The Des Moines Business Record will honor 10 women who have made outstanding contributions to the community in a variety of areas from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Des Moines Marriott Downtown on Aug. 11. Cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and networking opportunities are included in the $25 cost for individuals or $200 for a table of 10. For a complete list of Women of Influence award winners and registration information, click here. Cost of individual tickets corrected at 12:35 p.m. Aug. 3

The National Automobile Dealers Association has advised its members to suspend deals under the Cash for Clunkers program until more is known about its fate, CNNMoney.com reported. The program, which provides vouchers worth $3,500 to $4,500 on trade-in vehicles, ran out of money in its first week. The House of Representatives has approved an additional $2 billion, but the Senate has yet to act on the proposal. Click here for related story.

U.S. manufacturing shrank less than forecast in July, spurred by gains in orders, production and exports that added to signs that factory output is stabilizing. The Institute for Supply Management’s factory gauge rose to 48.9, an 11-month high, from 44.8 in June, Bloomberg reported after the group released its monthly report. Readings less than 50 signal a contraction. The measure is recovering from a low of 32.9 in December. Economists had forecast the index would rise to 46.5, according to the median of 77 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey.

U.S. stocks were rising this morning, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 index above 1,000 for the first time since November on growing speculation the recession may be ending and an unexpected profit at Europe’s biggest bank. Oil and metals advanced, while U.S. Treasury securities fell. Equities extended gains as reports on manufacturing and construction spending topped forecasts. Bank of America Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. rallied after HSBC Holdings plc reported first-half net income of $3.35 billion as earnings from its securities unit doubled. Ford Motor Co. stock jumped 8.8 percent after a government incentive program helped the company achieve its first monthly U.S. sales increase since 2007. The S&P 500 added 1.4 percent to 1,001.55 at 9:32 a.m. Iowa time. The Dow Jones industrial average rallied 113.97 points, or 1.2 percent, to 9,285.58, and the Nasdaq composite index increased 1.1 percent to 2,000.42. The S&P 500 topped 1,000 for the first time in nine months after better-than-expected profits helped restore $3.7 trillion to U.S. stock markets since March.