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TransUnion: Late auto-loan payments down in 1Q

The rate of late payments for auto loans fell nationally in the first three months of the year to the lowest level in more than a decade, even as lenders financed more vehicle purchases for high-risk borrowers. For the January to March quarter, the rate of U.S. auto loan payments ...

EU flags wave as they are mirrored at the European Council building in Brussels, Tuesday, May 22, 2012. At Wednesday's informal meeting of the EU's 27 leaders in Brussels, newly elected French President Francois Hollande is expected to push for so-called eurobonds, which can be used to fund investments or boost banks' capital reserves. (AP Photo/Yves Logghe)

Asia stocks down as worries over Greece grow

Reports that Greece is considering preparations to leave the euro common currency sent Asian stock markets lower Wednesday. Investors have long known of the possibility of a Greek withdrawal from the 17-nation euro currency union as it struggles to meet harsh austerity targets that are a condition of getting international ...

Ford to get blue oval back after second upgrade

Ford Motor Co. is getting its blue oval logo back. Moody's Investors Service raised Ford's debt ratings to investment-grade Tuesday for the first time in seven years. The upgrade means that all of Ford's U.S. assets, including factories, the blue oval and the trademarks for the F-150 pickup and Mustang ...

Hecker moved to Pa. prison

Fallen Twin Cities auto mogul Denny Hecker has been switched to another prison. WCCO-TV (http://cbsloc.al/L2DX4U) reports Hecker was recently moved to the U.S. Penitentiary in Canaan, Pa. It's his fifth prison in four months. Hecker was sentenced to 10 years in prison last year in a high-profile fraud case. He ...

Senate approves regulations for self-driving car

State lawmakers are anticipating the day when self-driving vehicles navigate California's roads guided by radar and GPS systems instead of human hands on the steering wheel. The state Senate approved a bill Monday that would establish safety and performance standards for what are known as "autonomous" vehicles. SB1298 by Sen. ...

A woman looks at an electronic stock indicator in Tokyo Monday, May 21, 2012. Bargain-hunting helped Asian stock markets edge upward Monday, but gains were limited as investors remained unconvinced that the world's major economies nailed a solution to the European debt crisis following a summit in Washington. Japan's Nikkei 225 index came off four-month lows to rise 0.3 percent at 8,636.89. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)

Asia stocks mixed after G8 vague on Europe fix

Bargain-hunting helped Asian stock markets edge upward Monday, but gains were limited as investors remained unconvinced that the world's major economies nailed a solution to the European debt crisis following a summit in Washington. Markets posted only muted gains as traders were kept on edge by worries about the economic ...

Europe faces difficult search for growth

On paper at least, European leaders agree: They need stronger growth measures to help their economies expand out of their 2½-year-old government debt crisis. Figuring out exactly what those new steps might be will be the hard part. Persistent political divisions — neatly bridged by a Group of Eight summit ...

Independence ag museum celebrating 5th anniversary

It isn't easy to use the huge map of North America in the entrance of Heartland Acres Agribition Center to plot a course from Independence to Des Moines, or anywhere else, for that matter. There are too many pins with white heads in the way. Thousands are stuck into the ...

Fire risk prompts recall of nearly 87,000 Jeeps

Chrysler is recalling nearly 87,000 Jeep Wranglers in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere due to a risk of fires. The recall affects only Wranglers from the 2010 model year that have automatic transmissions and were built before July 14, 2010, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in documents posted ...

FILE - In this Sunday, Feb. 7, 2010 file photo an electric car is seen during a demonstration of the California-based company Better Place in Tel Aviv, Israel. Israeli entrepreneur Shai Agassi has developed the world's first nationwide electric car network. After more than $400 million in outlays and more than a year behind schedule, dozens of electric cars have hit the road in Israel, the test site Agassi chose for his Better Place venture. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit, File)

Electric car network gets first test in Israel

Israeli entrepreneur Shai Agassi has begun rolling out the world's first nationwide electric car network. Now, will the drivers come? After more than $400 million in outlays and months behind schedule, dozens of electric cars have hit the road in Israel, the test site Agassi chose for his Better Place ...

