Domestic airfares rise more than 4% in quarter

Average domestic airfares rose 4.4 percent in the first quarter of 2008 vs. the same period a year ago, the government said yesterday in an analysis that was based on a small sample of itineraries and excluded some high-priced destinations. The Department of Transportation's Bureau of Transportation Statistics said its first-quarter numbers represented the largest year-to-year increase in average domestic airfares since the second quarter of 2006. The average airfare in Pittsburgh was $305, a drop of 23 1/2 percent since the 1995 first quarter. The average domestic fare in the first quarter was $332, the agency said.

Allegheny Technologies' earnings fall 18 percent

Allegheny Technologies reported second-quarter profits of $168.9 million, down 18 percent from year-ago levels but in line with the revised forecast the specialty metals producer issued July 14. The profit amounted to $1.66 per diluted share and compares with earnings of $206.5 million, or $2 per diluted share, in last year's second quarter. Sales fell less than 1 percent to $1.46 billion. The company, which posted first-half earnings of $3.06 per diluted share, expects to earn $5.80 to $6.10 per share for all of 2008. Allegheny Technologies earned a record $7.26 per share in 2007.

Michael Baker profits jump fourfold in quarter

Michael Baker Corp. reported a fourfold increase in first-quarter profits, citing the strong performance of its engineering unit. Net income totaled $6.1 million, or 69 cents per diluted share, vs. restated earnings of $1.6 million, or 18 cents, for the year-ago quarter. Revenue increased 3 percent to $174.9 million while the Moon engineering and energy services company's backlog of work was $1.31 billion at March 31, flat with year-end levels.

Generic drug rivalries a drag on Glaxo profits

GlaxoSmithKline PLC posted a 3 percent drop in second-quarter profit, after strong competition from generic drugs outweighed asset sales and the cost-saving effects of job cuts. Glaxo said net income fell to $2.6 billion. Revenue rose 3.5 percent to $11.8 billion from a year ago. The company's consumer health-care unit is in Moon.

Also in business ...

U.S. Steel is expected to dedicate today a new training center for its Mon Valley Works employees on the site of its former Duquesne Works ... Atlas Energy Resources LLC increased its distribution by 2 cents per common unit to 61 cents, payable Aug. 14 to holders of record Aug. 6.