Volkswagen gets month for emissions fix plan

SAN FRANCISCO >> Volkswagen and government regulators must present a detailed plan within a month on getting nearly 600,000 diesel cars to comply with clean-air laws or risk the possibility of a trial this summer over an emissions cheating scandal, a federal judge said Thursday.

Senior U.S. District Court Judge Charles Breyer said he wants to know the timing of the fix and any planned payments to owners, among other details, by April 21.

“I would hope by the 21st that as many outstanding issues as possible will be wrapped up, but at least the issues of what is to be done with these cars must be resolved by that date,” he said.

Breyer said former FBI Director Robert Mueller told him Volkswagen, government regulators and attorneys for car owners had made substantial progress toward a resolution that would get the polluting cars off the road. He did not provide any details. Breyer appointed Mueller to oversee settlement talks.

Volkswagen acknowledged in September that it intentionally defeated emissions tests and put dirty vehicles on the road. The cheating allowed cars to pass laboratory emissions tests while spewing harmful nitrogen oxide at up to 40 times the level allowed when operating on roads.

The Department of Justice sued Volkswagen on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The company also is facing lawsuits from angry car owners, who are demanding Volkswagen buy the vehicles back. Those cases are both before Breyer.

Average 30-year mortgage rate falls to 3.71 percent

WASHINGTON >> Average long-term U.S. mortgage rates declined this week after three straight weeks of increases. The decline could be a spur to prospective buyers as the spring home buying season gets started.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday the average rate on a 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage slipped to 3.71 percent from 3.73 percent last week. The benchmark rate is above the 3.69 percent level it marked a year ago.

The average rate on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages eased to 2.96 percent from 2.99 percent last week.

After the Federal Reserve’s decision last week to keep a key interest rate unchanged in light of global economic pressures, prices of U.S. government bonds have risen sharply. That has pushed down the yields on the bonds, which mortgage rates follow.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury bond stood at 1.87 percent Wednesday, down from 1.91 percent a week earlier. The yield rose to 1.90 percent Thursday.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country at the beginning of each week. The average mortgage rate doesn’t include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

U.S. home rental cost growth slowing

WASHINGTON >> U.S. renters saw their monthly leases rise at a significantly slower pace in February, a sign that new construction might be starting to limit housing costs for apartment dwellers.

Real estate data firm Zillow said Thursday that median rent rose a seasonally adjusted 2.6 percent from a year ago. The median rent nationwide was $1,383 a month, having barely budged over the past six months after a period of extended acceleration. Two major forces appear to be dampening price growth: an influx of new apartment construction and renters finding their incomes are too low to afford further price hikes.

For the first two months of 2016, finished construction of multifamily apartment units is running nearly 19 percent above last year’s pace. This would come on top of a 21.4 percent increase in 2015, according to the Commerce Department.

Texan gets 7 years for airline scam

DALLAS >> A North Texas man must serve seven years in prison for running a Craigslist airlines jobs scam and stealing personal information from applicants.

Phillip Sean Anthony of Grand Prairie was sentenced Wednesday in Dallas. Anthony in June pleaded guilty to mail fraud and aggravated identity theft. He must also make $200,000 in restitution.

Prosecutors say Anthony in 2008 and 2009 placed bogus advertisements on Craigslist seeking customer service and reservations agents for United Airlines, JetBlue Airways and AirTran Airways. He targeted victims in areas where the airlines were based: Chicago, New York and Orlando, Fla.

Investigators say Anthony sent job applications to the respondents, then stole personal information he received from them. Anthony then set up fraudulent financial accounts and bought prepaid debit cards for himself.

VW, Porsche recall SUVs over pedal issue

BERLIN >> Volkswagen and its Porsche unit say they’re recalling about 800,000 Touareg and Cayenne SUVs worldwide because of a potential problem with the pedal system.

Volkswagen said Thursday that it is recalling 391,000 Touaregs worldwide because of a problem that was detected in internal checks with “possible loosening of a retaining ring on the bearing block of the pedal system.” The vehicles concerned are 2011-2016 models.

Porsche said the recall also affects just over 409,000 of its Cayenne SUVs, made in the same years.

Volkswagen said it will contact owners of the cars and aims to examine the vehicles as quickly as possible.

Exelon closes deal to form largest utility

NEW YORK >> Exelon has completed its nearly $7 billion deal to buy Pepco, creating America’s largest electric utility company.

The deal closed late Wednesday after the company received approval from its final regulator, almost two years after Exelon first made its offer for Pepco.

The combined company becomes the largest electric utility company in the U.S., based on number of customers, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Exelon now has about 10 million customers, the company said.

On The Move

>> Pali Momi Medical Center has announced that Dr. Helen Hui-Chou has joined its medical staff. Her specialty is plastic, hand and reconstructive surgery. Hui-Chou’s areas of expertise are microsurgical reconstructive surgery, hand and wrist surgery as well as complex reconstruction. She completed her residency in reconstructive and plastic surgery at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center and University of Maryland Medical Center R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center. Hui-Chou served her fellowship in orthopedic hand surgery at Curtis National Hand Center in Baltimore.

>> Kaiser Permanente has hired Kecia Kelly as chief nursing executive at Moanalua Medical Center. She previously served as an associate chief nursing officer at Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Medical Center and Rocky Mountain Hospital for Children in Denver, Colo., and Sky Ridge Medical Center in Lone Tree, Colo.

>> IHOP Hawaii has named Khokon Haque to director of operations. His responsibilities include overseeing all aspects of operations, including human resources, customer satisfaction, cost controls and quality. Haque has been with IHOP for the past 23 years in Louisiana, South Carolina and Arizona.

Ship Ahoy!

Today’s ship arrivals and departures: