This is what’s in the news for Wednesday March 22, 2012. The Wall Street Journal reports the U.S. housing market is becoming less of a drag on the recovery as real estate markets show signs of life as falling prices spur buyer demand, lifting home sales and new construction. The Wall Street Journal also reports the boom in natural gas production has hit a new pressure point as the U.S. is running out of storage space. Reuters reports GM (NYSE:GM) will invest $1.04B in its Australian operations over the next decade after securing Australian government support to help it keep its auto plant open until at least 2022. Reuters also reports China’s economic momentum slowed in March as factory activity shrank for a fifth straight month, leaving investors concerned about the risks to global growth and anticipating new policy support from Beijing. Bloomberg reports Visa (NYSE:V) said China’s recent decision to let Citigroup (NYSE:C) issue credit cards may be the start of a broader market opening that will allow them to expand in the country. Finally, Bloomberg also reports Research in Motion (NASDAQ:RIMM) lost the top spot for smartphone shipments in Canada last year for the first time, trailing Apple’s (NASDAQ:AAPL) iPhone.