NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are little changed in early trading on Wall Street. Analysts say investors aren’t showing much of an appetite for stocks at a time when there are so many international crises, including the conflicts in Iraq, Ukraine and Gaza and the Ebola outbreak in Africa.
WASHINGTON (AP) — New figures show U.S. wholesalers restocking their warehouses at a modest pace for a second straight month. The Commerce Department says wholesale inventories rose 0.3 percent in June, the same as in May. May’s inventory gain was revised down from 0.5 percent. The slowdown in restocking likely reflects weaker wholesale sales. Sales grew just 0.2 percent in June.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Labor Department says U.S. workers were more productive in the April-to-June quarter and labor costs rose slightly. Productivity increased 2.5 percent at a seasonally adjusted annual rate, after plummeting 4.5 percent in the first quarter, which was the steepest drop in 31 years. Productivity measures output per hour of work.
NEW YORK (AP) — McDonald’s says a global sales figure fell 2.5 percent in July, dragged down by persistent weakness in the U.S. and a food safety scandal in China. The world’s biggest hamburger chain says the decline included a 3.2 percent drop in the U.S. and a 7.3 percent drop in the unit encompassing Asia, the Middle East and Africa.
DETROIT (AP) — U.S. safety regulators are investigating two reports of fires in Can-Am Spyder three-wheeled motorcycles. The probe covers about 52,000 motorcycles from the 2008 through 2014 model years. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it will look into what caused the fires. The motorcycles are made by Bombardier (bom-BAR’-deh-ay) Recreational Products of Canada.
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