Stocks Opened Lower on Greece Concerns

U.S. stocks opened lower on Friday as the continued deadlock in Greek debt talks turned investors cautious. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lately slipped 36.37 points, or 0.20%, to 18,079.47. The S&P 500 fell 5.85 points, or 0.28%, to 2,115.39. The Nasdaq Composite was down 13.36 points, or 0.26%, to 5,119.59.

The European Central Bank on Friday increased the amount that Greek banks can borrow under an emergency lending program, a Greek bank official said, as daily deposit outflows picked up to almost one billion euros, amid uncertainty over the country’s bailout program.

Chocolate maker Hershey Co cut its full-year sales growth forecast, citing weak sales in China, and said it would cut 300 jobs by the end of the year. The company said on Friday that it now expects sales to grow 4-5 percent for the full year, excluding foreign exchange fluctuations, compared with its prior estimate of 6-7 percent growth.

KB Home (KBH) posted better-than-expected profit and revenue estimates for the second quarter. It had net income of $9.6 million, or 10 cents a share, in the quarter, down from $26.6 million, or 27 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Revenue climbed to $622.9 million from $565.0 million.

Staples, Inc. (SPLS) today issued a statement in response to the vote by Office Depot shareholders approving the acquisition by Staples.

The European Union threatened to levy fines on Google Inc. that would be large enough to act as a deterrent after accusing the U.S. search-engine giant of squeezing out rivals in the comparison-shopping market.