New home sales drop, durable goods orders up

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Sales of new U.S. homes unexpectedly tumbled in September, their first drop in six months, underscoring the hazards to an economic recovery even as businesses appeared to be stepping up investment. New single-family home sales fell 3.6 percent to a 402,000 unit annual pace from a downwardly revised 417,000 units in August, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected sales to rise to a 440,000 unit pace.

Support broad in U.S. for public healthcare option

PHOENIX (Reuters) - Including a government-run insurance option in a U.S. healthcare bill has split lawmakers in the Democrat-controlled U.S. Congress, but support for it remains broad on the streets of U.S. cities, voters and pollsters say. On Monday, Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid included a "public" option in the Senate's bill as the best way to lower costs and create competition.

U.S. pilots who overflew airport lose licenses

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. regulators on Tuesday revoked the licenses of two Northwest Air pilots who overflew their destination, telling investigators they lost their bearings while discussing company policy and using their laptops. The pilots of Northwest Flight 188 from San Diego to Minneapolis on October 21, lost contact with air controllers for more than an hour and missed their destination by 150 miles, aviation officials said.

U.S. cracks down on promoters of huge tax defiance

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. authorities have filed lawsuits nationwide against promoters of schemes to help tax protesters collectively attempt to get fraudulent refunds of $562 million, the U.S. Justice Department said on Wednesday. The schemes, under which almost $3.3 trillion in false claims have been made, involve hawkers of plans to help Americans get bogus refunds using false tax forms, underreporting of income and other strategies. Use of the schemes has grown in recent months, according to officials.

Madoff victims get $534.3 million

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Victims of Bernard Madoff's epic fraud have gotten approval to receive $534.25 million of payments, the trustee trying to recover the imprisoned swindler's assets said. The sum is less than one-eighth of the $4.44 billion of claims that court-appointed trustee Irving Picard has so far deemed valid. Picard spoke to reporters on a conference call.

Ex-client of UBS gets house arrest for tax fraud

MIAMI (Reuters) - A former client of UBS AG who cooperated in a U.S. probe of the Swiss bank's ties with wealthy Americans hiding money overseas was sentenced to one year house arrest and a fine on Wednesday for a multimillion-dollar tax evasion scheme. Steven Michael Rubinstein, 55, was the first former customer of UBS to be sentenced for tax fraud following a protracted U.S. legal battle with the bank that ended in August with an agreement to crack open Switzerland's long tradition of bank secrecy. Continued...