US auto sales declines show signs of stability
DETROIT (AP) -- U.S. car and
truck sales showed signs of stabilizing in June after a year of sharp declines,
but every major automaker except Honda Motor Co. reported lower sales than in
May.
Still, year-over-year
declines last month slowed for four of the six major carmakers, with Ford Motor
Co. reporting the smallest drop in a year at 10.7 percent when compared with
June of 2008.
Even Chrysler, which emerged
from bankruptcy protection early in June, saw its year-over-year sales decline
shrink, and analysts say that's among the signs that an auto industry slump
that began with $4 per gallon gasoline last summer could be leveling off.
Manufacturing data boosts
hopes of recession end
WASHINGTON (AP) -- Brighter
news on manufacturing is offering more hope that the longest recession since
World War II is near an end. But with construction and many other segments of
the economy still weak and unemployment rising, any rebound likely will be
slow.
A key gauge of manufacturing
showed Wednesday that industry activity declined less than expected in June.
The Institute of Supply Management's manufacturing index posted a 44.8 -- the
best showing since last August, a month before the financial crisis erupted
with force.
Home prices post 18.1
percent annual drop in April
NEW YORK (AP) -- Newfound
signs of stability in the housing market could still be threatened by rising
foreclosures and slow efforts to stop them, according to two reports released
Tuesday.
The Standard &
Poor's/Case-Shiller index of 20 major cities showed the smallest monthly
decline since June 2008. The index tumbled by 18 percent in April from the year
before, but for the third month in a row it was not a record decline. Yearly
losses in 13 metros improved compared to March.
Stocks advance after mixed
data; Jobs report looms
NEW YORK (AP) -- The stock
market's third quarter began on a positive note Wednesday after some reassuring
data on manufacturing and the housing market.
The gains were tempered,
though, ahead of Thursday's June jobs report.
The Labor Department is
expected to show another uptick in the unemployment rate to 9.6 percent.
Growing unemployment has been keeping investors nervous about consumer spending
-- a major driver of growth.
After a drop in consumer
confidence triggered a stock sell-off Tuesday, the Dow Jones industrial average
rebounded Wednesday by 0.7 percent to 8,504.06. Other indexes made moderate
advances as well.
Gov't won't fund GM after
July 10, official says
NEW YORK (AP) -- A senior
member of President Barack Obama's auto task force testified Wednesday that the
U.S. government will not continue to fund General Motors Corp.'s operations if
the automaker doesn't get approval to sell its assets to a new company within
the next 10 days.
The No. 1 U.S. automaker's
government-backed plan for a quick exit from Chapter 11 hinges on the sale
plan, which would allow it to leave behind many of the costs and liabilities
that have made the company unprofitable in the past.
The Detroit-based automaker,
whose June 1 filing for bankruptcy protection was the fourth-largest in U.S.
history, is hoping to avoid a lengthy court battle over the sale.
Dow Chemical to close 3
Louisiana plants
NEW YORK (AP) -- Dow
Chemical Co. said Wednesday it will close three Louisiana plants as part of a
shift away from basic chemicals toward the lucrative business of specialty
chemicals.
The shuttering comes as part
of a massive plan to cut costs after Dow bought rival Rohm & Haas in April
for more than $16 billion, a deal that added massive amounts of debt to its
balance sheet.
Dow expects to take a $700
million second-quarter charge as part of Wednesday's announcement, but expects
the closings will save about $100 million a year.
General Mills: 2010 profit
to rise, costs to slow
MILWAUKEE (AP) -- General
Mills Inc. reported Wednesday that its fiscal fourth-quarter profit beat
estimates as sales of top brands like Cheerios rose while consumers continued
eating at home.
The food maker offered a
2010 outlook above estimates as it said it expects sales to keep rising and
ingredient costs to continue moderating -- a reversal from the past few years,
when costs for commodities like corn reached record highs.
Consumers have been pulling
back on their spending at restaurants during the recession and heading to
grocery stores. That trend is helping sales for Golden Valley, Minn.-based
General Mills, though many consumers also are switching to less expensive
in-house brands once they get to the store.
SEC approves rule on pay
disclosure for TARP firms
WASHINGTON (AP) -- The
Securities and Exchange Commission on Wednesday unanimously approved rules
requiring greater transparency for executive compensation at bailed-out firms
and all public companies.
In an open meeting, the
panel voted 5-0 for a rule requiring firms that received government bailouts to
let shareholders vote on executive pay. The SEC also voted to make all public
companies give shareholders more information about pay policies, risk
management and corporate governance.
Congress mandated the rule
for participants in the Troubled Asset Relief Program, the $700 billion
financial bailout. Known as "say-on-pay," it gives shareholders the
opportunity to vote on companies' compensation practices, although the votes
can be nonbinding.
Oil prices decline despite
falling supply
NEW YORK (AP) -- Oil prices
fell Wednesday despite another decline in crude supply, with lingering doubts
about whether people and businesses will be using more energy anytime soon.
Crude supplies have fallen
in seven out of the past eight weeks, according to a government report
Wednesday.
Benchmark crude for August
delivery fell 58 cents to settle at $69.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile
Exchange with one trading day left in a holiday-shortened week. In London,
Brent prices lost 51 cents to settle at $68.79 a barrel on the ICE Futures
exchange.
All major fuel futures fell
on Nymex Wednesday, and gasoline led the way. Average retail gasoline prices
have now fallen for 10 straight days.
Attorney says Stanford exec
makes plea deal
HOUSTON (AP) -- The former
chief financial officer of indicted Texas financier R. Allen Stanford's
business empire will plead guilty to charges alleging he helped swindle
investors out of $7 billion, his attorney said Wednesday.
James M. Davis, 60, Stanford
Financial Group's ex-chief financial officer, reached a deal with prosecutors
in which he'll plead guilty to three counts he faces as part of the federal
government's criminal case against the Texas financier, attorney David Finn
said.
Davis is set to make his
initial court appearance in Houston on July 13. Finn said Davis will not enter
his guilty plea until a later court hearing.
By The Associated Press
The Dow rose 57.06, or 0.7
percent, to 8,504.06.
The Standard & Poor's
500 index rose 4.01, or 0.4 percent, to 923.33. The Nasdaq composite index rose
10.68, or 0.6 percent, to 1,845.72.
Benchmark crude for August
delivery fell 58 cents to settle at $69.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile
Exchange. In London, Brent prices lost 51 cents to settle at $68.79 a barrel on
the ICE Futures exchange.
In other Nymex trading,
gasoline futures fell 4.3 cents to settle at $1.859 a gallon and heating oil
for August delivery fell 2.2 to settle at $1.7657 a gallon. Natural gas for
August delivery lost 4 cents to settle at $3.795 per 1,000 cubic feet.