Current Events in January 2016

Reclaimed wood has seen a rise to fame in the home decor world in recent years. From wood pallet coffee tables to coat racks made out of picket fences, more people are finding new uses for old wood. All it takes is a little elbow grease to take old wood from trash-bound to treasure.

But for those who aren’t exactly gifted in the DIY department, getting in on the trend of upcycling can be a challenge. Luckily, one new company has you covered.

With Artis Wall, welcoming wood from old barns and buildings into your home is easy. In about an hour, homeowners can create a wood accent wall that can transform their living rooms, headboards, kitchens, and more.

How it works

• Setting it up. Creating the accent wall requires no tools. Just use the hook and loop adhesive that comes with the Artis Wall, and the wooden planks will be up in about an hour.
• No damage. The adhesive produces little to no damage to the wall, says the company, and allows for the ability to reuse the accent wall anywhere. It can be removed in minutes.
• Functional. The pre-sanded planks are lightweight and come in various lengths and finishes to accommodate different wall layouts and sizes.
• Affordable. Artis Walls are affordable, too. A 20-square foot accent wall will only cost around $250.
• Uses. Artis Wall can be used to create a living room accent wall, a kitchen backsplash, a new headboard, and more. Since it’s so easy to remove, it has the potential to see multiple uses within its lifetime.

Artis Wall, a product of Waddell Manufacturing, is coming soon to Kickstarter. 

The Conference Board's Leading Economic Index (LEI) posted a decline in December for the first time in three months.

The dip of 0.2% follows increases of 0.5% in both November and October.

Despite the decline, which was led by a drop in housing permits and weak new orders in manufacturing,” Ataman Ozyildirim, director of business cycles and growth research at The Conference Board says the index “continues to suggest moderate growth in the near-term despite the economy losing some momentum at the end of 2015. While the LEI’s growth rate has been on the decline,” he continued, “it’s too early to interpret this as a substantial rise in the risk of recession.”

The LEI is essentially a composite average of several individual leading economic components. It is constructed to summarize and reveal common turning point patterns in economic data in a clearer and more convincing manner than any individual component – primarily because it smooths out some of the volatility of individual components.

The ten components of The Conference Board LEI include:

1. Average weekly hours, manufacturing
2. Average weekly initial claims for unemployment insurance
3. Manufacturers’ new orders, consumer goods, and materials
4. ISM Index of New Orders
5. Manufacturers' new orders, nondefense capital goods excluding aircraft orders
6. Building permits, new private housing units
7. Stock prices, 500 common stocks
8. Leading Credit Index
9. Interest rate spread, 10-year Treasury bonds less federal funds
10. Average consumer expectations for business conditions

Sales of previously-owned homes finished 2015 in fine style.

The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reports total existing-home sales -- completed transactions that include single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums, and co-ops -- shot up 14.7% in December to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.46 million. Sales are now 7.7% above a year ago.

Sales were robust in all four regions of the country, led by the South and West.

November carryover

December's rebound caps off the best year of existing sales (5.26 million) since 2006 (6.48 million). "While the carryover of November's delayed transactions into December contributed greatly to the sharp increase, the overall pace taken together indicates sales these last two months maintained the healthy level of activity seen in most of 2015," said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist. "Additionally, the prospect of higher mortgage rates in coming months and warm November and December weather allowed more homes to close before the end of the year."

The median existing-home price for all housing types was $224,100, a year-over-year increase of 7.6%, marking the 46th consecutive month of year-over-year gains.

Total housing inventory at the end of December dropped 12.3% to 1.79 million existing homes available for sale, and is now down 3.8% from December 2014 (1.86 million). Unsold inventory is at a 3.9-month supply at the current sales pace, versus 5.1 months in November and the lowest since January 2005.

"Although some growth is expected, the housing market will struggle in 2016 to replicate last year's increase in sales," Yun said. "In addition to insufficient supply levels, the overall pace of sales this year will be constricted by tepid economic expansion, rising mortgage rates and decreasing demand for buying in oil-producing metro areas."

