Tuesday morning links

TOP STORIES
• Critics blast AIG as flap escalates over bonuses - USA Today
• Obama in Effort to Undo Bonuses at A.I.G. - NY Times
• Auto delinquency rates rise nearly 9 percent in 4Q - AP
• California's voters get next say in budget battles - CSM
• Card Issuers Choke Businesses With Rate Hikes, Limit Cuts - Bloomberg
• Nokia to lay off 1,700 worldwide - AP
• U.S. credit card defaults rise to 20 year-high - Reuters
• Toyota to discount prices for Prius - MarketWatch
• China likely to be stronger after crisis - IHT

MARKETS/INVESTING
• Oil Falls on Speculation Stockpiles Gained - Bloomberg
• Gold dips as haven appeal fades, scrap flows in - Reuters
• Market rally just misguided optimism - MSN Money
• Crunch Time? - Butler, Investment Rarities
• Gold Stocks Not Out of the Woods Yet - Seeking Alpha
• Where have all the gold bugs gone? - MarketWatch

ECONOMY
• Housing starts surge 22% in Feb. on apartment building - MarketWatch
• February Producer Prices Rise 0.1%; Core Rate Gains 0.2% - Bloomberg
• Foreign Demand for Long-Term U.S. Assets Weakens - Bloomberg
• Homebuilder confidence near record low - CNN/Money
• Industrial production down for fourth straight month - MarketWatch

INTERNATIONAL
• Resale home prices fall 9.2 per cent in Feb, sales rise. - The Canadian Press
• BOJ to buy $10.2 billion in subordinated bank loans - Reuters
• In Downturn, China Sees Path to Growth - NY Times
• China 'may have lost $80b in equities' - CHINADaily
• Credit crunch costs average Briton £40,000 - TimesOnline
• China Gains Key Assets In Spate of Purchases - Wash. Post
• Brown: I should have done more to prevent bank crisis - Guardian
• Mexico to raise tariffs on 90 U.S. exports - CNN/Money

HOUSING
• Americans moving up to smaller, smarter homes - USA Today
• Lehigh Valley home prices fall 12.3% - The Morning Call
• After the boom, housing market slips in Houston - USA Today
• Mortgage fraud at an all-time high - CNN/Money

FED/TREASURY/BANKING
• Bernanke May Need to Ramp Up Asset Purchases - Bloomberg
• Treasurys Are 'Disaster Waiting to Happen': Dr. Doom - CNBC
• Small-Business Lending Gets a Boost - Wash. Post
• Fed may still buy Treasurys, just not now - MarketWatch

INTERESTING
• Hamptons hit by recession - Telegraph
• Goldman Offers Loans to Stretched Employees - NY Times
• Iowa Senator Says AIG Executives Should 'Resign or Commit Suicide' - Fox News

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