IBT Staff Reporter

Stock index futures pointed to a slightly lower open on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500, Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 down between 0.1 percent and 0.2 percent at 6:47 a.m. EDT (1047 GMT).

Economic experts watching Spain don't know how much money will be needed or precisely when, but some are near certain that Madrid will eventually seek a multi-billion euro bailout for its banks, and perhaps even for the state itself.

European shares eased and the single currency softened on Wednesday as the region's sovereign debt worries and its weaker economic outlook weighed on investors ahead of a German bond sale that will test demand for ultra-low yielding debt.

Malaysia's economy has passed the turning point in its drive to reach high-income status by 2020, the head of the government's economic performance agency said, but politically sensitive fiscal reforms will only be pushed through gradually.

Japan's Sony Corp is in talks with Taiwan's AU Optronics Corp to jointly produce next-generation OLED televisions, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported, positioning itself for the post-liquid crystal display TV market.

Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd agreed that their chief executives would participate in settlement talks to try to resolve a patent lawsuit over smartphone and tablet technology, according to a court filing.

Exuberant global markets have taken a reality check this month on chronic U.S., Chinese and European growth concerns, and investors should hold companies' relatively rosy profit outlooks up for scrutiny too.

HSBC is launching its first offshore yuan bond, which will be the first offshore yuan deal to be listed in London, IFR, a Thomson Reuters publication, reported on Wednesday.

Former customers of MF Global , waiting for the return of as much as $1.6 billion missing from their accounts, will get their first chance next week to hear testimony from Louis Freeh, the embattled trustee for the bankrupt commodities firm.

Twitter said on Tuesday that it would structure its patents so they could not be used for offensive litigation purposes without permission from the people who developed them.

Asian shares rose on Wednesday as firm demand at Spanish debt sales and positive U.S. corporate earnings boosted investor confidence in riskier assets.

Diversified manufacturer Honeywell Inc said it will manufacture hardware for in-flight internet connectivity for satellite communications company Inmarsat PLC's next generation broadband network.

Yahoo Inc reported an uptick in revenue that marked its first quarterly sales growth in three years, as new Chief Executive Scott Thompson outlined his plan to revamp the struggling Web company.

The chief executives of Oracle Corp and Google Inc took center stage in court on Tuesday as Google's lawyers argued Oracle is trying to hitch a ride on Google's success after abandoning the idea of building its own smartphone.

The International Monetary Fund appeared to be inching toward a deal on increasing its financial firepower on Tuesday, with Japan, Sweden and Denmark committing a total of $77 billion to help contain the euro zone's debt crisis.

U.S. stocks scored their biggest gains in a month on Tuesday after Coca-Cola led a round of strong earnings and as concerns about Europe's debt crisis eased as Spanish bond yields fell.

Nokia's bid to challenge the dominance of Apple's iPhone and Google's Android has failed to convince telecom operators in Europe, depriving it of powerful allies in its fight to regain the top spot in the mobile market.

Yahoo Inc reported a modest uptick in first-quarter revenue and beat Wall Street's profit targets, as the Web company moves to revamp its growth under new Chief Executive Scott Thompson.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc posted a 23 percent decline in quarterly earnings after it dialed down risk-taking in tricky markets, and clients also reduced their appetite for bets.

Enraged hackers broke into the websites of drugmakers that produced pills tainted with poisons, in an attack against what they called the failure of Chinese societyi to protect citizens.

Citigroup Inc shareholders gave a vote of no confidence to the bank's executive compensation plan on Tuesday, dealing a surprise embarrassment to Chief Executive Vikram Pandit.

The International Monetary Fund on Tuesday appeared to be inching toward a deal on boosting its financial firepower with Japan, Sweden and Denmark committing a total of $77 billion to help contain the euro zone debt crisis.

Stocks rallied on Tuesday as investors welcomed a slew of solid quarterly corporate results and after a German investor confidence survey surprised on the upside and Spanish benchmark yields eased.

Declining sales dogged Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter, illustrating the company's struggle to revive growth in all three of its main businesses and tough challenges ahead for incoming Chief Executive Officer Alex Gorsky.

Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd agreed that their chief executives would participate in settlement talks to try to resolve a patent lawsuit over smartphone and tablet technology, according to a court filing.

Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd agreed that their chief executives would participate in settlement talks to try to resolve a patent lawsuit over smartphone and tablet technology, according to a court filing.

Citigroup Inc shareholders gave a vote of no confidence to the bank's executive compensation plan on Tuesday, dealing a surprise embarrassment to Chief Executive Vikram Pandit.

Oracle Corp is trying to obtain a share of Android by asserting its intellectual property rights even though it had nothing to do with the development of the smartphone operating system, an attorney for Google said in court.

Global growth is slowly improving as the U.S. recovery gains traction and dangers from Europe recede, but risks remain high and the situation is very fragile, the International Monetary Fund said on Tuesday.