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The slide in house prices eased in April, underscoring signs the economy began to stabilize in the second quarter, while a drop in consumer confidence this month warned of a muted recovery.

"We are not out of the woods yet, but it’s moving in the right direction," said Ian Morris, chief U.S. economist at HSBC Securities USA Inc. in New York. "The recession may already be over. Unfortunately, not all the pain goes away because the next phase is the jobless recovery."

The Conference Board’s confidence gauge decreased to 49.3 from a revised 54.8 in May, the New York-based research group said. The figure was still above a record low of 25.3 reached in February.

Delinquency rates on the least risky mortgages more than doubled in the first quarter from a year earlier, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the Office of Thrift Supervision said. Prime loans 60 days or more past due climbed to 2.9 percent of all mortgages through March 31 from 1.1 percent at the same point in 2008, signaling government efforts to help homeowners failed to keep pace with job losses that pushed more borrowers toward foreclosure payday loan no faxing.
Another report from the Institute for Supply Management showed its business barometer climbed to 39.9 in June, the second-highest level in the last nine months.

Economists forecast that the house-price index would drop 18.6 percent following an 18.7 percent decline in the 12 months to March, according to the median projection of 33 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The house-price index figures aren’t adjusted for seasonal effects so economists prefer to focus on year-over-year changes instead of month-to-month. The measure was down 0.6 percent in April from the prior month, the best performance since June 2008. Eight of the 20 cities showed an increase in prices from March, led by a 1.7 percent gain in Dallas.

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Considering that many Canadians practically bleed Tim Hortons coffee on any given workday, it may come as a surprise to some that the much-beloved chain is once again returning its home base to Canada.

Didn’t know Tims was actually based in the United States up until now? That’s easy to forgive, considering just how deeply ingrained the brand has become in the Canadian consciousness. But it is true that the house built on the doughnut and double-double was for nearly 15 years – a result of its purchase by U.S. burger chain Wendy’s – registered far away in the State of Delaware.

Parent company Tim Hortons Inc. (TSX: THI) announced Monday it has filed documents in the United States that would to shift its corporate ownership back north of the border. Its current Canadian headquarters is in Oakville, west of Toronto.

The company says the move – which it had said it was considering earlier this year – will save on taxes and make international expansion easier.

It certainly won’t hurt its image with Canadians either, because the famous chain is probably the country’s most-treasured brand.

Although it will have virtually no impact at all on its storefront operations, the announcement was well received by Tims fans, quickly garnering delighted comment on social networking Internet sites.

Tim Hortons, founded in the mid-’60s by Hamilton-born hockey legend Tim Horton, became part of Wendy’s in 1995, forging a partnership with its founder Dave Thomas that saw the restaurants sit side-by-side at many locations.

After Thomas’ died in 2002, the two companies started to drift apart, with the doughnut chain choosing to focus on sandwiches and other breakfast and lunch options fast cash. The concept clashed with offerings from the Wendy’s brand.

In 2006, the company was spun off into its own American entity, though its corporate headquarters remained in Oakville, Ont., and most of its stores are in Canada.

Since then, the chain has struggled to boost sales in the United States despite thriving in Canada.

The company’s shift back into Canada will create a domestic subsidiary with which Tims will merge, transforming it into a company incorporated under the Canada Business Corporations Act.

On Monday, executives from the company declined to comment on the changes, though they’ve been in the works for several quarters.

Earlier this year, president and CEO Don Schroeder told analysts in a conference call that it believed the move was beneficial for the company and its investors.

"With these assessments substantially complete management and the board concluded that a reorganization is in the best interests of the company and our shareholders over the long term, Schroeder said."

He added that the change in "no way alters our commitment to growing our business in the U.S. or in any way affects our underlying business."

Tim Horton’s has been a publicly traded company, listed on the Toronto and New York stock exchanges.

Shareholders will hold the same amount of stock as before, and the company will continue to operate under the Tim Hortons name with stock listings on the TSX and the New York Stock Exchange.

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The window might be quickly closing on consumers’ opportunity to refinance at great rates — not their home mortgages, but their term life insurance, experts say.

For the first time in a long time, premiums are on the rise.

Over the last several years, prices on simple term life insurance have been plummeting. Premiums in recent years could be less than half of what they were in the early 1990s. For example, the same policy that had an annual premium of $1,400 back then might have cost $350 last year.

The price drop represented easy savings for consumers, who could simply buy a new, lower-priced policy — even with the same insurer — and then cancel their old one.

That’s changing. Here’s what you need to know about term life insurance:

— The pressure is on cheap car insurance. Since the start of the year, insurance companies have started raising premiums for new policies — most often by 5 percent to 15 percent.

— Lock in now. Rising rates do not affect most term policies already in place because premiums are level, meaning they stay the same for the duration of the policy.

