Stocks are little changed on Wall Street, meandering between small gains and losses. Encouraging news about manufacturing provided an early boost, but stocks fell later after a report on the pace of home sales fell short of expectations.
- General Motors is planning a $600 million upgrade at an assembly plant in Kansas. The automaker says it will start construction this year on a paint shop, a new stamping press and other improvements at the Fairfax Assembly Plant in Kansas City. GM CEO Dan Akerson says the investment is a "vote of confidence" in the plant that has produced more than 12 million vehicles since 1945.
- The maker of the BlackBerry unveils an upgraded smartphone tomorrow. Research In Motion says the new BlackBerry 10 system will offer a speedy browser, a superb typing experience and the ability to keep work and personal identities separate on the same phone. The BlackBerry has lost ground in recent years to Apple's iPhone and Google's Android-driven devices.
- Sales at J.C. Penney are back by popular demand. This week the mid-priced department store chain will roll out some of the sales it ditched last year in a move that customers failed to embrace. Penney also plans to add new price tags or signs for more than half of its merchandise to show customers how much they're saving by shopping there.
- Taco Bell is pulling a TV ad after receiving complaints that it discouraged people from eating vegetables. The ad touted the chain's variety 12-pack of tacos and said bringing a vegetable tray to a party is "like punting on fourth and one." Taco Bell pulled the ad after the health advocacy group Center for Science in the Public Interest urged people to tweet their complaints.
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