In the week ending January 17, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial claims for unemployment insurance was 307,000, a decrease of 10,000 from the previous week’s revised level, the Labor Department reported. The four-week moving average was 306,500, an increase of 6,500 from the previous week’s revised average.

The average interest rate for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage is 3.63%, down from 3.66% one week ago, according to Freddie Mac. The average interest rate for a 15-year fixed-rate mortgage is 2.93%, down from 2.98%.

The European Central Bank on Thursday launched its most aggressive effort to date to revive the region’s ailing economy, which sent major U.S. stock indices into positive territory. The Dow closed 259.70 points (1.48%) higher at 17,813.98, the NASDAQ jumped 82.98 points (1.78%) to 4,750.40, and the S&P 500 added 31.03 points (1.53%) to finish at 2,063.15. The Russell 2000 climbed 24.12 points (2.07%) to 1,190.37, and the Wilshire 5000 gained 332.36 points (1.56%) to end at 21,685.03.

On the NYSE, 3.2 billion shares traded, with advancers outnumbering decliners nearly 4 to 1. On the NASDAQ, 2.8 billion shares changed hands, with 2.6 advancing issues for every declining issue.

The price of the 10-year Treasury note slipped 1/32, bringing its yield up to 1.876%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond increased 15/32, decreasing its yield to 2.443%.

ON THIS DATE: In 1849, English-born Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman in America to receive a medical degree. It was from the Medical Institution of Geneva, New York. In 1907, Charles Curtis, of Kansas, began serving in the United States Senate. He was the first American Indian to become a U.S. Senator. He resigned in March of 1929 to become U.S. President Herbert Hoover’s Vice President. In 1922, at Toronto General Hospital, 14-year-old Canadian Leonard Thompson became the first person to receive an insulin injection as treatment for diabetes. In 1957, toy company Wham-O rolled out the first batch of aerodynamic plastic discs known as Frisbees. In 1973, U.S. President Richard Nixon announced that Henry Kissinger and Le Duc Tho, the chief North Vietnamese negotiator, initialled a peace agreement in Paris “to end the war and bring peace with honor in Vietnam and Southeast Asia.” In 1983, the A-Team debuted on NBC. In 1989, surrealist artist Salvador Dali died in Spain at age 84.

And now it’s time for FRIDAY FILES!

In Slaton, Texas, Ira Keys has saved every penny since he was 17 years old—literally. According to KCBD-TV, Keys said it was at that age his father told him, “Whatever you do son, save your money.” Keys said he didn’t have a lot of money back then, so he started saving pennies and has continued to save them.  The 81-year-old recently took his collection—weighing about 500 pounds—to the bank, where it took employees more than an hour to count them. The total was $816.

In Near Eastside, Indiana, a 32-year-old woman lost control of her car and struck a Hardee’s restaurant. She claimed she only drank two be.ers, but a brea.thalyzer registered her blood alc.ohol content at 0.168—twice the legal limit in Indiana. The woman was hired late last year to help run the campaign to repeal Indiana’s ban on Sunday alc.ohol sales at grocery, liq.uor, convenience and drug stores.

In DeBary, Florida, an 83-year-old woman drove herself and her 87-year-old husband to the hospital to be treated for injuries received in a fight—with each other. The husband had bruising and cuts to his left forearm, which he was said were caused by his wife grabbing him and “clawing his arm with her fingernails,” the Daytona Beach News-Journal reports. The wife, listed in court records as at 4 feet 11 inches tall and weighing 88 pounds, according to the news report, had the left side lens of her glasses missing, severe bruising and numerous bloody skin tears to both forearms, an abrasion on her left cheek and bruising on her upper chest near her neck and collarbone. She was charged with battery on a person older than 65—a felony. Both the husband and wife declined to give statements, saying they did not remember the incident or the reason they were arguing.

In Toledo, Ohio, police tried to stop a motorist, but he sped up and led them on a chase. During the pursuit, the man rammed through the gate of a parking lot, which happened to be the parking lot of a prison. He followed the facilities driveway around the perimeter, but it just ended up back in the parking lot. The motorist is facing several charges.

In Aberdeen, Scotland, the oldest woman in the country recently celebrated her 109th birthday. Asked for the secret to her longevity, the woman told the UK’s Daily Mail, “My secret to a long life has been staying away from men. They’re just more trouble than they’re worth.” She added, “I also made sure that I got plenty of exercise, eat a nice warm bowl of porridge every morning and have never gotten married.”

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