— Opt for longer terms. Consider buying a policy with a longer term, such as 20 or 30 years, to lock in today’s relatively low prices.

— Shop around. Premiums can vary widely for the exact same coverage.

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A federal appeals court upheld a 2-year-old ban on Monsanto Co.’s genetically modified alfalfa in a case a biotech food opponent calls a "turning point" in the regulation of such crops.

The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Wednesday leaves Creve Coeur-based Monsanto with two options. It can appeal the case to the U.S. Supreme Court or hope for regulatory approval after the Agriculture Department completes a comprehensive environmental review.

"The ruling is disappointing, both to our company and the growers," said Garrett Kasper, a Monsanto spokesman.

However, Monsanto said a dissenting opinion by one of the three judges provides a "sound argument" if the case is appealed to the Supreme Court.

Monsanto got regulatory approval for biotech alfalfa in 2005. A year later, two alfalfa-seed farms and a coalition of environmental groups sued the government, challenging the decision to approve the crop without

requiring an environmental impact statement.

The groups cited concerns that conventional and organic alfalfa could be contaminated through cross-pollination, preventing crops from being sold. They also claimed biotech crops have led to overuse of herbicides and given rise to "super weeds" resistant to glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup.

A U.S. District Judge in San Francisco issued an injunction that banned the planting of biotech alfalfa after March 30, 2007. By then, more than 260,000 acres of the Roundup Ready alfalfa had been planted payday advance.

Monsanto intervened on the government’s behalf after the injunction, joined by Forage Genetics Inc., an alfalfa breeder that licensed the technology.

Nationwide, 23 million acres are devoted to growing alfalfa, most of which is used as animal feed.

But biotech opponents say the case is much broader because it marks the first time a thorough environmental review has been required for regulatory approval of a genetically modified crop.

Such a study will help regulators and the public understand any risks associated with crops that are genetically engineered to help farmers ward off weeds and pests, they say.

"This is a major victory for the public, for farmers and for the environment," said George Kimbrell, staff attorney for the Washington-based Center for Food Safety, a plaintiff in the case.

A draft copy of the environmental study on genetically modified alfalfa is expected later this year, according to the Agriculture Department. That will be followed by a public comment period and a final report.

Monsanto is still hopeful for government approval of Roundup Ready alfalfa and believes the results of the environmental impact statement could help with future reviews of new biotech crops.

Meanwhile, a lawsuit challenging the government’s approval of Monsanto’s Roundup Ready sugar beets is pending.

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The mix of feces and toilet paper we flush down our toilets every day could soon be a major source of renewable power in the city’s east end.

Toronto Hydro is awaiting final approval on a project that would take the biogas produced at the century-old Ashbridge’s Bay Wastewater Treatment Plant and use it to generate up to 10 megawatts of power, or enough green electricity for 6,000 homes annually.

Waste heat from the process would also be used by the treatment facility to offset its annual consumption of natural gas. All that’s required now is for city council to rubber stamp the project, which could be as early as July 6.

"With the strike, it’s a bit up in the air," said Jack Simpson, vice-president of generation at Toronto Hydro Energy Services, a subsidiary of city-owned Toronto Hydro Corp. "But all signs are good in terms of getting approvals and moving forward."

Toronto Hydro has leased property at the city’s transportation yard at 7 Leslie St., where the biogas co-generation facility will be based.

"We anticipate construction starting in the fall and plan to have the project in service at the end of 2010," he said.

The Ashbridge’s Bay project will likely be the first of several biogas projects the utility plans to build, including an eight-megawatt plant that will use biogas from the Green Lane landfill near St. Thomas. Two smaller two-megawatt plants are also planned for the new green bin processing facility at the Disco Transfer Station and the existing Dufferin Organic Processing Facility, which is being rebuilt.

Simpson said Toronto Hydro is also in early talks with the Toronto Zoo about building an anaerobic digester facility that would convert elephant, giraffe and other animal droppings into electricity.

The new biogas power facility at Ashbridge’s Bay, Toronto’s main sewage treatment plant, would be the most ambitious instant cash advance. The plant is the biggest in Canada, processing the organic waste that goes down the drain or gets flushed by 1.3 million city residents.

It already has "digesters" that produce and capture methane from the wastewater. Most of the methane is burned in the facility’s boilers to produce the heat that’s required to run the plant. Some of it is flared.

Toronto Hydro has convinced the city it can use that biogas more efficiently. Under the terms of the deal, the utility would purchase the Ashbridge’s Bay biogas to generate power, then sell the waste heat from its biogas generator back to the city at costs comparable to using natural gas.

