There might finally be some upcoming good news for consumers who invest in savings accounts and certificates of deposit at banks.

Those individuals have watched their investments get pounded the past two years as the Federal Reserve aggressively cut interest rates to stimulate the weak economy.

Yields on CDs, falling since 2001, might be set for a rebound, says Greg McBride, a senior financial analyst at Bankrate.com, which tracks bank rates nationally.

For instance, the yield on five-year CDs rose to 2.51 percent last week from 2.47 percent the previous week and 2.45 percent two weeks ago.

The average six-month CD remained at 0.92 percent for the third week in a row.

Although McBride expects that long-term CD yields will increase faster at this point, he says there is not much incentive for investors to lock in at current levels for long.

In contrast, he suggested that investors consider short-term maturities that allows them to take advantage of higher rates by rolling over the proceeds at higher yields later on.

Banks still blocked from real estate

In the tangle to determine whether banks can expand in the real estate sales business, the industry has won the latest round.

Last week, a House panel voted for the second consecutive year to OK a bill blocking the Treasury Department from passing a rule that allows banks to grant real estate brokerage services, industry trade publication American Banker said.

The bill would extend the current prohibition until September 2004. The real estate industry has been fighting a proposal from federal regulators since late 2000 that would allow banks to get into the real estate business, part of extended powers under the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act.

The two-year battle has set the stage for some powerful lobbying in the nation's capital between the two major trade groups - the National Association of Realtors and American Bankers Association.

Enactment of the latest bill is expected to stall any action on the issue until around 2005, after the presidential election, unless the real estate people can nudge through a separate bill that would finally block the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department from acting on the rule.

Fifth Third among top in equipment leasing

Fifth Third Leasing ranked 27th out of 1,500 companies globally in the equipment-leasing business based on strong portfolio growth. The ranking was based on a June survey by Monitor, a trade publication.

Fifth Third Leasing moved from 32nd in last year's ranking. Assets at Fifth Third Leasing grew to $3.5 billion last year from $2.8 billion in 2001. The company said it grew business by $413 million, or 41 percent, despite the challenging economic conditions.

Fifth Third ranked ninththis year among 40U.S. bank-affiliated leasing firms, up from 10thlast year. A unit of Fifth Third Bancorp, Fifth Third Leasing finances everything from computers to trucks to machinery for companies.

E-mail jmckinney@enquirer.com