Drilling permits

Drilling permits

YOUNGSTOWN

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources issued five horizontal-drilling permits last week. None of them was issued in the Mahoning Valley. Of the 1,877 total permits issued, 1,456 are drilled with 847 producing.

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection issued no permits in Mercer and Lawrence counties last week.

Hudson Fasteners launches technology for e-commerce

YOUNGSTOWN

A Youngstown Business Incubator portfolio company, Hudson Fasteners Inc., launched 13 Forces Product Genius — a business-to-business e-commerce technology to simplify the ordering of fasteners and industrial supplies.

Hudson Fasteners will utilize the technology in the launch of 1industrialway.com, a complete rebranding of hudsonfasteners.com.

YSU, chamber launch website

YOUNGSTOWN

Ohpaexports.com, a website for the global trade initiative created by the Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber and Youngstown State University, is now live.

The OH-PA Stateline Export Initiative brings leaders from Ashtabula, Trumbull, Mahoning and Columbiana counties in Ohio, and Erie, Crawford, Mercer, Lawrence, Beaver and Butler counties in Pennsylvania together to survey local manufacturers on international trade efforts.

First Niles’ earnings

NILES

First Niles Financial Inc., the holding company for Home Federal Savings and Loan Association of Niles, released its first-quarter earnings this week.

The company reported a net income of $127,000, compared with a net income of $49,000 for the same period in 2014.

Primary earnings per share for the three months ending March 31 was 11 cents, compared with 4 cents the same period in 2014.

Complaint filed against craft store

WASHINGTON D.C.

The U.S. Department of Justice and the Consumer Product Safety Commission jointly filed a complaint against Michaels Stores Inc. and its subsidiary, Michaels Stores Procurement Co. Inc., in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Michaels is a publicly held corporation with headquarters in Irving, Texas.

The complaint charges that Michaels knowingly violated the reporting requirements of the Consumer Product Safety Act with respect to glass vases that shattered in consumers’ hands, sometimes as the consumer lifted the vase from the Michaels Stores shelf.

VW edges GM in global sales

DETROIT

Volkswagen Group edged out General Motors again to take at least second place in the race to be the world’s top-selling automaker.

The German automaker said it sold 2.49 million Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda and other vehicles from January through March. That was up 1.8 percent from a year ago. GM said it sold 2.42 million Chevrolet, Opel, Buick, Cadillac, GMC and other vehicles, up 1.9 percent from a year ago.

Staff/wire reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 26.82 -0.24

Avalon Holdings,$3.67 0.17

Clear Channel, .46 21.78 0.03

Cortland Bancorp, 15.000

Farmers Nat., .128.26 0.02

First Energy, 1.44, 35.50-0.6

Fifth/Third, .5219.410.42

FirstMerit Corp., .64,19.23 -0.2

First Niles Financial, .32,8.500

FNB Corp., .48,13.12-0.04

General Motors, 1.2037.160.05

General Electric, .88,26.62-0.4

Huntington Bank, .20, 11.170.02

JP Morgan Chase, 1.60,62.31-0.93

Key Corp, .26,14.19-0.02

LaFarge, 17.72 0.42

Macy’s, 1.25, 67.030.24

Parker Hannifin, 1.92, 122.17-0.66

PNC, 1.92,91.22-0.21

RTI Intl. Metals,37.93-0.1

Simon Prop. Grp.,5.20,188.870.27

Stoneridge 11.71 -0.1

Talmer Bank, 16.15-0.06

United Comm. Fin., .04 5.49-0.01

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Tuesday. Provided by Stifel. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.