NEW YORK (AP) — The stock market reached another record high today, thanks in part to a handful of deals reached by U.S. companies. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 1.8 points, or 0.1 percent, to close at an all-time high of 1,951. The Dow Jones industrial average nudged up 18 points, or 0.1 percent, to 16,943. The Nasdaq gained 14 points, or 0.3 percent, to 4,336. Hillshire Brands jumped 5 percent after Tyson Foods won a bidding war for the maker of Jimmy Dean sausages.
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama has signed a presidential memo expanding a program that lets borrowers pay no more than 10 percent of their income every month. And he threw his support behind more sweeping Senate legislation targeting the issue. The president was flanked by student loan borrowers at the White House. He said the rising costs of college have left America’s middle class feeling trapped.
DETROIT (AP) — General Motors, Ford and Chrysler are pitching in to help relieve bankruptcy-stricken Detroit. They are $26 million to help support retiree pensions while keeping the city’s art treasures off the auction block. The initiative, which was announced by officials today, will focus on city pensions and will be part of the Detroit Institute of Arts’ $100 million commitment to what’s being called the “grand bargain” to resolve the largest public bankruptcy in U.S. history.
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Netflix will ease up a finger-pointing campaign that blamed Verizon and other Internet service providers for problems with its video subscription service. The decision, announced in a blog post today, follows a legal threat issued by Verizon last week. In a June 5 letter, Verizon threatened to sue Netflix Inc. unless the company stopped sending messages that made Verizon’s Internet service look bad.
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — The owner of a company that brokered debts from financial institutions is charged with running an operation that bought low-quality debt and sold it as premium debt. Federal prosecutors said today that Leonard Potillo defrauded third-party debt purchasers of more than $70 million. An indictment unsealed in Orlando says the owner of United Credit Recovery purchased 11 portfolios of overdraft debt from U.S. Bank for $31 million even though the portfolios had an approximate face value of $820 million.
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