Afternoon Market Update (EXPE, PCLN, OWW, C, BAC)

Shares of Expedia Inc EXPE gained about 6.34%, along with the broader market. EXPE’s shares have risen more than 15% in the past three months, but the stock is still down about 6% this year. Shares of rival Priceline.com Inc PCLN are also up about 3.87%, while Orbitz Worldwide Inc OWW is up 0.79%. The US financial sector is moving up after the key manufacturing index rose for the first time in four months. The top gainers in the list were Citigroup Inc C and Bank of America Corp BAC. The Financial Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLF) gained about 3.10%. General Motors Co (GM) has reported a 24.9% decline in its US sales to 185,176 vehicles in August, from 246,479 in the year-ago month. Don Johnson, vice president of US sales operations, said, "Last year's Cash for Clunkers program spiked industry sales in 2009, so results this August were not surprisingly a bit mixed." He added, "Importantly, three of our four divisions showed solid gains. This is further evidence that our performance is the result of balanced contributions across our brands." Read more from Benzinga's Markets.