Treasure Hunt: Finding Your Unclaimed Property (from WSJ)

APRIL 28, 2011.
How to Find Unclaimed Property: From 'Tracers' to Websites, Many Ways to Snare Money .
By VERONICA DAGHER

If you feel you may be due unclaimed property, or just want to find out, there are several ways to hunt it down.

Some people discover that they have unclaimed funds only after a finder or "tracer" notifies them they have unclaimed
property and offers to help them retrieve it for a fee, says
Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of financial-aid website FinAid.org.
He also runs the free site www.unclaimedproperty.

.Unclaimed life-insurance proceeds have come into the spotlight as regulators are looking into whether insurers are turning over these funds to states in a timely fashion.

How quickly companies need to hand over these funds varies by state, and the total amount of unclaimed funds is in the billions.

New York alone has received roughly $400,287,736 in unclaimed life insurance policies since 2000, says Vanessa Lockel, a spokeswoman for the Office of the State Comptroller. She says the state has refunded about $64,772,228.

Here are some ways to claim your money:

• More Than Insurance: Life-insurance proceeds are just one type of unclaimed property. Other examples could include a refund check from a utility company, stock dividend checks that have been going to a stale address or proceeds from the estate of a relative who died without a will and whose estate took several years to be settled in court.

• How to Start: Mr. Kantrowitz recommends people begin their search at www.missingmoney.com, a free database operated by ACS Unclaimed Property Clearinghouse, which is owned by Xerox Corp. and provides unclaimed property support services to state governments.

The site searches unclaimed property websites of several states where users can search by last and first name to find funds. If no unclaimed funds show up, Mr.
Kantrowitz says, a searcher should individually check the databases
of any of the states they have lived in.

He recommends that they conduct a new search every year, because it sometimes takes a few years for states to post records of missing funds.

• Filing for Funds: Once someone discovers they have missing funds, they can file a claim with their state's unclaimed property office.

If the money is in someone else's name, they will likely have to provide proof they are the beneficiary, such as a copy of the deceased's will, Mr. Kantrowitz says.

Other places to look include Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., which has a database for unclaimed pension benefits, and the Internal Revenue Service, which may be holding unclaimed income tax refund money.

If you suspect that you missed a refund, contact the IRS directly.

• Tax Watch: Speaking of taxes, anyone counting on a windfall from unclaimed property should keep in mind that they may have to fork part of it over. If you find and receive the proceeds of long-lost stock which a state has liquidated, for instance, you may face a tax bill.

Write to Veronica Dagher at veronica.dagher@dowjones.com

What do GM bondholders get (Detroit Free Press, Bloomberg)

Bondholders of old GM to get shares in new GM shortly

BY CHRISSIE THOMPSON

DETROIT FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

Apr 6, 2011|

General Motors' pre-bankruptcy
bondholders, who have waited more than
four months to share in the automaker's
return to the stock market, will receive
shares in the new GM on or around April
21, according to a bank representing
them.

After GM exited Chapter 11 in July 2009 as
a new company, its cast-off assets
remained in bankruptcy, waiting to be sold.
Bankruptcy Court Judge Robert Gerber
signed a plan last week that Motors
Liquidation -- the name for the unwanted
assets -- will use to liquidate this year.

As part of that plan, bondholders in the old
company will trade their bonds for stock in
the new company and warrants to buy
more shares. That stock and warrants
should arrive in bondholders' brokerage
accounts "on or about April 21," according
to a statement on the Web site of
Wilmington Trust, a bank representing
bondholders.

The bonds will be put in a pool with about
$36.4-billion worth of unsecured claims,
CRT Capital analyst Kirk Ludtke said in a
research note last week. About 10% of
GM's 1.5 billion common shares -- which
closed at $32.87 Tuesday afternoon -- will
be issued to bondholders proportionately
to the value of their bonds.

Those investors will also receive warrants
to buy another 15% of GM's stock by either
2016 or 2019. Bondholders will purchase
that extra stock by paying either $10 or
$18.33 per share.

The initial payment of stock and warrants
will be about 70% of what each bondholder
will eventually receive. The rest will be paid
out as the last claims against old GM are
paid, with most of the remainder to arrive
within three or four months. The rest could
trickle in over a year or longer.

Bondholders with questions may contact
Wilmington Trust at 866-521-0079 or
mlcguctrust@wilmingtontrust.com.

