Friday morning links

TOP STORIES
• Spike in Interest Rates Could Choke Recovery - Wash. Post
• Mortgage Rates in U.S. Rise to Highest Since November - Bloomberg
• Bank Chief Tells of U.S. Pressure to Buy Merrill Lynch - NY Times
• Schwarzenegger threatens to shut down state government - LA Times
• Yosano Says Japan’s Trust in Treasuries ‘Unshakable’ - Bloomberg
• EU says U.S. auto aid plan may distort world trade - Reuters
• Ron Paul’s HR1207 Gets House Majority Cosponsorship - Liberty Maven
• Soros slams 'instruments of destruction' - CNN/Money

MARKETS/INVESTING
• Oil retreats after three-session climb - MarketWatch
• Gold dips on equities, dollar; ETF unchanged - Reuters
• Dollar gains on rivals ahead of Group of Eight meeting - MarketWatch
• How much gold investment is right for you? - Commodity Online
• Small Investors are Piling Into Stocks - Pragmatic Capitalist
• Oil price surge sends gasoline higher - USA Today

ECONOMY
• Import Prices in U.S. Rose 1.3% in May - Bloomberg
• Spending Stimulus Money Takes Money - Wash. Post
• Household Wealth Decreased by $1.3 Trillion - Bloomberg
• Employed see tough times, too - USA Today
• Jimmy Carter vs. Inflation - Time

INTERNATIONAL
• Canada's production capacity idled - Globe & Mail
• European stocks fall after grim industrial data - AP
• Euro-zone April industrial output plunges - MarketWatch
• China investment up over 30%, imports down 25%? - Setser, CFR
• Bank Rescue Costs EU States $5.3T, More Than German GDP - Bloomberg
• Europe Lags as U.S. Economy Shows Signs of Recovery - NY Times
• China’s Case of the Missing Cars - MetalMiner
• Annual deflation rate hits 4.7% - Irish Times

HOUSING
• An advance on your tax credit - MarketWatch
• Congresswoman's abandoned house angers neighbors - LA Times
• John Paulson Buys Distressed Debt, Mortgage Securities - Bloomberg
• Homeowner associations start foreclosures to collect dues - AP

FED/TREASURY/BANKING
• Fed to Keep Lid on Bond Buys($) - WSJ
• Banks cut borrowing from Fed emergency lending program - AP
• Volcker: Strong Recovery, Inflation Are Both Unlikely - WSJ Econ Blog
• Rortybomb’s DIY Stress Test 2: Final Spreadsheet - Rortybomb

INTERESTING
• Woman who missed Flight 447 is killed in car crash - Times Online
• Funnyman Colbert is serious about the Iraq war - LA Times
• Why Burger King Put Up The "Global Warming Is Baloney" Sign - Fortune
• Can Windows 7 save PCs? - CNN/Money

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