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U.S. Stocks Advance as Health-Care Companies, Banks Lead Rally U.S. stocks rose, reversing earlier losses, as Citigroup Inc. and Zions Bancorporation led a bank rally and investors speculated that health-care reform will be harder to pass.

New Jersey Governor Christie May Privatize State Jobs (Update1) New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said he may privatize some state jobs in 2011, as he struggles to close an $11 billion budget deficit amid rising costs for employee salaries and benefits.

Toyota Seeks to Regain Most of Lost U.S. Market Share (Update1) Toyota Motor Corp. set a 2010 goal of regaining most of the U.S. market share lost in the past two months after global recalls of 8 million vehicles damped demand, the No. 2 U.S. sales executive said.

KKR Leads $235 Million Debt Refinancing for Harden Healthcare KKR & Co., the private-equity firm run by Henry Kravis and George Roberts that’s expanding its investments outside traditional buyouts, led a $235 million refinancing for Harden Healthcare LLC.

Natural Gas Drops Near 16-Week Low Ample Supply, Mild Weather Natural gas futures fell to the lowest price in almost 16 weeks after a government report showed supplies of the fuel will be ample during milder-than-normal weather at the end of the heating season.

California Lifts Tax-Exempt Bond Sale to $2.5 Billion (Update1) California boosted the size of its debt sale to $2.5 billion, adding $500 million to its first issue of tax-exempt bonds since November after individuals placed orders for more than half the securities initially marketed, according to two people who have seen the offering information.

Bond Spreads at Narrowest This Year Lure GMAC: Credit Markets Corporate bond yields fell to the lowest this year relative to benchmark government securities, luring GMAC Inc. to sell its longest-maturity notes since 2004.

Obama Designates 10 Charities to Share in Nobel Award Money President Barack Obama has designated 10 charities, including those that serve students and veterans to get portions of his $1.4 million Nobel Peace Prize award, the White House announced.

U.S. Stocks Advance After Senate Ruling on Health-Care Reform U.S. stocks rose, reversing earlier losses, after a Senate parliamentarian made it harder for Democrats to use a process known as reconciliation to bypass Republican opposition to health-care reform.

Virgin Money Chairman Brian Pitman Dies After Heart Attack Virgin Money Holdings U.K. Ltd. Chairman Brian Pitman died this morning after a heart attack.

U.S. Economy: Trade Deficit Unexpectedly Shrinks (Update2) The trade deficit in the U.S. unexpectedly narrowed in January as imports fell for the first time in five months, indicating demand is cooling following the fastest pace of growth in six years.

Calpers May Challenge Apple, BlackRock on Election of Directors The California Public Employees’ Retirement System, the biggest state-run U.S. public pension, may use its financial clout to force Apple Inc., BlackRock Inc. and other companies where it has large holdings to change the way they elect directors.

House, Senate Leaders Agree on Most of Health Bill (Update2) House and Senate leaders have agreed on most elements of legislation needed to push forward President Barack Obama’s proposed overhaul of the U.S. health- care system, top House Democrats said.

Ecuador Tax Reform May Generate $600 Million in 2010, Cely Says Ecuador’s proposed corporate tax reform may generate $600 million in new investments this year as companies take advantage of incentives to reinvest profits, said Nathalie Cely, the nation’s production minister.

Home Equity Lending That Fueled Spending to Recover (Update1) John Hale’s four-bedroom house near Seattle is worth about $2 million and is 90 percent paid for. It still took him nine months to find a bank that would give him a $250,000 home equity line of credit.

India’s Stalled Arms Buying Leaves Its Army Outgunned by China India, which has tripled its defense spending in a race against China’s military buildup, is having trouble converting the funding into weapons and equipment its military says are urgently needed.

Pelosi Staff Said to Be Told of Massa in October (Update2) House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s staff first learned of concerns about the behavior of former New York Representative Eric Massa in October, four months earlier than the speaker previously disclosed, said a Democratic aide who spoke on condition of anonymity.

Pledge of Allegiance in Schools Ruled Constitutional (Update1) Reciting the Pledge of Allegiance with its reference to God in public schools doesn’t violate the U.S. Constitution’s separation of church and state, a federal appeals court ruled.

GMAC Executive Pay Packages Questioned by TARP Panel (Update2) GMAC Inc., the auto and home lender rescued by the U.S. government, may have overpaid its top executives after receiving taxpayer funds, according to a report by the panel overseeing the Troubled Asset Relief Program.

Venezuela Bolivar May Sink as Low as 9, Barclays Says (Update1) Venezuela’s bolivar may fall as low as 9 per dollar in the “worst scenario” as the government refrains from selling U.S. currency in the unregulated market to preserve foreign reserves, Barclays Plc said.

