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WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Federal Reserve is paying a record $79.3 billion to the U.S. government after the central bank earned a record amount of money last year from programs aimed at boosting the economy.

The Fed says its payment to the Treasury Department for 2010 is 67 percent higher than $47.4 billion it paid in 2009, the previous record.

The central bank earned a record $81.7 billion last year from its massive holdings of securities, which were purchased to help stabilize the financial system and pull the economy out of the recession. A portion of those earnings go toward funding the Fed, which receives no appropriations from Congress. Any money left over is turned over to the Treasury Department.

NEW YORK  - Stocks are pointing to a mixed open following a
strong three-day rally.

Crude oil prices, a major source of volatility for the market
since mid-February, dipped below $103 per barrel.

Ahead of the opening, Dow Jones industrial average futures are
up 11, or 0.1 percent, at 11,974. Futures for the broader Standard
& Poor's 500 index are flat at 1,293.10. Nasdaq 100 index futures
are up 3.25, or 0.1 percent, to 2,257.75.

Stocks jumped Monday after AT&T's $39 billion deal for T-Mobile
USA raised hopes of more corporate dealmaking. Worries about
Japan's nuclear crisis also eased. The Dow gained 178 points and
climbed back above the 12,000 level for the first time since the
March 11 earthquake.

DALTON, Georgia - Higher gas prices are leading to higher manufacturing costs for Georgia's carpet industry.

Experts say changes in gas prices reverberate along the supply chain and are ultimately passed on to the consumer. The most popular carpet fiber - nylon - is petroleum based. And the carpet backing polypropylene is closely tied to the price of oil.

That's why many executives in Dalton, known as the Carpet Capital of the World, are keeping an eye on the price of crude.

Mohawk Industries, one of the world's largest carpet makers, raised carpet prices 7 percent to 10 percent in February to offset raw material cost hikes.

Chief executive Jeffrey Lorberbaum warned that changes in raw material and energy costs are among several issues the company will grapple with throughout the year.