Stocks Edge Lower at Open

U.S. stocks little changed at open on Wednesday, following two days of losses for the Dow and the S&P 500. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately shed 22.51 points, or 0.13%, to 16,991.36. The S&P 500 lost 3.05 points, or 0.15%, to 1,985.39. The Nasdaq Composite gave up 1.23 points, or 0.03%, to 4,551.06.

Daniel Tarullo, the Federal Reserve governor who serves as the central bank’s point person on regulation, told the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday that regulators are crafting rules that would require banks to finance their short-term securities lending with a significant amount of stable funding.

Dollar General Corp. is taking its $9.1 billion offer to buy Family Dollar Stores Inc. directly to its rival’s shareholders, in an
attempt to pull off a hostile takeover after its offer was rejected by its target’s board.

Microsoft Corp. (MSFT) is in negotiations to buy Mojang AB, the Swedish company behind the popular “Minecraft” videogame. The acquisition would reportedly be valued at more than $2 billion and could be finalized this week, The Wall Street Journal reported.

France announced on Wednesday it was breaking the latest in a long line of promises to European Union partners to cut its public deficit, conceding it now would take until 2017 to bring its finances in line with EU rules.