Finance news. My opinion.

The jailed founder of the file-sharing website Megaupload is complaining that women inmates are giving him unwanted attention.

In a New Zealand courtroom to appeal a decision denying him bail, Kim Dotcom said he’s gotten unwanted letters from female prisoners and a phone call from a man posing as a prosecutor, according to reports by media outlets.

A government lawyer said during the hearing that a known forger tried to visit Dotcom.

Dotcom told the Auckland court he would not flee New Zealand and wants to fight to get back his money, some of which authorities seized last month.

U.S. authorities claim Megaupload facilitated millions of illegal downloads. They are trying to extradite Dotcom and three colleagues on racketeering charges.

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Current and former Food and Drug Administration officials say in a lawsuit that the agency secretly monitored their private email after they raised concerns that approved medical devices might risk public safety.

The doctors and scientists who researched the products approached members of Congress and the incoming Obama administration to express alarm that the devices were approved over their objections.

Their lawsuit, first reported Monday by The Washington Post, says the agency monitored email sent from their personal Gmail and Yahoo accounts from work computers over two years. It says those emails included messages to congressional staff and drafts of whistleblower complaints.

The staffers say they were legally protected whistleblowers and the monitoring violated their constitutional rights to free speech and against illegal search and seizure, even though a warning on FDA computers said they had no expectation to privacy. The defendants say they were admonished or lost their contracts to work with FDA in retaliation.

The FDA said Monday it would not comment on ongoing litigation.

The lawsuit says the plaintiffs were among those who complained in fall 2008 to members of the House Energy and Commerce Committee that senior managers at the Center for Devices and Radiological Health “ordered, intimidated, and coerced FDA experts to modify their scientific reviews, conclusions and recommendations in violation of the law.” Then in January 2009, after Barack Obama’s election but before he was sworn into office, nine FDA employees sent a letter to the Obama transition team complaining of corruption within the FDA device review process that they said was endangering public health.

For example, the FDA scientists alleged that the agency approved the use of computer-aided detection devices with breast mammograms even though they had been determined not to be safe or effective, harming women and resulting in unnecessary public health costs.

The suit says FDA officials began secretly referring to the letter’s signatories as the “FDA 9″ and began the secret monitoring. The suit says the agency used spyware on their government-owned computers that allowed them to take “screen shots,” or pictures of what was on their computer screens without their knowledge.

The scientists’ complaints were the subject of a New York Times article on March 28, 2010, that said FDA brushed aside its own experts’ warnings about the risks of radiation exposure from routinely using powerful CT scans to screen patients for colon cancer.

The lawsuit says lawyers for General Electric Co., which applied for agency approval of CT scans for colon cancer screenings, complained that confidential information may have been leaked to the Times. Agency officials used the letter to make a criminal referral to the Office of Inspector General and attempt to have the plaintiffs investigated and potentially charged with serious crimes, the suit says. But the IG’s office found no evidence of criminal conduct and noted that disclosures relating to public safety to Congress and the media were protected whistleblower activity.

The attorney who filed the suit, National Whistleblowers Center Executive Director Stephen Kohn, said spying on employees who raise health concerns stops others from coming forward in the interest of public safety.

“The FDA’s illegal spying program is not just a problem for the six victims in this case,” Kohn said in a statement Monday. “The day we allow the government to spy on employees based on their lawful whistleblower activities is the day we give up privacy for every honest public servant in America.”

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The Crowne Plaza hotel near Lambert-St. Louis International Airport is facing foreclosure next month.

An analyst said Thursday the hotel is among about 17 hotels, all owned by Columbia Sussex Corp., pushed toward default by Wachovia. Foreclosure of the Crowne Plaza is scheduled for Feb. 14.

A hotel representative referred questions to Crescent Hotels and Resorts, of Fairfax, Va., the Crowne Plaza’s operator. Crescent’s corporate counsel and a spokesman for Columbia Sussex, based in Crestview Hills, Ky., did not return calls seeking comment.