Contact Chrissie Thompson: 313-222-
8784 or cthompson@freepress.com

--------------------------------------------------

Old GM Bondholders Getting Shares in New GM May Depress Price
April 07, 2011, 12:04 AM EDT
By David Welch

April 7 (Bloomberg) -- Investors holding bonds in the old General Motors Corp. will receive stock and warrants for shares in the new General Motors Co. on April 21, an action that analysts said may depress the stock price.

Old GM, now known as Motors Liquidation Co., will give bondholders 150 million shares in GM and warrants to buy 272.8 million more shares. A trust holding the shares will distribute them directly to bondholders’ brokerage accounts on or after April 21, according to a memo distributed Wilmington Trust Inc., a money-management firm hired by the creditors’ committee.

Some of the bondholders are retail investors who may sell the shares and briefly sink GM’s stock price, said David Whiston, an analyst with Chicago-based Morningstar Inc. Investors have probably priced in the dilution, so it won’t change GM’s long-term value, he said. He has not changed his $48 a share valuation based on the release of shares to bondholders.

“I would think that there will be more selling than holding,” Whiston said. “Any sell-off in GM is a buying opportunity. Long term, I think the company is positioned very well.”

Bondholders were promised stock and warrants in the new GM to make up for some of their loss during the predecessor company’s government-backed bankruptcy. The warrants given to bondholders for new GM stock are already in the money, according to a report by Kirk Ludtke, senior vice president of CRT Capital Group, a money management firm in Stamford, Connecticut.

Warrant Release

When U.S. Bankruptcy Court releases the warrants and stock through a trust, bondholders will collectively get 136.4 million warrants for one share each at $10 a share and an equal amount at $18.33 a share, said Wilmington Trust, which is based in Wilmington, Delaware.

Owners of old GM bonds must notify Wilmington Trust by April 15 to get stock and warrants on April 21. If they notify Wilmington later, the bondholders will get their shares and warrants at a later date.

Currently, Motors Liquidation has about $30 billion in claims allowed by bankruptcy court, of which about $29 billion are from the bondholders, said a person familiar with the matter.

There may be as much as $8.8 billion in additional claims that could be allowed by the court, Ludtke said in the report.

If the approved unsecured claims exceed $35 billion, GM would have to issue up to 30 million shares, Jim Cain, a company spokesman, said in an interview. GM doesn’t expect claims to reach that amount, the company said in a regulatory filing.

The bonds issued by General Motors Corp. should recover about 30 cents on the dollar when the shares are distributed later this month, Ludtke said in a telephone interview. He expects GM’s share price to rise to $40, which implies a recovery rate of about 40 cents on the dollar, Ludtke said.

GM shares were unchanged at $32.87 yesterday in New York Stock Exchange Composite trading, down from a high of $38.98 on Jan. 7. The shares were priced at $33 for the initial public offering in November.

--Editors: Jamie Butters, Kevin Orland.

To contact the reporter on this story: David Welch in Southfield, Michigan, at dwelch12@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Kevin Orland at korland@bloomberg.net.

Where the Jobs Are (WSJ)

Friday, April 15, 2011

APRIL 15, 2011
Mobile App Talent Pool Is Shallow
Companies Scramble for Engineers Who Can Write Software for Smartphones

By JOE LIGHT

This year, magazine publisher Hearst Corp. intends to add five software engineers to its mobile development staff. Social-networking company Ning Inc. plans to nearly double its mobile development team. And Web start-up Where Inc. is on track to double its mobile staff this year after quadrupling it in 2010.

The problem: The talent pool isn't growing nearly that fast.

Mobile applications have boomed. Above, an attendee at the International CTIA Wireless conference last month tested a Galaxy Tab.
."The demand is constant," said Dan Gilmartin, Where's vice president of marketing. "Every company is looking for these people."
The intense competition for mobile engineers, which affects large companies and fast-growing start-ups alike, is emerging as a key bottleneck as companies scramble to capitalize on the fast growth of smartphones and other mobile devices.

Mobile applications have boomed, working their way deeply into fields like retail, media, videogames and marketing. Market research firm Gartner Inc. expects revenue from Apple Inc.'s App Store, Google Inc.'s Android Market and other stores where mobile applications are sold to nearly triple to $15 billion this year.

