| By Matt Beer | Tuesday, October 30th 2012, 15:31 GMT |
Giedo van der Garde believes he is making huge progress in his Friday practice appearances with Caterham, as he continues to try and break into Formula 1
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| By Marcus Simmons | Tuesday, October 30th 2012, 15:39 GMT |
British Formula 3 teams completed their Macau Grand Prix preparations last week when they tested at Silverstone
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| Tuesday, October 30th 2012, 16:38 GMT |
Luca Filippi was fastest in GP2's first post-season test at Barcelona on Tuesday
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 Earlier GP2 story | More news | |
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| By Jonathan Noble | Monday, October 29th 2012, 16:46 GMT |
Kimi Raikkonen will be a much stronger driver in 2013 than he was during his comeback season for Lotus, reckons his team boss.
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Simon Strang | Monday, October 29th 2012, 16:58 GMT |
Kimi Raikkonen says his desire to win is as strong as ever, following the news that he has signed on for a second season with Lotus.
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Simon Strang | Monday, October 29th 2012, 17:35 GMT |
Nico Rosberg says his Mercedes team is still motivated to finish the season on a high, despite its race performances tailing off recently.
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| By Jonathan Noble | Sunday, October 28th 2012, 17:17 GMT |
Red Bull still needs to deliver three 'perfect' race weekends if it is going to pull off another world championship title, according to team principal Christian Horner - despite the team's recent run of dominance
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| By Andrew van Leeuwen | Sunday, October 28th 2012, 17:46 GMT |
Defeated International Superstars Series title contender Tonio Liuzzi has apologised to his CAAL Racing team for getting mixed up with "dangerous driver" Andrea Larini in the finale at Pergusa - which cost him the crown
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| By Diego Mejia | Sunday, October 28th 2012, 23:40 GMT |
Jimmie Johnson jumped back up to the lead of the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup with his fourth win of the season and his seventh at Martinsville Speedway
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Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| By Andrew van Leeuwen | Saturday, October 27th 2012, 16:13 GMT |
Raffaele Giammaria took a stunning pole position on his debut in the International Superstar Series at Pergusa in Sicily
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| By Jonathan Noble | Saturday, October 27th 2012, 14:54 GMT |
McLaren may concede that Red Bull looks like is on its way to championship glory, but it is still adamant that there is a good chance to beat them in races.
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Andrew van Leeuwen | Saturday, October 27th 2012, 16:15 GMT |
Gianni Morbidelli has decided not to take part in Sunday's two International Superstars Series races at the Pergusa circuit in Sicily
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Since its 2010 debut, no tablet has come close to unseating the mighty iPad.
The many contenders can all be tossed in two piles: "Me too" devices or cheaper/smaller tablets. Neither has dealt Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500) a serious blow, and the iPad Mini -- unveiled on Tuesday -- is likely to solidify Apple's dominance.
But Windows 8 offers a compelling third way to take on the iPad: by putting a full PC experience on a tablet.
Most tablets currently on the market are complementary devices. They have bare-bones operating systems that make on-the-go media consumption and Web browsing a cinch. For most users, they haven't yet replaced the need for a PC.
Few people create documents, spreadsheets or presentations on their iPads, and even fewer run any serious business applications on them. Today's tablets don't multitask well, and IT departments that want to dig deep into the operating system to customize settings aren't going to have much luck. You still need a PC to do that.
The solution Windows 8 offers is inspired -- and controversial. The new operating system, which goes on sale Friday, has two modes: the "Start screen," filled with large app tiles, full-screen apps and hidden menu functions; and the more traditional "Desktop mode," with smaller app icons, taskbars and menu ribbons. Both modes work with touch or a mouse.
Unlike Apple, which makes separate operating systems for mobile devices and Macs, Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) thinks users want a full, "no compromises" PC experience on their tablets.
Will buyers follow Microsoft's lead? Analysts are divided, and the range of estimates is staggering.
IHS iSuppli forecasts that there will be nearly 20 million tablets in use by the end of next year that run either Windows 8 or Windows RT (a stripped down version of Windows 8 that does not support legacy Windows applications).
That would be a nice start, but it's nowhere near the 73 million iPads Gartner expects Apple to sell next year. There will be 118 million iPad users by then, IHS estimates.
Other analysts are far more conservative. Forrester Research thinks Windows 8 and RT will be on a combined 7 million tablets by the end of next year. IDC is even more pessimistic, forecasting that just under 5 million Windows tablets will be in use by the end of 2013.
Though its immediate prospects seem bleak, most analysts think Windows will eventually gain steam. By 2016, IHS iSuppli thinks Windows will control 25% of the tablet market -- a strong competitor to Apple, which will still control nearly half the market, down from its 70% share today. Forrester predicts that Microsoft will have a 27% share of the tablet market in 2016, compared to 53% for Apple.
Windows tablets will need beautiful hardware, a robust app store and aggressive marketing to really take on the iPad.
"Microsoft needs to make users want to see the products, pick them up and touch their screens," says Michael Silver, analyst at Gartner. "Users have to go into the store wanting Windows — a tall order."
Microsoft's own tablet, the Surface, is off to a rocky start.
It's backed by an expensive advertising campaign, and its kick-in-the-PC-industry's-rear strategy has sparked a batch of design innovations. Tablet PCs with backflipping keyboards, rotating screens and pop-off displays -- some of which look eerily similar to the Surface -- are making their way to store shelves. That's exactly what Microsoft hoped would happen when it flung down the gauntlet at PC makers.
Microsoft's Windows Store app marketplace is still sparse, though -- a fact mentioned frequently in Surface reviews.
It's a chicken-and-egg problem. Developers won't build Windows apps until millions of customers have mobile Windows devices, and customers are leery of buying devices that lack popular apps. That's an obstacle Microsoft has battled for two years on Windows Phone, which currently has a scant 3.5% market share, IDC estimates.
Still, Microsoft has plenty of partners joining in its tablet push. Dell (DELL, Fortune 500), Samsung, Toshiba, Asus, Lenovo and Hewlett-Packard (HPQ, Fortune 500) are all releasing new Windows 8 devices, and Microsoft's Surface Pro will go on sale in January.
Analysts say there's an underserved market of buyers looking for a tablet they can actually do work on. If Microsoft can connect with those customers, it might finally make headway in a market that's been passing it by.
"Windows 8, together with Office 2013, will be perceived as a more functional device than a consumer tablet," said Rick Sherlund, analyst at Nomura Securities. "We think of this as being about more than a pretty face." 
First Published: October 26, 2012: 6:23 AM ET
Click for more market premarket data.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stock futures trimmed earlier losses Friday, as investors weigh the latest corporate earnings against a stronger-than-expected report on U.S. economic growth.
Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic activity, rose at a 2% annual rate in the third quarter, according to government data. The figure was higher than the 1.7% rate economists surveyed by CNNMoney had forecast and came after GDP grew 1.3% in the second quarter.
Investors were also digesting the latest reports on corporate sales and earnings in the third quarter.
Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500), one of the most widely held stocks in the S&P 500, reported quarterly results that missed expectations, despite predictions for a strong fourth quarter. Additionally, Amazon (AMZN, Fortune 500) reported a narrower-than-expected loss but missed on sales.
As quarterly results continue to roll in, investors have been sidelined by weaker-than-expected sales growth and tepid guidance for the current quarter. In addition, traders have become risk-averse ahead of the U.S. presidential elections, while concerns about the fiscal cliff continue to weigh on the market.
Later in the morning, the University of Michigan will release the final version of its consumer sentiment index for October.
U.S. stocks closed with slim gains Thursday.
Fear & Greed Index
European stocks were mixed. Britain's FTSE 100 fell 0.5%, while the DAX in Germany and France's CAC 40 were little changed.
Spain's IBEX 35 was down 0.8% after government statistics showed Spanish unemployment rose to a record high of 25% in the third quarter.
On Thursday, Standard & Poor's cut its ratings on BNP Paribas and two other major French banks, citing the rising economic risks that they face.
Meanwhile, Asian markets ended lower. The Shanghai Composite tumbled 1.7%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong sank 1.2%, and Japan's Nikkei flopped 1.3%.