Owner Gary Andreas of H&H Financial Group Inc., a hotel consultant, said the Crowne Plaza, just west of Lambert on Interstate 70 at Lindbergh Boulevard, has struggled recently in the all-important category of revenue per available room, or REVPAR.

“Suffice it to say the REVPAR had been declining for the last three years,” he said. “This year it had essentially bottomed out quick cash. It was at a level that it would be difficult for a full-service hotel to survive.”

Wachovia, now Wells Fargo, was the lender on the package of Columbia Sussex hotels put on a “default schedule” in 2010, Andreas said. That move indicated that the hotels’ debt exceeded the amount the lender was willing to refinance, he said.

“It’s almost like a preforeclosure,” Andreas added.

Efforts to reach a Wells Fargo representative were unsuccessful.

The 351-room Crowne Plaza, built in 1990, opened as a Radisson hotel. The eight-story hotel is notable for the sharp-angled design similar to others that Andreas said were completed in the early 1990s in Pittsburgh and Cincinnati.

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Sales (ETSLTOTL) of previously owned U.S. homes probably rose in December to the highest level in more than a year, a sign the housing market ended 2011 with momentum, economists said before a report today.

Purchases increased 5.2 percent last month to a 4.65 million annual rate, the most since May 2010, according to the median forecast of 75 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.

Historically low mortgage rates and a pickup in employment may be giving Americans the confidence to purchase homes that have fallen in value. At the same time, another wave of foreclosures may inhibit a faster recovery in real estate as more distressed properties are put on the market.

An investigator has denied any role in the death of ailing lawyer Sergei Magnitsky while he was imprisoned in a Moscow jail for tax evasion.

Oleg Silchenko, a senior investigator at the Interior Ministry’s Investigative Department, made his first public appearance at a news conference Thursday.

Magnitsky was imprisoned in 2008 and died of untreated pancreatitis in Nov. 2009. His family blame Silchenko for his continued detention.

Grilled by reporters, Silchenko said he had no powers to recommend the ailing lawyer for extra medical treatment and believed Magnitsky could have pressured witnesses if released us fast cash.

Silchenko is top of a list of dozens of Russian officials barred by the United States from entering the country for his alleged role in the death.

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The UAE’s Central Bank governor said Tuesday that the oil-rich Gulf nation is committed to keeping its currency pegged to the U.S. dollar and is reinvesting in U.S. Treasury bills.

Sultan Nasser al-Suwaidi also voiced confidence in the long-term stability of the euro even as fears mount that Europe’s debt crisis could sink the 17-nation currency.

Al-Suwaidi, speaking to reporters in Abu Dhabi, called the European Union a “very, very important bloc of countries” and predicted “everything will be fine in Europe.” In Brussels, eurozone finance ministers planned an emergency meeting to try to protect the currency through closer fiscal and political integration.

The exchange rate of the UAE’s currency, the dirham, is linked to the greenback. But some analysts have questioned the value of the keeping the policy as the U.S. economic struggles and the dollar remains weak.

Al-Suwaidi countered that the dollar link has served the Emirates well, adding that “we are very much with the peg.”

“There is absolutely no change … The fixed peg has served our economy for many years,” he said.

The central bank chief also noted that the UAE has begun buying up U.S. Treasurys after shunning them earlier this year, but is not as heavily invested as it once was.

The bank in August surprised investors by saying it no longer had any U.S. securities on its books because of the low return offered. Al-Suwaidi, however, didn’t say how much of the bank’s assets were invested in US T-bills.

“It’s fluctuating. It depends on the yield. But it’s not how it was,” he said.

Saif Hadef al-Shamsi, assistant governor for monetary policy and financial stability affairs, added that the Central Bank’s reserves were also invested in Japanese government securities.

U.S.-allied Gulf nations have traditionally been large buyers of U.S. government debt, which has long been viewed as among the world’s safest and most liquid assets.