The technologies are so new— Apple's app store launched in 2008 —that few software engineers have mobile development experience, which requires new coding skills compared to a desktop computer.

That's forcing companies to increase wages, retrain software engineers, outsource work to third-party developers and set up offshore development labs to meet demand.

In the last year, the number of online job listings with the keyword "iPhone" in the text has nearly tripled, while the number with "Android" has more than quadrupled, according to listings search engine Indeed Inc.

.The number of mobile development jobs offered on Elance.com, a freelancer website, doubled between the first quarters of last year and this year, twice as fast as growth on the site as a whole.

"Almost all of our companies are looking for Android and iPhone developers," said Bijan Sabet, a general partner at Spark Capital, a Boston venture capital firm, whose portfolio includes Twitter Inc., Tumblr and OnSwipe.

Ning, a Silicon Valley start-up, plans to almost double its mobile development staff to 17 to work on a hybrid instant-message and social network it launched in February, said Chief Executive Jason Rosenthal.

To attract developers around the country, the 95-person company has run recruitment drives on more than a dozen college campuses and it also holds technology seminars that are open to the public.

If a software engineer doesn't have mobile experience, the company has sometimes been willing to spend several weeks training the engineer to work on mobile platforms, Mr. Rosenthal said.

Given the mismatch between supply and demand, many companies say they have no choice but to retrain software engineers in the art of mobile development. In the last year, Major League Baseball's Internet company MLB.com nearly doubled the number of mobile engineers it has to 19, said MLB.com CEO Bob Bowman.

"If we can find an excellent engineer, we hire him," said Mr. Bowman. "You can't always wait for mobile experience, because you might be waiting a long time."

The mismatch has put upward pressure on wages. According to an October survey by tech job board Dice.com, about 31% of companies reported that average pay among mobile software designers and engineers increased at a higher rate than normal, mostly because of heightening competition for talent.

The Dice survey said the average mobile salary last fall was about $76,000, but several companies said they pay experienced mobile developers anywhere from $90,000 to $150,000 a year.

Hearst Magazines launched an "app lab" this past September to coordinate mobile development across publications. In the last two months, the company hired two mobile developers, bringing its Web and mobile development staff to 15, said Debra Robinson, the company's chief information officer.

Ms. Robinson said competition for developers has forced the company to pay mobile engineers with little experience the same salaries as it would pay engineers with as many as 10 years of experience. In the next year, she expects the company to add another five or six developers.

"There was not much competition when we started, but that's changed now," said Ms. Robinson, adding that the company now has to compete against high-tech companies like Google Inc. talent.

Other start-ups are investing heavily in offshore development. Last summer, Boston-based Where, which runs a mobile ad network and location-based recommendation service, opened a development center in Croatia to supplement its 18-person U.S. mobile engineering staff. The center now employs seven mobile engineers.

That should make it easier to meet Where's 2011 goal of doubling its mobile development team to 60 people, said Where's Mr. Gilmartin. The Croatian employees are paid more than Croatians at other local companies, but less than their U.S. counterparts.

Outsourcing some mobile development work has emerged as another strategy for addressing the shortage. That's been a boon for software development agencies such as 360mind and Pivotal Labs, which has done work for Twitter and Groupon Inc. The staff at 360mind, a 20-person mobile development shop, doubled last year, and is likely to double again this year, said CEO Nick Dalton.

After struggling to recruit Android developers, location-based social network start-up Gowalla Inc. hired Pivotal Labs to build its Android client. Gowalla also farmed out development for its Windows 7 app.

Scott Raymond, Gowalla's chief technology officer, said working with contractors takes more time and involvement but is necessary in today's speedy app market.

"It just takes a really long time to find people to hire internally and we need to move fast," he said.

Write to Joe Light at Joe.Light@wsj.com

Copyright 2011 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved

Making Money From Home: Straight Talk on Direct Sales and Multi-Level Marketing (from Woman's Day)

Start a Direct Selling Business
Learn how to supplement your income through home parties and consultations
By Mary Hunt Posted March 16, 2011 from Woman's Day;

.Looking to make a little extra cash while raising a family? Always dreamed of owning your own business? Recently retired and want to add to your nest egg? If any of these sound like you, the solution could be starting your own direct-selling business—you know, with a company such as The Pampered Chef or Silpada Designs, in which you sell goods through home parties and one-on-one consultations. Direct selling has become big business: In 2009, the 16.1 million direct-sales representatives working in the U.S. generated more than $28.3 billion in revenue, according to the Direct Selling Association (DSA), a national trade group.

