Business: Modest Upturn

Second-quarter corporate reports last week showed that some industries hardest hit by recession were recovering their earning power. Steel profits were up over the first quarter; secondary companies still in the red were trimming their deficits. Westinghouse Electric reported, along with increased net, that June orders were the highest of the year. Oil companies, squeezed by depressed prices and increased costs, were still showing skidding earnings. But tobaccos were still riding high on price increases and the popularity of filter tips. General Motors, only one of the Big Three to stay in the black for the quarter, thought the worst was...