Companies: Merck (MRK, Fortune 500) reported third-quarter earnings that beat analysts' expectations, even as worldwide sales declined.
Comcast (CMCSA)said earnings jumped 136% in the third quarter from the same period last year, helped by coverage of the 2012 Olympic Games.
Shares of Expedia (EXPE) continued to rally ahead of the bell on Friday, after the travel website reported strong quarterly earnings late Thursday.
Deckers Outdoor (DECK) tumbled in premarket trading, after the maker of Ugg boots and Teva sandals slashed its outlook for the remainder of the year.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar was little changed against the euro and the British pound, but rose against the Japanese yen.
Oil for December delivery rose 16 cents to $86.19 a barrel.
Gold futures for December delivery dropped $3.40 to $1,709.40 an ounce.
Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.79% from 1.83% late Thursday.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 6:06 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. economic growth picked up in the third quarter, boosted by stronger consumer spending, an improving housing sector and increased defense spending.
Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of the nation's economic health, grew at an annual rate of 2% from July to September, the Commerce Department said Friday, faster than the 1.3% rate in the second quarter.
Economists surveyed by CNNMoney had predicted a 1.7% growth rate for the third quarter, but were still reluctant to celebrate. Growth around 2% a year is in line with the pace of the sluggish recovery, and is hardly enough to lead to robust hiring.
"It's a ho-hum number given the environment we're in," said Sam Bullard, senior economist at Wells Fargo. "We're looking ahead to fiscal cliff, and holiday sales forecasts this year are lower than last year. We're limping into the final quarter this year."
Related: Check the unemployment rate in your state
One major economic theory suggests that the economy needs to grow around 3% a year to bring unemployment down by one percentage point. The unemployment rate was 7.8% as of September.
"Growth rates this low will not reliably lower joblessness in the years to come," said Josh Bivens, research and policy director for the Economic Policy Institute.
Residential construction accelerated at a 14% pace in the third quarter, signaling the housing sector may have finally started recovering. But because housing makes up less than 3% of the entire U.S. economy, the impact was minor.
Consumer spending, which makes up more than two-thirds of the economy, grew at an annual pace of 2% in the third quarter. This was the single biggest contributor to stronger economic growth, and was supported mainly by stronger auto sales.
Related: New-home sales hit 2-year high
Surprisingly, higher federal defense spending also boosted the economy, growing at a 13% annual rate after shrinking in the three prior quarters.
"We can't figure out where that came from," Bullard said. "That category is highly susceptible to being revised, and we expect it's going to get watered down."
State and local governments contracted for the 12th consecutive quarter. Meanwhile, businesses cut back on their spending.
Spending on software and equipment in particular, had previously been a strong point in the recovery, but was flat in the third quarter. Economists point to uncertainty over tax policy and the fiscal cliff as key reasons why businesses are now holding back.
"The ongoing fiscal folly is a major contributing factor to the soft tone of the economy, as is evidenced by the slower pace of investment spending, especially spending on equipment and software, which was flat," said Ward McCarthy, chief financial economist at Jefferies & Co. "The uncertainty generated by fiscal ineptitude has basically shut down investment spending."
Weak exports also weighed on growth, a sign that global economic weakness is hitting American manufacturers. The world's second largest economy, China has been slowing, and Europe's economy has been shrinking.
Economists are expecting the U.S. economy to slow in the fourth quarter, as uncertainty about the fiscal cliff and weaker growth overseas intensify.
"After the election we expect economic activity to slow and both businesses and consumers to pull back in response to a contentious debate over fiscal policy," said Ellen Zentner, senior economist at Nomura.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 8:47 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- One of America's fastest-growing wireless carriers is a company you've probably never heard of: Tracfone Wireless. It's the U.S. arm of a telecom empire controlled by the world's richest man, Carlos Slim, and it's the biggest player in an increasingly lucrative market: subsidized mobile phones for low-income Americans.
The subsidy became a political flashpoint recently thanks to an incendiary YouTube video featuring a Cleveland resident praising her free "Obama phone." Hype from the Drudge Report and conservative ringleaders like Rush Limbaugh propelled the video to nearly 5 million pageviews.
The real story behind the phones is more nuanced than the 45-second clip.
The subsidy is from a government-created program called Lifeline, which is paid for by customer fees on most phone bills. The program is overseen by the Federal Communications Commission, and has its roots in a universal access initiative that began in 1985, during Ronald Reagan's administration.
Here's how it works: If you're eligible for other forms of government assistance like Medicaid or food stamps (the rules differ by state), then you qualify to receive a $9.25 per month phone subsidy.
Participating wireless companies will typically offer a free phone (paid for by the company), with an allotment of Lifeline minutes each month.
Lifeline subscribers can collect only one monthly subsidy, for either a landline or a wireless phone. Around 75% of them have chosen to go wireless.
Where does the money for Lifeline subsidy come from? You.
Take a look at your phone bill and you'll see a charge -- typically a few dollars a month -- for payments to the "Universal Service Fund." That's the umbrella program covering various ventures, including Lifeline, that are designed to make telephone communications universally available to all Americans.
The government requires most telecoms to pay into the fund. The carriers then typically pass the costs on to their customers as a monthly surcharge. Last year, Lifeline accounted for 20% of the $8.1 billion Universal Service Fund distributed to support connections for rural areas, schools, hospitals and low-income individuals.
There are 17 million households currently signed up for the program, up from under 7 million just four years ago.
There are two reasons for the rapid growth.
First, the recession dramatically increased the number of people who are eligible.
Second, in 2008, during George W. Bush's administration, the FCC allowed wireless carrier Tracfone to join the program's list of approved providers.
Tracfone has aggressively gone after Lifeline customers. It advertises its "free phone" on television, pays commissioned street teams to canvas low-income neighborhoods for new subscribers, and signs customers up through a splashy website that promises "250 Free Minutes Every Month! Pay Nothing!"
Those tactics are paying off. Tracfone now has more than has more than 4 million subscribers in its Lifeline program, called SafeLink, and collected $452 million last year from the program's subsidies. That's twice what it took in two years ago, and far more than any other provider. (The runners-up, AT&T (T, Fortune 500)and Sprint (S, Fortune 500), each collected around $274 million.)
The Lifeline cash is a substantial chunk of the $3.8 billion Tracfone generated last year in annual sales. The company is the American subsidiary of América Móvil, the Mexican telecom giant run by Carlos Slim, the world's richest billionaire.
Lifeline customers aren't as profitable for Tracfone as traditional ones, but the streams are reliable and help expand the company's customer base.
"The wonderful thing about the program is that individuals who no longer qualify for the phone keep the phone," says Jose Fuentes, Tracfone's director of government relations. "They can continue to remain Tracfone customers."
Advocates say the program is an essential safety net: A telephone links people to emergency services, and it's almost impossible to get a job without a phone number.
"I use it to keep in touch with my family and my friends, and work-related services like business appointments," says Kathy Jarrett, a Brooklyn, N.Y. resident who has been a Lifeline subscriber for four years. "If I didn't have a phone I would be a wreck."
But in the days leading up the election, the booming Lifeline expansion is raising eyebrows. The program paid out $1.6 billion last year, more than twice the $772 million it spent in 2008.
Congressman Tim Griffin, a Republican from Arkansas, blasted it as a "government-run, taxpayer-funded" boondoggle that's "riddled with instances of abuse." He introduced a bill that would drop mobile phones from the program.
"That is one of the biggest misconceptions that are out there today, that federal dollars go directly to the Universal Service Fund," says Tracfone's Fuentes. "That is completely incorrect."
Griffin's retort: "Consumers are forced to pay it, and where I come from, that's a tax."
Democrats have also challenged Lifeline's excesses. Senator Claire McCaskill, from Missouri, drew attention last year to Lifeline's minimal oversight after receiving a flyer at home inviting her to get a free cell phone. (With an annual Senate salary of $174,000, McCaskill isn't exactly the target market.)
The FCC implemented anti-fraud measures earlier this year, requiring subscribers to prove their eligibility, canceling service if the phone is not used for 60 days, and preventing individuals from having multiple phones. The agency says it canceled 800,000 duplicate contracts and expects to save $200 million this year.