Regional sales tally

• Existing-home sales in the Northeast increased 8.7% in December to an annual rate of 750,000 and are now 11.9% above a year ago. The median price was $255,700, which is 5.3% above December 2014.
• In the Midwest, sales jumped 10.9% to an annual rate of 1.22 million for a year-over-year gain of 9.9%. The median price was up 7.5% at $171,000.
• Sales in the South surged 14.6% to an annual rate of 2.27 million and are now 4.6% above the same month a year earlier. The median price was $196,100 -- up 6.8% from a year ago.
• Previously-owned homes sold at an annual are of 1.22 million in the West, an advance of 23.2% for a year-over-year gain of 8.9% higher than a year ago. The median price was up 8.2% from the year before to $321,100.

Mahina Mele Farms is recalling a variety of macadamia nut products after testing found the nuts were contaminated with Salmonella.

No illnesses have been reported to date in connection with these products.

The following products are being recalled:

The recalled products were distributed to retail stores in Alaska, California, Hawaii, Maryland and Virginia from Oct 21- Nov 25, 2015.

Customers who purchased the above products should not consume them and should return them to the store where they were purchased for a full refund or replacement.

Consumers with questions may call Jason or Kollette Stith at 808 328 8987, Monday-Friday, 8-4 (HST).

Mindware Corp., of Omaha, Neb., Northwest Synergy, of Redmond, Wash. and Wal-Mart Stores, of Bentonville, Ark., are recalling about 29,268 Chillafish children's bikes in the U.S. and Canada

Overinflated tires can cause the wheel rims to crack and send pieces of the plastic rim flying, posing a laceration hazard to consumers.

Chillafish has received 19 reports of plastic separating from the rims, including two reports of consumers being cut by flying plastic when pieces of the plastic rim were expelled.

This recall includes all Chillafish BMXie, Chillafish Jack and Chillafish Josie balance bikes, which are designed for children ages 2 to 5 and have no pedals and or chains. The bikes are made of plastic, are about 31.5 inches long with a seat that can be adjusted from about 12.5 inches high to about 15.5 inches high and have a detachable foot support. BMXie bikes were sold in the colors blue, lime green, pink, red and yellow. Item reference number CPMX01BLU, CPMX01LIM, CPMX01PIN, CPMX01RED or CPMX01YEL is on a label on the bottom of the bike frame.

Jack and Josie bikes have steel frames. The bikes are about 34 inches long with a seat that can be adjusted from about 14 inches high to about 17 inches high.

Jack bikes were sold in a black and orange color scheme with flames on the crosstube and item reference number CPJJ02BLA on a label on the bottom of the bike frame.

Josie bikes were sold in a white and pink color scheme with flowers on the crosstube and item reference number CPJJ02WHI on a label on the bottom of the bike frame.

The bikes, manufactured in China, were sold at Sam’s Club stores nationwide and online at Amazon .com, Target.com and ToysRUs.com from November 2013, through November 2015, for between $55 and $80.

Consumers should immediately stop children from using the recalled bikes until the tires are deflated to a pressure at or below 32 psi and contact Chillafish for a free repair. Chillafish is contacting consumers directly.

Consumers may contact Chillafish toll-free at 888-666-7689 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (ET) Monday through Friday excluding holidays, or online at www.chillafish.com.

At least one consumer has succeeded in getting Volkswagen to buy back his car because of the "dirty diesel" scandal, using Florida's Lemon Law.

Walter Melnyk, 86, turned to the Lemon Law after his VW dealer refused to buy back his car despite the company's admission that it used deceptive software to enable its TD Clean Diesel cars to pass emissions tests.

Although the ruling by the Lemon Law board, technically called the Florida New Motor Vehicle Arbitration Board, does not set a legal precedent, it is nevertheless likely to lead to additional Lemon Law filings by aggrieved consumers.

The board ordered VW to buy back Melnyk's car and pay him $15,000 for it, WPTV in West Palm Beach reported. VW could appeal the decision but has not yet said whether it will do so.

VW originally went to court in an effort to block Melnyk from filing the Lemon Law claim but was unsuccessful. 

