Long Island mortgage delinquency declines; other business briefs

LONG ISLAND

Mortgage delinquency declines

Fewer Long Islanders fell behind on their mortgages in the first quarter compared to a year earlier, according to data from TransUnion. The credit reporting agency's data showed the 60-day delinquency rate in Nassau County fell to 5.9 percent in the first three months of 2013 from 8 percent during the same period last year. In Suffolk it dropped to 7.4 percent from 9.7 percent. Long Island's delinquency rate is higher than the national average, which fell to 4.6 percent from 5.8 percent. "The national mortgage delinquency rate experienced its largest yearly decline since the conclusion of the recession, though we still remain far above normal levels," Tim Martin, a vice president at TransUnion, said in a news release. Martin said older mortgages, rather than newer ones, were responsible for the high delinquency rate. -- Ted Phillips

NEW YORK

7.9M e-filed state income tax

More than 7.9 million New York State taxpayers filed their personal income tax forms electronically this year, an increase of 200,000 over 2012, state officials said Wednesday. Eighty-seven percent of taxpayers now use the state's e-filing portal, saving Albany over $250 million in processing costs since 2008, according to tax commissioner Thomas Mattox. He said the average time to get a state tax refund is 20 days, a 20 percent reduction from last year. As of April 30, the state had sent out $4.75 billion in refunds to more than 5.3 million taxpayers.-- James T. Madore

NATION

Freddie Mac earned $4.6B in 1Q

Mortgage giant Freddie Mac earned $4.6 billion from January through March, helped by a stronger housing market. The government-controlled company has turned a profit in the past six quarters. Freddie said Wednesday it paid a dividend of $7 billion to the U.S. Treasury and requested no additional federal aid for the fourth consecutive quarter. The earnings compared with net income of $577 million in the first quarter of 2012. The government rescued Freddie and larger sibling Fannie Mae during the financial crisis after both incurred massive losses on risky mortgages. The companies received loans of about $170 billion, the costliest bailout of the crisis. So far, they have repaid a combined $62.2 billion.

Delta Air Lines initiates dividend

Delta Air Lines will start paying a quarterly dividend and buy back some of its shares -- investor-friendly moves common in other industries but rare for airlines. For years, the industry repelled long-term investors with high debt, losses, labor strife, bankruptcies and roller-coaster stock prices. Now, airline bosses are eager to show that those days are over. "Airlines used to be boom and bust companies, extremely risky," said S&P Capital IQ analyst Jim Corridore. "I think what Delta did today is they made a huge statement that, at least for them, it's a different story." The dividend and stock buyback will return $1 billion to shareholders.

McDonald's global sales down

McDonald's says a key sales figure slipped again in April, with the world's biggest hamburger chain citing fears over a new strain of avian flu for weakness in China. The Oak Brook, Ill.-based chain says sales at restaurants open at least 13 months fell 0.6 percent globally. They increased 0.7 percent in the United States, where the chain recently introduced its chicken McWraps to attract more customers in their 20s and 30s. But sales fell 2.4 percent in Europe, McDonald's biggest market by sales. In Asia, the Middle East and Africa, sales were down 2.9 percent. The chain blamed the impact of the avian flu in China for the decline, as well as softness in Japan and Australia.-- AP