Economy/Ecommerce

The federal government, the state attorneys general of 49 states and five major U.S. banks have agreed to a $25 billion settlement regarding robo-signing that the banks undertook during the worst of the foreclosure crisis.

The federal government, various state attorneys general and the largest banks in the country have struck a deal that would specify an assortment of mild punishments for the banks’ involvement in robo-signing.

All species of consumer credit increased during the fourth quarter of 2011, according to the Federal Reserve on Tuesday, lending credence to the notion that not only are consumers feeling more confident about the economy these days, they’re backing up that confidence with their wallets.

Greece hasn’t quite signed off on the conditions that would allow it to receive more bailout money and thus pay its near-term bills.

The U.S. economy not only added 243,000 jobs in January, which was a surprise to dismal scientists expecting something more dismal, but the growth turned out to be broad based, which was something of a surprise as well.

The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Friday that 243,000 jobs were added to the economy in January–up unexpectedly from 203,000 in December.

Payroll specialist Automatic Data Processing Inc. kicked off the monthly parade of employment numbers on Wednesday by reporting that the U.S. private sector created a net of 170,000 jobs in January, down from the revised ADP figure for December of 292,000.

The recent modest upticks in residential property sales, at least for existing homes, haven’t translated to price increases in most U.S. housing markets, according to the latest S&P/Case-Shiller Indices.