More filings likely

Although the ruling is not binding on others, Melnyk thinks it will have an effect. 

"This will affect the whole state of Florida on the Lemon Law," he told WPTV and urged other VW owners to file claims as well.

At least one Florida VW owner already intends to do so. WPTV said Stephen Rosenfeld showed up at Melnyk's hearing to pick up pointers for his own Lemon Law claim.

Lemon Laws basically require carmakers to buy back defective vehicles after repeated attempts to repair them. Laws vary widely from one state to another and, as in Melnyk's case, rulings do not necessarily set a precedent. Check the ConsumerAffairs Lemon Law Guide for more information.

Stock market volatility since the beginning of the year has investors puzzled and people saving for retirement nervous.

The latter tend to put their money in stock mutual funds, which have seen sharp erosions so far in 2016. Many are asking what their next step should be.

The advice that's emerging from market watchers tends to break down into two camps – stay the course and take defensive measures now and be careful about adding to positions.

Vanguard founder Jack Bogle clearly represents the stay the course view. In an interview on CNBC this week, the mutual fund guru called the current market volatility “speculation,” and said consumers should continue investing because the underlying economy is fine.

"In the short run, listen to the economy; don't listen to the stock market," he told interviewers on Power Lunch. "These moves in the market are like a tale told by an idiot: full of sound and fury, signaling nothing."

Continued headwinds

Michelle Perry Higgins, Principal at California Financial Advisors in San Ramon, Calif., is also counseling clients to hold tight, even though she acknowledges the market is likely to face strong headwinds from oil and China throughout 2016.

“My clients’ portfolios have strong defensive barriers that include bonds and cash for short term needs,” she told ConsumerAffairs. “Therefore, there is no need to sell equities in a panic.”

As for people sitting on large amounts of cash, she suggests the current market swoon represents an opportunity to put that money to work.

Farther to fall?

But others are not so sure stocks don't have farther to fall. Ari Wald of Oppenheimer is a technician who bases market calls on a reading of the charts. He tells CNBC that he believes stocks are in what he calls a non-recessionary bear market and they have not quite reached a bottom. He predicts the S&P 500 still has another 130 points or so lower to go.

Brett Arends, a columnist for Marketwatch, also sees more potential downside, writing that the market is cheaper, but not yet cheap. He maintains the underlying value of companies in the S&P 500 still don't justify their prices, even after this month's declines.

“None of this means the current slump must get worse anytime soon,” he writes. “The only short-term cause of a market selloff is the same: more sellers than buyers. At some point more buyers appear, while some sellers pause for breath.”

He says Wednesday's partial recovery from a terrifying morning plunge is a “hopeful sign.” Still, he says it might be a little too early to go bargain hunting.

Consumers have enjoyed falling gasoline prices for more than a year now, but no doubt there is always that nagging voice in the back on their minds whispering, “better enjoy this while you can, it won't last.”

Well, the nagging voice may have been wrong. The continued decline in oil prices, which gained momentum this week, most likely means the current national average price, $1.86 a gallon, will go down more. Maybe a lot more.

AAA reported this week that depressed world oil prices, now around $26 a barrel, have sent gasoline prices to their lowest level since February 2009. The average price of self-serve regular has gone down 63 out of 73 days.

But some of the sharpest declines in world oil prices have come in the last few days, as sanctions against Iran disappeared and that country is now free to start selling its oil in an already saturated market.

Effects have yet to show up

On Wednesday, Gas Buddy senior petroleum analyst Patrick DeHaan Tweeted, “Keep in mind what we're watching- plunging oil prices- takes 1-2 weeks to fully be realized at your local gas station.”

That suggests the price of gasoline will keep going down – maybe significantly – for a few more weeks until U.S. refineries begin their annual seasonal maintenance, which usually creates supply bottlenecks, driving prices up again, at least temporarily.

DeHaan also points out that the current price of oil, adjusted for inflation, is even cheaper than it averaged during the 1950s.

AAA reports the price of crude oil has dropped more than 70% from its June 2014 high of $107.26 per barrel. When oil prices plunged last week, breaking through the $30 a barrel mark, it was the first time that had happened since 2003.

