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Business news briefs for 07/02/11
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Technology firm nanoGriptech will become the newest tenant in the RIDC Chocolate Factory building in Lawrenceville. The company has signed a lease for 2,408 square feet to be used primarily as an office and laboratory. Founded in 2009 by a Carnegie Mellon University professor, nanoGriptech is focused on the development and production of specialized polymer adhesives.
General Nutrition Centers has named Thomas Dowd executive vice president, chief merchandising officer and general manager. Mr. Dowd has been in charge of GNC's store operations and development since 2007. According to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the promotion will increase Mr. Dowd's annual base salary from $360,500 to $425,000.
U.S. auto sales in June ran at the slowest pace in 12 months, as small-car supply dwindled and consumers deferred purchases amid a slowing economic recovery. General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. said U.S. sales rose 10 percent in June, missing the average estimate of seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Toyota Motor Corp. and Honda Motor Co. deliveries each fell 21 percent. Nissan Motor Co. recorded an 11 percent gain, while Chrysler Group LLC sales topped forecasts, rising 30 percent.
Builders began work on fewer projects in May, led by steep declines in apartment construction and less spending by state and local governments. Construction spending declined 0.6 percent in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $757.9 billion, the Commerce Department said Friday. That put overall spending barely above an 11-year low hit in February.
U.S. manufacturing unexpectedly expanded at a faster pace in June. The Institute for Supply Management's factory index rose to 55.3 last month from 53.5 in May, the Tempe, Ariz.-based group said Friday. "The momentum in manufacturing is starting to turn back to the positive side," said James O'Sullivan, chief economist at MF Global Inc. in New York.
Zynga, the online game-maker behind "FarmVille" and other Facebook pastimes, is going public, the latest in a crop of Internet IPOs. Zynga Inc. hopes to raise up to $1 billion in an initial public offering.
First Published July 2, 2011 12:00 am
