Sowing seeds: Apple CEO Tim Cook sought to reassure shareholders worried about the company’s sagging stock price that the iPhone and iPad maker is on the verge of inventing more breakthrough products that will prove it hasn’t lost its creative edge. “The company is working as hard as ever, and we have some great stuff coming,” Cook told shareholders. True to Apple’s secretive nature, however, Cook didn’t provide any product details. The full story of his pep talk to shareholders can be found here.
The lowdown: Average U.S. rates on fixed mortgages moved closer to historic lows this week, a trend that has helped drive a rebound in home sales. Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac says the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage declined to 3.51% from 3.56% last week. That’s good news for homebuyers, yet the rate is 0.2% higher than the 3.31% rate reached in November, the lowest on records dating back to 1971. The average rate on the 15-year fixed mortgage slipped to 2.76% from 2.77% last week. The record low is 2.63%.
Time out of mind: On a sunny day at a picnic table in Silicon Valley, Eric Migicovsky glanced down at his wristwatch. He wasn’t checking the time, he was checking his email. The message was from yet another journalist. In this corner of a world obsessed with the latest tech gadget, Migicovsky is this week’s hotshot as his startup company rolls out its new high-tech Pebble smart watches. The $150, postage stamp-sized computer on a band is tethered wirelessly to a wearer’s Android or iPhone. The Associated Press has the full story here.
