Morning Business Report: What to expect for your Fourth of July weekend travel

If you’re travelling this Fourth of July weekend, prepare to encounter packed highways. On the bright side, gasoline prices are cheaper this year. This time last year, the national average price of gas was $4.87 per gallon. Now, AAA says it’s down to $3.55 per gallon.

Aspartame, one of the most common artificial sweeteners in the world, may be detrimental to your health. Next month, the World Health Organization will declare aspartame a possible carcinogen. It’s 200 times sweeter than table sugar and can be found in a wide variety of products, including Coca-Cola diet sodas, sugar-free Ricola cough drops and certain sugar-free Extra chewing gum. It’s also sold as a tabletop sweetener under the brand names equal, NutraSweet and Sugar Twin.

Stocks climbed Thursday on better than expected economic growth.
The DOW jumped 269 points.

Southwest Pilots’ Union is laying the groundwork for a potential strike. The pilots asked to be freed from federal mediation, a sign they don’t believe progress is being made.

When struggling financially it can be difficult to ask for help. A survey found that 36% of respondents, particularly female respondents, would have a hard time reaching out. The average respondent reported that they would rather give a public speech than ask to borrow a large amount of money from a loved one. The survey was conducted by OnePoll on behalf of AmeriLife for National Financial Freedom Day.