SILER CITY — Townsend Inc. will reduce its North Carolina work force by 15 percent over the next two months as its shifts production between its two poultry processing plants in Chatham County, the company said in a statement.

LILLINGTON — Gas up the Volvo and break out the Abba cassettes. Representatives of the Research Triangle Regional Partnership are leaving Saturday for a weeklong economic development trip to Sweden.

SANFORD — Static Control Components has received some legal support in its ongoing toner cartridge battle with computer printer maker Lexmark International Inc.

FAYETTEVILLE — Norfolk Southern Railway Co. (NYSE: NSC) has established a new Thoroughbred Bulk Transfer (TBT) terminal at Fayetteville.

SANFORD – The Pantry Inc. (Nasdaq: PTRY) has signed a multi-year agreement with Sprint for a range of voice and data services across its more than 1,200 convenience stores across the Southeast.

SANFORD – The Pantry Inc. (Nasdaq: PTRY), a leading convenience store retailer, announced that it has signed an agreement to purchase 138 convenience stores operating under the Golden Gallon name from Ahold, USA.

DUNN — New Century Bank (OTC: NCBN) reported second-quarter income of $290,000, up more than 50 percent from the $190,000 in income during the same period a year ago.

RANDLEMAN — A proposal to transform historic Randleman School into 30 apartments for low-income elderly residents is one of 13 affordable housing programs statewide to receive more than $2.7 million in grants from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Atlanta.

TROY – First Bancorp (NASDAQ: FBNC), the parent company of First Bank, announced today that it has reached a definitive agreement to purchase four RBC Centura Bank branches in North Carolina.

FAYETTEVILLE — Web hosting firm Advanced Internet Technologies Inc. and School Link, which provides management software and Internet installation services to elementary and secondary schools, are among the fastest-growing technology firms in the state, according to an annual list compiled by accounting firm Deloitte & Touche.

TROY — The Board of Directors of First Bancorp (Nasdaq: FBNC) has declared a cash dividend of 24 cents per share, a 4.3 percent increase over the previous dividend rate of 23 cents per share.

RALEIGH — Capital Bank Corp. Chief Executive James A. Beck resigned late Friday, a day after the bank announced that it would restate its second-quarter earnings to account for some bad loans.

BUIES CREEK — The Campbell University School of Pharmacy and the Dunn-Erwin Medical Center plan to open a clinic for monitoring patients with high cholesterol levels and other related diseases.

PITTSBORO – After more than a year of effort amid a poor financing environment, Biolex Inc. has obtained $24.4 million in venture capital to fund its operations. The company has developed a technology that uses an aquatic plant to create therapeutic proteins for potential drugs.

DUNN — The North Carolina Banking Commission has approved an application to charter New Century Bank of Fayetteville, according to John Q. Shaw, president and chief executive of New Century Bank (OTC: NCBN).

SPRING LAKE – Some investors in Anderson Creek Golf Club are part of a group that has purchased a financially troubled golf course in Colorado.