Revising its forecast

All of this has caused AAA to recalculate its previous estimate of 2016 gasoline prices at between $2.25 and $2.45 a gallon. That seems downright expensive at this point.

But the lesson here is that when it comes to oil, nothing is permanent. Today's assumptions about supply and price can be turned around by tomorrow's event.

After all, it wasn't too long ago that many believed the world was fast approaching the time when it could not produce enough oil to meet demand. They warned of shortages and sky-high prices.

The theory failed to foresee the shale oil revolution and the huge efficiencies in cars that has slowed the growth in demand.

Things can change. So it might be wise not to completely tune out nagging voice in the back of your head.

Humans may not be the only ones who consider eyes to be the window to the soul. A new study out of the University of Helsinki found that dogs, just like humans, focus most closely on the eyes when deciphering facial expressions.

The study, published recently in the science journal PLOS ONE, determined that dogs look first to the eyes and examine them much longer than nose or mouth areas. Ultimately, the dogs appeared to base their perception of the facial expression on the face as a whole.

This social gazing pattern mirrors that of humans and is being called the first evidence of emotion-related gaze patterns in non-primates. The study’s findings provide modern day support of Charles Darwin’s 150-year old argument that human and non-human animal emotional expressions share evolutionary roots.

Different reactions to threatening faces

Using eye-gaze tracking, researchers noted that images of certain expressions — the mouths of threatening dogs, for example — piqued their attention more than others. In addition to being more attentive to threatening faces, dogs’ viewing behavior was altered upon seeing them; they looked much longer at the faces of threatening dogs. 

This attentional bias to threatening faces may be based on an evolutionary adaptive mechanism, researchers say. The ability to detect and avoid threats represents a survival advantage.

But it appeared this reaction to threatening faces was species-specific, as dogs had a much different reaction to threatening human faces.

Species-specific reaction

Instead of looking longer at the threatening face the way dogs did with conspecifics, dogs averted their gaze when a threatening human face was before them. Both reactions — longer looking and the avoidance response — are survival mechanisms, researchers say.

“Domestication may have equipped dogs with a sensitivity to detect the threat signals of humans and respond to them with pronounced appeasement signals,” said Sanni Somppi from the University of Helsinki.

The scientific reasoning behind the different reactions, according to researchers, is that threatening signals carrying different biological validity are most likely processed via different neurocognitive pathways.

Dog-friendly methods were used throughout the study. Prior to the experiment, the 31 dogs who participated were clicker-trained to stay still in front of a monitor without being restrained. As a result of the positive training approach used (a treat was given no matter what reaction was exhibited), the dogs were highly motivated to perform the task. 

This looks to be a good year for the housing industry, according to economists speaking at the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) International Builders’ Show in Las Vegas.

“There are a number of positive indicators that provide solid evidence this will be a good year for housing and the economy,” said NAHB Chief Economist David Crowe. They include a firming economy, solid job growth, rising consumer confidence, higher household formations, and pent-up demand.

Private sector job growth has been averaging 240,000 per month over the past two years, Crowe noted, while GDP growth is expected to climb slightly above last year’s level. Consumer confidence is also nearly back to its pre-recession peak.

However, there may be some rough patches. Builders report their top concerns in the year ahead include the cost and availability of developed lots and labor, federal environmental regulations, policies which they say are making it more expensive and difficult to build homes, and building materials prices.

Single-family gains projected

The NAHB is forecasting 1.26 million total housing starts in 2016 -- up 13.4% from 2015.

Single-family production is expected to reach 840,000 units this year, an 18% increase from last year. The NAHB is using the 2000-2003 period, when single-family starts averaged 1.34 million units on an annual basis, as a healthy benchmark. The housing recovery will see single-family starts steadily climb from 55% of normal production at the end of the third quarter of 2015 all the way up to 87% of normal production by the end of 2017.

On the multifamily side, the NAHB is anticipating 417,000 starts in 2016, up 5% from last year.

Meanwhile, residential remodeling activity is expected to register a 1.1% advance over 2015.

