The Wall Street Journal-20080216-Credit Crunch- In Brief

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Credit Crunch: In Brief

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Countrywide Says

Defaults Climbing

Mortgage lender Countrywide Financial Corp. said its loan delinquency rate continued to climb in January as falling home values and the sagging economy hammer borrowers. Delinquencies rose to 7.47% of unpaid principal balances from 4.32% a year earlier and 7.2% in December. On loans it services, the foreclosure rate edged up to 1.48% last month from 1.44% in December. Countrywide is in the process of being acquired by Bank of America Corp.

Allco Finance Opens

Books to Buyers

Australian money manager Allco Finance Group Ltd. opened its accounts to potential buyers of its assets, including Macquarie Group Ltd. and TPG, a person familiar with the situation said Friday. Allco is a structured-finance and infrastructure-investment company.