European stocks dipped on Wednesday morning, dragged by lingering concerns over the borrowing costs of Italy and Spain, but gains in defensive sectors such as utilities and healthcare helped limit the losses.

China's annual economic growth could fall below 7 percent in the second quarter if weak activity persists in June, an influential government adviser was quoted on Wednesday as saying.

"GDP growth in the second quarter could fall below 7 percent if there is no significant improvements in economic data for June," the overseas edition of the People's Daily quoted Zheng Xinli, deputy head of the China Center for International Economic Exchanges (CCIEE), a top government think-tank, as saying.

Investors expected a raft of macro data, including May retail sales, due at 1230 GMT, as well as the Producer Price Index, also due at 1230 GMT.

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) said it expects to complete its $19.7 billion purchase of Swiss medical device maker Synthes on Thursday and that the deal will slightly boost company profit this year, rather than being a moderate drag on earnings as previously expected.

Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) expects to reduce its long-term debt by about $40 billion in the second quarter, eliminating interest expense of $230 million per quarter, Chief Financial Officer Bruce Thompson said.

Dell Inc (DELL.O) aims to raise its target on dividends and share buybacks to 20 to 35 percent of free cash flow, saying its corporate software and services business is on track to grow by an average of 10 percent annually until fiscal 2016.

Casey's General Stores (CASY.O) reported quarterly earnings that missed Wall Street estimates on lower gasoline margins and higher operating expenses, sending its shares down as much as 5 percent after the bell.

JPMorgan Chief Executive Jamie Dimon will tell lawmakers that the bank's recent multibillion-dollar trading loss occurred because poorly managed traders embarked in January on a misguided hedging strategy they did not fully understand.

His written testimony prepared for a hearing on Wednesday gives a few more details about what went wrong, and what the nation's largest bank by assets plans to do about it.

Verizon Wireless is undertaking a massive overhaul of its prices by raising fees for data services like mobile web surfing while offering unlimited calls and texts, as it aims to increase data revenue and protect its older business lines.

Social networking website LinkedIn Corp (LNKD.N) said it will provide an additional layer of online security to its members following last week's data breach, while adding that stolen passwords were not published with corresponding email logins.

An experimental Merck & Co (MRK.N) insomnia drug significantly reduced the time it took patients to fall asleep and helped them stay asleep longer, according to data from a pair of pivotal late-stage studies.

Concerns that Detroit may miss a payment due Friday on its pension debt led Fitch Ratings to lower the city's already junk-level ratings into the C category on Tuesday, denoting a higher chance of default.

U.S. stocks took their cues from Europe's troubled debt markets on Tuesday, staging a comeback rally to end up more than 1 percent as Spanish bond yields came off euro-era record highs.

For the day the Dow Jones industrial average .DJI gained 162.57 points, or 1.31 percent, to 12,573.80. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX rose 15.25 points, or 1.17 percent, to 1,324.18. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC added 33.34 points, or 1.19 percent, to 2,843.07.

(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Adrian Croft)

• A Permanent Economic Emergency