Asked about the effect of sanctions ordered by the Arab League against Syria, al-Suwaidi said the Central Bank will comply if ordered to by the UAE government but has not yet received guidance on what measures to implement.

“There are procedural issues. They have to communicate that with us,” he said.

The Arab League on Sunday approved sweeping sanctions against the regime of Bashar Assad to seek an end to the violence against opposition groups. Syria’s foreign minister called the Arab move “a declaration of economic war” and warned of retaliation.

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World stock markets fell Wednesday as Europe’s festering debt crisis overshadowed figures showing that Americans increased their retail spending for a fifth straight month.

Benchmark oil slipped below $99 per barrel while the dollar rose against the euro and was little changed against the yen.

European shares fell in early trading. Britain’s FTSE 100 slipped marginally to 5,517.44. Germany’s DAX shed 0.9 percent to 5,878.33 and France’s CAC-40 lost 0.4 percent to 3,036.76.

Wall Street also braced for a lower opening, with Dow Jones industrial futures falling 0.7 percent to 11,957 while S&P 500 futures lost 0.8 percent at 1,244.50.

The retreat in Europe followed losses in Asia, where Japan’s Nikkei 225 index lost 0.9 percent to close at 8,463.16, a six-week closing low. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2 percent to 18,960.90 and South Korea’s Kospi shed 1.6 percent to 1,856.07. Benchmarks in Singapore, Taiwan, and Australia also fell.

Mainland China’s benchmark Shanghai Composite Index lost 2.5 percent to 2,466.96, its lowest closing this month. The smaller Shenzhen Composite Index dropped 2.6 percent to 1,059.24.

Data on retail sales showed Americans spending more on autos, electronics and building supplies in October _ and at a faster rate than expected. Many saw the result as a sign that the U.S. economy may well avoid another recession as consumer spending is the biggest component of the country’s GDP.

Still, investors could not get past the mammoth debt loads carried by Greece and Italy, which are threatening to trigger an all-out financial crisis on the continent.

“The world does not believe the crisis is solved,” said Francis Lun, managing director of Lyncean Holdings in Hong Kong. “The market is still very jittery and still worried about possible effect of economic slowdown and recession in Europe. I think this will depress the market for a quite a long period.”

And the problem isn’t just isolated to Greece or Italy, he said.

“It’s the problem of the entire Western world,” Lun said. “For Europe, it overborrowed for 12 years and for the U.S., it probably overspent for 30 years _ so 30 years of mismanagement cannot be corrected in one day.”

On Tuesday, higher interest rates on government debt issued by Italy, Spain and other countries rattled European stock markets. The interest rate on Italy’s 10-year bond jumped back above 7 percent, a dangerously high level.

Higher borrowing costs _ in the form of extra yields that must be paid for bonds regarded as riskier _ are a sign that investors are worried that those countries may have trouble paying their debts.

The debt crisis among the 17 nations that use the euro currency “appears to be deteriorating by the day,” analysts at Credit Agricole CIB said in a report. “Contagion has spread across eurozone bond markets like wildfire and the lack of action to create a firewall means that that there is little to extinguish it.”

Italy’s borrowing rate first crossed the 7 percent threshold last week, raising worries about Rome’s ability to manage its debts. Greece, Ireland and Portugal had to get rescued by international lenders when their borrowing rates crossed the same level.

Meanwhile, Chinese property shares were sharply lower amid falling housing prices as government efforts to cool the overheated housing industry take effect. Hong Kong-listed blue chip China Overseas Land & Investment fell 4.6 percent, while Poly Real Estate Group lost 4.8 percent.

Japan’s Olympus Corp. soared 15.6 percent amid easing worries that the company _ embroiled in a scandal over the concealment of huge investment losses _ will be delisted by the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

Shares of Tiger Airways jumped 6.1 percent in Singapore trade after the carrier was cleared to increase its number of flights in Australia ahead of the busy Christmas travel period.

