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THE APP SPECTRUM TECHNOLOGY ON-THE-GO FINANCIAL PROBLEMS DROP SHARPLY FOR HOUSEHOLDS J.P. Morgan Insights Available for: J.P. Morgan Asset Management launched a new iPad app that equips institutional advisors with investment insight on a broad range of market topics and allows them to share this information with their own clients in a customizable, interactive format. The J.P. Morgan Insights app is an extension of the firm's popular Market Insights program and Guide to the Markets, which is distributed in print to more than 90,000 advisors nationwide every quarter. Bankrate Available for: From an aggregator of mortgage rates and financial content, this free app provides users with proprietary, fully researched personal finance information for mortgages, as well as other vertical categories. Whether renting, buying, or refinancing, the Bankrate app can help locate the best rates. Use its mortgage calculator to determine where the numbers must be to lock in an affordable payment. It's home financing direct from your mobile device. Mileage Meter Available for: For those needing to track mileage for tax or reimbursement purposes, Mileage Meter provides all the functions you need. Calculate gas mileage, average distance driven per day, approximate the next refill, and monitor gas prices. Export the data you collect to a spreadsheet or email app-generated summary reports. The Mileage Meter Lite version is available for free from the Apple Store; Blackberry users pay $3.99 for the fullaccess version 2.0. 12 Americans experienced significantly fewer financial troubles in June than they did a month earlier, according to the latest index from Consumer Reports. The Consumer Reports Trouble Tracker Index, which measures the proportion of consumers facing financial difficulties and the number of events they've encountered, fell sharply from 41.7 in the May report to 34 in June—the lowest level since the measure was created. As of June, the tracker had fallen more than 50 percent from its reading of 68.7 in September 2009. The greatest drop in financial difficulties between May and June was among those in households earning less than $50,000, while those living in homes earning more than $100,000 also saw a decline. Meanwhile, middle-income Americans reported a slight rise in financial worries. "The data offers a glimpse that consumers may be starting to see and feel the progress of the economic recovery," said Ed Farrell, director of consumer insight at the Consumer Reports National Research Center. The sentiment measure of the Consumer Reports Index declined 1.9 points to 52.6 from its record high of 54.5 in May "but overall remains in positive territory," according to Consumer Reports. The drop was attributable to a fallback within two segments: consumers in households earning less than $50,000 and those with a high school education or less. At the same time, the index's employment measure showed job gains outpacing losses for the third straight month, with the measure itself rising slightly to 50.6 from 50.3 a month earlier. The uptick was attributable to an increase in the proportion of Americans starting a new job within the past 30 days. The only group of consumers that lost more jobs than it gained was those with a high school education or less. There was good news for retail, too: The index's past-30-day retail measure ended its fourmonth streak of declines, ticking up to 9.2 from 8.7 a month earlier. On the other hand, consumers still seem uncomfortable with robust spending. Planned spending for the next 30 days—reflecting potential June activity—was at 6.0, its lowest level since the measure was created in April 2009. "Despite the improvements, consumers are still frigid about robust spending. We are watching closely waiting to see how long it will take them to thaw out from the mindset created by the conditions of the past five years," Farrell said. Finally, consumers expressed feeling slightly more stressed, with that measure rising to 55.2. The most stressed groups were women, those in households earning under $50,000, those ages 18-34, and those in the Northeast, according to Consumer Reports.