business - "credit"

The credit crunch has made life tougher for millions around the world but who has benefited from the turmoil?

Fannie Mae is raising some fees on mortgage loans its purchases, marking the fourth increase in nearly a year, to reflect higher credit risk and offset losses from continuing market deterioration.

Pulte says it will match a new $7,500 tax credit for first-time home buyers with its own $7,500 discount on homes with the goal of drawing attention to Pulte homes and the housing market in general.

XL Capital Ltd announced today that it closed the previously announced transactions among XL, Security Capital Assurance Ltd and certain counterparties to credit default swaps with SCA as well as its offerings of ordinary shares and equity security units.

US authorities charge 11 people over the alleged theft of credit card details in the country's largest ID theft case.

Home builder D.R. Horton narrowed its fiscal third-quarter loss on sharply lower write-downs and costs as the fallout of the credit crunch drove it to record its fifth consecutive quarterly loss.

INDIANAPOLIS----White River Capital, Inc. today announced net income for the second quarter 2008 was $1.5 million compared to second quarter 2007 net income of $1.7 million . The results for the second quarter of 2008 are due to the following: $2.0 million of earnings from operations contributed by the Coastal credit LLC subsidiary, $2.1 million of earnings from operations contributed by the Union Acceptance Company LLC subsidiary, $1.8 million of operating and transaction expenses at the holding company, and an income tax expense of $0.9 million.

Mortgage lender FirstFed could be hit with a high number of defaults on complicated loans that went mainly to people with good credit.

AP - Confronted by problems at every turn ? rising unemployment, shaky growth, credit troubles and creeping inflation ? the Federal Reserve left an important interest rate unchanged, taking a gamble that for now the best move was no move at all. The next direction for rates probably is up but that's not likely until next year.

H&R Block services Inc. is suing American Express Co., alleging that the credit card giant has infringed on a popular campaign of H&R Block Inc.'s advertising.