A bright regional outlook – with one exception

Below the national numbers, Nationwide Insurance Chief Economist David Berson said most regional housing markets look healthy.

Labor market conditions, a key driver of housing demand, are strong in many metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) -- supporting faster household formations and boosting local housing activity through rising incomes. These factors indicate that most of the 400 local housing markets “should see sustained growth in the coming year,” Berson said.

With the unemployment rate declining in 90% of MSAs over the past year, Berson said housing fundamentals are the strongest in over a decade, a trend supported by the labor market, demographics, and consumer preference to own.

However, he noted that many MSAs with strong ties to energy exploration and production in states including Louisiana, Texas, Wyoming, and South Dakota are expected to see limited housing expansion in the near term, as low oil prices are reducing employment.

Mortgage rates: “cheap” to low

CoreLogic Chief Economist Frank Nothaft foresees solid fundamentals for housing in 2016.

He calls 30-year fixed-rate mortgages running at or below 4% during the past year “cheap,” but notes that rates are expected to gradually rise one-quarter to one-half a percentage point this year -- up to 4.5%, going from what he calls, “cheap to low.”

Nothaft added that overall home sales will rise 4-5% this year, led by a 13% gain for new home sales, with sales volume and growth strongest in the South and West. “There is stronger growth in households, population and demand for new housing” in these regions, he said.

He predicts prices will post a roughly 4-5% gain this year from the 2015 level and will reach the 2006 peak by mid-2017.

And, while tight mortgage credit for consumers is expected to ease slowly this year, it will remain relatively tight compared with 15-20 years ago.

More people than expected found themselves standing in the unemployment line last week.

Figures released by the Department of Labor (DOL) show a seasonally adjusted 293,000 workers filed first-time applications for state jobless benefits in the week ending January 16 -- up 10,000 from the previous week's downwardly revised total.

That's the highest level since the first week of July. Analysts at Briefing.com had been calling for a decline in filings to 280,000.

The DOL says there were no special factors affecting the total.

The four-week moving average, which is less volatile and considered by some economists to be a more accurate gauge of the labor market, rose 6,500 to 285,000. The previous week's average was revised down by 250 -- from 278,750 to 278,500.

The complete report is available on the DOL website.

Tech sector job cuts

In other labor news, this past year was a bit better than 2014 for workers in the technology sector.

A new analysis of data by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that job cuts announced in 2015 by tech sector employers fell sharply from the previous year.

The technology sector, which encompasses computer, electronic, and telecommunications firms, announced 79,315 planned job cuts in last year. That's down 21% from a 2014 total of 100,757, which was the highest total since 2009.

While that was good for the overall tech sector, workers at computer firms weren't so fortunate. Officials there increased terminations by 5.0% -- from 59,528 in 2014 to 62,191 in 2015. Much of that came from a third-quarter surge that saw more than 47,000 announced cuts from several notable firms, including Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Intel, and Unisys.

Overall, the tech sector was responsible for 13% of the 598,510 total job cuts announced in 2015.

“We could see more of this in 2016, which could lead to increased turnover in the industry,” said John A. Challenger, chief executive officer of Challenger, Gray & Christmas. “Jobs may shift from company to another, while others are lost. Overall, employment in the industry should continue to grow. So much so, that the biggest problem will be finding skilled workers.”

Britax Child Safety is recalling 71,454 B-Safe 35 child seats, models E9LU65M, E9LU65P, E9LU63F, E9LU66R, E9LS63F and EXLU65M; B-Safe 35 Elite child seats, models E9LS55T, E9LS56P, E9LS55U, E9LS66C and E9LS65U; and B-Safe 35 Travel Systems, models S914900, S915400, S915200, S921900 and S01635200, manufactured October 1, 2014, to July 1, 2015.

The recalled child restraints have handles that may develop cracks in, under, and around, the carry handle grip. The cracks may lead to the handle fracturing and the seat falling while being carried, increasing risk of injury to the infant.

Britax will notify all registered owners, and ship them a remedy kit that includes a carry handle reinforcing bracket, free of charge. The recall is expected to begin January 22, 2016.

