NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are mixed in early trading on Wall Street. Twitter, Hess and Pitney Bowes all climbed after beating analysts’ profit forecasts. Bank and health care stocks also rose.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A snapshot of the economy is showing a big rebound in the second quarter of the year. The Commerce Department says the gross domestic product grew at a fast 4 percent annual rate from April through June on the strength of higher consumer and business spending. The increase followed a revised drop of 2.1 percent in the first three months of the year. Consumer spending accelerated to a growth rate of 2.5 percent, double the pace of the first quarter.
WASHINGTON (AP) — A private survey shows that businesses hired at a healthy pace in July, though the job gains slowed from the previous month. Payroll processer ADP says private employers added 218,000 jobs last month, down from 281,000 in June. It was the fourth straight month of job gains above 200,000, a healthy pace that usually is enough to lower the unemployment rate. The figures suggest that the government’s jobs report, to be released Friday, will also show a solid increase.
DETROIT (AP) — Hyundai is recalling its popular Sonata midsize sedan to fix problems with the gear shift levers. The recall covers 883,000 cars from the 2011 through 2014 model years. The Korean automaker says the automatic transmission shift cable can separate from the shift lever. If that happens, the lever may not show the correct gear, increasing the risk of a crash.
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Microsoft is spreading its Cortana digital assistant abroad, starting with China and the U.K. The company says Chinese and British users of Windows Phones will get the voice-recognizing app in an update to Windows Phone 8.1 that will begin rolling out to developers next week. The Chinese version will speak Mandarin and include locally relevant information like air quality reports, while the British version will deliver information about soccer and other items of interest with a British accent.
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