Ribbon-cutting set

Ribbon-cutting set

YOUNGSTOWN

Youngstown/Warren Regional Chamber will have a ribbon-cutting at 4:15 p.m. Friday at Iron & String Life Enhancement, 32 Fifth Ave., to celebrate the opening of its new location and to celebrate its 20th anniversary.

There will be an open house from 4 to 7 p.m.

Iron and String Life Enhancement Inc. was founded in 1998 to provide residential, respite, transportation, advocacy and vocational services for developmentally disabled individuals in Mahoning and Trumbull counties. ISLE has since expanded into Mercer and Lawrence counties in Pennsylvania. ISLE currently has more than 200 employees and services more than 150 individuals with disabilities.

For information, contact Megan Pea at 330-207-2337 or email meganpea75@yahoo.com.

Machine acquisition

CORTLAND

Village Quality Solutions, 500 W. Main St., a quality assurance and auditing company, announced the acquisition of a new steel tube finishing machine. The machine removes rust from steel tubing using an ultra-fine abrasive and helps finish tubing without changing its outside diameter.

New pallet boards

VIENNA

Millwood Inc., International Boulevard, is offering new pallet boards on its store website, www.millwoodinc.com. The pallet boards are available in 3.5- and 5.5-inch widths and can be shipped directly to customers. Lengths from 12 inches to 40 inches are available.

Beijing appeals to US to end tariff war

BEIJING

Beijing appealed to Washington on Wednesday to “meet China halfway” and end a tariff war after President Donald Trump said Americans might need to endure economic pain to achieve longer-term benefits.

Foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang expressed hope Washington can “get along with us” and restore “mutually beneficial” trade.

The United States is pressing China to narrow its trade surplus and roll back plans for government-led development of global competitors in robotics and other technologies. Beijing’s trading partners say those plans violate its market-opening commitments. Some American officials worry they might erode U.S. industrial leadership.

Home sales up 2.5%

WASHINGTON

U.S. home sales increased 2.5 percent in July, a sign that lower mortgage rates have produced a spurt of home-buying.

The National Association of Realtors said Wednesday homes sold last month at a seasonally adjusted annualized rate of 5.42 million units, up from 5.29 million in June. Average interest rates on 30-year mortgages have fallen to 3.60 percent, the lowest in nearly three years. Cheaper borrowing costs have enabled sales to rise 0.6 percent from a year ago, ending 16 consecutive months of annual sales declines.

Staff/wire reports