FILE - In this April 4, 2012 file photo, Mark Reuss, president of General Motors North America, presents the 2013 Chevrolet Impala at the New York International Auto Show, in New York's Javits Center. In a recent interview with The Associated Press, Reuss discussed GM’s turnaround and its future. (AP Photo/Richard Drew, File)

5 Questions for GM North America chief Mark Reuss

Mark Reuss has arguably the most important job at General Motors. He runs the company's North American business, its largest and most profitable. Lately, the unit has made more than enough money to offset problems in other parts of the world. The veteran engineer took the post in December of ...

An investor reacts as he looks at the stock price monitor at a private securities company Friday May 18, 2012 in Shanghai, China. Mainland Chinese shares lost ground Friday, with the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 1.44 percent, or 34.37 points, to 2,344.52. (AP Photo)

European financial woes push markets lower

Concerns that Europe's debt crisis could drag down parts of the continent's banking system rattled global markets on Friday, while the IPO of social network Facebook failed to buoy spirits on Wall Street. Ratings agency Moody's downgraded 16 Spanish banks late Thursday, three days after downgrading 26 Italian lenders, noting ...

World stock markets sink on US, Europe worries

World stocks fell Friday after credit downgrades slapped on Spanish banks unnerved investors already worried about the stability of the 17-country euro currency union. The fall in European shares followed a sharp downturn in Asia where markets were also rattled by weak U.S. manufacturing figures. The nervousness about Spain's banks ...

Driver in NY bus crash may have been fatigued

The driver involved in a deadly New York bus crash last year may not have had the sleep he claimed in the days prior to the accident, according to evidence gathered by federal investigators. Federal safety officials have previously expressed concern about the prevalence of operator fatigue in all modes ...

Vice President Joe Biden waves as he arrives to speaks at Staffilino Chevrolet, Thursday, May 17, 2012 in Martins Ferry, Ohio. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

Biden: Running company not same as leading country

Vice President Joe Biden says the business background that Republican presidential challenger Mitt Romney touts on the campaign trail doesn't necessarily make him fit to run a country. Campaigning in Ohio for his boss, President Barack Obama, Biden said a company president has to answer to investors while the U.S. ...

GM's Vauxhall announces new Astra at UK plant

General Motors' Vauxhall plant in northern England will build the company's top-selling Astra vehicles, the automaker said Thursday — a relief for U.K. politicians who had lobbied its American owner to keep the plant open. The announcement comes after workers at the Ellesmere Port plant, near Liverpool, overwhelmingly backed a ...

Construction workers build an apartment complex in Lawrence, Kan., Wednesday, May 16, 2012. U.S. builders started work on more homes and apartments last month and requested more permits to build single-family homes. The increases suggest the battered housing market is healing. The Commerce Department said Wednesday that builders broke ground in April at a seasonally adjusted annual pace of 717,000 homes. That's a 2.6 percent increase from an upwardly revised March figure and near January's three-year high of 720,000. Construction rose for both single-family homes and apartments. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner)

US economy picks up after early spring slump

Maybe the U.S. economy's strength this winter wasn't just weather-related after all. Home construction is near a three-year high. And factory output has risen in three of the year's first four months. The data released Wednesday suggest growth in the April-June quarter is off to a good start, helped by ...

FILE - In this April 16, 2012 file photo, Republican presidential candidate, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and his wife Ann, are seen outside Fenway Park baseball stadium in Boston. Don’t bet on Mitt Romney winning his home state. Or even trying. “That’s not been a topic of discussion,” Romney campaign adviser Kevin Madden said when asked if the Republican former Massachusetts governor would compete in the heavily Democratic state. (AP Photo/Steven Senne)

Don't bet on Mitt Romney winning in Massachusetts

Don't bet on Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney winning his home state or even trying. "That's not been a topic of discussion," Romney campaign adviser Kevin Madden said when asked if the former Massachusetts governor would compete in the heavily Democratic state. Aides say there are other ways he can ...

Gov't proposal aimed at bus, truck rollovers

Manufacturers would have to equip large trucks and buses with safety systems that help prevent rollover accidents through computer-controlled braking, under regulations proposed Wednesday by the government. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's proposal would require electronic stability control in new trucks and buses, including motorcoaches. The safety system senses ...

US factory output rose in April on stronger autos

U.S. factory output increased in April, helped by a gain in auto production. Busier factories have driven stronger hiring this year and helped the economy grow. The Federal Reserve said Wednesday that factory production rose 0.6 percent in April, erasing a 0.5 percent decline in March. Half of the April ...