Wednesday morning headlines

Stocks slump: Dow is off 25 points - could be the fifth straight down day. From Reuters:

"Buyers have reached a point of exhaustion after FedEx and Caterpillar and the like, all of whom pointed to economic weakness," said James Dailey, portfolio manager at TEAM Asset Strategy Fund in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. "People had been buying on the idea that the Fed would prop everything up, but if they can't, there's real potential for panic selling."

Greek protests turn violent: The clashes are over the government's austerity measures. About 50,000 people joined the union-organized march in central Athens. From AP:

Greece's politicians have struggled to come up with more austerity measures that would be acceptable to its rescue creditors, with disagreements arising between the three parties that make up the coalition government. The country has been dependent on international loans from other eurozone countries and the International Monetary Fund since mid-2010. Without them, Greece would be forced into a chaotic default on its debts and possibly into an exit from the 17-country bloc that uses the euro.

DWP rate hikes: On a 10-4 vote, the Council gave preliminary approval to an 11.1 percent increase - despite complaints about the utility's high salaries. (LAT)

Tesla struggles: The electric car company is selling five million more shares to raise cash. Also, the federal government has waived some conditions of a $465 million loan. From DealBook:

In recent months, Tesla has been ramping up production of its main vehicle, a high-performance sedan called the Model S that goes from zero to 60 miles per hour in 4.4 seconds. Tesla has started rolling out the first cars, but was four to five weeks behind on delivering the vehicles to customers. In the meantime, it is consuming cash at a rapid rate and cut its revenue forecast on Tuesday. "Tesla's story is starting to show some serious cracks," said Carter Driscoll, an analyst at CapStone Investments. "This shows that capital raising is a necessity, not a luxury, as the company had maintained."

Driverless car bill signed: The legislation requires the DMV to draft regulations for self-driving vehicles. That includes a separate operating permit for drivers. (Mercury News)

Jaime McCourt sues her ex-husband: She wants more money from the Dodger sale, alleging that Frank McCourt understated the value of the team as part of their divorce settlement. (LAT)