HARRISBURG — Pennsylvania's state government pension system says it barely made any money on investments in the second quarter and has lost money since the start of the year.

The State Employees' Retirement System said Wednesday its returns were up 1.3 percent for the quarter that ended June 30. In the first six months of the year, the $33 billion fund lost nearly 3 percent.

The retirement system says its earnings, as weak as they are, compare favorably to other large pension funds in the United States.

PHILADELPHIA — Slot machines could someday be ringing a few blocks from the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall and the spot where Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence.After facing stiff neighborhood opposition at its original site, a casino developer said Wednesday it's considering building its $670 million slots parlor at a downtown location just a few blocks west of Philadelphia's historic neighborhood.The Foxwoods group, led by the Mashantucket Pequot Indians of Connecticut, is looking into building the casino at a downtown mall called The Gallery at Market East. Michael Thomas, the tribe's chairman, said the site is better than the original waterfront location in South Philadelphia because it is near existing shops, restaurants and mass transit lines.Thomas said his group is talking to the company that owns The Gallery, and looking at a 300,000 square-foot area a few blocks down the street from where Jefferson wrote the Declaration, and where Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell draw hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

PITTSBURGH — The formal ribbon-cutting takes place Sept. 29, but Pittsburgh's new Greyhound bus station has quietly opened for business.The new terminal is part of a $50 million transportation center that also includes two city parking garages.The new terminal is in a brand-new building built on the same site as the old, rundown terminal on Grant Street, on the east end of downtown.Locally, Greyhound ridership has been increasing. Nearly 9,700 passengers rode to or from Pittsburgh in August, compared to fewer than 9,300 in the same month last year.