Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year loan increased to 3.71 percent. That's up from 3.67 percent last week, the lowest since long-term mortgages began in the 1950s.

The average rate on the 15-year mortgage, a popular refinancing option, rose to 2.98 percent. That's up from 2.94 percent last week, also a record low.

The rate on the 30-year loan has been below 4 percent since early December. Low rates are a key reason the housing industry is showing modest signs of a recovery this year.

In April, sales of both previously occupied homes and new homes rose near two-year highs. Builders are gaining more confidence in the market, breaking ground on more homes and requesting more permits to build single-family homes later this year.

Low rates could also provide some help to the economy if more people refinance. When people refinance at lower rates, they pay less interest on their loans and have more money to spend.

Still, the pace of home sales remains well below healthy levels. Economists say it could be years before the market is fully healed.

Many people are still having difficulty qualifying for home loans or can't afford larger down payments required by banks. Some would-be home buyers are holding off because they fear that home prices could keep falling.

The economy is growing only modestly and job creation slowed sharply in April and May. U.S. employers created only 69,000 jobs in May, the fewest in a year.

Mortgage rates have been dropping because they tend to track the yield on the 10-year Treasury note. Uncertainty about how Europe will resolve its debt crisis has led investors to buy more Treasury securities, which are considered safe investments. As demand for Treasurys increase, the yield falls.

To calculate average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country on Monday through Wednesday of each week.

The average does not include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for 30-year loans was 0.7 point, unchanged from last week. The fee for 15-year loans also was unchanged at 0.7 point.

The average rate on one-year adjustable rate mortgages slipped to 2.78 percent from 2.79 percent last week. The fee for one-year adjustable rate loans was 0.5, up from 0.4.

DES MOINES (Reuters) - An Iowa dentist did not discriminate against a female assistant he fired for being "too attractive," the Iowa Supreme Court ruled unanimously on Friday in its second decision in the case.

In December, the all-male court ruled that Dr. James Knight did not discriminate in firing dental hygienist Melissa Nelson after more than 10 years' service because he found her too attractive and his wife saw her as a threat.

Nelson had argued she would not have been fired if she were a man, and her attorney, Paige Fiedler, argued in seeking a second hearing that their decision was a setback for gender equality in the workplace.

In late June, the justices decided to reconsider the case.

"We ultimately conclude the conduct does not amount to unlawful sex discrimination in violation of the Iowa Civil Rights Act," Justice Edward Mansfield wrote.

Knight had hired Nelson in 1999 and on several occasions in the 18 months before he fired her in early 2010, he complained that her clothing was too tight, revealing and distracting, the decision said. She denied wearing anything inappropriate.

Nelson and Knight began texting each other in 2009, the opinion said. Most messages were work-related or otherwise innocuous, but some were more suggestive, including one in which Knight asked Nelson how often she had an orgasm, the opinion said. Nelson did not answer that text.

"The fact of the matter is Nelson was terminated because of the activities of her consensual personal relationship with her employer, not because of her gender," Chief Justice Mark Cady wrote in a separate special concurrence.

In late 2009, Knight's wife, Jeanne Knight, learned that her husband had been texting with Nelson while he was on an out-of-state vacation with their children and she insisted he fire her, saying "she was a big threat to our marriage," the opinion said.

Knight read Nelson a statement when he fired her that said in part that their relationship had become a detriment to both of their families.

Nelson's attorney, Fiedler, said Friday she was "beyond distressed at the lack of awareness and understanding this decision demonstrates.

"Women already have to balance on the very fine line of being respected, professional and well-liked in the workplace without having their perceived charm or attractiveness garner unwanted sexual advances, harassment and discrimination," Fiedler said in a statement.

Todd Pettys, associate dean for faculty in the University of Iowa College of Law, said it was unclear why the court decided to rehear the case, given that the justices did not change their positions from December to July.

"It appears to me what they really wanted to do was take another shot at explaining why they were reaching the conclusion that they did, understanding that they had come under some criticism for that conclusion."

(Reporting by Kay Henderson in Des Moines; Editing by David Bailey, Leslie Gevirtz and Kenneth Barry)

The knuckleballer won again, Jose Reyes and Mark DeRosa homered and the Toronto Blue Jays beat the slumping Tigers 8-3 on Monday for their seventh straight home win.

