Stocks Turn Mixed

Stocks finished mixed to close out one of the best months in years. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 17.15 points, but couldn't move over the 9,200 mark. The tech-heavy Nasdaq fell lower during afternoon trading. Market watchers are expecting the S&P to hit 1,000 any day now, but the increase may be met with volatility as traders collect profits. Today's morning advance was helped by a fairly positive GDP report and news that a popular government program to boost auto sales may get more funding. Investors chose to look beyond a dip in consumer spending and the revised reading on first-quarter GDP, which showed a 6.4% slide. Shares of Walt Disney Co. declined after the media company reported lower quarterly profit . U.S. light crude oil for September delivery rose $2.39 to $69.33 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The dollar slumped to the lowest level of the year .

 Capping off the Week

The highly anticipated GDP report was released today. The second quarter saw a much slower real GDP decline, an indication that the economy has hit bottom and is ready to grow. Although the nation's economy improved, the $787 billion stimulus has yet to really boost GDP. As we all know, a lot of the recovery depends on consumers and they are still not convinced that the worst is over.

The Beginning of the End of the Recession?

Video - GDP Falls in Q2: Recession Over?

After months of debate, the United States has finally reached an agreement with UBS regarding its tax evasion probe. With all this fuss over offshore tax evasion, how often does it actually occur ?

Video - Deal Between U.S. and UBS

A timeline of the tax evasion probe against Swiss bank UBS

Wall Street executives better enjoy those fat checks while they can. Government regulators are on a mission to place limits on the amount of money they can receive and they have already won the approval of the House. It may be outrageous, but Wall Street pay didn't cause this crisis .

The Washington Post moved back to black because of its education and cable television units. The newspaper division posted a loss of $89 million in the second quarter. I guess it's safe to say that the publications are not flying off the shelves.

Chevron met a similar fate as Exxon Mobil and watched second-quarter income plunge 71% . The company was still able to rake in $1.75 billion, but remember this is a company that made $5.98 billion during the same period last year .

As the global economy recovers from the current downturn, there is a significant risk that we may be headed for another oil shock .

Other Juicy Tidbits

The 'cash for clunkers' program has consumers and dealerships boiling mad at the government. First, the EPA changed the fuel efficiency requirements and then the program was briefly running on empty. Car dealerships appreciate the extra business , but the excessive paperwork is starting to outweigh the benefits. If the Senate doesn't approve an additional $2B in funding, this program may be over only a week after getting started .

In an effort to shed its dowdiness, J.C. Penney has set up shop in Manhattan. High-end retailers have been ruling the scene in Herald Square for some time now, but the downturn in the economy has made a way for other "pocket friendly retailers."

Google (still) loves YouTube! The video-sharing site loses money and has failed to attract quality studio programming. So why does Google continue to pump money into it?

President Obama's beer summit has sparked a lot of debate outside of race. Does business plus booze really equal productivity ?

Steve Ballmer just can't keep his mouth shut . Is he trying to ruin all the goodwill the rest of the company has created?

The government is spending more than it's bringing in. A lot more! The result is a deficit. Here's why that gap must be brought under control.

iPhone junkies don't freak out just yet. Apple announced that it has resolved the security flaw with its popular smartphone device.