The pros: You’ll be your own boss, work flexible hours that fit your schedule, meet new people, sell what interests you and make money doing it.

The cons: Despite what recruiters might promise, you probably won’t have customers beating down your door, especially in the beginning. You’ll become familiar with rejection, because not everyone you approach will become a paying customer, and while some direct sellers do indeed earn six-figure incomes, for most sellers the income probably won’t replace a full-time career. The DSA reports that the median income for direct sellers is currently about $2,400 per year.

Given that, supplement is the key word here. If you’re looking to make extra money to augment your income, read on to learn more and get the party started.

Party Fact: Passion sells. Experienced direct-sales consultants will tell you that to be successful, you need to choose a product or service in which you really believe, one you use yourself. When you’re excited about something, that excitement is contagious, and it leads to higher sales. If you’re not passionate about the product, your results will be mediocre at best. So before you plunge in, choose your product wisely. For a list of reputable direct-sales companies and what they sell, go to
http://www.womansday.com/Articles/Lifestyle/9-Ways-to-Make-Money-at-Home.html

Party Fact: It doesn’t take as much money as you might think. Gone are the days of shelling out a lot of money to invest in a garage full of inventory. These days, startup costs for most direct-sales companies are modest: A startup kit (training materials, samples and actual products) typically costs less than $100. Once you’ve started to set up parties and generate sales, your costs will—depending on the company—probably be limited to replenishing order forms and catalogs.

However, you’ll also incur the cost of running your home office. A direct seller is considered an independent contractor—completely in charge of sales, marketing and customer service. You’ll pay for your own expenses such as office supplies, postage, Internet access and insurance. Not to mention taxes. (Tip: Since you won’t have an employer taking money out of your paycheck every month, consider paying quarterly estimated income taxes. Paying taxes four times a year is a lot easier to stomach than paying one lump sum on tax day.)


Party Fact: There are two basic selling techniques. When you think of direct selling, you probably think of home parties or “shows” in which consultants display the products they’re selling at parties they host in their own homes or in rented spaces. But consultants can also ask friends, relatives or other acquaintances to host a one-hour (give or take) party in their homes. The consultant comes to the party, shows off her products and takes orders; the hostess receives free products for having the party. The more people the hostess invites, the more opportunity she’ll have to increase sales, which means even more free products.

Consultants can also sell their goods one-on-one, meaning they might invite a friend over to look at the products, or set up appointments with just one person at a time. While one-on-one sales do give you time to really focus on one person’s needs, volume is how you’re going to make more money.


Party Fact: You’ve got to get out there. Being a consultant means getting out and selling your wares. You cannot be timid and shy. Before you start, get all the training the company has available. Many companies offer online training and skill-building programs as well as training DVDs that come with the startup kit to help you learn how to approach people and sell effectively. New consultants will also be teamed with an existing, experienced consultant who will lead you through online classes, webinars (online seminars) and training manuals.

To get your bearings, ask your consultant mentor if you can attend several parties as her guest. Watch how people interact and respond. Take mental notes and don’t be afraid to ask questions later. Within a week or two you should be ready to begin booking parties on your own.

What you’ll need from the start is a network of friends and family members to help build your client base. But friends and family only go so far— to make money, you’re going to have to attract clients you don’t know. To do this, weave your passion for your business and the products you sell into your normal course of life. If you sell jewelry, for example, you may find that wearing the products wherever you go is the best marketing tool. As people comment, don’t simply say thank you. Be ready to tell them about the company and suggest that an easy way they can get what you’re wearing for free is by hosting a party. If you sell cookware, be sure to use it when you bring food to the PTA meeting or church potluck. If someone notices it, strike up a conversation and talk about the company.


Party Fact: There are two ways to earn money. Whether it’s jewelry, cookware, kitchen tools, makeup, scrapbook supplies or other directsales products, you earn a commission on everything you sell. The DSA reports that, on average, a direct seller earns 10 to 50 percent commission, depending on the company. So, let’s say that as you get started, you sell $600 worth of products in a month and your commission is 30 percent. You’ll earn $180 ($600 x 30%).