Mainland Chinese shares in real estate, cement, media and financial companies weakened following a report from the International Monetary Fund that warned China’s banks could face risks if real estate prices fall sharply or unpaid loans increase. The IMF also said other dangers could arise from growing imbalances in a Chinese economy that relies heavily on exports and investment to drive growth.

Shanghai-listed Ping An Insurance lost 4.6 percent while China Nonferrous Metal Industry lost 4.7 percent.

On Wall Street on Tuesday, the Dow rose 0.1 percent to 12,096.16. The S&P 500 gained 0.5 percent to 1,257.81, and the Nasdaq added 1.1 percent to 2,686.20.

Benchmark crude for December delivery was down 43 cents at $98.94 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract rose $1.23 to settle at $99.37 in New York on Tuesday.

The euro fell to $1.3532 from $1.3543 late Tuesday in New York. The dollar fell to 76.94 yen from 77.04 yen.

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The franchise owner of local Chevys Fresh Mex restaurants that filed for bankruptcy this year has asked a judge to terminate its lease in St. Charles.

T&J Restaurants, which owns seven local restaurants and is based in O’Fallon, Ill., filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on July 21. T&J closed a Chevys restaurant in Columbia, Mo., in July.

T&J has asked the bankruptcy court to allow it to terminate its lease at 2911 Veterans Memorial Parkway in St. Charles, which remains open.

“The debtor has determined that it is no longer economically feasible to continue its business operation in the St. Charles, Missouri market,” T&J said in a court filing.

A hearing on the lease termination is set for Tuesday.

John Whicker, owner of T&J, previously said he planned to close the Chevys location at the St. Louis Mills Mall in Hazelwood. However, that restaurant remains open and a Chevys employee said it renewed its lease at the Mills in recent weeks. Robert Eggmann, T&J’s attorney, declined to comment.

T&J is a franchisee of Real Mex Restaurants, based in Cypress, Calif.

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Unbeknownst to most customers, AT&T Inc. has fired up a new wireless data network in five cities in the last few months, offering roughly double the speeds of its older network for a handful of devices quick guaranteed personal loans.

On Sunday, the phone company will start marketing the network in Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.

It won’t be selling a new data plan

Fixed mortgage rates fell to the lowest level in six decades for the second straight week. But few Americans can take advantage of the historically low rates.

Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage fell to 4.09 percent this week. That’s the lowest rate seen since 1951.

The average rate on the 15-year mortgage, a popular refinancing option, fell to 3.30 percent, also a new low. Economists say it is likely the lowest rate on the 15-year ever.

Mortgage rates tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note. Worries over Europe’s debt crisis are pushing investors to shift money into safe Treasurys, forcing the yield lower.

Over the past year, the average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage has been below 5 percent for all but two weeks. That compares with five years ago, when the average 30-year fixed rate was near 6.5 percent. A decade ago, it was higher than 8 percent.

Still, cheap mortgage rates haven’t helped home sales. Sales of new homes are on pace for the worst year on records dating back a half-century. The pace of re-sales is shaping up to be the worst in 14 years.

Many Americans are in no position to buy. High unemployment, scant wage gains and large debt loads have kept them away.

Others can’t qualify for the lowest rates. Banks are insisting on higher credit scores and 20 percent down payments for first-time buyers. Many repeat buyers have too little equity invested in their homes to meet loan requirements.

Most people pay extra fees to get the low mortgage rates. Those fees are known as points, with one point equaling 1 percent of the total loan amount.

The average fees for the 30-year held steady at 0.7 point. Fees paid on 15-year fixed loans and both 5-year and one-year adjustable rate loans were all at 0.6 point.

To calculate average mortgage rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country Monday through Wednesday of each week.

The average rate on a five-year adjustable-rate mortgage rose to 2.99 percent. That’s higher than last week’s 2.96 percent, the lowest records dating to January 2005 and the sixth straight week of record lows for this type of loan.

The average rate for the one-year adjustable-rate mortgage fell to 2.81 percent from 2.84 percent. That’s the lowest on records going back to 1984.

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