Japan still accounts for two-thirds of the U.S. merchandise trade deficit despite numerous pledges to buy more U.S. products. Last week, Japan reported a record high surplus with the USA. OTS SAYS THRIFT COULD BE SEIZED: The Office of Thrift Supervision Monday said CalFed Inc. could face strong consequences, including regulatory seizures, if it does not restructure by the end of the year. Also under consideration: A temporary order for the bank holding company to contribute capital to its unit, California Federal Savings Bank; freeze the company's assets and; declare it to be in unsafe and unsound condition. OTS ORDERS $1.2 MILLION PAYBACK: The Office of Thrift Supervision Monday ordered three current and former directors of Overland Park Savings and Loan Association in Kansas to pay back $1.2 million. The office said the three engaged in unsafe and unsound real-estate deals that violated OTS regulations. They signed a consent order but did not admit guilt. All three agreed to make restitution. STATES PASS ANTI-REDLINING LAWS: Sixteen states this year have passed comprehensive laws saying insurers must offer coverage to all business, putting an end to insurance redlining that often has been overlooked by most states. New York and California are among the states that have passed laws. Companies routinely blackballed include medical offices, hair salons, bars, taxi companies and logging and mining businesses. BANKRUPTCY RUMORS SPREAD: No one has a good explanation for a string of Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing rumors tumbling around Wall Street. Monday, Westinghouse had to issue a denial of rumors the company was about to file. Friday, General Motors denied similar rumors after it said it will report a loss of up to $845 million for the third quarter. Analysts say following up on rumors can give them momentum. N.Y. TO FREEZE CORPORATE TAX: New York State and City said Monday it will freeze corporate tax rates at current levels for four years. Gov. Mario Cuomo and Mayor David Dinkins made the announcement. Officials said the move is to entice businesses to stay or move there. New York State's top corporate tax is 12%. The city's: 8.85%. The combined tax rate of more than 20% is among the highest in the USA. AMBASE TO SELL CARTERET: Ambase Corp. said Monday it will sell 80% of its troubled Carteret Savings Bank unit to a group of investors that includes the Carlyle Group and Colony Capital Inc. Sale price: $200 million. Carteret, New Jersey's largest thrift, is burdened with non-performing loans. The letter of intent for the latest sale is Ambase's third try at selling the thrift unit. NATIONSBANK EARNINGS SOAR: The nation's fourth-largest bank holding company Monday said third-quarter earnings more than quadrupled thanks to improving credit quality and increased average loan balances. NationsBank has $118 billion in assets and posted net income of $350 million or $1.40 a share, compared with $81 million or 31 cents for the third quarter a year ago. SHORT-TERM RATES RISE: Interest rates on short-term Treasury securities rose in Monday's auction to the highest since August. The Treasury Department sold $11.6 billion in three-month bills at an average discount rate of 2.94% vs. 2.88% last week. It sold $11.6 billion in six-month bills at an average discount rate of 3.10% vs. 2.95% last week. LONG-TERM YIELDS RISE: The yield on 30-year Treasury bonds rose to 7.57% from 7.52% Monday. The dollar was mostly higher against other currencies. Light sweet crude oil slid 14 cents to $22.14 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange as traders worried that a cold snap had not had much effect to date. GOLD, SILVER GAIN: Gold prices gained Monday. On the New York Commodity Exchange, gold bullion settled at $342.70 a troy ounce, up 30 cents from Friday. Republic National Bank said gold added 20 cents an ounce to $342.40. Gold rose in London to $342.85 a troy ounce, from $342.55 Friday. On New York's Comex, silver bullion settled at $3.718 a troy ounce, up from $3.706 on Friday. In London: $3.74 an ounce. DOW JONES OPENS ON UPSWING: The Dow Jones average of 30 industrials opens at 3188.45 Tuesday after closing up 14.04 Monday. The New York Stock Exchange composite opens at 228.84, up 1.80. The American Stock Exchange market value opens at 368.54, up 1.21. The NASDAQ OTC composite opens at 590.67, up 8.06. DOLLAR OPENS UP OVERSEAS: The dollar opens mostly up on Tuesday. It opens at 0.6119 British pounds, up from 0.6060; 5.0480 French francs, up from 5.0165; 1.4885 German marks, up from 1.4770; and 119.98 Japanese yen, up from 119.40. (As of 3 p.m. Monday. Source: First American Bank of New York.) 24-HOUR TELEPHONE INFORMATION: USA TODAY Money Hot Line. 95 cents a minute. 1-900-555-5555. Banking & Economy Editor: Beth Mann. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution purposes violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM