China's 25 basis point hike in the one-year base lending rate sent banks spiraling and crippled real estate shares. The Shanghai Composite Index sank 1.9%, but in Japan the Nikkei 225 Index rose 0.8%. The Hong Kong Stock Exchange was closed for the Christmas holiday.
A dismal jobs report Friday means federal interest rates are likely to stay low for some time. Interest-rate futures traders, who previously anticipated that the Fed would raise rates at the end of next year, now believe the Fed won't raise rates until mid-2012.
The consumer advocates at the Center for Responsible Lending have released a checklist of tough questions people should ask their banks to make sure their needs are being met -- and and to ensure they aren't paying unnecessary fees.
Home sales are way down, unemployment is still high, and investors are waiting for the Federal Reserve to take action. Passions run high about what the Fed should do next, but its ability to move the needle on GDP growth or unemployment may be more limited than most assume.