Freddie Mac seeks fresh funds
Freddie Mac, the second-largest provider of US residential mortgage funds, yesterday said it lost $7.8bn in the fourth quarter and warned it would need to tap more government funds this quarter as the housing market remains fragile. The government-controlled entity said its loss came as rising defaults kept credit-related expenses elevated at $7.1bn and as it wrote down the value of low-income tax credit partnership investments.The loss was $6.5bn before a $1.3bn dividend payment on senior preferred stock owned by the US Treasury.