Business Briefs – August 13, 2017

For Electric Cars To Take Off, They’ll Need Place To Charge

DETROIT (AP) — Electric cars are seeing growing support around the world. France and the United Kingdom want to ban sales of gas and diesel cars by 2040. But there’s a problem: There aren’t enough places to plug those cars in. The distribution of public charging stations is wildly uneven around the globe. Places with lots of support from governments or utilities, like China, the Netherlands and California, have thousands of public charging outlets. Buyers of Tesla’s luxury models have access to a company-funded Supercharger network. But in many places, public charging remains scarce.

JC Penney Results Extend A Gloomy Week For Retailers

NEW YORK (AP) — Sales at established J.C. Penney stores faded again during its most recent quarter, capping a gloomy week for U.S. retailers. Penney’s stock sunk below $4 Friday morning, an all-time low for the 115-year-old retailer.

Wisconsin Republicans Tie Foxconn Incentives To Job Numbers

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Republicans who control the Wisconsin Assembly have made a series of adjustments to Gov. Scott Walker’s Foxconn incentives bill. The Taiwanese electronics giant plans to build a plant in southeastern Wisconsin that the company says could employ up to 13,000 people. Assembly Republicans introduced revisions to the bill on Friday. The new version of the package retains the tax breaks, but ties them to the number of jobs created that pay at least $30,000.

North Dakota Oil Production Slips In June

BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — North Dakota’s oil production slipped in June, but remained above 1 million barrels per day for the fifth consecutive month.

The Department of Mineral Resources says the state produced an average of 1.03 million barrels of oil daily in June. That’s down from 1.04 million barrels in May.

North Dakota also produced 1.84 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day in June, down slightly from 1.85 billion cubic feet daily in May.

The June tallies are the latest figures available.

There were 57 drill rigs operating in North Dakota on Friday, up two from the June average.

Pre-Eclipse Sales Tax Revenues Slip In Jackson

JACKSON, Wyo. (AP) — Summer business is down in Jackson Hole — but town promoters are hoping that visitors for the solar eclipse will reverse the summer slowdown.

Jackson’s lodging occupancy was down an average of 5 percent from last year this May, June and July, The Jackson Hole News & Guide reported.

The shortfall should be made up during the week of Aug. 21, when upward of 100,000 people are expected to descend upon Jackson to view the total solar eclipse.