UPI NewsTrack Business

U.S. stocks keep rising, on economic news

NEW YORK, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Good news about the U.S. economy lifted stocks modestly Thursday across all major indexes.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 33.55 or 0.31 percent to 10,849.44 in late-morning trading. The Nasdaq composite gained 6.52 or 0.3 percent to 2,163.55, and the Standard & Poor's 500 increased 2.59 or 0.21 percent to 1,212.16.

The Commerce Department said November durable-goods orders increased 1.6 percent to $198.86 billion, far above forecasts of 0.6 percent, as orders for civilian aircraft jumped, the Wall Street Journal reported.

The department also said both personal income and consumption rose broadly in line with expectations.

Meanwhile, crude oil fell below $43 per barrel.

The 10-year Treasury note fell 2/32, or 63 cents for each $1,000 invested, for a 4.22 percent yield.

The dollar fell to 103.68 yen from 104.24, as the euro traded at $1.3497 from $1.3391.

Tokyo's markets were closed for a holiday, but Hong Kong's blue-chip Hang Seng rose 84.2 or 0.6 percent to 14,235.30.

Putin owns plan to nationalize Yukos

MOSCOW, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Russia's president says the forced buyout of the nation's large oil producer by shadowy buyers has been part of a plan to nationalize the industry.

Vladimir Putin's comments Thursday confirm long-standing speculation the Kremlin, which has been prosecuting Yukos for 14 months over $27 billion in alleged back taxes, targeted Yukos as part of a nationalization agenda, the Financial Times reported Thursday.

When authorities forced an auction Sunday of Yukos' main oil producing unit, an unknown entity going by the name of Baikal Finance Group placed the winning $9.35 billion bid. Baikal's agents at the auction turned out to work for state-owned Rosneft oil company, which hours after the auction was bought by Gazprom, the state-backed gas company.

Taken together, the moves make the Kremlin one of the largest oil producers in the world and thus give it massive pricing power.

Putin said nationalizing Yukos compensates for rip-offs surrounding the privatizing of the nation's oil and gas industry in the 1990s.

"People were using different tricks, which included breaking the laws then in force, in order to acquire a multibillion state property," he said, adding the Kremlin's acquisition of Yukos was legal.

"All of this was conducted absolutely according to market standards," he said.

Japan Airlines orders 30 Boeing 7E7 jets

CHICAGO, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Japan Airlines has placed an order for 30 Boeing 7E7 Dreamliners, the first such order since April, the Chicago Tribune reported Thursday.

While charter companies and smaller airlines have ordered small numbers of the mid-size, long-range jet, Boeing has not booked a significant order since April when Japan's All Nippon Airways committed to 50 of the ultra-fuel efficient aircraft.

At list prices, Japan Airlines' order would be worth $3.6 billion, though discounts could be as much as 30 percent, industry observers said.

Boeing now has orders for 56 7E7s and unsigned commitments for another 56. Its goal had been 200 by yearend.

The 7E7 will have an all-composite fuselage and be made from components supplied by Boeing partners in Japan, Europe and the United States. These parts will come to the Seattle area and be assembled in three days.

New home sales plunge

WASHINGTON, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- The U.S. Commerce Department said Thursday new home sales took their biggest plunge in 10 years in November, dropping 12 percent.

Commerce said new single-family home sales sank in November to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.125 million. It was the biggest drop since a 23.8 percent drop in January 1994.

October home sales rose 4.2 percent as the government raised the annual rate to 1.278 million from an earlier 1.226 million.

Average rates on 30-year mortgages have been below 6 percent since late July, according to Freddie Mac.

Commerce's report showed new-home demand down in three of four regions in the U.S. last month with record weakness in the Midwest.

Sales fell 7.1 percent in the Northeast, tumbled 39.4 percent in the Midwest and were down 27.9 percent in the West. Sales climbed 13.6 percent in the South, where about half of overall U.S. activity took place.

The sales decline in the Midwest broke a record and the 27.9 percent decrease in the West was the sharpest fall since January 1982's 31.5 percent.

The inventory of homes on the market rose last month to a 4.5 months' supply from October's 3.9 months' supply.