The Blue Jays delighted a sellout crowd of 45,766 on Canada Day with their 11th victory in 13 games at Rogers Centre.

Coming off his two-hit shutout against Tampa Bay, Dickey (8-8) was sharp and won for the third time in four starts. The knuckleballer allowed two runs and six hits in seven innings, striking out four and walking one.

"Just another great outing," Blue Jays manager John Gibbons said. "Second one in a row. I see more bite on his knuckleball than we've seen in the past a little bit."

Plagued by back and neck soreness early in the season, Dickey has put those issues behind him and found increased velocity as a result.

"It's been kind of a tough go getting it back," Dickey said of his velocity. "I threw a knuckleball 81 miles an hour today, I threw a lot at 80 miles an hour, I threw an 85 mile an hour fastball. All those velocities are tops for the year.

"That's the velocity I could count on last year," he said. "You can get away with a lot more mistakes when the velocity's up there."

Detroit slugger Prince Fielder said it was tough to track Dickey's dancing pitches.

"It was knuckling," Fielder said. "It's hard for catchers to catch it, so imagine how hard it is to hit it."

Reyes hit a leadoff shot in the third against Tigers rookie Jose Alvarez (1-2). For Reyes, it was his third homer of the year and second in two days.

DeRosa added a three-run drive in the fourth off reliever Luke Putkonen.

Fielder and Omar Infante hit solo homers for the Tigers. Detroit lost for the sixth time in seven games.

"We're in a little funk right now and we've just got to get ourselves out of it," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. "You'll got to roll with that punch and you've got to try and do something about it."

Infante went 4 for 4 with a two-out homer in the ninth. Tigers star Miguel Cabrera, who came in with an AL-leading .373 batting average, went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts.

Toronto reliever Steve Delabar struck out the side in the eighth and Aaron Loup finished in the ninth.

Toronto opened the scoring in the second when Munenori Kawasaki hit an RBI single. Catcher Josh Thole tried to score from second on the hit, running through third base coach Luis Rivera's stop sign, but was thrown out at the plate by left fielder Andy Dirks.

The Blue Jays chased Alvarez with a four-run third. After Reyes homered, Rajai Davis doubled and stole third on a throw back to the pitcher.

Walks to Jose Bautista and Colby Rasmus loaded the bases for J.P. Arencibia, who hit a two-run single. Bautista slid home safely after Dirks' throw hit his helmet and bounced away, sending Rasmus to third. Maicer Izturis followed with a sacrifice fly.

Fielder hit his 14th homer in the fourth and Infante added an RBI double.

Alvarez lost his second straight start, giving up four earned runs in a career-low three innings. He walked three and struck out four.

"He just didn't have real good control and he left the ball up," Leyland said. "Of course, you pay for that against good big league hitters."

NOTES: Blue Jays DH Edwin Encarnacion was scratched from the lineup with hamstring soreness and replaced by Arencibia. ... Following the game, Detroit optioned C Bryan Holaday to Triple-A. C Alex Avila, out since June 17 with a sore left forearm, will be activated off the DL Tuesday. ... Infante had three hits off Dickey and is 16 for 31 against him in his career. ... Toronto 1B Adam Lind, who left Sunday's game at Boston with a sore back, was held out of the lineup. He is day to day. ... Canadian IndyCar driver Alex Tagliani threw out the first pitch.

Antlerless licenses for the 2013-14 season went on sale July 8, and as county treasurers process applications and allocate licenses, the information immediately is updated within the Pennsylvania Automated License System (PALS).

Hunters also can check the latest information on the number of licenses that have been allocated, and how many remain for sale in each wildlife-management unit.

To check on the status of an application, go to the Game Commission's website (), and click on the blue "Buy a License" box in the upper right corner of the homepage.

That click will take you to The Outdoor Shop, where the first option on the page begins "Purchase Fishing and/or Hunting License Permit and or Application." Click on that option, then scroll down to the bottom of the page and click "Start Here."

You then will need to enter identifying information, and click "Continue." Next, verify whether you are a resident or nonresident, then scroll to the end of your personal information and choose "Check on the status of an Antlerless Deer or Elk Application." Click "Continue," and any licenses that have been allocated to you will appear.

