NATION

NATION

Rates drop slightly on 30-year home loans

WASHINGTON — Rates for 30-year home loans fell to a shade below 5 percent this week but remained above last month’s record lows.

The average rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage was 4.99 percent, down from 5.06 percent a week earlier, mortgage company Freddie Mac said Thursday.

The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages fell to 4.4 percent, down from 4.45 percent last week, according to Freddie Mac.

GM, Chrysler dealerships make appeal to stay open

DETROIT — About 21 percent of the General Motors and Chrysler dealers whose businesses are being shut down by the automakers have filed paperwork appealing the decisions.

About 600 dealers out of the roughly 2,800 whose franchises were revoked last year have asked for arbitration hearings in an effort to get their franchises back.

The appeals mean that many neighborhood showrooms that were shut down or scheduled for closure could return to business. GM Chairman and CEO Ed Whitacre Jr. has said he expects hundreds of dealers to win their franchises back during the process, which must be wrapped up by June 14.

Toyota recalls 2.3 million vehicles made in the US

NEW YORK — Toyota is recalling 2.3 million U.S. vehicles to correct sticking accelerator pedals, the latest in a string of quality problems that have bedeviled the Japanese automaker.

The recall includes the 2009-2010 RAV4, the 2009-2010 Corolla, the 2009-2010 Matrix, the 2005-2010 Avalon, the 2007-2010 Camry, the 2010 Highlander, the 2007-2010 Tundra and the 2008-2010 Sequioia.

Toyota Motor Corp. spokesman Brian Lyons says the recall is due to the vehicles’ pedal mechanism becoming worn and, in some cases, stuck.

Associated Press