Lifeline "wreaks havoc" in the competitive market, according to Roger Entner, the founder of Recon Analytics, a wireless industry research and consulting firm. Carriers targeting the prepaid market -- one of the industry's fastest-growing segments -- can't compete with free phones.
But in the end, he thinks the safety net is worth it.
"As a country we want everyone to have communications. Without a phone, you can't get a job," Entner says. "I'm sure that Lifeline has literally saved people's lives."
First Published: October 26, 2012: 9:58 AM ET
Paul Ceglia is charged with one count of mail fraud and one count of wire fraud, each of which carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Federal agents arrested Paul Ceglia, an upstate New York man who claims he's owed 50% of Facebook, Friday morning on charges of perpetuating a "multi-billion-dollar scheme" to defraud the company. If convicted, Ceglia faces up to 40 years in prison.
The move could end a bizarre legal saga that began in July 2010, when Ceglia filed suit in New York claiming that he paid Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg to build a website similar to what became Facebook, and that they agreed to split the company. Both Facebook (FB) and founder Mark Zuckerberg have strenuously denied Ceglia's claims.
The government's complaint against Ceglia, 39, echoes Facebook's accusations. Ceglia "doctored, fabricated, and destroyed evidence to support his false claim," according to a statement from the U.S. attorney's office in New York City.
The government's complaint accuses Ceglia of altering a contract and inventing emails that didn't exist.
Zuckerberg acknowledged signing a business contract in 2003 with Ceglia for a small programing job, one of many work-for-hire gigs that Zuckerberg accepted as a college student. But Facebook says that contact predated Facebook, which was conceived in 2004, and made no mention of the social networking venture.
The government's investigators agree. The real contract, discovered on one of Ceglia's hard drives, and "does not refer to Facebook in any fashion," according to the U.S. attorney's office.
A search of email servers at Harvard University, where Zuckerberg was a student at the time in question, did not turn up alleged emails that Ceglia submitted as evidence.
Ceglia is charged with one count of mail fraud and one count of wire fraud, each of which carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
Federal agents arrested Ceglia Friday at his home in Wellsville, N.Y., about 90 miles south of Buffalo.
Ceglia's attorneys did not immediately reply to a request for comment. The U.S. Attorney's office said he will appear at federal court in Buffalo later on Friday.
Orin Snyder, a lawyer at the firm Gibson Dunn who is representing Facebook and Zuckerberg, said they "commend" the U.S. Attorney's office for bringing charges against Ceglia.
"Ceglia used the federal court system to perpetuate his fraud and will now be held accountable for his criminal scheme," Snyder said in a prepared statement. Facebook did not comment further on the charges.
When Ceglia filed his charges in mid-2010, Facebook was caught off guard. A state court in New York's Allegany County, where the case originated, briefly froze the company's assets, while Facebook's lawyers scrambled to untangle Ceglia's claims and Zuckerberg's pre-Facebook business dealings.
Back in April 2003, Ceglia arranged to pay Zuckerberg for development work on a now-defunct site called StreetFax. Ceglia claimed the deal also covered work on a fledgling site called "the Face Book" and produced a contract to back his claim.
Government investigators say Ceglia "simply replaced page one of the real contract with a new page one doctored to make it appear as though Zuckerberg had agreed to provide Ceglia with an interest in Facebook."
Ceglia's lawsuit got a fresh round of attention when he re-filed it in April 2011 with the backing of high-profile law firm DLA Piper (which dropped the case a few months later). The new documents included dozens of incendiary e-mails allegedly exchanged between Ceglia and Zuckerberg from July 2003 and July 2004 -- an email trail that the government says was entirely faked.
Ceglia has had several brushes with the law, including a 1997 felony conviction for possession of 400 grams of a compound found in certain hallucinogenic mushrooms. In 2009, Ceglia was convicted of fraud in connection with a wood pellet company he owned.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 12:56 PM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- A state investigation into whether some of the world's biggest banks manipulated key global interest rates has widened to 16 institutions, according to a source familiar with the matter.
New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman issued subpoenas to nine banks in late August as part of an investigation into alleged manipulation of the London Interbank Offered Rate, or Libor, according to the source, who was not authorized to speak publicly.
The Libor process generates rates, based on a survey of banks, that are used as benchmarks for roughly $10 trillion of loans and some $350 trillion of derivatives.
In June, U.K. bank Barclays (BCS) admitted to manipulating Libor to appear stronger during the financial crisis and to benefit its traders' positions. As part of a settlement with U.S. and U.K. regulators, the bank agreed to pay $453 million.
Related: Explaining the Libor interest rate mess
Since then, other banks involved in setting Libor have come under scrutiny. Schneiderman previously subpoenaed Barclays, Citigroup (C, Fortune 500), Deutsche Bank (DB), HSBC (HBC), JPMorgan (JPM, Fortune 500), Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) and UBS (UBS) in July and early August.
The newly disclosed subpoenas were sent to Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500), Credit Suisse (CS), Societe Generale (SCGLF), Royal Bank of Canada (RY), Rabobank, Norinchukin Bank, Lloyds Banking Group PLC (LLDTF), Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ and WestLB.
A spokesman for U.K.-based Lloyds said in a statement that the bank was "assisting various regulators in their ongoing investigations. And a spokesman for WestLB, now known as Portigon, said the firm "continue[s] as always to help the regulators in any enquiries they may have."
Royal Bank of Canada spokeswoman Rina Cortese said RBC had "determined that our Libor submissions reflected our cost of funds," meaning the bank did not attempt to manipulate the rate.
The other banks either declined to comment or did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Schneiderman is leading the investigation along with Connecticut state Attorney General George Jepsen. The two have also been in contact with a number of their counterparts in other states.
"The investigation can now be described as a large, well coordinated multistate investigation that includes Attorneys General throughout the U.S.," Jaclyn Falkowski, a spokeswoman for Jepsen, said in a statement. "A primary focus of the multistate's [sic] investigation is to identify whether state and municipal issuers with financial instruments pegged to Libor and other benchmark interest rates have been harmed by the alleged conduct and, if so, to seek recovery of those taxpayer funds."
The Baltimore city government is already the lead plaintiff in a class-action suit against Barclays and other banks alleging that the city lost money due to Libor manipulation. The comptroller of Nassau County in New York has claimed the alleged fraud might have cost his county as much as $13 million on deals related to $600 million of outstanding bonds.
Federal authorities are also investigating the matter, as are some officials overseas. All told, analysts believe the banks implicated in the scandal will rack up billions in losses from pending litigation and regulatory penalties.
CNNMoney's Catherine Tymkiw contributed reporting.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 2:46 PM ET
Another associate of Raj Rajaratnam has been charged with insider trading by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The Securities and Exchange Commission says that a former chief financial officer of Xilinx Inc. has agreed to pay a $1.75 million fine to settle charges he passed inside information to Raj Rajaratnam's hedge fund.
The SEC said Friday that Kris Chellam told Rajaratnam in December 2006 that chipmaker Xilinx (XLNX) would be lowering its revenue guidance two days ahead of the official announcement. Chellam served as chief financial officer of Xilinx between 1998 and 2005 and was a major investor in the Galleon hedge fund run by Rajaratnam, according to the complaint.
The SEC says he was also hired by Galleon the spring after giving it the insider information about Xilinx.
Immediately after Chellam let Rajaratnam know the insider information, Galleon began shorting shares of Xilinx stock. When shares fell 6% on the guidance, Galleon made a profit of nearly $1 million on its short position, according to the SEC.
"Chellam was entrusted with sensitive company information that he divulged to Rajaratnam knowing full well that Rajaratnam would trade on it," said Sanjay Wadhwa, associate director of the SEC's New York regional office, in a statement.
Related: Hall of shame: Eddie Murray charged with insider trading
Rajaratnam was convicted of 14 counts of insider trading in May 2011. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison, a record for insider trading, and ordered to pay a record fine of nearly $93 million. Rajaratnam, who suffers from diabetes and kidney disease, is serving at the Devens Federal Medical Center in Massachusetts.
