IBT Staff Reporter

UBS' Americas wealth management group has hired a team of three veteran Morgan Stanley Smith Barney advisers in California, the firm said on Wednesday.

Japan's scandal-ridden Olympus Corp is considering an equity alliance with five prospective investors, including electronics groups Sony, Panasonic and Samsung Electronics.

Federated Investors Inc objected to hundreds of executive pay packages in last year's corporate proxy voting, a rarity in the don't-rock-the-boat mutual funds industry.

A recent rise in loans to businesses is spurring hope that bank earnings reports, which begin Friday, will show that the outlook for this economically critical industry is better than its battered stock prices and weak investment banking volumes would suggest.

Bill Gross, the manager of the world's largest bond fund, said on Wednesday that the "demise" of PIMCO's flagship fund is exaggerated.

NEW YORK - Bill Gross, the manager of the world's largest bond fund, said on Wednesday that the demise of PIMCO's flagship fund is exaggerated.

Congressional Republicans who are urging President Barack Obama to approve the Canada-to-Texas Keystone XL oil pipeline have signaled they will not give up on the issue if the White House says no.

Canadian stocks ended slightly lower on Wednesday, weighed down by sharply weaker energy issues, as oil prices slid and investors remained cautious about Europe's debt crisis.

Global PC shipments declined 1.4 percent in the last quarter of 2011 mainly due to weak demand in Western Europe and the United States, according to research firm Gartner.

As more and more television viewers spend time tweeting about their shows or posting comments on Facebook, social entertainment startup GetGlue has raised more money to keep fans talking through their favorite shows.

Former Swiss National Bank Chairman Philipp Hildebrand will receive his salary for the next 12 months after he stepped down due to an uproar over a currency trade made by his wife, the Swiss wire SDA reported.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin gave former Kremlin chief of staff Vladislav Surkov responsibility for social policy on Wednesday, a portfolio likely to be viewed as a demotion for a man once seen as the architect of Russia's political system.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper plans to visit China next month as his government looks to open new markets for oil sands crude in the wake of Washington's decision to delay approval of a major pipeline from Alberta to Texas.

The futures regulator on Wednesday adopted new protections for customer collateral posted in swap trades, and said it plans a broader look into client safeguards, as the search continues for hundreds of millions of dollars in missing MF Global customer money.

Stocks held firm near recent five-month highs on Wednesday as investors awaited key bond market tests for Europe in the next two days that could determine the direction of the euro zone crisis.

Top Federal Reserve officials disagreed on Wednesday over how aggressive the central bank should be to spur faster growth and bring a lofty jobless rate down more quickly.

As more and more television viewers spend time tweeting about their shows or posting comments on Facebook, social entertainment start-up GetGlue has raised more money to keep fans talking through their favorite shows.

Ford Motor Co recalled about 450,000 SUVs and minivans in the United States due to potential flaws that could trigger brake fluid leaks or a loss of power, U.S. safety regulators said on Wednesday.

Agricultural processor Archer Daniels Midland Co said on Wednesday it will reduce its workforce by 3 percent, making it the latest agribusiness giant to make cuts in the face of volatile global markets.

One of the hottest debates raging from Wall Street to the farm belt is destined to stretch into next month, as the trustee overseeing the bankruptcy of broker MF Global Inc collects the final claims by customers who are missing some $1.2 billion - or, maybe, only half as much.

Stocks held firm near recent five-month highs on Wednesday as investors awaited key bond market tests for Europe in the next two days that could determine the direction of the euro zone crisis.

Pistol dueling in print and energetic postings of applause accompanied the Facebook premier of Theodor Fontane's Effi Briest, which organizers said was the first live staging of a play on the social networking site.

The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday the economy continued to expand modestly through the end of 2011 as holiday spending proved robust, but a weak job market was still preventing incomes from rising.

A memo that triggered a U.S. investigation into a possible cyber-attack by Indian military intelligence is probably a fake, but it is clear from leaked documents that serious security breaches did take place.

The Federal Reserve said on Wednesday the economy continued to expand modestly through the end of 2011 as holiday spending proved robust, but a weak job market was still preventing incomes from rising.

The worst is yet to come in the euro zone's debt crisis but the currency union will survive 2012 intact, according to a Reuters poll of economists who say France will probably lose its top-notch credit rating.

Intelligence analysis firm Strategic Forecasting Inc relaunched its website more than two weeks after an attack by hackers who had stolen data of clients including Henry Kissinger and former Vice President Dan Quayle.

Apple Inc sent out media invitations on Wednesday announcing plans for an education event at New York's Guggenheim Museum on January 19 but did not reveal further details.

Microsoft Corp has put its talks with media companies about an online subscription service for TV shows and movies on hold, according to people familiar with the discussions.