Business Briefs: Price Drop at Pump, House Approves Mortgage Bailout

Mortgage Relief Approved by House
The U.S. House of Representatives passed Wednesday a housing bill that includes a rescue plan for government-backed mortgage sources Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. The government bailout could cost taxpayers as much as $25 billion.

The House approved the measure by a wide margin after the markets closed. It contains a measure proposed by President George W. Bush to back Fannie and Freddie, should the firms need it. Bush had earlier opposed such bailout efforts, threatening a veto.

The bill goes now to the Senate, which is expected to approve it, but by a small margin. Bush could sign the bill within the week.

New Minimum Wage Goes Into Effect Today
The minimum wage rises Thursday, July 24 from $5.85 to $6.55 an hour. The new floor set for hourly minimum wage is part of a multi-year plan with will increase the wage again next summer to $7.25 per hours.

Many small business owners are speaking against the change, citing the rising costs of doing business. However, employee advocates are saying the minimum wage, which hasn’t been raised since Franklin Roosevelt signed the bill into law, should be increased to keep up with inflation.

Thirty states around the nation already have a minimum wage higher than $6.55. However, in Georgia the increase will impact thousands and will result in a $30 per week increase for hourly workers. This will still leave many below the poverty line.

Average Gas Price Falls Below $4 at Georgia Pumps
Prices at the gas pumps in Georgia fell to around $3.992 today. The drop represents the declining cost of per-barrel costs, which hit a high of $145-per barrel this summer.

The current national average for regular, unleaded gas is $4.026, according to AAA. Last month that average was $4.069 and one year ago it was $2.945.

In their weekly briefing, AAA said with oil prices dropping nearly $16 in a three-day period last week, retail gasoline prices relaxed slightly. But, prices at the pumps likely won’t move much this week due to other developing issues.

The weather system in the Caribbean at the beginning of the week, that made land fall as hurricane Dolly, sparked traders back into the buying mood for oil futures contracts and an explosion in Nigeria of a major oil pipeline will likely off-set the recent drop in oil prices.

Also, an explosion caused by sabotage halted the flow of 47,000 barrels of oil a day, something that did fact not go unnoticed by oil speculators.
“Consequently, motorists won’t see much of a drop in gasoline prices….unless we see an established downward trend in the oil prices,” said Randy Bly, director of community relations for AAA Auto Club South.

Crude oil settled Friday on the NYMEX at $128.88 per barrel.

ChoicePoint Realizes 18% Profit for Second Quarter
Choice Point, Inc., the Alpharetta-based identification and credential verification services provider, had net income of $42 million and earnings of 60 cents a share, compared with net income of $35.6 million and earnings of 43 cents a share in the second quarter of 2007. Revenue increased 6 percent to $240.7 million.