QUICK HITS

1

U.S. housing market cools: The U.S. housing slump stretched into a fifth month, sending a measure of prices down 2.5% from a peak in June. Prices also fell roughly 0.3% in November from a month before, according to seasonally adjusted data on national prices from S&P Corelogic Case-shiller.

2

U.S. consumer confidence lags: American consumers are kicking off 2023 a bit less confident than they were at the end of last year as inflation and the possibility of a recession loom. The Conference Board reported Tuesday that its consumer confidence index slipped to a still-optimistic 107.1 in January, down from 109 in December.

3

New Fedex system: Fedex is rolling out a new system for evaluating its delivery contractors that rank them like Olympic medal winners, and those designated as the lowest-ranked “bronze” will be more likely to lose their service areas, according to a company memo. The evaluations are based on measures of service, safety and customer experience.

4

U.S. probes complaints of parts flying off of Ford Explorers: The U.S. government’s road safety agency is investigating complaints that windshield trim panels can fly off of Ford Explorers while they’re traveling at highway speeds. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it has 164 complaints about the trim pieces.

5

Durenberger, former U.S. senator from Minnesota, dies: Former U.S. Senator David Durenberger, a Minnesota Republican who espoused a progressive brand of politics and criticized the GOP after his political career, died Tuesday at age 88. Durenberger’s health had declined in recent months, his longtime spokesperson Tom Horner said.