Business briefs: 31 largest U.S. banks pass Fed ‘stress tests’
WASHINGTON – All of the nation’s 31 largest banks are adequately fortified to withstand a severe U.S. and global recession and keep lending, the Federal Reserve said Thursday.
Results of the Fed’s annual “stress tests” show that as a group, the 31 banks are stronger than at any time since the 2008 financial crisis struck, thanks to a steadily recovering economy. The results build on positive outcomes from last year’s stress tests.
Industry analysts said the most critical tests for the industry will come next week. That’s when the Fed will announce whether it’s approved each bank’s request, if one has been made, to raise dividends or repurchase shares. Those results will be based on how each bank would fare in a severe recession if it took such steps.
The banks undergoing the stress tests included JPMorgan Chase & Co., Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and Wells Fargo and Co. – the four biggest U.S. banks by assets.
Car insurance shopping gets a Google boost
SAN FRANCISCO – Google is helping California drivers shop for car insurance as part of a new service that could foreshadow the Internet company’s latest attempt to shake up a long-established industry.
The feature unveiled Thursday compares auto insurance quotes from up to 14 carriers that are participating in the comparisons. The policies can then be bought online or through an agent. Google will receive a cut from the insurance sales. The Mountain View, California, company said the size of the commissions won’t influence how it ranks the price quotes.
Google Inc. plans to provide car insurance quotes in other states and sign up more carriers, too. The list of initial participants in California includes MetLife, Mercury Insurance and 21st Century Insurance. Some of the largest auto insurance providers, including Farmers, State Farm, Allstate, Progressive and Geico, haven’t joined Google’s service.
Bacon Bowl purveyor fined for duping buyers
NEW YORK – The company behind Snuggie, Perfect Bacon Bowl and other “As Seen on TV” products has agreed to pay $8 million to settle charges that it deceived customers.
The Federal Trade Commission said Allstar Marketing Group promised customers buy-one-get-one-free promotions, but they still were charged for the items in the form of high shipping costs.
Allstar will pay $7.5 million to the FTC to create a fund that will be used for customer refunds. The other $500,000 will be paid to the New York attorney general’s office for penalties, costs and fees.
Allstar, based in Hawthorne, New York, said it already has changed its business to make costs easier to understand.
Exxon Mobil to pay $225M settlement
NEWARK, N.J. – New Jersey announced a $225 million settlement with Exxon Mobil on Thursday that state officials said is the largest environmental settlement against a corporate defendant in state history – though it is for a fraction of the nearly $9 billion initially sought.
Acting Attorney General John J. Hoffman said the settlement over pollution at refinery sites in Linden and Bayonne is separate from Exxon Mobil’s obligation to clean up the sites at its own expense.
“This important settlement … is the result of long fought settlement negotiations that pre-dated and post-dated the trial,” Hoffman said in a statement.
New Jersey filed its lawsuit in 2004, claiming Irving, Texas-based Exxon Mobil’s petroleum refining plants fouled the land and water.