Many hunters report they appreciate the ability to check the status of antlerless licenses online. Before the updates were available electronically through PALS, hunters curious about an application's status needed to contact their banks to see if checks were cashed by a county treasurer.

Hunters also can use PALS to verify their applications for the elk-license drawing are recorded accurately. The hunters whose names are drawn also can see their status information online.

The application period for antlerless deer licenses started July 8, when county treasurers began accepting applications from residents. Nonresident applications for regular antlerless deer licenses will be accepted beginning on July 29. After that, residents and nonresidents may apply for the first round of unsold antlerless deer licenses on Aug. 5, then a second round of unsold antlerless deer licenses on Aug. 19.

Beginning Aug. 5, for WMUs 2B, 5C and 5D only, there is no limit to the number of unsold antlerless deer license applications an individual can submit until the allocations are exhausted. This must be done by mail only, and there is a limit of three applications per pink envelope.

Beginning Aug. 26, county treasurers will accept applications over-the-counter for WMUs 2B, 5C and 5D, and may immediately issue antlerless deer licenses. Hunters may apply over-the-counter to county treasurers for any other WMU with antlerless licenses for sale on Oct. 7.

Updated allocation totals for antlerless deer licenses also are available at the Game Commission's website. Select "Doe License Update" from the "Quick Clicks" box along the right side of the homepage. This update provides a real-time status of antlerless license allocations and availability by WMU, and helps license applicants to determine which WMUs to list as their first, second and third preferences when they submit applications.

SOURCE Pennsylvania Game Commission

Amazon, which opened its Kindle e-book store in China in December, launched its Android app store over the weekend for China users to download both free and paid apps, Amazon China spokesman Billy Huang said on Monday.

Google's official app store only offers free apps in China. Google China declined to comment for this story. Android is Google's open source mobile operating system.

Amazon's app store must compete with hundreds of local rivals offering paid and free apps, some of them pirated, and users often worry about malware when downloading from these sites.

Amazon is the first Western technology company to offer a platform for paid Android apps in China and Huang said the company was working with software developers to increase the number of apps on offer.

Amazon China cornered less than three percent of China's booming 169 billion yuan ($27 billion) business-to-consumer e-commerce market in the fourth quarter last year.

The launch of the app store and the Kindle e-book store in China paves the way for Amazon to offer a range of devices including the standard Kindle e-reader and the Kindle Fire.

Huang declined to comment on the Kindle's release date in China. ($1 = 6.1556 Chinese yuan)

(Reporting by Melanie Lee; editing by Miral Fahmy)

I am a childless man, but I have owned my dog for 12 years. I work from home and we are together constantly. Honestly, Abby, he is the joy of my life.

My problem is I live in constant fear of losing him. I know it will break my heart, and I'm not sure I can deal with it. At night, when I rub his belly at bedtime and see the love in his eyes, I can't sleep for thinking about the day when he will no longer be with me.

I know he's "just a dog," but he has been my kid for all this time. Do you have any advice for me? -- AFRAID OF THE LOSS

DEAR AFRAID: I understand your feelings. I doubt there is any pet owner who hasn't had one special departed pet who lives on forever in his or her heart.

My advice to you is to not spoil one more precious second you have with your dog by worrying about what will eventually happen. You knew going in that your dog would have a certain life span. That's the "deal" we make when we become animal guardians.

When the time comes, talk to your veterinarian about support groups in which you can share your feelings. And don't be surprised when you find out you are one of many.

DEAR ABBY: I have this co-worker, "Sam," who is no longer performing 100 percent at work. It started shortly after he moved out of town and he was forced to start commuting. Sam complains a lot about the commute because he doesn't allow enough time for it and he ends up being late to work.

Lately I have noticed that he has also started to slack off on his daily tasks. He'll sit down, prepare to do something, then get up and disappear for 20 to 25 minutes. He'll come back for a few minutes, then disappear again. I don't know where he's going. All I know is we generally have to pick up the slack when he gets to the end of his shift and realizes he hasn't accomplished everything.

Is this something I should report to my managers? I feel it's unfair that Sam gets paid for the same amount of time that I do, while I'm doing my work at full capacity and he's putting in less than half. -- FRUSTRATED CO-WORKER IN ILLINOIS

DEAR FRUSTRATED: If it won't have a negative impact on your job ratings, you and the others on your shift should stop picking up the slack for Sam. It will then become apparent to your managers that he's not doing his share, and he will cook his own goose.

