The Treasury on Friday said it will take in net proceeds of about $320.28 million from the sale of warrants in PNC Financial Services Group Inc, (PNC.N) which were priced at $19.20 each.

The sale of the 16.89 million warrants is expected to close on or about May 5, the Treasury said in a statement, providing U.S. taxpayers with an additional return on the government's $7.58 billion preferred stock investment in the bank, which was previously repaid.

The warrants, which expire on December 31, 2018, each represents the right to purchase one share of PNC common stock at an exercise price of $67.33 a share, according to a prospectus filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

On Thursday, PNC shares closed at $66.06 each on the New York Stock Exchange. The auction price was well above a minimum bid price of $15.00 per warrant. [Read the full article]

The Commerce Department reported gross domestic product rose a modest 3.2% in the first quarter, further confirming the end of the recession and that the recovery is only moderate and disappointing. Half of the growth came from inventory adjustments, and the prospects for future growth and wage gains are only modest.

Separately, the March employment cost index was up 1.7% year over year. This broad measure of worker pay and benefits indicates that the typical American is not keeping up with rising prices, health care costs and taxes.

Unemployment will hang above 8% or 9% well into 2011, and most workers will continue to face a tough job market and declining living standards.

This recovery is decidedly anti-middle class. Wages will not keep up with rising prices, health care premiums and taxes. A good deal of the gains, so far, are going to Wall Street and the medical and intellectual property industries. [Read the full article]

The first look at first-quarter U.S. GDP was largely in line with expectations. The 3.2% annualized pace was slower than the 5.6% of fourth-quarter 2009, but everyone recognized that that pace was not sustainable. Although growth seemed more solid, price pressures eased, further underscoring the lack of inflation risks.

The core PCE deflator, among the Fed's most cited indicators of inflation, moderated to 0.6% from 1.8% in the fourth quarter. This is the smallest increase in the core PCE deflator since the time series began in the late 1950s. In year-over-year terms, GDP rose 2.5% in the first quarter compared to 0.1% in the fourth quarter.

Month-end considerations and the unwinding of some of the anxiety related to Greece appears to be overwhelming the GDP data in terms of market impact. [Read the full article]