Automakers set to announce June car sales

Automakers, including Ford Motor Co. will announce results for sales in June on Wednesday. George Pipas, the Ford’s U.S. manager for sales analysis will hold a conference call that will stream live on the Internet at 1 p.m. EST and is scheduled to last about 45 minutes. General Motors will hold a conference call at 2 p.m. EST. More information is available on their respective investor relations websites.

Pipa’s, the company's chief sales analyst said Monday the industry as a whole is improving and the annualized sales rate could hit 10 million in June sales this year, up from 9.9 million in May, several surveys noted, according to Bloomberg. He also noted that fewer jobless claims and improved consumer confidence could boost sales, according to Dow Jones Newswires. He also said dealers and brands going out of business likely helped sales figures. Pipas also said Monday that Ford will boost its third-quarter production by 16 percent.

General Mills to release 4Q results after dividend boost

General Mills will release its fourth quarter earnings tomorrow at 8:00 a.m.. The pakcaged food on Monday anounced it will raise its quarterly dividend 9.3 percent even as other companies have been cutting payments.

Sixty-two companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index anounced cuts totalling $46.2 billion in 2009 as of May 15, according to analyst Howard Silverblatt, a senior analyst at S&P, according to Bloomberg. The figure was more than the full year record cut of $40.6 billion in 2008, he said.

Nevada sales tax hike takes effect

Starting on Wednesday, Nevada's new sales tax goes up to 8.1 percent from 7.75 percent.

Ford Motor Company