The utility would also sell the electricity it generates from the biogas to the Ontario Power Authority under the province’s new feed-in tariff program, which would pay 10.4 cents per kilowatt-hour. All of the electricity would likely be consumed within the treatment plant.

"We’re basically seeking a commercial rate of return from this project," said Simpson, who would not disclose the estimated capital cost of the project.

Toronto Water, however, would have to pay about $2.5 million to upgrade its existing equipment at Ashbridge’s Bay, but it would benefit from having a back-up power supply on site in the case of a blackout. The project would also reduce the facility’s greenhouse-gas emissions by 44 per cent, and help the city meet the targets in its climate-change plan.

The project, according to a staff report issued to council in May, "is financially superior to the `do nothing’ alternative."

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NEW YORK–Kodachrome, the film brand touted as the stuff of memories, is about to become a memory itself as Eastman Kodak Co. stops production due to overwhelming competition from digital cameras.

Eastman Kodak said it will retire Kodachrome colour film this year, ending its 74-year run after a dramatic decline in sales.

"The majority of today’s photographers have voiced their preference to capture images with newer technology – both film and digital," said Mary Jane Hellyar, president of Kodak film, photofinishing and entertainment group.

Once the film of choice for many baby-boomer family slide shows, it gained such iconic status that it was celebrated in the mid-1970s with a Paul Simon song of the same name, with the catchphrase: "Mama don’t take my Kodachrome away."

Kodachrome became the world’s first commercially successful colour film in 1935, Kodak noted in a statement yesterday.

The film’s durability and ability to capture rich, vibrant colours also made it a favourite among professional photographers such as Steve McCurry, known for his portrait of an Afghan girl with green eyes for a cover of National Geographic in 1985 affordable individual health insurance.

But it is a complex film to manufacture and requires a complicated process to develop. Today, only one lab in the United States processes the film.

Eastman Kodak’s discontinuation does more than render the subject of Simon’s eponymous song an antique. It also will eliminate 20 per cent of the business at Dwayne’s Photo, the last lab in the world still working with the film.

Employing about 60 staff, the company, based in Parsons, Kan., processes Kodachrome for physicians and image collectors who like to use it to archive photos, said Grant Steinle, whose father founded the firm in 1956.

Reached by telephone, Steinle said, "We’re very sad to see this. Kodachrome has really been an icon of the 20th century."

The family-owned shop will keep processing Kodachrome through the end of 2010, Steinle said. Kodak estimates current supplies of the film will last until September or October.

From the Star’s wire services

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Eastman Kodak Co., the photography pioneer whose Kodachrome film inspired Paul Simon’s 1973 hit of the same name, said it will retire the 74-year-old product this year after sales dwindled and most labs stopped processing it.

Revenue from Kodachrome represents a fraction of one percent of Kodak’s total sales of still-picture films, the company said Monday. Kodachrome became the world’s first commercially successful color film in 1935, Kodak said.

The Rochester, N.Y., company has seen its profitable film business evaporate as digital cameras gained dominance. The company lost $4.53 billion in market value in 2008 as it struggled to show investors it had a place in the new technology.

"The majority of today’s photographers have voiced their preference to capture images with newer technology — both film and digital," said Mary Jane Hellyar, Kodak’s outgoing president of the film, photofinishing and entertainment group. Kodak derives 70 percent of its revenue from commercial and consumer digital businesses, the company said.

Photofinishing labs that process Kodachrome film have dwindled to one worldwide, Dwayne’s Photo in Parsons, Kan cashadvance., Kodak said. The lab will offer processing for the film through 2010, and Kodak estimates Kodachrome film supplies will last until September or October of this year.

"I love to take a photograph," Paul Simon sang in "Kodachrome," which reached second place in 1973 on Billboard’s Hot 100 list. "So mama don’t take my Kodachrome away."

Taking Kodachrome away means taking 20 percent of Dwayne’s Photos annual sales away as well, said Grant Steinle, whose father founded the business in 1956. Steinle, vice president of operations at Dwayne’s Photo, declined to say what the firm with 60 employees makes in annual revenue.

"We’re very sad to see this," Steinle said. "Kodachrome has really been an icon of the 20th century."

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The program requires a minimum fuel economy for the new vehicle and mileage improvement from the trade-in vehicle.

By type of trade-in vehicleMinimum fuel economy for new vehicleMinimum mpg increase to get $3,500 Minimum mpg increase to get $4,500 Passenger car or minivan 22 mpg4 mpg 10 mpg more Light-duty crossovers, SUVs, small pickups and vans 18 mpg2 mpg 5 mpg more Large pickups and vans 15 mpg1 mpg or trade in of work truck2 mpg more

Work trucks with gross vehicle weight of 8,500-10,000 lbs business cards.

Trade-in must be pre-2002 model year to get $3,500 for new same-class or smaller truck.

