Stocks Begin Slightly Lower

Stocks were slightly lower in early trading on Wednesday ahead of the release of minutes from the Federal Open Market Committee’s June meeting. The Dow Jones industrial average was lately down 25.21 points, or 0.20 percent, at 12,627.91. The Standard & Poor’s 500 Index was up 0.37 point, or 0.03 percent, at 1,341.84. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 6.71 points, or 0.23 percent, at 2,895.62.

Credit Suisse on Wednesday lowered its 2012 price forecasts for commodities across the board, including oil, precious metals and base metals, saying the balance of near-term risks to the industrial commodity complex is to the downside.

Recession-plagued Spain unveiled new austerity measures on Wednesday designed to slash 65 billion euros from the public deficit by 2014 as Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy yielded to EU pressure to try to avoid a full state bailout.

Research In Motion Ltd’s new CEO vowed on Tuesday to turn around the embattled company with the new generation of BlackBerry devices coming next year, saying he would transform RIM into a “lean, mean, hunting machine.”