IBT Staff Reporter

Swiss engineering giant ABB Ltd was near an agreement Sunday to acquire U.S. manufacturer Thomas & Betts Corp for about $4 billion, the Wall Street Journal reported on its Website Sunday, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.

In the age of Twitter and Facebook, many Super Bowl viewers will use the commercial breaks to go online and see what people are saying about the game. This year, advertisers want them to tweet about their favorite commercials as well.

Top Republican lawmakers on Sunday said they expect to forge a deal with Democrats to extend the payroll tax cut before it expires at the end of February but offered no specifics on how they would pay for it.

Top Republican lawmakers on Sunday said they expect to forge a deal with Democrats to extend the payroll tax cut before it expires at the end of February but offered no specifics on how they would pay for it.

Greece must surrender control of its budget policy to outside institutions if it cannot implement reforms attached to euro zone rescue measures, the German economy minister was quoted as saying on Sunday.

Chancellor Angela Merkel tried to deflect growing international pressure on Germany to agree an increase in the euro zone's bailout funds Sunday by saying talks were still continuing.

January has turned out to be strong for stocks with just two trading days to go. If you're afraid to miss the ride, there's still time to jump in. You just might want to wear a neck brace.

January has turned out to be strong for stocks with just two trading days to go. If you're afraid to miss the ride, there's still time to jump in. You just might want to wear a neck brace.

A tumultuous 12 months that saw revolutions in the Middle East, a worsening debt crisis in Europe and a tsunami in Japan has set the tone for corporate activity in 2012.

A tumultuous 12 months that saw revolutions in the Middle East, a worsening debt crisis in Europe and a tsunami in Japan has set the tone for corporate activity in 2012.

The new Swiss National Bank chief could be named in February, sooner than had been expected after the resignation of former chairman Philipp Hildebrand this month, a newspaper reported on Sunday.

The new Swiss National Bank chief could be named in February, sooner than had been expected after the resignation of former chairman Philipp Hildebrand earlier this month, a newspaper reported on Sunday.

A new team of U.S. trade enforcers will make countries think twice about putting up unfair barriers to American exports, President Barack Obama's top trade official said.

The United Steelworkers union warned on Saturday that a strike by U.S. refinery workers as early as 12 a.m. Wednesday was becoming more likely due to the lack of a more substantive response from the industry.

Late pop star Michael Jackson was immortalized in cement on Thursday when his three children stamped the Thriller singer's glove and shoe prints in the hallowed concrete courtyard of Grauman's Chinese Theater in Hollywood.

The Grey, starring Liam Neeson -- Open Road Film's second release ever -- is poised to debut as the No. 1 movie at the domestic box office this weekend.

IFC Films has purchased the North American rights to the thriller Simon Killer, TheWrap has confirmed.

Katherine Heigl has headlined several romantic comedies such as 27 Dresses and The Ugly Truth, but for her newest film, the former Grey's Anatomy TV star toplines an action comedy One for the Money, in theaters of Friday.

CBS' Big Bang Theory pulled up to American Idol for a tie in the ratings Thursday night, while Fox was the highest rated and most-watched network as its new drama The Finder improved by 32 percent, according to preliminary numbers.

California approved aggressive new rules on Friday to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by requiring automakers to put many more electric and hybrid vehicles on the Golden State's roads by 2025.

It was only two weeks ago that Twitter was protesting online censorship in the form of anti-piracy bills SOPA and PIPA. Now the social networking site faces a surge of opposition to its own censorship practices.

Actress Demi Moore suffered convulsions and seemed only semi-conscious after smoking an undisclosed substance before being rushed to hospital earlier this week, according to the tape of a medical emergency call released on Friday.

When This Means War hits theaters on Valentine's Day, the Reese Witherspoon action comedy will arrive with a PG-13 rating, TheWrap has confirmed.

David Arquette and Courteney Cox are continuing their campaign to be crowned the Most Amicably Estranged Couple Ever.

Sarah Jessica Parker will play feminist icon Gloria Steinem in the upcoming porn biopic Lovelace.

Jim Murphy, co-executive producer of Anderson Cooper's syndicated daytime talk show Anderson, has stepped down.

The Academy has made an unusual exception for The Tree of Life, determining that the film has four true producers and should not be limited by an AMPAS rule that limits the number of producers on a Best Picture nominee to three.

ABC beefed up its comedy stockpile Friday with orders for three pilots. How to Live With Your Parents for the Rest of Your Life, created by Claudia Lonow (Friends With Benefits, Accidentally on Purpose and, more recently, the troubled cross-dressing sitcom Work It), will follow the adventures of recent divorcee and single mother Polly, who moves in with her eccentric parents, Elaine and Max, who are full of life but know no boundaries. Lonow is also executive-prod...

Power couple Jay-Z and Beyonce joined a list of top music executives, led by Live Nation Entertainment chairman Irving Azoff, on Billboard magazine's first Power 100 chart on Friday.