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Friday, July 18, 1997 Page: 8B
AROUND TOWN
FLEET FINANCIAL’S NET INCOME INCREASED:
Fleet Financial Group has reported net income of $328 million for the
second quarter of 1997, an increase of $50 million from the second quarter of
1996Earnings per share were $1.19 for the quarter, 24 percent higher than the
96 cents per share reported in last year’s second quarter.
Return on assets and return on equity for the quarter were 1.61 percent and
20.24 percent, respectively, compared with 1.32 percent and 17.20 percent a
year ago.
EARNINGS UP AT COMMUNITY BANKS:
Community Banks Inc., parent company of Community Banks, N.A., has reported
earnings of $1.54 million or 50 cents per share for the second quarter of
1997, compared to $1.44 million or 48 cents per share for the first quarter of
1996.
Return on assets approximated 1.48 percent in 1997.
Total assets of Community Banks Inc. approximated $449 million on June 30.
Its principal subsidiary, Community Banks, N.A., has 21 offices in Luzerne and
three other counties.
BUDGET BAKERY CLOSED FOR CLEANUP:
The Budget Bakery at 262 Wilkes-Barre Blvd. will remain closed for a few
days as employees clean up from a fire Wednesday morning, company officials
announced.
The bakery lost product valued at $3,500 to $5,000 when fire struck the
Hobby Shop next door, according to William Richar, branch manager.
The bakery has been at its current location for four years. It is operated
by Butter-Krust Baking Co. of Sunbury.
CUSTOMERS USE RECORD AMOUNT SUMMER ELECTRICITY:
Pennsylvania Power & Light Co. customers set a record Tuesday evening for
summertime electricity use.
With high temperatures and heavy humidity throughout central and eastern
Pennsylvania, PP&L customers used 6,051,000 kilowatt-hours between 5 and 6
p.m. The former summertime record of 6,021,000 kwh was set Aug. 2, 1995.
PP&L is a member of the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection, a
regional power pool that coordinates the distribution of power to nearly 23
million customers in Pennsylvania, four neighboring states and Washington,
D.C.
PJM set an all-time record of 49,820,000 kwh Tuesday between 4 and 5 p.m.
The previous PJM record of 48,524,000 kwh was set Aug. 2, 1995.
NATION
MORTGAGE RATES AT LOWEST LEVELS OF YEAR:
Mortgage rates have sunk to their lowest level of the year and if they drop
a bit further as expected, homeowners could start a new surge in refinancing.
The average interest rate on 30-year, fixed-rate mortgages was 7.47 percent
this week for the second consecutive week, not including add-on fees known as
points, according to Freddie Mac.
Rates haven’t been lower since the first week of December, when they
averaged 7.44 percent. And they haven’t been substantially lower on a
sustained basis for a year and a half. They fluctuated in the 7 percent to
7.25 percent range during December 1995 and January and February 1996.
Economists say rates could soon slip back to that range.
That creates an opportunity for home buyers who signed their mortgages in
April of this year or from April through September of last year, when rates
ranged from around 8 percent to nearly 8.5 percent.
Homeowners need to consider how long they plan to keep their current house
and compare their monthly savings from a new lower-rate mortgage with the cost
of refinancing.
DOW CLOSES AT 8,019:
Stocks fell modestly Thursday in heavy trading as investors secured some
gains from Wednesday’s rally, which put the Dow Jones industrial average above
8,000 for the first time.
The Dow fell by about 19 points to 8,019 despite a big gain by Merck, which
reported better-than-expected earnings. The blue-chip barometer briefly dipped
under the 8,000-mark during the last hour of trading, but bounced right back
as bargain hunters moved in.
Broad-market indicators also pulled back slightly as interest rates moved
higher from Wednesday’s seven-month low in the bond market.
The stream of generally strong second-quarter profits continued today with
better-than-expected reports from Dow components Merck, McDonald’s and Sears,
Roebuck and Co. But the big event of the day was expected after the closing
bell when Microsoft releases its results.
There was little reaction to today’s economic news. The Commerce Department
reported that housing starts rose 4.8 percent in June to 1.48 million,
slightly more than expected, but the original May estimate of a 4.8 percent
drop was revised to a steeper 6.6 percent decline.