BUSINESS

Stock index futures pointed to a mixed open for equities on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.2 percent, the Dow Jones futures down 0.1 percent and the Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.6 percent.

Asian shares rose on Wednesday, underpinned by strong earnings from U.S. technology giant Apple, stabilizing European money markets and falling euro zone debt yields, with investors shifting their focus from Europe to the U.S. Federal Reserve.

IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde said on Wednesday that combining the European Union's temporary EFSF rescue fund with its permanent ESM mechanism would help restore confidence in the flagging region and provide a solid firewall to the Greek crisis.

A nightmare on world freight markets, where shipping prices have been decimated over the past four years, is gnawing at New Year optimism about a stabilizing world economy and shows how adept investors can be at tuning out 'inconvenient' information.

Facebook, the social networking company poised to go public this year, will not honor trades of its shares in the secondary markets for a three-day period beginning on Wednesday, according to a person familiar with the matter.

A New Zealand judge ordered the founder of online file-sharing site Megaupload.com to be held in custody for another month Wednesday, saying the suspected Internet pirate posed a significant flight risk.

Blackstone Group LP has raised more than $6 billion for a real estate opportunity fund, which eventually could match its current $11 billion fund, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

The founder of online file-sharing website Megaupload, accused of masterminding a scheme that allegedly made more than $175 million through Internet piracy and illegal file sharing, was ordered held in custody by a New Zealand court on Wednesday.

Citigroup Inc was sued for fraud by Loreley Financing over nearly $1 billion worth of collateralized debt obligations purchased in 2006 and 2007.

The founder of online file-sharing website Megaupload, accused of masterminding a scheme that made more than $175 million in a few years by infringing copyrighted content without authorization, was refused bail in a New Zealand court on Wednesday.

Apple Inc's quarterly earnings and forecasts easily beat Wall Street's estimates, helping the technology giant's shares up 7 percent after hours.

Greece's private creditors pleaded on Tuesday with European officials who rejected their bond swap offer to hammer together a deal before Athens tumbles into a chaotic default.

Less than an hour before Yahoo reports earnings on Tuesday, investors are focused less on instant gratification and instead are betting on the long term.

The U.S. economy appears to have shaken off the gloom from Europe's debt crisis in the fourth quarter, pushing ahead at what was likely its fastest pace in nearly two years.

Bank of America Corp is wading into the fast-growing business of offering consumers targeted online discounts.

Angela Merkel's conservative allies warned on Tuesday against committing additional German funds to euro zone bailout schemes, underscoring how difficult it will be for the chancellor to meet international demands to boost the bloc's defenses.

New data-protection proposals from the European Union to help people regain control of personal information from sites like Facebook could prove as effective as commanding the tide, while hurting small firms and Web giants alike.

Italian police seized documents at Fitch's Milan offices on Tuesday as the rating agency was drawn into an investigation of alleged market manipulation already involving its two bigger rivals Standard & Poor's and Moody's .

The European Commission will follow EU antitrust chief Joaquin Almunia's advice to block the merger of Deutsche Boerse and NYSE Euronext next week, a person familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Media conglomerate Time Warner Inc is leading a $12 million round of funding into a start-up company that analyzes tweets and Facebook posts as people watch their favorite TV programs.

The Federal Reserve is expected to break new ground this week by providing a clearer window into official thinking on monetary policy and is expected to signal that interest rates will be held near zero into 2014.

Stocks dipped on Tuesday as talks to resolve Greece's debt crisis hit a snag and some lackluster earnings put the S&P 500 index's five-day string of gains in jeopardy.

Stocks dipped on Tuesday as talks to resolve Greece's debt crisis faltered and after some lackluster earnings reports, threatening a five-day winning streak.

The euro zone debt crisis is escalating and dragging down the world economy, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday, as it sharply cut its outlook for global growth and called for policies to restore confidence.

Morgan Stanley announced the promotion of 210 employees to managing director on Tuesday, a smaller lot than the previous year as the Wall Street bank's overall workforce shrank.

The euro zone debt crisis is escalating and could derail the global economic recovery, the International Monetary Fund warned on Tuesday as it called for urgent action to restore confidence.

The euro zone is inching closer to breaking its long-held taboo against a Greek default, but can still escape financial market mayhem and a body blow to the euro.

EU finance ministers and officials met on Tuesday to discuss a new treaty which aims to tighten fiscal discipline in the euro zone.

Stocks fell on Tuesday as talks to resolve Greece's debt crisis stumbled again and analysts pointed to a short-term top in equity markets after the S&P 500 posted five days of back-to-back gains.