Owners may contact Britax customer service at 1-800-683-2045 or Britax.Recall@Britax.com.

A coalition of consumer groups wants the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to keep broadband providers from serving targeted ads to subscribers.

It's part of a growing wave of resistance to marketers tracking consumers and serving ads that match the profiles that are built from such tracking. On another front, Internet pioneer Brendan Eich is launching a new browser, Brave, that blocks targeted ads and inserts more general advertising.

While websites themselves are beyond the reach of the FCC, broadband providers including telephone and wireless companies and satellite TV providers are not. and the groups say the FCC should crack down on them.

"Providers of broadband Internet access service ... have a unique role in the online ecosystem," the organizations say in a letter to FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler. "Their position as Internet gatekeepers gives them a comprehensive view of consumer behavior and until now privacy protections for consumers using those services have been unclear."

The 59 organizations signing the letter include the Consumer Federation of America, Electronic Frontier Foundation, and Free Press. The Electronic Privacy Information Center submitted a more detailed letter.

"Chilling effect

They are asking the FCC to adopt rules that would prohibit broadband providers from collecting and sharing data about consumers without their explicit consent. The watchdogs also say the FCC should require providers to notify consumers about data breaches, and should require providers to "clearly disclose" data collection practices.

The groups also say the prospect of online surveillance "can create a chilling effect on speech and increase the potential for discriminatory practices derived from data use."

Wheeler has said he intends to propose new privacy rules, something the FCC is able to do because of its recent decision to reclassify Internet service providers as common carriers. That move subjected broadband providers to some of the same confidentiality requirements rules as telephone companies.

The commission currently advises broadband providers to follow the “core tenets of basic privacy protections” but has not yet enacted specific privacy regulations.

"The capital asset of the 21st century is information, and it ends up being information about you and me," Wheeler told talk show host Charlie Rose last November. "You and I ought to have a voice in the collection of information about us. Nothing about me without me, is what the expression is."

There could be more trouble on the horizon for daily fantasy sports (DFS) enterprises and players in Texas who participate.

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is the latest state law enforcement representative to suggest the games offered by FanDuel and DraftKings amount to illegal gambling.

“It’s my duty as Attorney General to look to the law, as passed by the people’s representatives, to answer the questions put to this office,” Paxton said in a statement. “Paid daily ‘fantasy sports’ operators claim they can legally operate as an unregulated house, but none of their arguments square with existing Texas law. Simply put, it is prohibited gambling in Texas if you bet on the performance of a participant in a sporting event and the house takes a cut.”

Paxton issued an opinion requested by a Texas state representative. Rep. Myra Crownover, Chair of the Committee on Public Health. She asked Paxton whether the sports leagues are permitted under Texas law and whether it is legal in fantasy where the “house” does not take a cut.

Informal leagues are fine

Paxton said he believes, as a general rule, informal fantasy leagues where participants split any money among themselves are legal. But, he says, DFS enterprises are wrong in claiming an actual-contestant exception, which applies only to contestants in an actual skill or sporting event. And unlike some other states, Texas law only requires “partial chance” for something to be gambling. It does not require that chance predominate, he said.

“It is beyond reasonable dispute that daily fantasy leagues involve an element of chance regarding how a selected player will perform on game day,” Paxton wrote in the opinion. “The participant's skill in selecting a particular player for his team has no impact on the performance of the player or the outcome of the game.”

Other states

Texas is just the latest state to look at DFS with a skeptical eye. In New York, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has sued both FanDuel and DraftKings in an effort to force them to stop accepting players from the state.

Additionally, Schneiderman has asked the court to order the two companies to return money spent by New Yorkers and pay civil damages. An appeals court will hear the suit and, in the meantime, has granted the two companies a stay so that New Yorkers may continue to play until the case is decided.

Last month, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan issued a similar opinion, saying it is her belief that DFS violates Illinois gambling laws.

Unlike New York, however, Illinois may move to change state law to make the highly popular games legal. Madigan disputes the claim that daily fantasy sports are protected under a 2006 federal law, pointing out that law specifically leaves it up to the states to determine whether the games are, in fact, gambling.