DEAR ABBY: When I was 11, I lived with my dad and stepmom. My 14-year-old brother lived with our grandparents in another town, but they would visit every couple of months.

After one visit, as they were leaving, my grandmother said, "Come here and give your brother a kiss and tell him you love him." My brother and I looked at each other and, in typical kid fashion, said, "YUCK!!"

Abby, I never saw my brother again. He died the next week from a congenital brain aneurism.

It taught me a lesson. The words we say to our loved ones should be sweet, because they may be the last words from us they will ever hear. My brother died 55 years ago and I miss him still. -- STILL MISSING HIM

DEAR STILL MISSING HIM: Please accept my sympathy for your loss. The life lesson you learned from your brother's untimely death was an important one. I am sorry it is one you had to learn at such a tender age.

Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips. Write Dear Abby ator P.O. Box 69440, Los Angeles, CA 90069.

To receive a collection of Abby's most memorable -- and most frequently requested -- poems and essays, send your name and mailing address, plus check or money order for $7 (U.S. funds) to: Dear Abby -- Keepers Booklet, P.O. Box 447, Mount Morris, IL 61054-0447. Shipping and handling are included in the price.

The 40-year-old All-Star right wing was captain of the Senators and his decision not to re-sign with the team was a surprise.

Alfredsson will join a Red Wings roster featuring fellow Swedes Henrik Zetterberg, Johan Franzen, Gustav Nyquist, Niklas Kronwall and Jonathan Ericsson.

Media reports said Alfredsson had signed a one-year $5.5 million deal.

There were 20 signings in the first hour of free agency, including forward Nathan Horton going to the Columbus Blue Jackets for a seven-year contract.

Horton had spent the past three seasons with the Boston Bruins and is facing time off for shoulder surgery in the off-season.

Ottawa brought in left wing Clarke MacArthur on a two-year deal after he scored eight goals and 20 points for the Toronto Maple Leafs last season.

The Edmonton Oilers snapped up defenseman Andrew Ference on a four-year deal, reported to be worth $13 million.

The 34-year-old Ference, born in Edmonton, entered free agency after playing with Boston for seven seasons.

The Bruins, defeated by the Chicago Blackhawks in this season's Stanley Cup finals, were busy making deals of their own with a 'blockbuster' trade with the Dallas Stars.

The Bruins signed forwards Loui Eriksson, Reilly Smith and Matt Fraser and defenseman Joe Morrow from Dallas for centers Tyler Seguin and Rich Peverley and defenseman Ryan Button, the teams announced on Thursday.

The New York Islanders re-signed Kazakh goaltender Evgeni Nabokov and the Philadelphia Flyers added goaltender Ray Emery from Chicago. Both were one-year deals.

The Carolina Hurricanes brought in defenseman Mike Komisarek on a one-year deal after Toronto allowed him to enter free agency. (Reporting By Simon Evans in Miami, editing by Gene Cherry)

The killings are the latest in a wave of bloodshed that has claimed the lives of more than 2,600 people since the start of April. The months-long eruption of violence Iraq's worst in half a decade is raising fears the country is again returning to the brink of a civil war pitting its Sunni and Shiite Muslim sects against one another.

The deadliest attack happened at sundown Wednesday as Iraqis were marking the end of the first day of Ramadan fasting, though it took authorities time to learn of the killing and they only provided details the following morning.

Gunmen launched their assault on an army checkpoint near Barwana, which lies across the Euphrates River from the town of Haditha, about 220 kilometers (140 miles) northwest of Baghdad in the largely Sunni province of Anbar. Barwana's mayor, Meyasser Abdul-Mohsin, said three soldiers were killed and four were wounded in that attack.

The attackers then made their way to a trailer not far away that is used by special oil industry police assigned to protect a nearby pipeline. The men inside were sitting down to have the iftar meal that breaks the daytime Ramadan fast at sunset, Abdul-Mohsin said.

The gunmen shot up the trailer and then set it on fire before making their getaway, the mayor said. Eleven police there were left dead, with some of their bodies badly burned and making them difficult to identify, he said.

A security official in nearby Haditha gave a similar account and confirmed the death toll. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.