The case against him has netted a number of associates, most famously Rajat Gupta, the consummate corporate insider and former director at Goldman Sachs (GS, Fortune 500) and Procter & Gamble Co (PG, Fortune 500),. Gupta was convicted in June of passing information to Rajaratnam, and sentenced to two years in prison on Wednesday.
The $1.75 million fine Chellam has agreed to pay is subject to court approval. The SEC handles civil cases, not criminal cases. Its statement made no mention of the possibility of criminal charges being filed against Chellam.
Efforts to reach Chellam for comment were not immediately successful.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 3:43 PM ET
Government investigators are looking into a throttle cable problem in some Ford Tauruses and Mercury Sables.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is investigating 2000 - 2003 Ford Tauruses and Mercury Sables for a problem that can cause the engine to keep running as if the gas pedal were pressed even when it's not.
According to a document posted on NHTSA's website, an attachment that holds the speed control cable -- which works with the car's cruise control system -- can break, causing the cable to become stuck.
Gallery: Ford C-Max Hybrid
The vehicles involved in the investigation are model year 2000 through 2003 Tauruses and Sables -- the two models are essentially identical -- with 4-valve 3.0-liter V6 Duratec engines. An estimated 310,000 cars may be involved.
For now, no vehicles are being recalled, but NHTSA is performing a "preliminary investigation," to determine the extent of the problem and its safety implications.
By the time the investigation was opened, NHTSA was aware of 50 complaints. The problem has not been seen in other V6-equipped Taurus or Sable cars, according to the document.
Model year 2005 and 2006 Ford (F, Fortune 500) Tauruses were also investigated for a similar problem, but that investigation was closed recently with NHTSA finding that the issue in that case did not constitute a serious safety concern, according to documents on NHTSA's website.
Earlier this year, Ford recalled 421,000 Escape crossover SUVs for a problem also involving speed control cables that could get stuck. That problem was different from the one involved in this investigation, however.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 12:24 PM ET
Click the chart for more stock market data.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks ended a choppy session little changed Friday, but logged another week of losses amid lackluster corporate earnings.
More than half of the S&P 500 companies have reported third-quarter financial results so far, and while more than 70% have delivered earnings above Wall Street's estimates, only 36% have topped sales forecasts, according to FactSet Research. That is well below the average of 55% that typically beat revenue estimates.
Moreover, companies have been tepid in their outlooks for the remainder of the year.
The dull results have pushed investors to the sidelines. In fact, all three indexes posted their second weekly loss in three weeks. The Dow Jones industrial average declined 1.8%, the S&P 500 slid 1.5%, and the Nasdaq dropped 0.6% during the week.
In addition, traders have become risk-averse ahead of the U.S. presidential elections, while concerns about the fiscal cliff continue to weigh on the market. The uncertainty has stocks on track to finish October in the red, logging their first monthly loss since May.
Trading on Friday was choppy, as investors remained focused on earnings but also digested a mixed bag of economic data.
A stronger-than-expected report on U.S. economic growth was encouraging, but a reading on consumer sentiment fell short of expectations.
Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic activity, rose at a 2% annual rate in the third quarter, according to government data. The figure was higher than the 1.7% rate economists surveyed by CNNMoney had forecast. GDP grew at a rate of 1.3% in the second quarter.
While the University of Michigan's index measuring consumer sentiment improved in October to 82.6 from the prior month, it was revised down from a preliminary reading of 83.1, disappointing analysts who were expecting the index to remain unchanged
After flipping between small gains and losses through the trading day, the Dow and Nasdaq finished up less than 0.1%, while the S&P 500 shed 0.1%.
Banks were among the biggest decliners, with Bank of America (BAC, Fortune 500) and JPMorgan Chase (JPM, Fortune 500) dragging on the Dow. Citigroup (C, Fortune 500) shares fell sharply after Massachusetts regulators fined one of the bank's unit $2 million for failing to prevent analysts from illegally leaking confidential information about Facebook's (FB) initial public offering.
Related: Fear & Greed Index
European stocks ended higher Friday. Britain's FTSE 100 rose slightly, while the DAX in Germany gained 0.4% and France's CAC 40 added 0.7%.
Spain's IBEX 35 also ended lower after government statistics showed Spanish unemployment rose to a record high of 25% in the third quarter.
On Thursday, Standard & Poor's cut its ratings on BNP Paribas and two other major French banks, citing the rising economic risks that they face.
Meanwhile, Asian markets ended lower. The Shanghai Composite tumbled 1.7%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong sank 1.2%, and Japan's Nikkei flopped 1.3%.
Companies: Apple (AAPL, Fortune 500), one of the most widely held stocks in the S&P 500, reported quarterly results that missed expectations, as iPad sales came in lower than forecasts. But the company's forecast for next quarter was a blockbuster, as Apple said it expects sales of around $52 billion, up 12% from last year's holiday quarter. Shares of Apple slipped almost 1% Friday.
Amazon (AMZN, Fortune 500) shares rose 7% a day after the company reported a narrower-than-expected loss, despite missing on sales.
Merck (MRK, Fortune 500) reported third-quarter earnings that beat analysts' expectations, but a decline in sales worldwide sent shares lower.
Comcast (CMCSA)said earnings jumped 136% in the third quarter from the same period last year, helped by coverage of the 2012 Olympic Games. Shares of Comcast rose more than 3%.
Shares of Expedia (EXPE) rallied after the travel website reported strong quarterly earnings late Thursday.
Deckers Outdoor (DECK) tumbled after the maker of Ugg boots and Teva sandals slashed its outlook for the remainder of the year.
Currencies and commodities: The dollar was little changed against the euro and the British pound, but fell against the Japanese yen.
Oil for December delivery rose 23 cents to settle at $86.28 a barrel.
Gold futures for December delivery fell $1.10 to settle at to $1,711.90 an ounce.
Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.75% from 1.83% late Thursday.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 9:45 AM ET
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Can I skip investing in stocks altogether during retirement if I have saved a lot? -- Andrew C., Florida
After seeing stocks plummet almost 60% between late 2007 and early 2009, I understand why you may want to avoid them. And you can, as long as you're able to live comfortably on a very low withdrawal rate.
With a 100% bond portfolio, taking out 3% of your portfolio's value initially and then adjusting that amount annually for inflation would leave you with roughly an 80% chance of your money lasting 30 years.
But is such a low withdrawal rate realistic? For most retirees, I think not. And once you start taking out more -- even going from 3% to 4% -- avoiding stocks reduces your return potential so much that it leaves you vulnerable to running out of dough early.
That said, you don't have to go overboard. Invest half your savings in stocks and half in bonds -- close to what 401(k) participants in their 60s do on average, according to the Employee Benefit Research Institute -- and you have just under an 80% chance of your portfolio lasting at least 30 years, assuming a 4% withdrawal plan. Even if you reduce your stocks to 30% of your portfolio, that probability falls to just 70%.
Related: Worried about the fiscal cliff: Should I sell?
So why go with anything more than the absolute lowest amount of stocks necessary? Leaning a bit more toward equities may enhance your financial security in other ways.
One benefit is that stocks can help you maintain a higher balance in your retirement accounts than a more conservative mix would (see graphic above).
Having a cushion as you enter your later years can provide a margin of safety in case you run into higher-than-expected health care costs or other unanticipated expenses.
What's more, in the event your spending creeps up, a more stock-heavy portfolio may be better able to absorb the higher outlays. Boosting your withdrawals with a more conservative mix is far more likely to send your nest egg to an early demise.
Related: Make your retirement savings last
You've also got to consider your own circumstances. With few resources beyond your investments -- no pension or little home equity -- you may want to opt for a less aggressive mix. Just remember the price for playing it too safe.
