Tuesday headline roundup - Top headlines

Here are a few headlines of note for Aug. 12...

Junk bond defaults rise as economy slows From Investors Business Daily:

U.S. corporate bond defaults are already on the rise. Moody's on Aug. 7 reported a sharp rise in July defaults and now expects the global default rate to climb over 6% over the next year. That's up from less than 1% in late 2007.
Standard & Poor's predicts that 4.9% of all speculative grade borrowers will default over the next 12 months. And there is a chance — estimated at 20% — that things could get much worse, with over 8% defaulting. Default, of course, sets the stage for bankruptcy court. "Default typically precedes Chapter 11," said Diane Vazza, head of global fixed income at Standard & Poor's.

Critics blast Wal-Mart for lobbying against carbon offset guidelines From U.S. News

Wal-Mart is one of the largest consumers of electricity in the United States and presides over one of the largest truck fleets in the world. And for these reasons, even the little steps the company takes to go greener—such as selling sustainable products or local produce—make a big difference, and the company has been commended for them.
Despite this, critics from Wal-Mart Watch, a group that tracks the company's growth and influence, re
port that the company is lobbying against defining and standardizing carbon offsets for proposed cap-and-trade programs—a move some deem hypocritical in light of the company's public campaign to cut its footprint.


U.S. may not be in recession, but 170 metro areas could be From The Modesto Bee;


Using June data, Moody's estimates that 170 metro areas are in recession. Together they make up about 43 percent of metropolitan employment nationwide. That's up from 142 metropolitan areas in May.
Moody's research suggests that 116 metro areas are at risk of recession, about 25 percent of metropolitan employment nationwide. That leaves roughly 32 percent of the nation's biggest metro areas, 94 of them, with expanding economies. In May, 106 metropolitan communities were expanding.
The biggest losers include industrial Midwestern states such as Ohio, Michigan, Indiana and Wisconsin. Deep problems in auto manufacturing, exacerbated by bad bets on SUV production as gasoline prices rose, have hurt those states. The housing crunch has made a bad situation worse.
"Michigan is either the weakest or second weakest economy, mostly due to the misfortunes of the auto industry," said Mark Vitner, senior economist for Wachovia, the big national bank based in Charlotte, N.C. "Aside from Michigan, the rest of the Midwest is generally struggling with weakness in the auto sector and other consumer durable goods."
Other obvious losers include Florida, Nevada and Arizona, states that are experiencing the biggest collapse in home prices after the biggest run-up in prices during the boom of 2001 to 2005. Their turnarounds will depend largely on when the housing freefall bottoms out.

GOP hits Dems on access to power

Obesity may be contagious

Nebraska group aims for immigration policy

Wal-Mart, retailers may gain on reports