U.S. Envoy Killed in Libya (Marketwatch)
Rioters angered by the release of a film they considered insulting to Islam burned down the U.S. consulate in Benghazi, Libya, in an attack late Tuesday that killed J. Christopher Stevens, the U.S. ambassador to the country, and three diplomatic staffers. President Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton condemned the attack and the killings. Secretary will be stepped up at U.S. embassies worldwide in the wake of attack in Libya and an incident in Egypt that involved protestors scaling the walls of the U.S. embassy in Cairo and replacing the American flag with an Islamic banner. The markets rose slightly in this morning’s trading, so the isolated attacks did not seem to unnerve investors.
U.S. Stocks Rise as German Court Clears Way for European Stability Mechanism (Bloomberg)
U.S. stocks rose, sending the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index toward a four-year high, after Germany’s highest constitutional court did not block the country’s ratification of the euro area’s permanent bailout fund. The court’s deicsion removes another potential barrier to the bailout proceeding, said the chief equity strategist at Wells Fargo Advantage Funds in New York. Meanwhile, the U.S. Federal Reserve begins a two-day meeting today amid speculation policy makers will provide more stimulus for the flagging economy.
Wholesale Inventories Rise (Wall Street Journal)
Inventories at U.S. wholesalers rose in July as sales continued to slip, increasing the number of goods sitting in warehouses. Sales for wholesalers fell 0.1% in July to $402.39 billion. Wholesalers account for about one-third of all business inventories in the United States, with manufacturers and retailers making up the rest.
Chesapeake Energy sells shale acreage, pipelines for $6.9 billion (Reuters)
Debt-laden Chesapeake Energy is selling most of its assets in the Permian Basin to Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Chevron Corp, along with most of its remaining infrastructure network. The deal will help Chesapeake Energy retire part of a huge debt load, which was $14.33 billion as of June 30. The company’s market value is roughly $13.37 billion. Chesapeake shares rose nearly 1% to $20.40 in early trading. today As of Tuesday’s close the stock is down 9.8% so far this year.
