UPI NewsTrack Business

U.S. stocks up in light session

NEW YORK, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- U.S. Stocks rose early Thursday in what was expected to be a light pre-holiday session.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 10.49 points, or 0.08 percent, to 12,474.36. The Nasdaq index was up 4.17, or 0.17 percent, at 2,431.78 and the Standard and Poor's 500 edged upward 2.11, or 0.15 percent, at 1,425.64.

Crude oil futures slipped 42 cents to $63.30 a barrel in electronic trading.

Bonds were flat, the dollar little changed.

Housing slump lowers GDP report

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- The sharpest housing slump in 15 years meant the U.S. economy did not do as well as expected over the summer months, the Commerce Department said.

Gross domestic product rose at an adjusted 2 percent annual rate July through September in the new U.S. Commerce Department report. That was a revision down from the previous third quarter estimate of 2.2 percent, The Wall Street Journal said.

Consumer spending, the biggest component of GDP, was up 2.8 percent, down from a previously reported 2.9 increase.

The number of workers filing new claims for unemployment benefits rose 9,000 to 315,000 last week, the U.S. Labor Department said.

IBM drops outside director stock options

NEW YORK, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- IBM says it no longer will grant stock options to outside directors, an attractive perk clouded by scandal.

The practice, seen as a vital tool for rewarding board members but now falling out of favor, gives recipients the right to purchase company shares in the future at a set price.

IBM, the latest big company to abandon backdating options, said that beginning Jan. 1, those directors would be offered compensation involving cash, restricted stock or equity stakes, The Wall Street Journal said.

IBM's decision was seen as a move possibly speeding up repudiation of the option plan. The backdating scandal and accounting frauds at Enron and WorldCom have caused a heavy backlash against options, the newspaper said. More than 130 companies are reported under investigation in the backdating scandal.

FCC helps phone companies in cable flap

WASHINGTON, Dec. 21 (UPI) -- The Federal Communications Commission has given telephone companies a break in their efforts to move into U.S. cable TV markets.

The divided FCC voted to significantly limit the amount local officials can demand for franchises. But, the latest step in the intensifying battle over who will control video, voice and Internet is expected to be challenged in court, The Washington Post said.

The FCC voted 3 to 2 along party lines to eliminate what Republican supporters said were unreasonable demands and delays.