RJ and Makay

In an odd trend that has persisted for several years now, consumers have been keeping up with their credit card payments even when they're behind on their mortgage, says credit reporting firm TransUnion.

Among consumers with a mortgage and at least one credit card in the fourth quarter of 2010, 7% were 30 or more days late on the mortgage but current on their credit card, TransUnion reports. That rate was about 4% in the first quarter of 2008, when the trend first appeared nationally.

As year-end earnings reports come in, one thing seems clear. Large U.S. corporations generally did very well in the fourth quarter and 2010 as a whole. Furthermore, 2010 is shaping up as the best year for large corporations in more than a decade, with especially good results occurring in the telecommunications, energy, and financial sectors.

Roughly half the Standard & Poors (S&P) 500 companies have reported fourth-quarter and year-end earnings so far. Based on those reports, earnings in the S&P 500 were up 17% last year on a weighted basis. Sales were up about 9% for the year and rose 7% in the fourth quarter, far more than the third quarter's meager 0.9% increase.

The China Post reports that Hong Kong’s financial community is incensed over a so-called “mystery shopper” program planned by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority.  In a controversial move, these regulating bodies decided to hire actors, including pregnant women and those who are of retirement age, to ensure that banks and brokerages are using legitimate techniques when selling investment products.  The financial services industry is concerned that this type of program could snare both good and bad financial advisors alike, and ruin their careers.

Glenn Turner, Chairman of Hong Kong’s Independent Financial Advisers Association said, “It’s a mess – this kind of entrapment will hurt a lot of honest, hardworking people.”  Two years ago, a mis-selling scandal and the collapse of Lehman Brothers resulted in the loss of investments made by over 40,000 Hong Kong investors, many of whom were retirees. The bank failure triggered much anger against the financial community. Investors claimed they had been misled about the risks involved and led angry protests against the banks, the government and the financial regulators.