But as a consultant, you’re not only selling the company’s products, you may also attempt to recruit other people to become consultants under you—which makes you their manager. When this happens you get commissions on their sales, which is known as multilevel marketing or MLM. So if you find 10 people to become part of your team, and each of them sells $600 in products that month, your 10 percent commission on those sales will be $600.

To take it a step further: If you earn $180 per month on your own sales, and another $600 per month as commission from your recruits’ sales, you’ll bring in $780 per month, or approximately $9,360 per year. (Of course, sales will vary from month to month.) Keep in mind that most sellers work fewer than 10 hours a week, according to the DSA, but the more you put into the business, the more you’re likely to get out of it.

One more thing: Direct-selling companies also offer appealing incentives such as bonuses, cash prizes, cars and trips to encourage consultants to sell and recruit more. So you could make even more through incentives.

Party Fact: You can get out if you don’t like it. Before you sign up, consider what will happen if you decide direct selling isn’t for you. At the very least, go with a company that will buy back your unsold inventory. Companies that are members of the DSA (most of the big ones are) are required to buy back unsold marketable products and sales aids (like catalogs and order forms) purchased within the prior 12 months, for at least 90 percent of the price you paid for them. Some companies will refund your startup kit, but don’t expect a refund for the expenses for setting up your home office.


3 Direct Selling Success Stories

Stacy Itzel
38, Arnold, Maryland
Independent Consultant, The Pampered Chef ( PamperedChef.com)

I became a Pampered Chef consultant in 2005 because I needed to pay off our credit-card debt. We were struggling on my husband’s paycheck, and I was desperate to find something that would provide the flexibility I needed to home-school our four kids (ages 11, 9, 4 and 2 at the time) and work just one night a week.

I started holding Pampered Chef “cooking shows” once a week. Customers buy kitchen-related products, and I earn commissions of 20 to 27 percent on my sales. I earned back the starter kit cost of $155 at my first show. My income steadily increased as I got the hang of the business. In the first six months I earned enough to completely pay off our credit-card debt.

While most new consultants can expect to earn around $850 to $1,000 a month if they hold two cooking shows a week, after five years I’m averaging more than $5,000 a month, holding an average of eight shows each month, working about 30 hours a week. The biggest lesson I’ve learned is to never assume anything. I’ve been so surprised by who says yes to purchasing products and hosting shows. If I only approached people I assumed would say yes, I’d miss many opportunities.

Debi Feinman
45, Virginia Beach, Virginia
Independent Consultant, Silpada Designs ( Silpada.com)

In 2007, when my homebuilder husband told me that I needed to find a way to help get us through the recession, I knew it couldn’t be a regular 9-to-5 job. I’d been a stayat- home mom for 12 years and still needed to provide the parental support my kids, ages 8 and 11, were used to. So I joined Silpada Designs, a company that sells sterling silver jewelry, belts and watches.

In 90 days, hosting three parties a month, I made back my initial investment (a $199 certification fee plus the upfront purchase of jewelry to wear and show), earned $3,500 in free jewelry and made a small profit. Three years later, my business pays the mortgage occasionally and also makes it possible for us to enjoy extras like travel and skiing.

Most Silpada Consultants, who hold an average of two home parties a week, work 24 to 32 hours a month and earn 30 percent of retail sales. The average takehome pay for one party is $285.

While making extra money has been nice, I’ve also learned that I’m good at running a business. I love to come up with ways to improve my customer service— I always return phone calls quickly and follow up with customers, and I’ve found that simple thankyou notes are my secret to repeat business and building a network.


Amie Austin
35, San Clemente, California
Heritage Makers Personal Publishing Consultant ( HeritageMakers.com)

Four years ago, when my children were 1 and 4, I wanted to spend more time with them, so I went from being a full-time elementary school teacher in one of the highest-paying districts in the country to teaching half-time. I made up the income by becoming a consultant with Heritage Makers, a company that allows clients to make their own professionally bound “storybooks,” digital scrapbooks, cards, canvases, posters and photo gifts. The startup ranges from $50 to $150.

At that time, I worked 6 to 8 hours a week from home, doing online webinars, one-on-one demos and one weekly evening workshop. The average workshop sales range from $350 to $500, and result in a $100 to $125 commission. One-on-one appointments pay an average of $60 for new consultants and $80 for experienced consultants.

