IBT Staff Reporter

U.S. stocks broke a six-day winning streak on Wednesday, with the S&P 500 ending a hair lower after the Federal Reserve suggested additional measures may be needed to combat a weakening economy.

Sales at U.S. retailers fell for a second straight month in June and businesses wary of ebbing demand barely raised inventories in May, more evidence the economic recovery has slowed in recent months.

Members of the Federal Reserve felt last month they should be ready to consider additional steps to boost the economy if an already softening economic outlook took a noticeable turn for the worse, a document released on Wednesday showed.

U.S. health advisers said GlaxoSmithKline Plc's diabetes drug Avandia should be allowed to stay on the market in some form, easing a threat of further litigation that could have followed a ban.

U.S. President Barack Obama discussed his efforts to stimulate the economy and create jobs with billionaire U.S. investor Warren Buffett in an Oval Office meeting on Wednesday, a White House official said.

Yum Brands Inc expects higher labor and commodity costs in the restaurant operator's key China market in the second half of 2010, company executives said on Wednesday.

Stocks weakened on Wednesday after the Federal Reserve's policy makers said the central bank should be ready to consider additional steps to boost the economy if a softening outlook takes a turn for the worse.

University of Queensland's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) will produce antibodies for the animal virus Hendra under an accord with Queensland Health and an American foundation.

A majority of health advisers said GlaxoSmithKline Plc's diabetes drug Avandia did not raise a concern about the risk of death when compared with other diabetes drugs.

U.S. health advisers said GlaxoSmithKline Plc's diabetes drug Avandia raised a heart attack concern compared with diabetes drugs in other classes and a rival drug in the same class.

Securities regulators on Wednesday weighed whether to change voting in corporate elections, amid calls from companies and some investors to fix a system they consider antiquated.

U.S. health advisers said GlaxoSmithKline Plc's diabetes drug Avandia raised a heart attack concern compared with diabetes drugs in other classes and a rival drug in the same class.

Sales at U.S. retailers fell for a second straight month in June and businesses wary of ebbing demand barely raised inventories in May, more evidence the economic recovery has slowed in recent months.

Tech shares led the Nasdaq higher on Wednesday after Intel's strong results, but the Dow and S&P sharply trimmed gains on tepid retail sales figures and ahead of the release of the minutes from the Fed's most recent meeting.

Driving into the chic Place Vendome in central Paris, lined with up market jewelers and exclusive hotels, a small orange van looked out of place on Tuesday evening amid the sleek luxury cars.

Toyota Motor Corp said on Wednesday its investigation of nearly 2,000 cases of unintended acceleration had found no problem with its electronic throttle system, and that driver error was to blame in some cases.

Stocks advanced on Wednesday, lifted by Intel's strong results, but weaker-than-expected June retail sales limited gains.

Kim Snowball, the new health chief of Western Australia, defended his annual salary package of $541,000 to his New South Wales counterpart's $413,000

Former gaming executive launches DAS Capital Global Distressed Assets and Special Situations Fund

The shares of chip and PC makers jumped on Wednesday on strong results from global technology bellwether Intel Corp , pointing to potential upside for the sectors in quarterly reports due in coming weeks.

Efforts to clinch a deal on the way banks, insurers and markets in the European Union are supervised failed on Wednesday and talks will resume in late August or early September, EU sources said.

Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim country, is planning use a controversial anti-pornography law to restrict porn websites in the next few months, a communications ministry spokesman said on Wednesday.

Demand for loans to purchase U.S. homes sunk to a 13-year low last week, and refinancing demand also slid despite near record-low mortgage rates, the Mortgage Bankers Association said on Wednesday.

Sellers cut prices on nearly one quarter of U.S. homes listed in June, an increase from May, showing buyers still call the shots in the U.S. housing market, real estate website Trulia.com said on Wednesday.

Deborah Coleman lost her unemployment benefits in April, and now fears for millions of others if the Senate does not extend aid for the jobless.

No matter their income level, a significant number of U.S. workers are likely to struggle to meet basic expenses during retirement, a new study of baby boomers and generation Xers released on Tuesday shows.

Recent evidence the economic recovery may be slowing has prompted analysts to scale back their expectations for the pace of growth into next year, a Reuters poll showed.

U.S. advisers neared a vote on whether a GlaxoSmithKline Plc diabetes drug carries too much heart risk to stay on the market, hearing final conflicting pleas Wednesday from a patient and a public health advocate.

The Dow and S&P 500 indexes fell on Wednesday after data showed a second straight month of declining U.S. retail sales, though results from technology bellwether Intel Corp helped limit losses on the Nasdaq.