Madigan notes that legislation is currently pending in both Illinois legislature chambers to create a new act – the Fantasy Contests Act. The proposed law, Madigan says, would specifically exempt fantasy contests from the general prohibition against gambling.

Without passage of the law, says Madigan, Illinois residents playing daily fantasy sports games are breaking the law.

Everyone knows we're more likely to be depressed in the winter. Only problem is, everyone may be wrong, according to a new study.

The large-scale survey of U.S. adults found no evidence that levels of depressive symptoms vary from season to season, contradicting the widespread believe that seasonal affective disorder -- often referred to as "SAD" -- is a real phenomenon.

"In conversations with colleagues, the belief in the association of seasonal changes with depression is more or less taken as a given and the same belief is widespread in our culture," says Steven LoBello, a professor of psychology at Auburn University at Montgomery and senior author on the new study, published in Clinical Psychological Science, a journal of the Association for Psychological Science.

"We analyzed the data from many angles and found that the prevalence of depression is very stable across different latitudes, seasons of the year, and sunlight exposures," LoBello said.

SAD was officially added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) in 1987. But more recent studies have challenged the validity of earlier SAD research, including the fact that SAD is typically identified by asking patients to recall past depressive episodes over the course of the previous year or more.

Data examined

LoBello and lead study author Megan Traffanstedt decided to investigate whether they could find evidence for seasonal variation in depressive symptoms using data from a large-scale survey of U.S. adults.

They examined data from a total of 34,294 participants ranging in age from 18 to 99. Using geographic location for each participant, the researchers also obtained season-related measures including the actual day of the year, the latitude, and the amount of sunlight exposure.

The results showed no evidence that symptoms of depression were associated with any of the season-related measures. That is, people who responded to the survey in the winter months, or at times of lower sunlight exposure, did not have noticeably higher levels of depressive symptoms than those who responded to the survey at other times.

And the researchers did not find any evidence for seasonal differences in symptoms when they specifically looked at the subsample of 1,754 participants who scored within the range for clinical depression.

"The findings cast doubt on major depression with seasonal variation as a legitimate psychiatric disorder," the researchers conclude.

After posting a solid gain in November, new home construction skidded lower last month.

A joint release from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Department of Housing and Urban Development puts privately-owned housing starts in December at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,149,000, down 2.5% from November's revised estimate of 1,179,000 but up 6.4% from the same month a year earlier.

Ground-breaking for single-family homes totaled 768,000, a drop of 3.3%; the rate for units in buildings with five units or more was 365,000, down 13,000 from the month before.

The year as a whole wasn't that bad, though. For all of 2015, construction was started on an estimated 1,111,200 homes, up 10.8% from the previous year.

"The gradual increase in housing production for 2015 mirrors our forecast and sets the stage for continued growth in 2016," said National Association of Home Builders Chief Economist David Crowe. "Strong job growth, rising consumer confidence and pent-up demand will keep housing on an upward trend."

Building permits

Building permits, a gauge of developers' intentions over the next few months were mixed for December.

Authorizations for construction of privately-owned housing units fell 3.9% to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1,232,000.

Permits for single-family home construction rose 1.8% to a rate of 740,000, while authorizations of units in buildings with five units or more were at a rate of 455,000 in December, down 71,000 from November.

An estimated 1,178,400 building permits were issued last year an increase of 12% from 2014.

The complete report is available on the Census Bureau website.

A drop in food and energy costs in December sent the Consumer Price Index (CPI) down a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in December, putting the increase in prices over the last 12 months at just 0.7%.

According to the Department of Labor (DOL), energy costs plunged 2.4% last month following November's 1.3% decline. Major influences in December were gasoline (-3.9%) -- the fourth decline in the last five months -- and fuel oil (-7.8%) -- the seventh consecutive decrease. Natural gas was down 2.3% and electricity slipped 0.4%. Over the past year, fuel oil has plunged 31.4% and gasoline is down 19.7%.