When I started out I was earning an average of $500 a month. But in June 2010, my home business was doing so well—earning me $2,000 to $3,000 a month—that I took a leave of absence from teaching to stay home, and upped my Heritage Makers hours to about 15 to 20 per week.

Mary Hunt is a contributing editor at Woman’s Day and founder of the financial website DebtProofLiving.com.

What to Do if You Need More Time to File Your Taxes (IRS.gov)

Seven Things about Getting More Time to File your Tax Return

Can’t make the April 18 tax filing deadline and need more time to file your tax return? You can get an automatic six month extension of time to file from the IRS.
Here are seven important things you need to know about filing an extension:

1. File on time even if you can’t pay If your return is completed but you are unable to pay the full amount of tax due, do not request an extension. File your return on time and pay as much as you can. The IRS will send you a bill or notice for the balance due. To apply online for a payment agreement, go to the IRS website at http://www.irs.gov and click “Apply for an Online Payment Agreement (OPA)” at the left side of the home page under Online Services. If you are unable to make payments, call the IRS at 800-829-1040 to discuss your options.

2. Extra time to file An extension will give you extra time to get your paperwork to the IRS, but it does not extend the time you have to pay any tax due. You will owe interest on any amount not paid by the April 18 deadline, plus you may owe penalties.

3. Form to file Request an extension to file by submitting Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, to the IRS by April 18, 2011, or make an extension-related electronic credit card payment. For more information about extension-related credit card payments, see Form 4868.

4. E-file extension You can e-file an extension request using tax preparation software with your own computer or by going to a tax preparer who has the software. The IRS will acknowledge receipt of the extension request if you file by computer.

5. Traditional Free File and Free File Fillable Forms You can use both Free File options to file an extension. Access the Free File page at http://www.irs.gov.

6. Electronic funds withdrawal If you ask for an extension via computer, you can also choose to pay any expected balance due by authorizing an electronic funds withdrawal from a checking or savings account. You will need the appropriate bank routing and account numbers. For information about these and other methods of payment, visit the IRS website at http://www.irs.gov or call 800-TAX-1040 (800-829-1040).

7. How to get forms Form 4868 is available for download from the IRS website or may be ordered by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).You can also obtain the form at your local IRS office. Telephone requests normally take 7 - 15 days to process and ship.

Links:
• Form 4868, Application for Extension of Time to File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return (PDF 165K)
• Form 9465, Installment Agreement Request (PDF 100K)
• Publication 54, Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad (PDF 1.46MB)
• Publication 3, Armed Forces' Tax Guide (PDF 1.17MB)
• Official Payments Corporation
• Link2 Gov Corporation
• PayUSATax

For Real - How Much is Inflation? (from icma-rc.org)

Food and Energy Prices Driving Overall Inflation
Chart of the Week for March 25 - March 31, 2011

Inflation is a general increase in prices and is carefully monitored to gauge economic health. Too much, too little, or unexpected changes in inflation is generally thought by economists to be detrimental to the economy. Inflation is typically measured by the Consumer Price Index ("CPI"). This index is calculated by measuring the average change in price of a given basket of goods.

Core CPI is the same index, with volatile food and energy prices excluded. The chart above illustrates the trend in these two versions of the CPI over the past two years.

Core CPI remained around 2% in 2009, but falling food and/or energy prices drove the overall CPI into negative territory for much of the year.

In 2010, Core CPI dropped to under 1% with food and/or energy prices remaining fairly stable until the fourth quarter.Thus far in 2011, supply constraints, primarily stemming from the improving global economy and political unrest in the Middle East, have propelled a rise in food and energy prices. This change has been a key factor in the overall CPI increase from 1.5% in December 2010 to 2.1% in February 2011.

The Federal Reserve Open Market Committee ("FOMC") met on March 15, 2011, and issued a press release stating its expectation that the upward pressure of energy and other commodity prices on inflation will be transitory. Therefore, the FOMC will continue purchasing longer-term Treasury securities and maintaining a target range for the federal funds rate at 0 to 1/4 percent. However, the FOMC will act to stem inflation, should it threaten the economic recovery.

While Overall and Core CPI remain low, they have been trending upwards. This change has been felt by consumers in higher prices of food and energy and is being monitored by Federal Reserve.

© Copyright 2011 ICMA Retirement Corporation, All Rights Reserved.