Wednesday morning headlines

Stocks on hold: Drop in new home sales isn't likely to ease Wall Street worries. Dow is down again in early trading.

Fed looks at rates: The central bank is almost certain to keep them at record lows when it finishes up a two-day meeting later this morning. As usual, the comments accompanying the rate announcement could indicate the Fed's direction. (AP)

Calpers loses big: California's pension giant is out $284 million because it had the misfortune of owning 58 million shares of BP stock. That's a bigger loss than any other state pension fund, though Calpers has total assets of $210 billion. (Bloomberg)

More on free tickets: As Kevin posted last night, Fox 11's John Schwada found that Villaraigosa's calendar listed as "private events" appearances where he received free tickets and supposedly was acting in an official capacity.

Greenhouse initiative on ballot: Looks like voters will consider a measure this fall that would postpone implementation of the state's greenhouse gas reduction law. The initiative effort was launched last year by two Republican lawmakers. (LABJ)

California gets housing help: The Obama administration approves a plan that would provide nearly $700 million to assist 46,000 borrowers in the state. The money is part of a broader federal effort to offer housing relief. (AP)

Disney to build vacation homes: The luxury development in Florida's Walt Disney World complex is considered a risky bet in a state where foreclosure rates are among the nation's highest. From the WSJ:

Disney believes the market for luxury homes is rebounding. Despite adding wine-tasting events and VIP park tours in recent years, "The affluent market is an area where we haven't offered a lot of product," says Matt Kelly, vice president of Disney resort real-estate development. The proposed 980-acre Golden Oak development, most recently two golf courses within the 40 square miles of Disney's Orlando theme parks, is expected to eventually encompass 450 homes and a 445-room Four Seasons hotel.

Good reviews on new iPhone: WSJ's Walt Mossberg says that the iPhone 4 "keeps it in the lead in the smartphone wars." NYT's David Pogue writes:

The first thing you notice is the new shape. Despite a beefier battery (16 percent more likely to last a full day), a faster processor and upgraded everything, the new model is still noticeably thinner and narrower than before. How is that possible? In part, the trick was squaring off the back. It's no longer gracefully curved -- a design that, if you think about it, created wasted space around the rectangular components. The new iPhone is two glass slabs, front and back, wrapped by a stainless-steel band.

Apple sells 3 million iPads: It only took 80 days, which has analysts revising their sales projections. (CNET)

Did Madoff have help?: Federal prosecutors allege in civil lawsuits that two of the Ponzi schemer's back office employees "knowingly perpetuated" the fraud. No criminal charges have been filed (WSJ)

Griffith Park tops for location shooting: In the first three months of the year, the park was used for 150 production days that included commercials (AT&T and McDonald's), and TV shows ("Desperate Housewives" and "Criminal Minds"). (LAT)