Food prices were down a smaller 0.2% in December, after declining 0.1% the month before. Food at home -- grocery prices -- fell 0.5%, the largest decline since last March. Five of the six major grocery store food groups were down, with meats, poultry, fish, and eggs (-1.4%) declining the most. Also lower were the cost of eggs (-3.4%), fruits and vegetables (-0.5%), other food at home (-0.3%) and cereals & bakery products, and nonalcoholic beverages (-0.1%). The only major grocery store food group to rise in December was dairy and related products (+0.1).

For all of 2015, grocery prices were down 0.4%. Food away from home, or restaurants, rose 0.1% in December and was up 2.6% over the last 12 months.

Core inflation

The so-called “core” rate of inflation, which excludes the volatile food and energy categories, was up just 0.1% in December, its smallest increase since August.

Gainers included shelter, medical care, household furnishings and operations, motor vehicle insurance, education, used cars and trucks, and tobacco. Among the decliners were apparel, airline fares, personal care, new vehicles, and communication. For the last 12 months, the core rate of inflation rose 2.1%.

The complete December CPI report is available on the DOL website.

Contract interest that in some cases fell to their lowest levels since last October helped push mortgage applications upward last week.

Data from the Mortgage Bankers Association’s (MBA) Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey show applications were up 9.0% in the week ending January 15.

The Refinance Index increased 19%, raising the refinance share of mortgage activity to 59.1% of total applications from 55.8% the previous week.

The adjustable-rate mortgage (ARM) share of activity rose to 6.0% of total applications, the FHA share dipped to 13.7% from 14.4%, the VA share of total applications was 10.8%, and the USDA share of total applications slipped to 0.7% from 0.8% the week before.

Contract interest rates

• The average contract interest rate for 30-year fixed-rate mortgages (FRMs) with conforming loan balances ($417,000 or less) fell six basis points -- from 4.12% to 4.06% -- the lowest level since October 2015, with points increasing to 0.41 from 0.38 (including the origination fee) for 80% loan-to-value ratio (LTV) loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 30-year FRMs with jumbo loan balances (greater than $417,000) dropped to its lowest level since October 2015 -- 3.93% from 4.02%, with points increasing to 0.31 from 0.30 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 30-year FRMs backed by the FHA was down four basis points to 3.86%, the lowest level since October 2015, with points increasing to 0.36 from 0.34 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 15-year FRMs fell from 3.42% to 3.29%, the lowest level since October 2015 with points unchanged at 0.39 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.
• The average contract interest rate for 5/1 ARMs rose six basis points to 3.20%, with points decreasing to 0.18 from 0.42 (including the origination fee) for 80% LTV loans. The effective rate decreased from last week.

The survey covers over 75% of all U.S. retail residential mortgage applications.

West Elm, a division of Williams-Sonoma, of San Francisco is recalling about 6,100 saddle bar and counter stools in the U.S and Canada.

The legs on the stools can break, posing a fall hazard.

The firm has received six reports of the stools breaking, including one injury.

The Saddle bar and counter stools have solid wood legs with a pecan-stained finish and were sold in four upholstery options: elephant leather, crosshatch steel/ivory, slate chevron and iron basketweave.

The seat height for the bar stools is 30.5 inches with overall dimensions of 20.5 inches wide by 20 inches deep by 41 inches tall. The seat height for the counter stools is 26 inches with overall dimensions of 20.5 inches wide by 20 inches deep by 37.5 inches high.

SKU numbers are located on the box of the product, the customer receipt and on a sticker on the bottom of the seat. Recalled SKU numbers are:

The stools, manufactured in China, were sold at West Elm stores, online at www.westelm.com and the West Elm catalogue nationwide from July 2013, through November 2015, for between $370 and $500 for single stools and between $740 and $1,000 for a set of two.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled stools and contact West Elm for information on returning the stools for a full refund. West Elm is contacting known customers directly.

Consumers may contact West Elm toll-free at 844-824-8911 from 7 a.m. to midnight (ET) daily or online at www.westelm.com and click on “Safety Recalls” under the “About Us” at the bottom of the page.