In brief: Twitter stock drops after revenue, outlook miss

NEW YORK – Twitter’s stock dropped sharply as the company’s revenue and outlook fell short of expectations at a time investors are looking for stronger advertising growth to make up for less-than-stellar user numbers.

Twitter’s adjusted earnings for the first quarter topped Wall Street estimates but revenue fell short of expectations and of Twitter’s own guidance.

The company posted a loss of $162 million, or 25 cents per share, in the January-March period. That compares with a loss of $132 million, or 23 cents per share, a year earlier. Adjusted earnings were 7 cents per share. Analysts polled by FactSet were expecting 4 cents.

Drop in consumer confidence tied to sense of job market

WASHINGTON – U.S. consumer confidence fell this month to the lowest level in four months, knocked down by a slowdown in hiring.

The Conference Board said its consumer confidence index fell to 95.2 in April from 101.4 in March, the lowest reading since December’s 93.1.

Lynn Franco, the Conference Board’s director of economic indicators, blamed “the recent lackluster performance of the labor market.”

Human antibiotics in chicken to stop by 2017, Tyson says

Tyson Foods Inc., one of the world’s largest meat producers, said Tuesday it plans to eliminate the use of human antibiotics in its chickens by 2017.

The Springdale, Arkansas-based company joins companies including McDonald’s Corp. and poultry rival Perdue Farms in announcing the phase-out or elimination of human antibiotics in the face of pressure from consumer groups and regulators.

In 2013, the Food and Drug Administration issued a voluntary order to livestock and poultry producers to limit their use of antibiotics to induce faster growth in their animals and to treat sick animals. Farms consume about 80 percent of the nation’s antibiotic supply, resulting in the growth of drug-resistant superbugs, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

EU to require cars to have automatic emergency calling

BRUSSELS – All new vehicles in the European Union will have to be fitted as of 2018 with a system that automatically calls the emergency services in case of an accident.

EU lawmakers on Tuesday decided to make the eCall system mandatory for all new cars and light-duty vehicles sold in the 28-nation bloc.

Sensors in the car automatically transmit its location, the exact time and direction it was headed in.