Things To Do In SW Florida

By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer

The average rate on a 30-year U.S. mortgage edged lower this week, returning to its lowest level in about a year.

The average long-term mortgage rate slipped to 6.3% from 6.34% last week, mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday. A year ago, the rate averaged 6.32%.

The modest drop brings the average rate back to where it was two weeks ago, after a string of declines brought down home loan borrowing costs to their lowest level since early October 2024.

Borrowing costs on 15-year fixed-rate mortgages, popular with homeowners refinancing their home loans, also eased this week. The average rate dropped to 5.53% from 5.55% last week. A year ago, it was 5.41%, Freddie Mac said.

“Despite the decline, rates continue to hover within a narrow band they’ve maintained since mid-September, as markets remain in a holding pattern amid fiscal and monetary uncertainty, including the ongoing government shutdown,” said Anthony Smith, senior economist at Realtor.com.

Mortgage rates are influenced by several factors, from the Federal Reserve’s interest rate policy decisions to bond market investors’ expectations for the economy and inflation. They generally follow the trajectory of the 10-year Treasury yield, which lenders use as a guide to pricing home loans. read more

By STAN CHOE, AP Business Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street took a pause on Thursday as U.S. stocks and even the price of gold pulled back from record highs following torrid runs.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.3% from its latest all-time high for just its second loss in the last 10 days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped 243 points, or 0.5%, and the Nasdaq composite edged down by 0.1%.

Gold also fell following its stellar rally this year, losing 2.4% to drop back below $4,000 per ounce, while Treasury yields held relatively steady in the bond market. They’re taking a moment following big runs driven in large part by expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to support the economy.

Financial markets have been climbing so relentlessly, including a 35% leap for the S&P 500 from a low in April, that worries are rising that prices may have shot too high and become too expensive. Concerns are particularly strong about the frenzy lifting stocks related to artificial-intelligence technology. read more

SpaceX is set to finish up its third of three contracted launches of competitor Amazon’s Project Kuiper satellites on Thursday night.

A Falcon 9 on the KF-3 mission to launch 24 more of Amazon’s broadband internet satellites is set to lift off from Kennedy Space Center Launch Pad 39-A targeting 9:34 p.m. during a launch window that runs from 9:24 p.m.- 11:58 p.m.

The first-stage booster is flying for the second time and will aim for a recovery landing on the droneship Just Read the Instructions stationed in the Atlantic.

It would mark the 85th orbital launch from all providers on the Space Coast in 2025 with all but five coming from SpaceX.

Including this mission, six of those have been for Amazon with three on SpaceX Falcon 9 rockets and three on United Launch Alliance Atlas V rockets.

With this batch, Amazon’s satellite total will climb to 153. That’s out of a planned 3,236 total needed to be in orbit by July 2029, half of which are supposed to be launched by July 2026, according to a license issued by the Federal Communications Commission. read more

Universal Orlando has unwrapped its holiday programming, which includes returning theme park favorites and expands into new Epic Universe territory.

Universal’s Holiday Parade featuring Macy’s will return to the streets of Universal Studios Florida with big balloons, themed floats, plus characters from “Shrek,” “Despicable Me” and “Madagascar.” Santa Claus brings up the rear and triggers the lighting of an 80-foot Christmas tree. The parade and other holiday programming begin their daily routine on Nov. 21, the day after Thanksgiving.

Islands of Adventure will bring “The Grinchmas Who-liday Spectacular” back on stage. In addition, visitors can interact with the Grinch and assorted Whos in the Seuss Landing section of the park. That also will be home to a new Who-ville Tree Lot, featuring “a collection of whimsical trees themed to various Dr. Seuss characters,” Universal says.

“The Magic of Christmas at Hogwarts Castle,” a projection show on Hogwarts Castle, will return to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at IOA. Seasonal decor will be added to Orlando’s other two Wizarding Worlds, Diagon Alley at Universal Studios and Ministry of Magic at Epic Universe. (It’s also warm butterbeer season.) read more

By BERNARD CONDON and MATT OTT, AP Business Writers

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal regulators have opened yet another investigation into Tesla’s self-driving feature after dozens of incidents in which the cars ran red lights or drove on the wrong side of the road, sometimes crashing into other vehicles and causing injuries.

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The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in a filing that it is looking into 58 incidents in which Teslas reportedly violated traffic safety laws while using the company’s so-called Full Self-Driving mode, leading to more than a dozen crashes and fires and nearly two dozen injuries. The new probe adds to several other open investigations into Tesla technology that could upend Elon Musk’s plans to turn millions of his cars already on the road into completely driverless vehicles with a over-the-air update to their software. read more