Bank of America says profit quadruples as mortgage costs ebb

Bloomberg: Bank of America Corp., the second-biggest U.S. lender, said fourth-quarter profits more than quadrupled as the company quelled claims tied to defective mortgages. The results beat Wall Street estimates, and the stock rose 2.6 percent in New York. Net income of $3.44 billion, or 29 cents a share, rose from $732 million, or 3 cents a share, a year earlier, according to a statement today from the Charlotte, N.C.-based firm.

Obama to announce program to create jobs

The New York Times: President Barack Obama, seeking to fulfill a pledge from his last State of the Union address before his next one in two weeks, will travel to North Carolina on Wednesday to announce the establishment of a manufacturing institute to help create well-paying jobs. A consortium, led by North Carolina State University and comprising 18 companies and six universities, will use advanced semiconductor technology to develop a new generation of energy-efficient devices for automobiles, consumer electronics and industrial motors.

Two proposals to extend unemployment benefits fail in Senate

The New York Times: Unemployment benefits for 1.3 million of the long-term unemployed – and millions more in the future – were imperiled on Tuesday after Senate efforts to reach an accord on legislation to revive them collapsed in partisan finger-pointing. Votes on two Democratic measures failed, and the possibility of a bipartisan deal collapsed during procedural arguments.