Deadly Tornadoes, Storms Leave Trail Of Damage In Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia
Storms left a 100-plus-mile-long pathofdestruction in Mississippi Friday night. Tornadoes ripped throughthecommunitiesofRollingFork,SilverCity, Tchula, Winona and Amory.
The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency said over the weekend that 25 people were killed, but that number was revised on Monday to 21. Dozens more were injured and 2,000 homes were damagedordestroyed.
Eldridge Walker, mayor of Rolling Fork, said the tornadodevastated his town in Sharkey County.
“Sharkey County, Mississippi, is one of the poorest counties in the state of Mississippi, but we’re still resilient,” Walker said, according to the Associated Press. “We’vegot a long way togo, andwe certainly thank everybody for their prayers and for anything they will do orcandoforthis community.”
President Joe Biden issued an emergency declarationforthestateearlySunday,whichmeans federal funding will be available for recovery efforts in Carroll, Humphreys, Monroe and Sharkey counties.
Souce:
https://weather.com/news/news/2023-03-27-tornado-mississippi-alabama-georgia-
States where Americans are struggling to pay the Bills
AccordingtothelatestdataavailablefromtheU.S. Census Bureau’s Household Pulse Survey, conducted from Mar. 1 to 13, 91.8% of Americans reportedfeelingthatpricesforgoodsandservices had increased in the last two months. More than 95% were concerned, whether “a little,” “somewhat”or“very,”thatpriceswouldincreasein thenext sixmonths.
HouseholdsintheSouthandAppalachianregions are having the hardest time making ends meet, according to the Household Pulse Survey. Mississippi (48.2%), Alabama (45.9%), Louisiana (45.6%), West Virginia (43.7%), Kentucky (42.9%), Texas(42.0%)andArkansas(42.0%)allrankamong the top 10 in the country in terms of people who reportedfindingit“somewhat”or“verydifficult”to covertheir expenses.
On the other hand, households in North Dakota (27.8%), Minnesota (29.0%), Vermont (30.1%), Wisconsin (30.5%), and Rhode Island (30.6%) have managed more comfortably than the national average, with the lowest percent of respondents reporting these levels of difficulty.
Mortgage demand gets a boost from bank volatility, but it may be short-lived
Stress in the banking system turned out to be a boon fortheU.S. mortgage market. As investors hid in the relative safety of the bond market, yields moved even lower last week. Mortgage rates followed.
Mortgage demand, consequently, rose 2.9% comparedwiththepreviousweek,accordingto the MortgageBankersAssociation’sseasonallyadjusted index. The string of gains, however, could be shortlived, as rates are now moving higheragain.
Last week, the average contract interest ratefor 30year fixed-rate mortgages with conforming loan balances ($726,200orless)decreasedto 6.45% from 6.48%, with points decreasing to 0.62 from 0.66 (including the origination fee) for loans with a 20% down payment. The rate was 4.8% the same week oneyearago.
Applications to refinance a home loan increased 5% for the week but were still 61% lower year over year. Mortgage applications to purchase a home increased 2% for the week but were 35% lower than thesameweek oneyear ago.
CFPB finalizes rule to create a new data set on small business lending in America
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB)hasfinalizedarulerequiredbyCongressto increase transparency in small business lending, promote economic development, and combat unlawful discrimination. Lenders will collect and reportinformationaboutthesmallbusinesscredit applications they receive, including geographic anddemographicdata,lendingdecisions,andthe price of credit. The rule will work in concert with theCommunityReinvestmentAct,whichrequires certain financial institutions to meet the needs of thecommunities they serve.
The increased transparency will benefit small businesses,familyfarms,financialinstitutions,and thebroadereconomy.
“Manylocalbusinesses wereshuttered during the COVID-19pandemicaftertheystruggledtoobtain credit under the Paycheck Protection Program,” said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. “This small business loan census will give the public key data onthismarkettoensurethatbanksandnonbanks areserving small businesses fairly.”
New Rules Will Make Many Electric Cars Ineligible for Tax Credits
The Biden administration on Friday released new rules that will significantly shorten the list of electric vehicles that qualify for federal tax credits. Officials hope the change will push carmakers to move their supply chains out ofChinaandto theUnited States orits allies.
The rules, issued by the TreasuryDepartment, arearesult oftheInflation ReductionAct, whichDemocrats passed last year to fight climate change by encouraging the use of zero-emission vehicles and green energy. The law also seeks to reduce the industry’s reliance on China, which makes most of the world’s batteries anddominates theprocessingofcriticalraw materials.
For purchases of their electric cars to qualify for up to $7,500 in tax credits, automakers must meet strict requirementsforwheretheyassemblethecarsandbatteriesandwheretheygetthematerialsthatgointo batteries.Onlyahandfulofvehiclesareexpectedtoqualifyforthefullcreditwhentherules,whicharemore stringent than previous requirements, go into effect April 18, downfrom 21 now.
The newrules, whichcould be revised in response tocomments from thepublic, willrequirethat a certain percentage of the components and minerals in each electric car’s battery come from domestic sources or countries withwhichthe UnitedStates has trade agreements.
Souce:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/03/31/business/energy-environment/electric-vehicles-treasury-tax-credits.html