First Published: October 26, 2012: 1:52 PM ET
| By Matt Beer | Saturday, October 27th 2012, 01:02 GMT |
Casey Stoner continued his utter dominance of his home MotoGP weekend with another astonishing performance in final practice at Phillip Island
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Diego Mejia | Saturday, October 27th 2012, 00:52 GMT |
Mark Martin, Brian Vickers and Michael Waltrip will continue to share Michael Waltrip Racing's #55 Toyota in the 2013 NASCAR Sprint Cup
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| By Mark Glendenning | Saturday, October 27th 2012, 01:29 GMT |
Simona de Silvestro will join Tony Kanaan at KV Racing Technology for the 2013 IndyCar Series
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Jamie O'Leary | Thursday, October 25th 2012, 19:57 GMT |
Kevin Ceccon stayed on top of the timesheets on the second and final day of GP3 testing at Jerez on Thursday
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| By David Evans | Thursday, October 25th 2012, 19:46 GMT |
The long-term promotion of the World Rally Championship will be discussed at a meeting between the FIA and rally organisers in Paris next week
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Sam Tremayne | Friday, October 26th 2012, 00:57 GMT |
Casey Stoner began his bid for a sixth straight home MotoGP victory in ominous fashion by blitzing the field in first practice at Phillip Island
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Glenn Freeman | Wednesday, October 24th 2012, 11:34 GMT |
Jules Bianchi and Tech 1 racing have called for rule changes to prevent drivers from winning championships by colliding with their rivals.
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Sam Tremayne | Wednesday, October 24th 2012, 15:49 GMT |
Kevin Ceccon set the pace for MW Arden on the opening day of GP3's post-season test at Jerez.
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Pablo Elizalde | Wednesday, October 24th 2012, 15:51 GMT |
Davide Valsecchi and Edoardo Mortara will join the Lotus team's line-up for the young driver test in Abu Dhabi
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| By Sam Tremayne | Tuesday, October 23rd 2012, 16:12 GMT |
Maverick Vinales has offered an unreserved apology just five days after walking out on his Avintia Moto3 team on the eve of last weekend's Malaysian Grand Prix
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Glenn Freeman | Tuesday, October 23rd 2012, 18:45 GMT |
Kevin Magnussen led the way on the first day of post-season Formula Renault 3.5 testing at Barcelona on Tuesday
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| By Diego Mejia | Tuesday, October 23rd 2012, 20:41 GMT |
Dale Earnhardt Jr has been cleared to return to NASCAR Sprint Cup competition next weekend at Martinsville Speedway after his injury lay-off
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
Subscribe to Premier Sports TV to watch all Sprint Cup events live in the UK. Visit www.premiersports.tv for more information.
| By Pablo Elizalde | Monday, October 22nd 2012, 15:30 GMT |
GP3 champion Mitch Evans got his first taste of the new car that will be used in the series from the 2013 season
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Glenn Freeman | Monday, October 22nd 2012, 16:21 GMT |
Jules Bianchi believes it is "clear" that Robin Frijns knocked him off the track to win the Formula Renault 3.5 championship at Barcelona on Sunday.
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Glenn Freeman | Monday, October 22nd 2012, 20:42 GMT |
Carlos Sainz Jr will get his first taste of Formula Renault 3.5 machinery during this week's post-season test at Barcelona
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Kevin Turner | Sunday, October 21st 2012, 14:06 GMT |
Gordon Shedden clinched his first British Touring Car title in a wet second race at Brands Hatch, taking second behind new BTCC winner Aron Smith
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| By Kevin Turner | Sunday, October 21st 2012, 16:49 GMT |
Frank Wrathall took his first British Touring Car victory in the reversed-grid race in the 2012 finale at Brands Hatch
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Glenn Freeman and Matt Beer | Sunday, October 21st 2012, 19:51 GMT |
Formula Renault 3.5 champion Robin Frijns has been given a 25-second penalty for his clash with title rival Jules Bianchi in the Barcelona decider, but it does not affect his championship success
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Glenn Freeman | Saturday, October 20th 2012, 18:44 GMT |
The European Le Mans Series will feature on the World Series by Renault bill three times next season as part of an agreement between the organisers
You have viewed over 50 free stories this month. Why stop there? Click here to find out how to continue reading.
| By Jamie O'Leary | Saturday, October 20th 2012, 20:05 GMT |
Timo Scheider has been stripped of his qualifying times for Sunday's DTM finale at Hockenheim after failing a post-session weight test
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| Sunday, October 21st 2012, 02:01 GMT |
Neel Jani, Nicolas Prost and Andrea Belicchi handed Rebellion's Lola-Toyota a dominant victory at this year's Petit Le Mans
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NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Women are finding their way back into the workforce.
The economic upswing had until recently been a "hecovery," but the revival is now becoming more balanced between the genders. The number of women employees has jumped by 300,000 in the past six months, nearly the same amount as men. And in September, men and women each saw a job gain of 57,000.
"The recovery has definitely picked up for women in the last year," said Joan Entmacher, vice president of family economic security at the National Women's Law Center.
Women's financial well-being over the past four years is a hot topic in this year's election, as President Barack Obama and challenger Mitt Romney each court their vote.
In Tuesday's debate, Obama hailed his signing of the Lily Ledbetter law, which lengthened the time women could sue employers for pay discrimination. Romney, meanwhile, attacked the president's economic record by saying that 580,000 women have lost jobs and 3.5 million more women fell into poverty in the past four years.
Romney would have been right about the jobs figures had it still been spring. Women were hit hard by job losses in the public sector -- particularly in schools -- which accelerated in 2011 after stimulus funds ran out. Governments continued to shed jobs well after the private sector started reviving, delaying women's recovery since they make up 59% of the state and local workforce.
And as governments looked to tighten their financial belts, they reduced funding for job support initiatives -- particularly subsidized child care programs that allow poor women to seek and retain jobs.
Related: 25 highest-paid women
But governments have finally begun to stem job losses over the past year. Local school districts added 79,000 jobs between July and September, the strongest summer hiring since 2006.
At this point, women have recovered 32% of the jobs lost in the recession, while men have gained back 43%, according to Entmacher.
Women are also benefiting from gains in education and health services in the private sector, Entmacher said, as well as professional and business services, which include temp jobs. For roughly every one job lost in the public sector, women have gained three in the private industry since June 2009.
When it comes to wages, women have actually done better than men in recent years. Women collected $684 in median weekly earnings last year, up from $667 in 2008, said Heidi Hartmann, president of the Institute for Women's Policy Research. Men's wages, meanwhile, remained stagnant at around $834.
This could be because women's employment has increased greatly in higher-wage industries like health care, she said. On the flip side, men have lost good paying jobs in manufacturing and construction, which haven't recovered. Also, women are becoming more educated, which often translates into higher wages.
Romney was more accurate about the poverty figures. There were 25.7 million women in poverty in 2011, up from 22.1 million in 2008, according to Census Bureau data. The share of women in poverty has held even at 56% since the overall number of poor Americans jumped as well.
Women's fortunes, however, could soon take another turn for the worse, Entmacher said. If looming federal budget cuts become a reality, women could get slammed by a new round of government downsizing and reduced funding to child care programs.
"The real risk going forward are these public sector job cuts and [the loss] of job supports that have helped poor women," Entmacher said.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 10:19 AM ET
One year away from retiring, prepare to make the transition, plan your income sources and take action on health insurance.
NEW YORK (Money Magazine) -- This story is part of Money magazine's Retirement Guide 2013, where you'll find strategies to guide you through the last stretch, starting at 10 years out, then five years, one year, and, finally, your first year of leisure.
With one year left until retirement, you're in the final stretch. It's time to prepare for the transition. Practice your budget, plan your income sources, and take action on health insurance.
Savings Target: 1 year out
| 11.4 x household income | To replace 70% of your pre-retirement income at 65 |
What to do
Now dial back on stocks. At this point, you'll want to start shifting away from equities, as the combined hit of withdrawals and a market downturn could compromise the longevity of your portfolio, says Baltimore financial planner Crystal Alford-Cooper.
The max you should have in stocks: 40% to 50%.
Stress-test your spending. You're likely to have a sense now of your fixed expenses for the next few years. So outline a spending plan, then measure it against your nest egg to make sure you won't blow through your savings. Start by filling in the budget worksheet on Fidelity's Retirement Income Planner (fidelity.com).
Related: 25 Best Places to Retire
As a rule, you can withdraw up to 4% of savings the first year, then adjust by inflation in subsequent years, and have a good shot at your money lasting 30 years. Inventory your assets and see whether 4% -- along with Social Security, pensions, and part-time work -- will cover your expenses. If not, you'll need to trim costs.
