Google spent more than $500 million to acquire another 27 companies during the third quarter, the busiest shopping spree in the Internet search leader’s history. The latest flurry of deals raised Google’s acquisition count to 57 companies through the first nine months of the year. The California-bas
ed company updated its list of purchases in a quarterly report filed Wednesday. Google’s prized catch from July through September was the Zagat Survey, a renowned publisher of restaurant reviews that started in the 1970s. Google disclosed Wednesday for the first time that it paid $151 million for Zagat.
Requests for durable goods on the rise
Companies ordered more heavy machinery, computers and other long-lasting manufactured goods in September, a positive sign for the slumping economy. An increase in demand for those types of durable goods suggests businesses are sticking with investment plans, despite slow growth and dismal consumer confidence. Orders for so-called core capital goods rose 2.4 percent, the Commerce Department said Wednesday. It was the second straight monthly increase and the largest gain in six months. Overall demand for durable goods fell 0.8 percent, but that was largely because of a huge decline in volatile commercial aircraft orders. Excluding transportation, orders rose 1.7 percent.
New home starts increase nationally
Sales of new U.S. homes rose by 5.7 percent in September — the first increase in four months — as builders cut prices to the lowest level in nearly a year. The Commerce Department said new single-family home sales climbed to an annual pace of 313,000 in September from August’s slightly revised level of 296,000. The numbers are seasonally adjusted. Buyers were attracted by lower mortgage rates and falling home prices. The median selling price of new homes, for instance, fell more than 10 percent year-on-year to $204,400 — and 3.1 percent compared to the previous month — marking the lowest level since last October.
Freddie Mac’s CEO, three others resign
Freddie Mac CEO Charles E. “Ed” Haldeman Jr. will resign within the next year, according to the government regulator that oversees the mortgage giant. Freddie Mac will lose its chairman of its governing board and two other board members in the coming months. The departures amount to the biggest leadership shake-up for the agency since it was taken over by the government in 2008. Haldeman, 62, has served as CEO since August 2009. Two board members — John Koskinen, who serves as chairman, and Robert Glauber — will step down in February after hitting the mandatory retirement age of 72. A third board member — Laurence E. Hirsch — told company officials earlier this month he would not seek re-election after his term ends.
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