. >> reporter: i'm diane eastabrook in orion township, michigan. still ahead, i'll tell you how general motors plans to make money selling this small car with help from the u.a.w. >> susie: can you say $1,630 an ounce? that's the new record for gold prices set today, before the precious metals encountered selling. in new york trading, gold futures lost $2 to settle at $1,617 an ounce. but, as suzanne pratt reports, gold prices could continue to shine on. >> reporter: at morningstar's jewelers and pawnbrokers in hollywood, florida, business is sparkling. but, it's business from customers looking to sell or pawn their gold. far fewer want to buy it, at least not the wearable kind. owner louis morningstar says the surging price of precious metals is a big temptation. >> they come to us as a bank. the banks aren't loaning money-- especially small loans. people come in here with their gold and their silver and walk out with several hundred or several thousand dollars. whether in florida or here in manhattan's famed jewelry district, people are looking t

. >> reporter: i'm diane eastabrook in chicago. still ahead, the government is raising vehicle fuel economy standards, but the question is, will automakers be able to meet those higher standards by the year 2025? >> susie: now to today's other top story. the u.s. economy stumbled badly in the second quarter, raising the risk of another recession. the nation's g.d.p. expanded at an anemic annual rate of 1.3% in the april through june period, much slower than expected. and as suzanne pratt reports, experts are now concerned about the recovery in the final months of this year. >> reporter: stuck in the mud. a snail's pace. or how about flat-lining? all are perfect metaphors for the state of the economy. it's bad enough that g.d.p. limped to annual rate of 1.3% in the second quarter, but today the government revised its previous first-quarter estimate down to a paltry 0.4%. on top of that, the government said today the great recession was even worse than originally thought. economist milton ezrati calls it a depressing snapshot. >> wel

as diane eastabrook reports the dilemma is forcing many firms to come up with new ways to attract and keep top talent. >> reporter: back in the good old days of appreciating home values, it was easier to take a new job in a new city, but not anymore. with home values tanking, many workers are thinking twice about relocating. tierney remick, global managing director for executive recruitment firm korn ferry international, says the housing crisis is creating a big challenge for corporate america. she says most firms no longer buy homes from relocating executives, so many execs are rejecting job offers if they don't think their homes will sell. that's forcing employers to get creative. >> they will, essentially, try to find a financial solution that could include a signing bonus, it could include a bridge loan, it could include temporary housing combined with some form of relocation assistance to help with the transition from one city to the next. housing isn't simply a problem for companies recruiting new hires; it's also a problem for companies transferring existing employees from one

diane eastabrook explains. >> reporter: it took three months to plug the gushing macondo well, but the crackdown on the oil industry that resulted from the disaster could last for years. the obama administration toughened regulations for deep- water drilling and dismissed inspectors considered too chummy with oil companies. fadel gheit, managing director for oppenheimer, says replacing those inspectors has been difficult and that's slowing the permit process. >> these are people who have engineering and science backgrounds to look at a structure in the middle of the water and decide whether it is sound, safe and meets all government regulations. >> reporter: since the president lifted the moratorium on deep water drilling last october, oil companies have applied for 28 permits in the deep waters of the gulf. so far only 11 have been approved. while gheit says some companies are exploring other regions like brazil and malaysia, he thinks the gulf will still attract drillers. >> the deep-water gulf of mexico, at the current oil and gas prices, is the most profitable area on the face of t

but as diane eastabrook reports, they could have trouble repeating that performance in the coming months. >> reporter: since the beginning of the year, business and leisure travelers have been shrugging off the sour economy and flying the friendly skies. through april, the number of u.s. airline passengers increased a little less than 2% versus the same period a year ago. and thanks to several fare hikes, airlines made more money, too. revenue passenger miles, a key metric that shows the number of miles flown by paying passengers, jumped 2.5%. but getting passengers to pony up more to fly is getting harder. fitch rating analyst bill warlick says more recent attempts to raise fares have fallen flat with consumers >> i think we're reaching a point where fare traction is slipping. with the consumer under pressure and business demand still somewhat weak, the fare environment clearly isn't strong enough to support multiple fare increases. >> reporter: that puts airlines in a very precarious position heading into the fall, when travel usually tapers off. american, united-continental, and u.s.

diane eastabrook, "nightly business report," forest park, illinois. >> susie: tomorrow, we'll look at banks from a different angle. kelly king, c.e.o. of b.b. and t. bank, joins us to talk quarterly earnings, growth plans and what he expects from the new consumer financial protection bureau. american airlines calls it the biggest airplane order in history. its parent company, a.m.r., is buying 460 aircraft from both boeing and airbus. the deal is worth more than $38 billion and breaks a.m.r.'s longstanding monopoly with boeing. a.m.r. was also out with its second quarter results today. the company lost $286 million as fuel costs offset higher revenue from ticket prices and fees. >> tom: stocks held on to yesterday's sharp gains as investors digested more earnings. let's get to tonight's "market focus." after the close, focus was on semiconductor maker intel with better-than-expected results. beating the street despite slowing personal computer sales, intel's p.c. chip business grew by double digits, as did sales of chips for mobile devices and computer servers. chief financial officer