Research Center

The Treasury reports that mortgage fraud was up 5 percent last year; the amount of money in retirement plans is cresting; and the country’s largest banks will receive a wrist-slap for robo-signing.

Light peeks through in the job market; U.S. exports are at an all-time high; and oil and commodities continue to slide.

The National Association of Realtors has its own melancholy home-price numbers to report; small-business owners are pessimistic about the future; and freshman members of Congress are frustrating those who have seen us approach a debt ceiling before.

Zillow reports that home values were down 3 percent in the first quarter; April’s Conference Board index points to negative employment indicators; and congressional leaders ram heads over the debt ceiling.

The economy added 244,000 jobs in April; a commodity price index drops steeply; and consumer credit expands.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics report on hiring turned out better than expected; retailers reported strong sales in April; and a few commodities showed symptoms associated with bubbles popping.

The ADP unemployment numbers are out for March; Freddie Mac reports its first quarterly profit since 2009; and Finland’s new government shows resistance to an E.U. bailout of Portugal.

The U.S. government is taking Deutsche Bank AG to court over bum loans; a nonpartisan report finds several factors that contributed to the enormous U.S. debt; and a Chinese property bubble may be further inflating.