Horizon Lines names

Woodward CEO

Charlotte-based shipping company Horizon Lines named Sam Woodward as president and CEO this week at its board of directors meeting.

Woodward also was appointed to the company’s board. He succeeds Stephen H. Fraser, who served in interim leadership roles since March 2011.

Woodward, 63, comes to Horizon Lines following executive leadership roles with the Canada-based Traffic Tech Inc., an international freight forwarder.

He also held leadership roles in transportation and logistics in several other firms.

“We are delighted that Sam has chosen to join Horizon Lines as President and CEO,” Jeffrey A. Brodsky, chairman of the board of directors, said in a statement. “Sam brings extensive transportation and logistics experience, and is known for his leadership abilities as a business strategist focused on operational transformation and excellence.”

Celeste Smith

With fourth day of gains, stock market posts best week of 2012

Stocks rose for the fourth day in a row on Friday, capping their best week so far this year. It was a relief for investors after the big drops of the previous week.

Stocks fell in morning trading, with the Dow Jones industrial average down almost 63 points. But they turned around after the government said businesses are restocking their shelves faster than analysts had expected.

The Commerce Department said U.S. wholesale stockpiles grew 0.6 percent in April. That’s twice as fast as they grew in March and a sign that businesses are ordering enough goods to lead to increased factory production and sales. Investors had been braced for more sluggish growth.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 93.24 points, or 0.8 percent, to close at 12,554.20.

The Standard & Poor’s 500 index rose 10.67 points, or 0.8 percent, to 1,325.66. The Nasdaq composite rose 27.40 points, or 1 percent, to 2,858.42.

Associated Press

McDonald’s weighs impact of global economic uncertainty

McDonald’s Corp. says strength in the U.S. and Europe drove up a key revenue figure in May but warned that economic volatility around the world and rising expenses are pressuring its second-quarter results.

The fast-food chain, based in Oak Brook, Ill., also said that foreign currency translations are now expected to hurt second-quarter earnings by 7 cents to 9 cents per share. Shares of McDonald’s fell 63 cents to close at $87.75 Friday.

For May, the company says global sales at stores open at least 13 months rose 3.3 percent.

That is a key metric because it excludes the volatility from newly opened or closed stores. The figure was dragged down by results in the region encompassing Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, where McDonald’s said sales fell 1.7 percent from a year ago.

The negative performance in China was likely the result of new “value dinner” promotions that drove down average checks per visit, R.W. Baird analyst David Tarantino said in a note to investors.

He also noted that McDonald’s is facing increasing competition in the region, where many other fast-food companies are looking to expand as well.

AP