Business news briefs | The Salt Lake Tribune

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Car quality dinged

by tech glitches

Just when automakers had reached their highest-ever levels of quality — as they did in J.D. Power's 2012 survey — technology glitches are dragging their scores down. In its latest survey, J.D. Powers said buyers increasingly want high-tech features such as voice recognition and navigation. But they're not very forgiving of the car company when those systems fail.

FedEX 4Q profit

off 45 percent

FedEx Corp., often viewed as an economic bellwether because of its large and varied customer base, posted net income of $303 million for its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended May 31 — down 45 percent from a year ago. The shipping company said it still is seeing weakness in its priority international air shipments as customers shift to cheaper but slower delivery options.

Banks fall short

aiding borrowers

A new report says homeowners trying to avoid foreclosure still wait too long for their loan modification applications to be reviewed by some of the nation's top mortgage servicers. Joseph A. Smith, the independent monitor of last year's national mortgage settlement, said that although banks are doing a better job complying with new mortgage servicing rules, more needs to be done.

Italian designers

sentenced to jail

A Milan court has convicted the designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana of tax evasion. The pair were found guilty Wednesday of failing to declare $1.3 billion in income to authorities. The court sentenced them both to one year and eight months in jail.

Bluebird shares

soar in debut

Shares of gene therapy developer Bluebird Bio surged in their first say of trading. Its shares climbed $9.91, or 58.3 percent, to close at $26.91 Wednesday after trading as high as $27. The company's initial public offering of 5.94 million shares had been priced Tuesday at $17 per share, above its initial expectations of $14 to $16 per share.

United Technologies

to pay $473 million

United Technologies Corp. said a federal court's order that it pay $473 million to compensate for alleged fraud in subsidiary Pratt & Whitney's sale of fighter jet engines from 1985 to 1990 could cut revenue and profit. The aerospace company said it will appeal.

H&M's 2Q profit

falls 11 percent

Swedish fashion retailer Hennes & Mauritz, which operates three H&M stores along the Wasatch Front, said profits fell by 11 percent in the second quarter because of the strong Swedish krona and increased markdowns. The company said its profit for the March-May period dropped to $720 million from $806 million a year earlier.