U.S. markets rise on Ford sales
NEW YORK, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- U.S. markets rose Tuesday for the second consecutive day as Ford Motor Co. said sales increased 24 percent in January.
General Motors said sales rose 14 percent in the month, while Chrysler Group said sales fell 8 percent.
The National Association of Realtors said pending home sales rose 1 percent in December over November, but pending home contracts were 10.9 percent above December 2008.
By close, the Dow Jones industrial average added 1.09 percent, 111.32 points, to 10,296.85. The Standard & Poor's 500 rose 1.3 percent, 14.13 points, to 1,103.32. The Nasdaq composite index rose 0.87 percent, 18.86 points, to 2,190.06.
On the New York Stock Exchange, 2,341 stocks advanced and 695 declined on a volume of 4.7 billion shares traded.
The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury bill rose 5/32 to yield 3.639 percent.
The euro rose to $1.3963 from Monday's $1.3932. Against the yen, the dollar fell to 90.37 yen from Monday's 90.65 yen.
In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index added 1.63 percent, 166.07, to 10,371.09.
In London, the FTSE 100 index added 0.68 percent, 35.90, to 5,283.31.
Volcker pushes to rein in banking
WASHINGTON, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- Presidential adviser Paul Volcker told members of the Senate Banking Committee the U.S. public did not believe in rescuing speculative banks.
"There has been, and remains, a strong public interest in providing a safety net ... for commercial banks carrying out essential services. There is not, however, a similar rationale for public funds -- taxpayer funds -- protecting and supporting essentially proprietary and speculative activities," said Volcker, chairman of the president's Economic Recovery Advisory Board.
Activities "unrelated to customer needs" such as managing hedge funds, owning private equity funds or proprietary trading "should stand on their own," he said in a prepared statement.
Investment banks, meanwhile, "assumed the cloak of a banking license" to garner public support when the financial meltdown began to unfold in 2008.
"It is critically important that those institutions, its managers and its creditors do not assume a public rescue will be forthcoming in time of pressure," he added.
However, to ban commercial banks from proprietary lending, Volcker said there should first be international support for taking such a step.
Apple co-founder blames Toyota's software
CUPERTINO, Calif., Feb. 2 (UPI) -- U.S. businessman Steve Wozniak, a co-founder of Apple, said Toyota Motor Co.'s problem with sticking gas pedals was related to software, not gas pedals.
Wozniak said he had problems with the cruise control of his own 2010 Toyota Prius, saying "there might be a software problem in there," ABC News reported Tuesday.
Toyota has recalled 2.3 million cars in the United States and 1.9 million in Europe and China. It also said it has solved the problem and initiated program to repair gas pedals that are outfitted with a device to provide more friction to gas pedals to give them the proper "feel."
But Wozniak said he has attempted in vain for two months to alert Toyota and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about his theory.
"I tap the cruise control lever to increase the speed and it basically goes into an unlimited speed up. If I hit the brake it disables my cruise control and it goes back to normal," Wozniak said.
However, he said the NHTSA gave him the "runaround" and Toyota allowed him only to speak to entry-level employees.
A Toyota spokesperson said, "we have found no evidence of a problem with our electronic throttle control system that could have caused unwanted acceleration."
Neiman's agrees to fine in fur case
DALLAS, Feb. 2 (UPI) -- U.S. retailer Neiman Marcus has agreed to pay a $25,000 fine for advertising "faux fur" on coats trimmed in Asian raccoon dog, authorities said.
The retailer agreed to the fine after a Washington court ruled Neiman Marcus, which has its headquarters in Dallas, violated consumer protection laws, The Dallas Morning News reported Tuesday.
The U.S. Humane Society sued Neiman Marcus, Saks Inc., Macy's Inc., Lord & Taylor and Andrew Marc in 2008 after it found raccoon dog fur advertised as fake fur on coat trim in stores.
"Consumers were fooled by those ads. Now by virtue of this lawsuit, they'll know what the coat contains," Humane Society lawyer Ralph Henry said.
The judgment against Neiman Marcus, which had no comment Monday, needs final court approval.
Saks last week settled by agreeing to stricter labeling and to support pending congressional bills that would ban the sale of fur-trimmed coats without labeling, Henry said.
Saks also was to pay $5,600 to cover the Humane Society's court costs, Henry said, noting Macy's remains a defendant in the case. In settlements last year, Andrew Marc and Lord & Taylor agreed to stricter labeling and to stop using raccoon dog fur.
Raccoon dogs are wild members of the canine family, which includes foxes, wolves and dogs. Raccoon dogs are named for their resemblance to raccoons but are not closely related.
