Thursday morning headlines

Stocks bouncing around: The Dow opened higher on decent economic news, then slid into the red, and is now up by about 20 points.

Jobless claims tumble: Weekly filings plunged by 50,000, to 352,000, the lowest level in almost four years. Keep in mind that volatility around this time of year is typical, though clearly this is good news. (AP)

Benign inflation: L.A.-area prices actually fell 0.5 percent in December and were up a modest 2.2 percent for all of 2011. But gasoline was up almost 24 percent, the highest increase in 31 years. Food prices were also quite high. (OC Register)

Kodak files Chapter 11: Sad turn for one of great names in American business. The company simply has not been able to adjust to a digital world. From DealBook:

Citigroup is providing Kodak with $950 million in financing to allow the company to keep going. Kodak plans to continue operating normally during bankruptcy. The company will also seek to continue selling a portfolio of 1,100 digital imaging patents to raise cash for its loss-making operations.

B of A back in the black: The struggling company reported a $2-billion profit in the fourth quarter, though some of that is the result of selling its stake in a Chinese bank. (AP)

Big lease for Port of Long Beach: Deal is being finalized with OOCL, a major cargo shipping company based in Hong Kong, that would set in motion a huge terminal upgrade and expansion, known as the Middle Harbor project. From the LAT:

Observers said the announcement could not have come at a better time for the port, which ranks second only to the neighboring Port of Los Angeles in the number of cargo containers it handles. It comes after a down year for cargo at the port after it lost a tenant that decided not to wait for the completion of the Middle Harbor project, which updates and expands a pair of old terminals and piers. The Hyundai shipping line and its California United Terminals were the other players who were supposed to benefit from the site upgrade, but they moved instead to Los Angeles.

Better outlook for commercial real estate: California's markets for office and industrial space are improving, according to the semiannual Allen Matkins UCLA Anderson Forecast. From the LAT:

The forecast is based on polls of developers and their financiers about their sentiments for the coming three years. Their responses varied by region, with markets where the tech industry is strong showing the most promise. San Francisco and Silicon Valley, tech hotbeds, ought to be the first areas where nonresidential construction is renewed, the report said. In Southern California, some office landlords are finally beginning to see tangible evidence of a recovery taking hold, the report said, as rents and occupancy stabilize in their buildings.

State Supreme Court to review pot rulings: Perhaps we'll get some clarification to the many months of legal decisions on the ability of municipalities to ban medical marijuana dispensaries. The court has agreed to look at four local cases. (Press-Enterprise)

Ticketmaster moves to Facebook: An online store has been launched on the social network site. Besides, Ticketmaster, StubHub, ScoreBig, Eventbrite, and TicketFly are participating. (LAT)