Fuel economy defined as the EPA’s combined average of city and highway miles per gallon. Visit www.fueleconomy.gov to find more criteria and your vehicle’s combined fuel economy.

Source: Edmunds.com

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Microsoft Corp. is willing to invest up to 10% of its operating income in its Internet search business for up to five years, Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said Thursday, as its "Bing" search engine starts to gain ground with Web surfers.

Bing - part of Microsoft’s perennially money-losing online services unit - has been winning market share from rivals, according to industry data released this week, but still trails market leader Google by a long way.

"Our shareholders, I told them we were willing to spend 5 to 10% of operating income for up to five years in this business, and we feel like we can get an economic return," Ballmer told a business lunch in Chicago, without elaborating on the timeframe.

The new search engine grabbed 12.1% of U.S. Internet searches for the June 8-12 work week, up from 11.3% from June 1-5 but trailing Google Inc.’s 65% of U.S. searches in May.

"You don’t go from 8% to 80. You have to be patient," said Ballmer. "We invested in Xbox for years and now it generates nice economic returns for us," he added, referring to the company’s popular gaming console.

Microsoft reported operating income of $4.4 billion last quarter, which would mean Ballmer is envisaging spending up to $440 million per quarter, or almost $1.8 billion per year, developing Bing.

Microsoft does not break out investment in its various projects, so it’s not clear if that is a significant increase on previous spending payday loan lenders. Microsoft has continued to invest in Internet projects, even though its online services business is a net drain on cash, losing $575 million last quarter alone.

Bing, fully launched on June 3, is just the opening salvo in Microsoft’s campaign to counter the dominance of Google in the Web-search and related advertising business.

The world’s largest software company, which is in talks with Yahoo Inc. (YHOO, Fortune 500) over a potential partnership, has long been determined to play a role in that lucrative space after watching rival Google (GOOG, Fortune 500) take a stranglehold on the market.

Ballmer regretted that Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) had not entered the Internet search market earlier, saying that the company understood the technology’s importance, but had not come up with a way to monetize it.

"If we could have one do-over I would probably say I would start sooner on search," said Ballmer. "Sometimes the error you make is what you don’t do and don’t see. Our mistake wasn’t that we didn’t see the technology change coming, we didn’t see the business change coming."

Shares of Microsoft closed down 0.8% at $23.50 on Nasdaq. 

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some rays of hope for the unemployed. Can the recovery last? Most important: Where are the jobs?

Get the answers when Anderson Cooper and Ali Velshi host our panel of experts and check in on virtual town halls across the country.

Thursday, June 18 at 8p.m. ET

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NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — A largely unknown car company is planning to open its first factory in what used be a headlight plant in a small town in northern Louisiana, state officials announced on Wednesday.

Louisiana economic development officials are enthusiastic about the endeavor which they say will create thousands of jobs. But for now, executives with California-based V-Vehicles, which has backing from activist billionaire T. Boone Pickens and the venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, are not saying exactly what type of vehicle the company plans to build.

Pickens has been active in promoting natural gas for use in automobiles, but it isn’t clear what form of energy will fuel these cars.

An auto industry startup. The company was founded in 2006 by former Oracle executive Frank Varasano who has spent 26 years working for the consulting firm Booz Allen Hamilton where he led the firm’s engineering and manufacturing practice, according to the Louisiana economic development council’s Website.

"He watched, we all watched, as the auto industry stumbled," said V-Vehicles spokesman Joe Fisher of V-Vehicles founder Verasano. "He thought he could do something to fix it."

Fisher said Varasano came up with a plan to build a profitable auto company and presented his plan to executives at Kleiner Perkins.

Fisher declined to say what was unique about V-Vehicles’ business model, citing the competitive nature of the businesses.

Fisher also declined to provide details about the vehicle the company intends to produce at the site. A Website about the venture hosted by the Louisiana Economic Development council showed only a round headlight in one photo and, in other, one corner of a clay mock-up of a car.

Design of the cars is being led by former Mazda designer Tom Motano, who is credited with designing the Mazda MX-5 and RX-7 sports cars.

Big jobs boost for Louisiana. The plans were revealed in Louisiana, by the state’s economic development council on Wednesday.

"Today, we are here to announce that through quick, aggressive action to pursue a transformative opportunity, we have a chance here in Louisiana to reenergize the entire U.S. auto industry," Louisiana governor Bobby Jindal said in a prepared statement.

V-Vehicles plans to retool the former Guide Corp. headlamp factory in Monroe, La., according to the announcement.

The plant will employ approximately 1,400 people and will create another 1,800 jobs outside the factory, according to the state. The project involves a capital investment of at least $248 million, according to the announcement

Full production of the vehicles is scheduled to begin in early 2011, Fisher said. 

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