A look at highlights from the day's business news:

Stocks stumble at the close

U.S. stocks ended slightly lower Wednesday, as uneasiness about the global economy continued to hang over the market and a light economic calendar gave investors little reason to jump in.

The Dow Jones industrial average slipped 23 points, or 0.2 percent, the S&P 500 fell 3 points, or 0.3 percent, and the Nasdaq lost 3 points, or 0.1 percent.

After rallying to four-month highs and gaining for a fourth straight week last week, stocks have been stuck in a rut, swinging between small gains and losses.

"The economy still hasn't improved measurably," said Brian Battle, director of Performance Trust Capital Partners. "If there is a recovery taking place, it's very uneven."

Treasury yields higher after 7-year note auction

Treasury yields moved slightly higher Wednesday after investors showed robust demand in the last auction in the Treasury's offering of $100 billion in newly printed U.S. debt this week.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year note rose to 2.50 percent from 2.46 percent late Tuesday. The yield on the 30-year bond edged up to to 3.68 percent. The five-year note yielded 1.28 percent, while the two-year note's yield edged up to 0.44 percent.

The government sold $29 billion in seven-year notes in the afternoon. Earlier this week, the Treasury sold $36 billion in two-year notes and $35 billion in five-year notes.

Investors submitted bids totaling $88.2 billion at Wednesday's auction. The bid-to-cover ratio, a measure of demand, was 3.04. That compares with 2.98 at the last seven-year sale in August.

– CNNMoney.com reporters Blake Ellis and Ben Rooney contributed to this report.