Whatever budget you decide on, practice living on it now. You'll reality-check your plan, while there's room for error.
Shore up your income. After health care costs, retirees' biggest fear is running out of money, AARP found.
One solution: a lifetime immediate annuity. Basically, you pony up a chunk of money in exchange for a monthly check for life. A 65-year-old man who invested $100,000 today would get about $550 a month.
You can't access money you put in, however, so invest only enough to cover the shortfall in basic living costs left after other guaranteed income.
Also, don't go all in right away, since interest rates partly determine payouts. Invest in stages, and you'll benefit if rates rise. Shop at immediate-annuities.com.
Pick up the pension check. Lucky enough to have a traditional pension? Find out what choices you have and how they affect your benefit.
More than half of private industry workers with pensions can now opt to take their payout as a lump sum, up from 23% 15 years ago, reports the Labor Department. Don't bite. Sure, you can invest the money, but it'd be tough to generate the same income the annuity version guarantees over a long retirement.
Related: Couple plans for the loss of a pension
Another decision point: With the monthly check, you'll have to choose whether to elect a survivor option that reduces your payouts but provides a 100%, 75%, or 50% benefit to your spouse should you die first.
"You don't get a second chance on this decision," says New York elder-law attorney Ann-Margaret Carrozza.
So project what would happen to your partner's income without it. Also investigate whether you'd be better off taking the full benefit and using a portion to buy life insurance.
Stockpile cash. People tend to enter retirement with most of their money tied up in investments.
Bad idea, says wealth planner Tim Golas. He suggests having enough cash to fund the first 12 months of living expenses, separate from your emergency fund. "This creates a safety valve, so you're not at the whims of the market," he says.
Related: Where's your dream retirement?
Start funneling money into a savings account, cutting your 401(k) contribution to just capture the company match if needed. As a backstop, move a portion of an IRA into a short-term bond fund.
Know the Medicare windows. Retiring before 65? Now's the time to select that health insurance plan.
Retiring around 65? You can sign up for Medicare -- at medicare.gov -- up to three months before your birthday month, and up to three months after. Enroll beforehand and coverage starts the first day of your birth month; after, and it'll be delayed by up to six months.
Retiring after 65? Sign up for Part A, which is free, pays for hospital care, and may cover gaps in your employer plan; for the other parts, you have eight months to join after leaving work.
Related: 4 Medicare enrollment mistakes to avoid
Keep in mind that premiums increase 10% a year for each 12-month period you delay once your window closes. For help understanding your options, use the tools at mymedicare.gov.
More from Retirement Guide 2013:
Countdown to retirement: 10 years to go
Retiring in 5 years? Do this now
You've retired! Now put your plan to the test
First Published: October 19, 2012: 9:21 AM ET
The pace of home sales slipped slightly from August levels but is well ahead of sales of a year ago.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- The pace of previously owned home sales slowed slightly in September, even as the long-battered housing market showed signs of a broader recovery.
Sales of existing homes sold at an annual rate of 4.75 million, according to a closely watched reading reported Friday from the National Association of Realtors. It was off slightly from the 4.83 million pace the previous month, but up 11% from a year earlier. Despite the slip, September's pace was the second best in more than two years, trailing only the strong August reading.
How to Spot a Recovering Market
If key local sales indicators beat the U.S. averages (as they do in the areas below), your market is probably picking up -- and prices will soon follow.
| Metro Area | Percentage With Drop In List Price | Days Listed On Zillow | Sale-to-List Price Ratio |
| San Jose | 16.5% | 51 | 1.01 |
| Cheyenne, Wyo. | 21.7% | 88 | 1.08 |
| Clarksville, Tenn. | 30.6% | 103 | 0.98 |
| National Average | 30.7% | 113 | 0.97 |
NOTE: Zillow, based on June 2012 data.
"The report is encouraging despite the modest monthly decline," said Michael Gapen, an economist with Barclays Capital. "Our view is that housing is in a recovery phase."
Real estate sales has been picking up steam in recent months, helped by a number of factors all coming together.
Mortgage rates are near record lows, pushed down by the Federal Reserve's decision to buy $40 billion in mortgages to spur greater economic growth. The low rates, coupled with years of weak home sales, have resulted in affordable housing prices. Recently, home prices have started to rise, which is attracting buyers who were waiting for prices to bottom out.
There has also been a drop in unemployment, a positive development for people looking for mortgage loans.
Foreclosures have fallen to a five-year low, reducing the supply of distressed homes available on the market. The Realtors reported that 24% of homes sold in September were from distressed sales, down from the 30% level a year earlier.
The improved outlook for real estate has also lifted the pace of home building to a four-year high.
Overall, the supply of homes available on the market fell to 5.9 months, the tightest inventory of homes on the market since March of 2006, near the peak of the housing bubble. The tightening supply of homes on the market is one of the factors helping prices this time.
Related: Is buying rental property now a sure bet?
The median price of a home sold during the month was $183,900, down $1,000 from August, but up 11.3% from a year earlier.
Lawrence Yun, the Realtors' chief economist, expects price to increase in the months ahead.
"The shrinkage in housing supply is supporting ongoing price growth, a pattern that could accelerate unless home builders robustly ramp up production," Yun said.
Related: Housing is indeed heading higher
Falling home prices are one of the primary factors that kept many potential home buyers on the sidelines in recent years. They feared their purchase would lose value and worried that it would be difficult to sell their own home for the price they needed to make their next purchase.
Still the median price is still about 20% below the peak reached at the height of the bubble, a sign of the continued headwinds for the market even with the recent improvement.
"Homes are selling only if they are priced to sell, something which is difficult for homeowners who are still under water or upside-down in their mortgage," said Steven Ricchiuto, chief economist at MSUSA.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 10:20 AM ET
Click on the map to check the unemployment rate in your state.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Unemployment declined in 41 states in September, seven of which are key battlegrounds in the election. But falling unemployment rates don't necessarily point to improvement.
Ohio, which has 18 electoral votes up for grabs, saw its unemployment rate decline to 7% in September, down from 7.2% just a month earlier. While hiring has picked up slightly in the state, unemployment is partly falling for the wrong reasons.
Ohio added about 51,000 jobs in the last year, but more than 40,000 people also dropped out of the state's labor force.
Meanwhile in Florida, which has 29 electoral votes, the job market has made more steady progress. But you wouldn't know it from the unemployment rate, which stood at 8.7% in September, higher than the national average of 7.8%.
Florida's labor force is growing, which is an encouraging sign. More people are trying to get jobs in the state, and they're getting them. Over the last year, hiring has not only kept up -- it has grown at a rate five times faster than Florida's expanding labor force.
Over the last year, the state has added 34,000 professional and business service jobs, 21,000 health care and social assistance jobs, and 11,000 retail jobs. That said, as one of the hardest hit states in the housing crisis, it still suffers from a loss of construction jobs.
"These numbers today tell us two things -- we still have more work to do to grow our economy, and we are heading in the right direction.," Florida Gov. Rick Scott said in a statement.
Related: The other unemployment rate
Nevada, which has six electoral votes, continues to have the highest unemployment rate in the country at 11.8% in September. That's an improvement from August when its rate was 12.1%, but the decline was due to a combination of both positive and negative developments. Nevada is seeing modest job growth but like Ohio, its labor force is also shrinking, and like Florida, it has yet to recover most of the construction jobs lost in the financial crisis.
Swing states Wisconsin, Colorado, Iowa and North Carolina also had declining unemployment rates in September, while the unemployment rate remain unchanged in the battleground states of Virginia and New Hampshire.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 11:31 AM ET
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy has outlined sweeping reforms for the troubled euro currency union. But implementing his "vision-thing" is going to be a long-term process.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- European Union leaders took a step forward on the path toward a banking union at their latest summit, but they delayed more politically fraught decisions until the next meeting.
After a late night discussion in Brussels Thursday, EU leaders committed to a Jan. 1 deadline to hammer out details for a Single Supervisory Mechanism for eurozone banks, which they said will be implemented some time next year.