Treasury Yield Curve Near Record Adds to Demand at Bond Auction Treasury 30-year bonds gained as one of the biggest yield premiums over 2-year government securities on record bolstered demand at today’s U.S. auction of $13 billion in bonds.

EIM USA Chief Said to Leave Busson’s Fund of Hedge Funds Antonio Munoz, chief executive officer of EIM USA Inc., left the U.S. arm of Arpad Busson’s $9 billion fund-of-hedge-funds firm, according to two people with knowledge of the move.

GameStop Gains Most in Year on Takeover Speculation (Update1) GameStop Corp., the world’s largest video-game retailer, gained the most in almost a year in New York and trading of its bullish options jumped to a record on speculation that the company will be acquired.

House Republicans Announce They Won’t Seek Earmarks (Update1) House Republicans announced they won’t request any so-called earmarks in an election-year attempt to outdo Democrats in clamping down on the practice of adding money for pet projects to legislation.

Iraq Contender Raises Suspicion of Tampering Amid First Results As the first results from Iraq’s election showed blocs led by former premier Ayad Allawi and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki leading in their areas of core support, Allawi complained about possible vote-tampering.

Sensata IPO Raises $569 Million at Low End of Range (Update2) Bain Capital LLC’s Sensata Technologies Holding NV sold $569 million of shares at the low end of its price range in the biggest U.S. initial public offering this year.

United’s Bonds Jump Most of 2009 Airline Issues as Travel Rises Bonds issued last year by U.S. carriers including UAL Corp.’s United Airlines and Delta Air Lines Inc. are all trading at or above par for the first time amid improving demand as business travel returns, according to RBS Securities Inc.

U.S. 30-Year Bond Rises as Sale Draws Lower Than Forecast Yield Treasuries rose after the U.S. sold $13 billion of 30-year debt, the final of three note and bond auctions this week totaling $74 billion. The difference in yield between 2- and 30-year debt was near the highest on record.

Foreclosure Filings Rise at Slowest Pace in 4 Years (Update1) U.S. foreclosure filings rose at the slowest pace in four years in February as the government sought to reduce record bank seizures, RealtyTrac Inc. said.

U.S. Household Worth Rose at Slower Pace Last Quarter (Update2) Household wealth in the U.S. grew in the fourth quarter at a slower pace, limited by a drop in home values that indicates the recovery in consumer spending will take time to gain speed.

Fannie Mae Sells Largest Benchmark Debt in a Year (Update1) Fannie Mae sold $6 billion of debt, its biggest offering of benchmark notes in almost a year, as the company boosts borrowing and cuts holdings to fund about $130 billion of planned purchases of delinquent loans from the mortgage securities it guarantees.

Toning Shoes May Find Untapped Market in Men, NPD Data Find Skechers USA Inc. and other makers of toning and shaping shoes may be poised for faster sales growth if they can figure out how to lure men.

Obama’s $79 Billion Tech Plan May Favor Web Programs (Update1) Vivek Kundra, the Obama official with $79 billion to spend on technology, said the government can be more efficient by putting programs on the Web, paving the way for companies like Microsoft Corp. and Google Inc. to win business.

Airline Loss Estimate Cut by 50% as Demand Rebounds (Update3) Airlines worldwide will lose a collective $2.8 billion in 2010, half the previous forecast, as emerging markets lead a rebound in traffic, the International Air Transport Association said.

Quake Shakes Pinera’s Plan to Spur Chilean Economy (Update2) Sebastian Pinera was inaugurated as Chile’s president today minutes after powerful earthquakes shook buildings in Santiago and Valparaiso, stirring memories of last month’s devastating 8.8-magnitude temblor.

University of Southern California Names New President (Update1) The University of Southern California, the largest private institution of higher learning on the U.S. West Coast, named Provost C.L. Max Nikias its next president, succeeding Steven Sample.

Curbs on Media, Internet Rise Worldwide, U.S. Says (Update1) Crackdowns on the media and on Internet use rose last year in China, Iran, Russia and other nations in an effort by governments to clamp down on dissent, according to the annual U.S. report on human rights.

Hedge Fund-Backed Farm Group Tejar Weighs U.S. IPO (Update2) El Tejar SA, Argentina’s largest agricultural producer, is weighing an initial public offering in New York to tap rising investor demand for farming assets.

Goldman Sachs Hedge Fund Head Flamand Said to Start Own Firm Pierre-Henri Flamand, the head of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s largest internal hedge fund, is retiring from the world’s most profitable securities firm to start a hedge fund, according to three people with knowledge of his plans.

New York Times Won’t Be Sold or Split, Chairman Says (Update1) New York Times Co. won’t be sold or split apart and the company is “delighted” to have billionaire Carlos Slim as an investor, Chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. said.