"This is a crime carried out by terrorists during iftar on the first day of Ramadan," Abdul-Mohsin said. "It just proves what a cowardly act it is."

Exxon Mobil Corp., BP PLC and other international oil companies have flocked to Iraq since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion to capitalize on Iraq's vast oil wealth. The country is now the second-largest producer in OPEC, after Saudi Arabia. Oil revenues account for 95 percent of the country's budget.

Insurgents unleashed more attacks Thursday.

A police station in Anbar's provincial capital Ramadi came under attack in the morning in an assault that left two policemen dead, provincial council member councilman Talib Hamadi and deputy provincial governor Dhari Arkan said. Arkan said gunmen opened fire on the police station after a car bomb exploded nearby. Ramadi is 115 kilometers (70 miles) west of Baghdad.

Militants turned their sights on the local police headquarters in the nearby city of Fallujah, also in Anbar province, later in the day.

A car bomb explosion kicked off that attack. Then gunmen exchanged fire with police as other militants launched mortar rounds at the facility. Another attacker then drove an explosives-laden car into the police post.

By the time it was all over, seven police officers were killed and 17 other people were wounded, all but two of them police, according to police and hospital officials.

A roadside bomb later exploded in central Fallujah, killing a police officer and wounding two others.

Anbar is a vast Sunni-dominated province west of Baghdad and bordering Syria. It has been the center of months of protests by Iraq's minority Sunnis over what they believe is second-class treatment by the Shiite-dominated government. Sunni militant groups have tried to tap into that anger and link their cause with that of the protesters.

A car bomb rocked Baghdad's commercial district of Karradah late Thursday afternoon, killing two police officers and two civilians, police and health officials said. They said another 13 were wounded.

Insurgents also struck in the volatile city of Mosul, 360 kilometers (225 miles) northwest of the capital. Gunmen in speeding cars there shot and killed an off-duty solider and a civilian in two separate attacks, police and health officials said. Another policeman was killed when a roadside bomb hit a police patrol in the city.

Authorities provided details of the Fallujah, Baghdad and Mosul attacks on condition of anonymity because they weren't allowed to brief reporters.

Elsewhere, a parked car bomb went off Thursday morning near a courthouse in the northern city of Tuz Khormato, wounding 30 people, mayor Shalal Abdool said. Tuz Khormato sits in a band of territory contested by Arabs, Kurds and Turkomen about 200 kilometers (125 miles) north of Baghdad.

Another parked car bomb exploded in a village outside the nearby ethnically disputed city of Kirkuk, wounding seven civilians, provincial police chief Maj. Gen. Jamal Tahir said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the series of attacks. Sunni militants, including al-Qaida's Iraq arm, frequently target security forces and the country's vital oil infrastructure in an effort to undermine the Shiite-led government.

___

Associated Press writer Sinan Salaheddin contributed to this report.

___

Follow Adam Schreck on Twitter at http://twitter.com/adamschreck

The 7-foot Italian, who never lived up to expectations in Toronto tweeted "I am thrilled to become a New York Knick and look forward to becoming a part of their storied franchise!!"

According to local media reports the Raptors will receive Steve Novak, Marcus Camby and Quentin Richardson from the Knicks along with New York's first-round pick in the 2016 draft and two second-round selections.

The deal cannot be confirmed until July 10 when the salary cap for next season has been established.

Bargnani averaged 15.2 points and 4.8 rebounds over seven seasons as a Raptor but was a frustrating enigma for Toronto fans, a three-point shooting big man who critics said often appeared disinterested and had little time for defense or doing the hard work under the basket.

(Reporting by Steve Keating in Toronto, editing by Simon Evans in Miami.)

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Most of our customers have been planning to support three mobile operating systems iOS, Android and either Windows Phone or BlackBerry, MobileIron CEO BobTinker told Bloomberg Businessweek. The recent results indicate that BlackBerry is not going to be the third.MobileIron produces smartphone management software currently used by more than 5,000 companies.

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BlackBerry had little to say in response to the report, but the company did rehash the solid BES10 figures it has pointed to several times in the past.We have seen a very enthusiastic response to BES10 from our customer base, BlackBerrys SVP of enterprise software Pete Devenyi said, noting that 18,000 companies have tested or deployed BES10 so far. The adoption of BB10 has been very much in accordance with our expectations.

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