The legislation would give the European Central Bank the ability to oversee the region's roughly 6,000 banks, in addition to its existing mandate to manage interest rates and contain inflation.
Establishing the single supervisor is a prerequisite for the ultimate goal of recapitalizing banks in the euro area with bailout funds from the European Stability Mechanism.
In theory, the ESM would be able to inject capital directly into banks without driving governments deeper into debt.
This is particularly important for Spain, which has already requested up to €100 billion to help fill the €59 billion hole left in the nation's banking sector by a major property bust.
Related: Wall Street still spooked by Spain
Ireland, where the government was bailed out in 2010, after assuming much of the nation's bank debt, also stands to benefit.
But there are many thorny questions that need to be resolved before the legislation can be written into law, let alone implemented.
For one, the ECB is a eurozone institution, and it remains unclear whether it will have authority over banks in EU nations that do not use the single currency. Britain, in particular, is uncomfortable with this idea.
In a statement, EU leaders stressed the need for a "single rulebook."
There is also the question of so-called legacy assets. Officials from Germany, Finland and Denmark suggested last month that bailout funds should only be used to repay future bank debt, rather than resolve existing banking problems.
What's more, Germany and other EU nations appear to be at odds over the scope of the supervisor's authority. Berlin reportedly wants the supervisor to focus only on "systemically important" banks, as opposed to the smaller institutions that hold much of the bad debt in the eurozone.
"There are still major obstacles on the path to full banking union in the eurozone," said Jonathan Loynes, chief European economist at Capital Economics.
Beyond the banking union, EU leaders pledged to continue working on more integrated budget policies, as well as steps to boost economic growth and create jobs.
Related: Spain's precarious future
Eurozone leaders welcomed the progress Greece has made in talks with international creditors, saying Friday that finance ministers will make a decision on additional rescue funds for Greece once that nation's lender have completed their review.
But the lack of progress on these issues has raised the stakes for the next EU summit in December, according to Fitch Ratings.
Fitch said prolonged delays on structural reforms "could damage the credibility of policy makers' efforts to solve the eurozone crisis and increase the eurozones' vulnerability to market pressure."
Still, the agency said a short delay would be manageable thanks to the ECB's recent commitment to buy potentially unlimited amounts of sovereign debt, a move that has calmed the markets since September.
Spain, in particular, has benefited from the promise of ECB intervention in the bond market, where yields on the 10-year bond have moved closer to 5% from the lofty 7% levels seen in July. It also remains to be seen if the Spanish government would agree to the ECB's conditions, which include committing to a formal bailout program.
"The ECB continues to hold the fort," said Nicholas Spiro, director of London-based consultancy Spiro Sovereign Strategy. "But the eurozone crisis has entered a more political phase in which the future of the single currency area hinges on far-reaching institutional reforms."
First Published: October 19, 2012: 2:32 PM ET
NEW YORK (Money Magazine) -- I'm in my mid-30s and max out my 401(k) and a Roth IRA every year. I also invest $4,500 a year in mutual funds. What more should I be doing to prepare for retirement? Should I invest in individual companies in addition to funds? -- Brian B., Jacksonville, Fla.
Sounds like you're already taking the most important steps to get on the path to a secure retirement. You're saving on a regular basis, maximizing tax-advantaged options -- you're even going above and beyond by investing a substantial sum in a taxable account each year.
Assuming all that saving amounts to a reasonable percentage of your annual income -- say, 15% or so -- I don't think you need to make any radical changes.
That said, you may be able to enhance your retirement prospects by improving your retirement-planning strategy a bit. The key, though, is concentrating your efforts in areas that are likely to have the highest payoff.
Here's what I recommend:
1. When it comes to investing, keep it simple. Unless you believe you have unique insights into the financial prospects for specific companies, I'd pass on investing in individual stocks. Without an edge, you're not likely to outperform the market averages, and you could end up dragging down your returns.
Similarly, ignore the endless variety of niche funds and ETFs that investment firms constantly churn out. Here, I'm talking about funds and ETFs that home in on particular sectors of the market -- oil, gas, platinum, gold, currencies, individual foreign countries, etc. -- or that employ risky or arcane investing techniques, a la inverse funds and leveraged ETFs. It's tough to integrate such investments into your portfolio in a coherent way, and they're ultimately not worth the extra expense and effort.
Related: Ground rules for retirement investing
Instead, focus on building a straightforward portfolio of broadly diversified stock and bond funds that will give you exposure to all areas of the market. For guidance on how to divvy up your money -- between stocks and bonds overall and among particular types of stocks and bonds -- just plug the ticker symbol for the Vanguard target-date retirement fund designed for someone your age -- in your case, the 2040 (VFORX) or 2045 fund (VTIVX) -- into Morningstar's Portfolio X-Ray tool. You don't have to mimic its allocations precisely, but you probably don't want to stray too far from them either.
2. Aim for lower costs. Your best shot at boosting your returns without taking on additional risk is to invest as much as possible in low-expense funds. Generally, that means looking for stock funds that have expense ratios below 1% and bond funds with expense ratios less than 0.75%. You can do even better, though, by sticking to low-cost index funds and ETFs like those on the MONEY 70 list of recommended funds.
Of course, in your 401(k) you're limited to the menu of investments offered by your plan. But by perusing the fee disclosure the Department of Labor now requires plan sponsors to provide, you should be able to sift through your 401(k)'s investment roster and choose reasonably priced options.
3. Beware investment pitches based on tax benefits. After investing all you can in tax-advantaged 401(k)s and IRAs, you can plow any extra savings into taxable accounts, as you're already doing to the tune of $4,500 a year.
Just be careful. Many advisers are quick to recommend variable annuities or life insurance investments for taxable accounts because of their potential tax savings. Problem is, these options typically come with high fees, not to mention a mind-numbing level of complexity.
Related: The case for investing in bonds, too
A better solution is to stash any saving you do outside 401(k)s and IRAs in tax-efficient investments like index funds, ETFs and tax-managed funds. You'll likely pay far lower expenses, which will give you a better shot at a higher after-tax rate of return.
4. Save more as your income rises. There's a natural tendency for people to ratchet up their lifestyle at a faster rate than their paycheck as it grows. But that can lead to problems come retirement time. The reason: As your income climbs, the percentage of your pre-retirement salary that Social Security will replace starts to shrink.
So the more you earn during your career, the more you'll have to depend on your personal savings to maintain your standard of living in retirement. To avoid having to scale back your lifestyle during retirement, try to increase the percentage of your income you save as your earnings increase.
5. Monitor your progress. Over the course of a career, any number of setbacks -- layoffs, market downturns, etc. -- can derail even the best laid retirement plans. That's why it's crucial to evaluate how things are going and make adjustments if necessary.
You can do that several ways. One is to periodically assess the balance of your retirement accounts relative to your annual income. Another is to rev up an online calculator like our Retirement Planner. The important thing, though, is that one way or another you come away with a realistic sense of whether your current saving and investing plan is working and, if not, make the necessary tweaks to put you back on track.
You already appear to be off to an excellent start in your retirement planning. And if you follow these five tips, your chances of making a smooth transition from the work-a-day world to your post-career life should be just as upbeat.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 3:46 PM ET
Maybe not so great for your active lifestyle.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- A recall is underway for Banana Boat products that could give new meaning to the word sunburn.
Energizer Holdings (ENR), the consumer goods conglomerate that produces Banana Boat products, announced Friday that certain of the brand's sunscreen sprays may potentially burst into flames on users' skin if they come in contact with a flame or spark before the spray is completely dry.
Energizer said it has received reports of four "adverse events" in which the sprays have caused burns in the U.S., and one in Canada. The company said it believes the problem stems from the fact that the spray valves on the products in question dispense more than is typical in the industry, meaning that the spray takes longer to dry.
"If a consumer comes into contact with a flame or spark prior to complete drying of the product on the skin, there is a potential for the product to ignite," Energizer said in a statement.
Related: Ford recalls 2013 Escaps for serious fire risk
Consumers who have purchased the Banana Boat sprays subject to the recall are being advised, obviously, not to use them. Click here for a full list of affected products.
