U.S. factories expanded for the third straight month in November, another good sign for the American economy.

The Institute for Supply Management says its manufacturing index came in at 53.2 last month, up from 51.9 in October and highest since June. Anything over 50 signals growth.

New orders and production grew faster in November. Hiring and export orders increased but more slowly than they did in October. Eleven of 18 manufacturing industries reported growth last month, led by petroleum and coal producers.

From October 2015 through February this year, American manufacturing retreated in the face of economic weakness overseas and a strong dollar, which makes U.S. exports more expensive. But factories began to recover as the dollar tumbled during the first half of the year.

The ISM manufacturing index resumed growth in March and has topped 50 for eight of the last nine months.

The Commerce Department reported Tuesday that the U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 3.2 percent from July through September, fastest in two years. The unemployment rate is 4.9 percent, close to what economists consider full employment.

Black Friday deals boost auto sales

Black Friday deals and postelection confidence helped pull November U.S. auto sales out of their recent slump — and increased the chances that 2016 could set a record for new vehicle sales.

Total U.S. sales rose 4 percent for the month to 1.38 million units. That makes it the highest November on record, beating the previous record of 1.32 million set in 2001.

Toyota Division General Manager Bill Fay said the industry may even break last year's sales record of 17.47 million.

General Motors' sales jumped 10 percent over last November. Ford's sales were up 5 percent, while Toyota and Hyundai both saw 4 percent sales increases. Honda's sales were up 6.5 percent and Nissan's sales rose 7.5 percent.

Starbucks CEO to step down

Starbucks says CEO Howard Schultz is stepping down from the coffee chain that he joined more than 30 years ago.

The Seattle-based company announced Thursday that Kevin Johnson will become chief executive as of April 3.

Schultz will become executive chairman on that date to focus on innovation and social impact activities, among other things.

Johnson, currently president and chief operating officer, will take charge of the company's global business and operations. He joined the Starbucks board in 2009 and has spent years at technology companies including 16 years with Microsoft.

THE BOTTOM LINE

$40M Penalty that Princess Cruise Lines will pay after pleading guilty to seven federal charges in an illegal ocean pollution case that involved one ship's use of a so-called magic pipe to divert oily waste into the waters, authorities said Thursday. A plea agreement filed in federal court also requires Carnival Corp., parent company of the Princess line, to submit 78 cruise ships across its eight brands to a five-year environmental compliance program.