BUSINESS

Stock index futures crept higher on Tuesday after sharp losses in the previous session but continued concerns about Europe's debt crisis could mean gains will be slight.

Hershey Co posted a higher-than-expected first-quarter profit on Tuesday, helped by price increases, and raised its full-year outlook, sending the candy maker's shares up more than 3 percent.

Hong Kong's anti-graft agency is looking into payments totaling more than U.S. $2.5 million to a former top public servant as part of the city's corruption investigation involving two billionaire brothers who run Asia's largest property developer.

JPMorgan Chase on Tuesday named Jeff Urwin as its new chief executive Asia Pacific, taking over from Gaby Abdelnour who announced in March that he will be leaving the firm.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Tuesday, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.37 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.35 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.48 percent at 4:35 a.m. EDT.

The Bank of Japan is likely to ease monetary policy on Friday by boosting asset purchases by up to 10 trillion yen ($123 billion) and in doing so may extend the maturity of government bonds it targets to around three years, according to sources familiar with the central bank's thinking.

Google's former chief executive, Eric Schmidt, is slated to testify on Tuesday as Oracle's final witness in the first part of a high stakes trial over smartphone technology, attorneys said in court.

European share markets and the single currency staged modest recoveries on Tuesday, after steep losses caused by the worsening performance of the euro zone economy and a sharp rise in concern over the political will to fix its fiscal problems.

Google Inc executives Larry Page and Eric Schmidt and filmmaker James Cameron are among those bankrolling a venture to survey and eventually extract precious metals and rare minerals from asteroids that orbit near Earth, the company said on Tuesday.

The Auto China 2012 event held in the Beijing capital Monday rolled out an extraordinary line-up of new vehicles from across the world, with global automakers brandishing an impressive combination of luxury and sports in their respective car segments.Among the hoard of exhibits, 120 new models, 74 concept vehicles and 88 new-energy vehicles made their way to the auto show battleground. A total of 1,125 automobiles, including vehicles from Volkswagen, Audi, Nissan, Bentley, Bugatti, SEAT, Sko...

A new biotech corn developed by Dow AgroSciences could answer the prayers of U.S. farmers plagued by a fierce epidemic of super-weeds. Or it could trigger a flood of dangerous chemicals that may make weeds even more resistant and damage other important U.S. crops.

Asian shares fell and the euro was under pressure on Tuesday as political uncertainty and slumping business in Europe raised fears the euro zone could struggle to push through austerity measures and may stay in recession longer.

Asian shares inched up on Tuesday but gains were limited as political uncertainty and disappointing data in Europe raised fears the euro zone could struggle to push through austerity measures and may stay in recession until late in the year.

It was definitely out of the ordinary: Real news from Samsung, on a Sunday morning? But there it was on Twitter, in black and white: Destination: tgeltaayehxnx. The word tgeltaayehxnx is actually a clever anagram that, when rearranged, spells out The Next Galaxy. For a time, we all assumed the Samsung Galaxy S3 would be unveiled on Monday, April 23. It wasn't, but we learned about some interesting features in the process.

Swiss food group Nestle SA may sell about 10 to 15 percent of the $11.9 billion baby food business it is buying from Pfizer Inc to address antitrust concerns, Bloomberg News reported on Monday.

The union representing seven work groups at bankrupt American Airlines will vote starting next week on the carrier's best and final contract offer, with results expected before unions testify in a hearing on the airline's request to void their contract, three sources said on Monday.

Stocks fell on Monday as political turmoil in Europe cast doubts on the euro zone's ability to push through measures to end its debt crisis and as Wal-Mart sank following a report it stymied a bribery probe.

Facebook Inc's first-quarter revenue climbed 45 percent to just over $1 billion as daily active users leapt 41 percent, the world's largest social network disclosed ahead of its landmark initial public offering.

American Airlines kicked off a week-long court hearing on its bid to abandon union contracts, telling a judge on Monday that its bankrupt parent, AMR Corp, cannot survive without major concessions from its labor force.

U.S. stocks fell more than 1 percent on Monday as political turmoil in Europe cast doubts on the bloc's ability to push through measures to end its debt crisis and as Wal-Mart sank following a report it stymied a bribery probe.

American Airlines on Monday kicked off a week-long court hearing on its bid to abandon union contracts, telling a judge that its bankrupt parent, AMR Corp, cannot survive without major concessions from its labor force.

Stocks slid on Monday as resurgent uncertainty in Europe cast doubts on the bloc's ability to push through measures to end its debt crisis, while Wal-Mart weighed on the Dow after a report it stymied a probe into bribery allegations.

Thomson Reuters Corp said on Monday it is selling its Healthcare business to private equity firm Veritas Capital for $1.25 billion in cash.

Kellogg Co cut its full-year outlook after a disappointing first-quarter performance, sending the cereal maker's shares down 5.5 percent and pressuring the packaged food sector overall.

Allegations that Wal-Mart Stores Inc stymied an internal investigation into extensive bribery at its Mexican subsidiary are likely to lead to years of regulatory scrutiny and could eventually cost some executives their jobs.

Internet and network security provider Check Point Software Technologies said it expected to meet second-quarter estimates, after reporting a rise in first-quarter net profit that beat forecasts on strong sales of its new products.

Stocks fell more than 1 percent on Monday as renewed anxiety over Europe's economy and the region's debt crisis spurred profit-taking, while Wal-Mart weighed on the Dow after a report it stymied a probe into bribery allegations.

Volkswagen , the world's second largest carmaker, will invest about 170 million euros ($225 million) building a new plant in Urumqi, western China, capable of making 50,000 vehicles annually starting 2015, the company said on Monday.

Stock index futures pointed to a sharply lower open on Monday on weak European data and renewed anxiety over how the region would tackle its debt crisis, while Wal-Mart slumped after a report it stymied a probe into bribery allegations.