UPI NewsTrack Business

U.S. markets post gains

NEW YORK, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- U.S. markets rose Thursday after the Labor Department said initial jobless benefit claims dropped by 13,000 in the week.

First-time claims have not been this low since 2008. In the week ending Saturday, 348,000 initial claims were filed.

By close of trading Thursday, the Dow Jones industrial average gained 123.13 points, or 0.96 percent, to 12,904.08. The Standard & Poor's 500 index added 14.81 points, or 1.1 percent, to 1,358.04. The Nasdaq composite index was up 44.02 points, or 1.51 percent, to 2,959.85.

On the New York Stock Exchange, 2,308 stocks advanced and 780 declined on a volume of 3.9 billion shares traded.

The benchmark 10-year treasury note fell 17/32 to yield 1.986 percent.

The euro rose to $1.3136 from Wednesday's $1.3066. Against the yen, the dollar rose to 78.89 yen from Wednesday's 78.43 yen.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 index lost 0.24 percent, 22.24 points, to 9,238.10.

In London, the FTSE 100 index shed 0.12 percent, 6.78 points, to 5,885.38.

Finance Bureau stakes out new territory

WASHINGTON, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has proposed putting debt collectors and personal credit rating firms under its jurisdiction.

The new agency, created by provisions of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, is still staking out its territory, which, generally, is "non-bank" financial firms.

The Washington Post reported Thursday that the proposed rules would limit its oversight to collection agencies with annual revenue of $10 million or more. For credit reporting agencies, CFPB proposes to regulate firms with $7 million or higher in annual revenues.

Under those guidelines, the agency would have oversight over about 175 collection agencies and over about 30 credit bureaus, which would encompass 63 percent and 94 percent of those businesses, respectively.

"This oversight would help restore confidence that the federal government is standing beside the American consumer," CFPB Director Richard Cordray said in a statement.

He also said regulatory control could be more effective than the "blunt instrument of lawsuits," the Post reported.

Foreclosures decline year over year

IRVINE, Calif., Feb. 16 (UPI) -- A private firm tracking the housing U.S. market said Thursday one in every 624 housing units was in the process of foreclosure in January.

RealtyTrac, an online marketplace for foreclosure properties, said there were 210,941 U.S. properties served with a default notice or involved in a bank repossession or scheduled for auction in January.

The number of financially distressed properties rose 3 percent over December, the firm said. But the number is 19 percent lower than January 2011.

There was some positive news in the monthly report. California's foreclosure activity fell to a 50-month low but still ranked second highest in its foreclosure rate. One of every 265 housing units in California was caught up in the foreclosure crisis in the month.

The highest rate was posted in Nevada, where one in every 198 housing units was involved in foreclosure activity.

Nevada led the nation for the 61st consecutive month. However, the number of foreclosure filings in the state in January was down 52 percent from January 2011 with 5,931 properties involved.

Arizona, third on the list, had one in every 325 housing units involved in foreclosure with the total involved, 8,749, down 44 percent from January 2011.

Crude oil tops $102

NEW YORK, Feb. 16 (UPI) -- Crude oil prices topped $102 per barrel Thursday on basic supply and demand dynamics.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Wednesday that U.S. supplies declined slightly in the week, falling by 200,000 barrels of oil to 339.1 million and remain in the upper limit of the average range for this time of year. On Thursday, demand appeared as equities turned higher on news that first-time jobless benefit claims, at 348,000 in the week, were lower they have been since 2008.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet, West Texas Intermediate crude added 52 cents to $102.28 per barrel. Home heating oil gave up 0.48 cents to $3.2049 per gallon. Reformulated gasoline shed 0.91 cents to $3.038 per gallon.

Henry Hub natural gas prices lost 1.5 cents to $2.552 per million British thermal units.

At the pump, the national average price of unleaded gasoline climbed to $3.523 per gallon Thursday from Wednesday's $3.518, AAA said.