Alibaba IPO
In this May 21, 2012 file photo, men walk past the corporate logo at the headquarters compound of Alibaba Group in Hangzhou in eastern China's Zhejiang province. Alibaba has invested approximately $200 million in a stake in messaging application Snapchat.
(Associated Press)
Stock market news:
Stock futures are edging up after enduring two consecutive days of losses. Dow Jones futures are up 51 points, Nasdaq futures are advancing 12.25 points and S&P 500 futures are ahead 5.25 points. (CNN Money)
Global shares regained a firmer footing today after several days of volatile trading linked to anxiety over a probable rate hike in the U.S. (Associated Press)
The euro pulled out of its recent dive and the dollar eased off the accelerator pedal today, as markets took a breather after a week of breakneck moves in the world's two biggest currencies. (Reuters)
U.S. business news:
Dollar General today gave a conservative earnings outlook for its newly started fiscal year, as the company prepares to face increased competition in the dollar-store sector when two of its rivals combine later this year. (Wall Street Journal)
Following a surge in suspicious tax filings and IRS impersonation scams this year, the Senate Finance Committee will hold a hearing today to explore what Congress and taxpayers can do to be better about spotting and preventing fraud. (Washington Post)
Twenty-eight of 31 large banks received Federal Reserve approval to return capital to investors on Wednesday, but only after some of the biggest Wall Street firms came perilously close to failing the regulator's annual "stress test." (MarketWatch)
America is producing so much oil from shale that the nation is, ostensibly, running out of places to store it all. (Forbes)
Lumber Liquidators is up over 6 percent in early trading as the company looks to continue its rebound following a sharp drop on safety concerns. (StreetInsider.com)
Technology news:
Chinese internet giant Alibaba has invested approximately $200 million in a stake in messaging application Snapchat. (BBC News)
In a move designed to crackdown on abuse and harassment on Twitter, intimate images or footage - uploaded without the consent of the person featured - will no longer be tolerated. (The Telegraph)
Shortly after splitting from Sony, Vaio is going up against its former company with a smartphone to compete with the Sony Xperia line. (CNET News)
SignalFuse is today coming out of stealth mode and revealing the monitoring web-based software it devised, while also announcing a new company name: SignalFx. (VentureBeat)
World business news:
Spain's Banco de Sabadell is in talks to buy TSB Banking Group for $2.5 billion, a deal that would allow Lloyds Banking Group to exit its stake in the bank before a deadline set by regulators. (Bloomberg News)
Penn West Petroleum, one of Canada's largest conventional oil producers, reported a much bigger loss and cut its quarterly dividend for the second time in three months, hurt by lower production and a fall in crude prices. (Reuters)
Germany's Bundesbank said today its profit for last year took a hit due to lower interest income brought about by cuts to European Central Bank interest rates. (MarketWatch)
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has secured agreements to develop islands in Mauritius and Seychelles in an early success for his drive to wrest back influence in the Indian Ocean from China. (Reuters)