Business Highlights

The Associated Press

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US economy adds 80,000 jobs in another weak month

WASHINGTON ⿿ The American job machine has jammed. Again.

The economy added only 80,000 jobs in June, the government said Friday, erasing any doubt that the United States is in a summer slump for the third year in a row.

It was the third consecutive month of weak job growth. From April through June, the economy produced an average of just 75,000 jobs a month, the weakest quarter since July through September 2010.

The unemployment rate stayed at 8.2 percent ⿿ a recession-level figure, even though the Great Recession has technically been over for three years.

The numbers could hurt President Barack Obama's odds for re-election.

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Get ready for the end of record corporate profits

NEW YORK ⿿ For almost three years, no matter what has rattled the financial markets ⿿ a debt crisis in Europe, high gasoline prices, a slower economy ⿿ investors have been soothed by rising corporate profits.

The storyline became as predictable as a soap opera's. But when the latest round of corporate earnings starts rolling in next week, look for a twist: Profits are expected to fall.

Stock analysts expect earnings for companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 index to decline 1 percent for April through June compared with the year before, according to S&P Capital IQ, the research arm of S&P.

That would break a streak of 10 quarters of gains that started in the final quarter of 2009.

Over recent weeks, a motley collection of chain stores, steel producers and technology titans have warned of slowing profits. They all point to similar culprits ⿿ flagging sales to Europe and slower economic growth in China.

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Yahoo, Facebook settle patent dispute, ad alliance

SAN FRANCISCO ⿿ Facebook and Yahoo have agreed to settle a patent dispute, averting a potentially lengthy battle over the technology running two of the Internet's most popular destinations.

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