UPI NewsTrack-Business

NEW YORK, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- Stocks calm, oil gets push

NEW YORK, Aug, 26 (UPI) – A storm gave crude oil a push Tuesday while U.S. stock indexes showed little progress.

Oil, which had been moving in a somewhat lethargic pattern, jumped to 116.81 a barrel in late morning trading, a $1.70 increase, thanks in part to Hurricane Gustav in the Gulf of Mexico which traders were watching closely.

The Dow Jones industrial average was down 17.35 points, or 0.15 percent, to 11,368,90 at midday. The Nasdaq composite was down 1.97 points, or 0.08 percent, to 2,363.62. The Standard and Poor's 500 moved out of the red, gaining 2.33 points, or 0.18 percent, to 1,269.17.

In currency trading, the euro dropped sharply against the U.S. dollar. The euro traded at $1.4638, compared to $1.4754 late Monday.

Treasury prices fell. The benchmark 10-year note was off 5/32 to yield 3.801 percent.

Index reports record home price decline

WASHINGTON, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- A closely watched gauge of U.S. home prices Tuesday reported a record price drop in June but the declines were seen to be moderating.

The S&P/Case-Shiller home-price indexes report, released in Washington, listed a record 15.4-percent decline in overall home prices in the second quarter from a year earlier, worse than the 14.2-percent drop posted in the first quarter, The Wall Street Journal said.

In a second index, prices in 20 major metropolitan areas fell by 15.9 percent from the previous June. However, nine of the 20 regions avoided price declines in June over May, led by a 1.5-percent rise in Denver and 1.2-percent growth in Boston.

David Blitzer, chairman of Standard & Poor's index committee, said there is no national turnaround in residential real estate prices but there are signs of moderation in price declines.

U.S. household income rises again

WASHINGTON, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- Median U.S. household income climbed 1.3 percent from 2006 to 2007, reaching $50,233, the U.S. Census Bureau reported in Washington Tuesday.

The increase is the third in a row.

The report said the nation's official poverty rate in 2007 was 12.5 percent, about the same as a year earlier. There were 37.3 million people reported in poverty in 2007, up from 36.5 million in 2006.

The number of people without health insurance coverage declined from 47 million (15.8 percent) in 2006 to 45.7 million (15.3 percent) last year.

Among the race groups, black households had the lowest median income in 2007 ($33,916). This compares to the median of $54,920 for non-Hispanic white households. Asian households had the highest median income ($66,103). The median income for Hispanic households was $38,679.

V-8 engine on way out in new cars

NEW YORK, Aug. 26 (UPI) -- The powerful, legendary V-8 engine is pretty much being relegated to history except for a few cases, U.S. auto industry reports say.

Most automakers are no longer putting the V-8 under the hoods of family cars, USA Today said in a New York report. Even the V-6's are reported to be losing popularity as more people opt for the V-4. Observers see the V-8 in particular as no longer politically correct.

Automakers introducing new V-8s are said to be confining them to a few premium cars or high-performance sports models and trailer-towing trucks.

Among new models still to be equipped with the V-8 are the Cadillac CTS-V, the Dodge Challenger and Hyundai Genesis. Automakers are stressing that the new V-8s are more fuel efficient.