Fed set to cut rates; home prices sink record 13%
CBS
Transcript
Wall Street is counting on another interest rate cut. The Federal Reserve is expected to cut short-term rates by a quarter point later today. It would be the seventh rate cut in eight months, and most analysts expect the Fed will also signal that it is done cutting rates for the time being. Stocks were lower on the eve of the Federal Reserves meeting. The Dow Industrials lost nearly 40 points, but the Nasdaq managed to inch up nearly two. Confidence among Americans fell to a 5-year low this month as consumers struggled to pay record prices at the gas pump and the grocery store. Not helping matters, a huge drop in home prices, which sank a record 13% in the past year in 20 key cities. And later today, we get a report on just how much the economy slowed in the first three months of the year. 6 months of negative economic growth is defined as a recession. British Airways joins the growing list of airlines that are raising their fuel search charges. Prices for long haul flights will increase by $40 to $60 round trip. British Airways says the increase reflects the high price of oil, which has flirted with $120 a barrel in recent days. And that's your money watch. Click on cbsnews.com for more business headlines in New York. I'm Alexis Christopher.