U.S. GDP Revised Up

It's small, but we'll take it. On Wednesday, the Commerce Department released its revision of second-quarter gross domestic product. With better data on trade and spending, the department now figures the economy grew 1.7 percent between April and June—a notch up from the previously reported rate of 1.5 percent. Meanwhile, corporate profits continued their aggressive climb. American corporations are making 6.1 percent more profit than at this time last year; after-tax profits have risen 13.3 percent. Wednesday’s news comes as Federal Reserve officials consider whether or not to introduce a new monetary stimulus. A growing economy makes that less likely.