Hybrid, electric cars see record sales

Hybrid, electric cars see record sales

DETROIT

Americans are buying record numbers of hybrid and electric cars as gas prices climb and new models arrive in showrooms, giving the vehicles their greatest share yet of the U.S. auto market.

Consumers bought a record 52,000 gas-electric hybrids and all-electric cars in March, up from 34,000 during the same month last year.

Bank reports point to a healing market

NEW YORK

Earnings reports from two major banks Friday painted a picture of a healing housing market, with more Americans taking out mortgages, paying them on time and taking advantage of low interest rates to refinance.

At JPMorgan Chase, the biggest bank in the United States, income from new home loans set a record from January through March. The bank issued 6 percent more mortgages than a year ago and got 33 percent more applications.

Wells Fargo, which issues the most home loans, booked the most mortgage fees since 2009. It issued 54 percent more mortgages than a year ago and took 84 percent more applications.

Inflation mild as gas prices rise slowly

WASHINGTON

Rising gas prices slowed in March, keeping overall U.S. inflation mild.

The consumer price index rose 0.3 percent in March, the Labor Department said Friday, compared with February’s 0.4 percent rise.

Excluding food and gas, so-called “core” prices increased 0.2 percent in March.

Inflation has eased since last fall and is expected to stay tame. In the 12 months that ended in March, prices rose 2.7 percent. That’s below last year’s peak year-over-year rate of 3.9 percent.

Core prices have risen 2.3 percent in the past 12 months, close to the Federal Reserve’s inflation target of 2 percent.

Associated Press