Energizer said it is ordering retailers not to sell the sprays and has notified the Food and Drug Administration.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 3:52 PM ET
President Obama talked housing on The Daily Show.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Finally! A presidential candidate brought up the housing crisis.
Appearing Thursday night on The Daily Show, President Barack Obama said that housing has been one of the weakest parts of the economic recovery. But he blamed Congress for not doing more to help struggling homeowners, specifically citing his plan to expand refinancing for underwater borrowers who owe more than their property is worth. Refinancing typically puts an additional $3,000 in a homeowner's pocket, he said.
"That's $3,000 they are spending, or $3,000 they are putting back into equity in their home," Obama said, adding that his rival Mitt Romney opposes the plan. "The housing market would be helped. Employment would be helped."
Both candidates have been criticized for largely ignoring the still-fragile housing market during the campaign. The topic has not been a major focus in stump speeches or during debates.
Host Jon Stewart questioned the president on why the government has only spent $5.5 billion of the $50 billion set aside for his signature foreclosure prevention program, the Home Affordable Modification Program, known as HAMP.
Obama danced around the question, responding that 5 million foreclosures have been prevented and a $25 billion settlement was reached with banks. Of the foreclosures prevented, more than half were done by banks through their own modification programs with no government incentives.
Related: Obama's housing scorecard
Though the housing market is finally beginning to stabilize, the president's foreclosure prevention efforts have been widely criticized. When the HAMP program was launched in 2009, the president said up to 4 million homeowners would be helped. But only 1.9 million trial modifications were started, and just 832,000 permanent modifications are active. And only 1.5 million homes have been refinanced under the president's program, far less than the up to 5 million he predicted.
Romney, for his part, hasn't said much about housing either. He released a five-point housing plan that attracted scant attention. Several measures -- including selling vacant homes owned by the government, reforming Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and making foreclosure alternatives more available -- are similar to Obama efforts already underway.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 1:39 PM ET
A123 may be in bankruptcy court, but it is still subject to a bidding war for its assets.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Lithium battery maker A123 Systems may have been forced to file for bankruptcy protection this week, but the company is still attractive enough to spark a bidding war for its assets.
A123 (AONE), a major supplier to the U.S. electric car industry and recipient of $249 million in government stimulus funding, announced Tuesday that it had filed for bankruptcy.
The same day, A123 said it had entered into a $125 million deal for the sale of its automotive assets to U.S. parts maker Johnson Controls (JCI, Fortune 500). As part of the deal, Johnson Controls agreed to provide A123 the funding it needs to operate during bankruptcy reorganization.
But Chinese auto parts maker Wanxiang Group went to federal bankruptcy court in Delaware on Thursday, arguing it has a better offer for A123 already on the table, and seeking to be the one to provide bankruptcy financing to A123.
Earlier this year, Wanxiang agreed to pay $465 million for a controlling stake in A123. But the deal ran into government opposition due to the investment in the company by the Energy Department and the company's contracts with the U.S. Defense Department.
Bankruptcy judge Kevin Carey gave the first round to Johnson Controls on Thursday, allowing A123 access to the first $15 billion of financing from Johnson Controls -- once Johnson Controls agreed to cut the interest rate to match the offer from Wanxiang (see correction below).
But a decision on who will get to buy the assets, and at what price, is still pending before the court, which is charged with getting the best deal possible for creditors.
Related: A123's bankruptcy -- Good for America
Michael Lew, analyst with Needham Co., said the bidding war is proof that no matter what financial problems forced A123 into bankruptcy, the industry sees it as a valuable business going forward.
"Electric cars aren't a good value proposition right now. But over time the market will evolve," said Lew. "Johnson Controls' interest validates A123's business."
Related: Year of the electric car blows a fuse
Lew said he believes there could be additional bidders for A123 before the issue is settled, and that it's difficult to predict who will win. He said while Wanxiang might have the more lucrative offer at the moment, the deal could be rejected if the bankruptcy court determines it won't win regulatory approval.
"Their offer is bigger, period. But there is a concern about all of the IP [intellectual property] going to China," he said.
Related: Smart's electric car might actually be...smart
Neither Johnson Controls nor A123 responded Friday to requests for comment on the bidding war, and Wanxiang could not be reached for comment.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated the amount of financing available to A123 from Johnson Controls. It is $15 million not $15 billion.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 2:55 PM ET
Click chart for more markets data.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- A slew of weak earnings reports sent investors reeling Friday and pushed all three indexes down nearly 2%, marking the worst day on Wall Street since June.
The S&P 500 lost 1.6%. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 205 points, or 1.5%. The Nasdaq posted the steepest declines, falling 2.2%.
The day started on a sour note after McDonald's (MCD, Fortune 500) and General Electric (GE, Fortune 500) reported earnings that fell short of forecasts.
"The high profile earnings have been a disappointment so far," said Frank Davis, head of trading at LEK Securities. "We've now had enough companies reporting that people are looking at overall fundamentals, and the valuations of stocks aren't that attractive."
Still, both the S&P 500 and the Dow eked out gains of 0.3% for the week, while the Nasdaq dropped 1.2%.
The tech sector continued to disappoint Friday, a day after two tech giants, Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) and Google (GOOG, Fortune 500), reported results that fell short of expectations.
Microsoft's sales were flat, while Google missed analysts' estimates on both sales and profit when it accidentally reported earnings ahead of schedule. The stock of both companies pulled down the indexes with each dropping more than 1.9%.
So far, 23% of S&P 500 companies have reported quarterly results, according to S&P Capital IQ analysts, who expect third-quarter earnings overall to grow a modest 0.04%. That would be the lowest expected growth rate since the third quarter of 2009.
On the bright side, "trading is orderly. It's not frantic selling," said Douglas DePietro, a managing director for sales and trading at Evercore Partners. Volumes, he noted, remained relatively muted throughout the day. managed
Friday also marks the 25th anniversary of the worst one-day stock plunge in history, known as "Black Monday," when the Dow dropped 22.6%.
Related: Black Monday: 25 years after the crash
Economy: A new reading on housing didn't do much to reverse Wall Street's doom and gloom.
The National Association of Realtors said September's existing home sales came in at an annual rate of 4.75 million. That was down from the 4.83 million pace the previous month but up 11% from the rate of sales a year earlier.
Yet, the housing report was better than analysts had expected so it actually bolstered shares of home builders Toll Brothers (TOL), Hovnanian Enterprises (HOV), PulteGroup (PHM), and KB Home (KBH), which gained between 1% and 2%.
Fear and Greed Index
Overseas, European Union leaders in Brussels agreed late Thursday to establish a eurozone-wide banking supervisor in 2013 designed to help prevent future catastrophic bank failures that could threaten the monetary union.
European stocks closed lower Friday. Britain's FTSE 100 slumped 0.3%, the DAX in Germany fell 0.8% and France's CAC 40 lost 1.1%.
Meanwhile, Asian markets closed mixed. The Shanghai Composite slid 0.2%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong gained 0.2%, and Japan's Nikkei added 0.2%.
Companies: Honeywell (HON, Fortune 500) posted third-quarter profits that topped forecasts, but revenue disappointed. Its stock still closed up nearly 2%.
Sandisk (SNDK, Fortune 500) shares climbed 3% following quarterly results late Thursday that trounced expectations.
Chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD, Fortune 500) took a big hit, with shares falling 15%, following weak third-quarter results.
Fellow chipmaker Marvell Technology Group (MRVL) also dropped nearly 15% after cutting its guidance.
Related: Chipotle loses its sizzle
Shares of Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) dropped more than 15%, after the company reported third-quarter earnings that missed expectations and slower sales growth. Hedge fund manager David Einhorn recommended shorting the stock several weeks ago.
Related: Obama's record on oil and gas
Currencies and commodities: The dollar rose against the euro and Japanese yen, but slipped versus the British pound.
Oil for November delivery lost $2.05 to $90.05 a barrel.
Gold futures for December delivery fell $20.70 to $1,724.00 an ounce.
Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury edged higher, pushing the yield down to 1.77% from 1.83% late Thursday.
First Published: October 19, 2012: 9:45 AM ET
