Tuesday morning headlines

Up and down market: Stocks have been bouncing around a pretty limited trading range these past few days. Dow is near the line in early trading.

Cutting back on ads: ABC is reducing the number of commercials in the premiere episodes of its new shows. Another way of keeping viewers tuned in. From the LAT:

The network is eliminating the first commercial break -- which typically occurs about eight minutes into an episode for comedies -- from new prime-time series, including "Cougar Town," "Modern Family" and "The Middle." "You hope the longer you keep them at the start of the show, the more likely they are to stick to it," said Jeff Bader, ABC Entertainment's executive vice president and scheduling chief.

Pushing for transit improvements: The group Mobility 21 has its list of must-do projects, including upgrades to the Long Beach Freeway, construction of a $6 billion subway from downtown to the Westside, and completion of a carpool lane on the northbound 405 Freeway. (Daily News)

Gas prices ease: Just a tad - an average gallon of regular in the L.A. area fell two cents in the last week, according to the government's survey, to $3.138. Prices nationwide are falling much faster.

Drop in SF Valley foreclosures: They fell almost 40 percent last month compared with a year earlier, according to the Valley Economic Research Center at Cal State Northridge. So why aren't economists cheering? (Daily News)

Erin Brockovich returns: The environmental activist is pursuing litigation against Shell Oil for contaminating a Carson housing tract. In some spots, benzene has been detected at 100,000 times the state standard. Shell says it's still conducting tests. (Daily Breeze)

Still with Stanley Chais?: CA AG Jerry Brown should come up with new material. He writes on the HuffPost about the Bev Hills money man who fed investment money to Bernie Madoff - not exactly ground-breaking stuff. (Another reminder of how indiscriminate the HuffPost can be when the big names come a calling.)

Lacter on radio: This morning's business chat with KPCC's Steve Julian looks at the local impact of President Obama's new missile strategy and why defense companies keep everyone in the dark. Also on kpcc.org and on podcast.