A measure of future U.S. economic growth strengthened last week to its highest level in three and a half years, while the annualized growth rate ticked higher, a research group said on Friday.

WASHINGTON — Financial regulators and industry officials said Monday they have made progress in efforts to safeguard financial institutions from the kind of cyberattacks that disrupted large-bank websites last year but much work remains.

WASHINGTON — Permits for future home construction rose to their highest point in nearly five and a half years in October and prices for single-family homes posted big gains in September, suggesting that the run-up in mortgage interest rates since May has not derailed the housing recovery.