UPI NewsTrack Business

U.S. markets post small gains

NEW YORK, March 6 (UPI) -- U.S. markets ended Friday with mixed results after the Federal Reserve said credit spending jumped unexpectedly in January.

The U.S. Labor Department said 651,000 jobs were lost in the month of February, bumping the unemployment rate from 7.6 percent to 8.1 percent. But, the Fed's signal that credit was thawing after three months of declines, gave a late boost to stocks.

The Dow Jones industrial averaged climbed 32.50 points, 0.49 percent, to 6,626.94. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 0.12 percent, 0.83 points, to 683.38. The Nasdaq composite index lost 5.74 points, 0.44 percent, to 1,293.85.

On the New York Stock Exchange, 1,138 stocks advanced and 1,923 declined on a volume of 8.2 billion shares traded.

The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury bond fell 18/32 to yield 2.881 percent.

The euro rose to $1.2639, compared to Thursday's $1.2558. Against the Japanese yen, the dollar rose to 98.27 yen from Thursday's 97.88 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei average lost 260.39 points to 7,173.10, down 3.5 percent.

In London, the FTSE 100 index closed 0.02 percent ahead, 0.87 points, at 3,530.73.

Madoff closer to a plea bargain

NEW YORK, March 6 (UPI) -- Accused New York trader Bernard Madoff waived his right to a grand jury proceeding Friday, paving the path for a possible plea bargain, court records show.

In February, Madoff, accused of running a Ponzi scheme that cost investors as much as $50 billion, agreed not to contest Securities and Exchange Commission charges filed against him, The New York Times reported.

Court filings indicate that Madoff confessed his crime to family members and to FBI agents who arrested him in December.

Any plea may have to wait for the court to clear up a possible conflict of interest issue. Madoff's lead attorney Ira Lee Sorkin's parents invested in Madoff's firm before their deaths, the Times reported.

Kevin McCue, a spokesman for court-appointed trustee Irving Picard said the case now includes claims from 4,300 Madoff investors, the Times said.

Official says Opel should think insolvency

BERLIN, March 6 (UPI) -- U.S. automaker General Motors Corp.'s German subsidiary Opel should consider insolvency, a high-ranking government official said.

German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said, "We must grasp that modern insolvency law is a better way to overcome such a crisis than the state taking a stake (in the company)."

"Our modern insolvency law is not set on the destruction but on the preservation of economic assets. The public perception is that insolvency is akin to going bust or bankrupt. But that is wrong," he said in a Financial Times report Friday.

The statements could spell more gloomy news for GM, which has asked the U.S. government for billions in loans to see its U.S. operations through a prolonged slump.

On Thursday, auditor Deloitte & Touche in a U.S. Securities said Exchange Commission filing warned GM's losses, lack of cash and negative net worth put the giant automaker in serious jeopardy.

In Germany, GM officials were to discuss options with administration officials Friday. German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck said recently that GM's plan for saving Opel "isn't a reliable basis for a decision" on whether or not the German government would come to Opel's aid.

FTC and Whole Foods settle antitrust case

WASHINGTON, March 6 (UPI) -- The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has settled an antitrust case with Whole Foods Market Inc., concerning its 2007 purchase of Wild Oats.

The FTC charged that Whole Food's purchase of 110 Wild Oats stores for $565 million impeded competition, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

The settlement involves divesting 13 stores -- 12 former Wild Oats outlets and one Whole Foods store. A court-appointed trustee also will be charged with selling the leases for 19 closed Wild Oats stores, nine of which Whole Foods closed after it purchased the supermarket chain.

The settlement gives Whole Foods a net gain of 78 stores on its Wild Oats purchase and subsequent settlement. The company currently has 260 stores in the United States, Canada and England.

"We believe it was in the best interests of all our stakeholders to resolve this matter so we can dedicate our full attention to selling the highest quality foods available in our inviting store environments," Whole Foods Chief Executive Officer John Mackey said.

FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz said the settlement "allows the FTC to shift resources to other important matters and Whole Foods to move on with its business."

With the settlement, "American consumers will see more choices and lower prices for organic foods," he said