IBT Staff Reporter

Google Inc has abandoned an ambitious project to make renewable energy cheaper than coal, the latest target of Chief Executive Larry Page's moves to focus the Internet giant on fewer efforts.

Stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wednesday, putting the S&P 500 on track for a sixth straight losing day as the euro zone crisis and weak Chinese data weighed on investor sentiment.

Kenneth Kies sizes up the chances of reforming the convoluted U.S. tax code like someone who has lived through it before. In fact, he has.

Purchase applications for home mortgages rebounded last week, but demand for refinancing sagged for a second week in a row, an industry group said on Wednesday.

New claims for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week but held below 400,000 for the third straight week, suggesting the labor market was gaining traction.

New claims for unemployment benefits rose slightly last week but held below 400,000 for the third straight week, suggesting the labor market was gaining traction.

New orders for a range of long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods unexpectedly rose in October, but sharp downward revisions to the prior month's data and weak spending plans by businesses suggested manufacturing was taking a breather.

Struggling telecoms gear maker Nokia Siemens Networks is to axe 17,000 jobs to help cut annual operating costs by around 1 billion euros ($1.35 billion).

As winter chills set in, it's time to dust off the skis and head to the hill! But before you do, check out this guide to the best of the Rockies. This ski season preview has you covered for season dates, best runs, and directions to the top resorts.

A disastrous German bond sale on Wednesday sparked fears that Europe's debt crisis was even beginning to threaten Berlin, with the leaders of the euro zone's two strongest economies still firmly at odds over a longer-term structural solution.

The highlight fixture of Wednesday's Uefa Champions League action takes place at the San Siro where reigning champions Barcelona take on AC Milan.

Pressure mounted on Finmeccanica Chairman Pier Francesco Guarguaglini to quit on Wednesday over a corruption probe that has engulfed Italy's defense conglomerate and exposed a growing rift in the company's top ranks.

Western Digital has secured conditional approval from the European Union's competition regulator to purchase Hitachi's hard disk drive business for $4.3 billion, after it agreed to sell several production operations.

Stock index futures were lower on Wednesday as worries about the euro zone crisis and weak data from China weighed on investor sentiment, putting the S&P 500 on track for a sixth day of losses.

Former Olympus Corp CEO Michael Woodford said on Wednesday that Tokyo police were best able to get to the truth behind one of Japan's biggest accounting scandals, as speculation mounts of possible links to organized crime.

The highlight fixture of Wednesday's Uefa Champions League action takes place at the San Siro where reigning champions Barcelona take on AC Milan.

Purchase applications for home mortgages rebounded last week, but demand for refinancing sagged for a second week in a row, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Deere & Co , reported a 46 percent increase in fiscal fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday due to continued strong demand for farm equipment, and the company said it expects substantial growth in 2012.

Stock index futures were lower on Wednesday as worries over Europe once again weighed on investor sentiment, putting the S&P 500 on track for a sixth day of losses.

Germany and France clashed on Wednesday over whether the ECB should take bolder steps to stem the euro zone debt crisis, with Chancellor Angela Merkel issuing one of her starkest warnings yet against fiddling with the central bank's strict inflation-fighting mandate.

A U.S. court awarded DuPont $920.3 million in damages on Tuesday, ruling that South Korea's Kolon Industries Inc <120110.KS> violated trade secrets for a fiber used to make Kevlar bulletproof vests, Kolon said on Wednesday.

Dreamworks Animation SKG Inc, producer of hit movies such as Kung Fu Panda, is in talks to set up a joint venture studio in Shanghai as early as January next year to produce animation and design theme parks, Caijing Magazine reported, quoting government sources.

Ron Paul, R-Texas, a libertarian congressman, has gained popularity recently among likely Republican voters in Iowa and New Hampshire. Here are his positions on the issues.

Stock index futures pointed to a weaker open for equities on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500, for the Dow Jones and for the Nasdaq 100 down 0.5 to 0.8 percent.

China's factory sector shrank the most in 32 months in November on signs of domestic economic weakness, a preliminary PMI survey showed, reviving worries that China may be slipping toward a hard landing and fuelling fears of a global recession.

Michael Woodford, whose ouster as CEO of Olympus Corp <7733.T> a month ago spurred revelations of accounting tricks at the camera and endoscope maker, said Wednesday he believed the company's shares should not be delisted but that it needed new management.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel rejected on Wednesday criticism of the ECB for not taking bolder steps to stem the euro zone debt crisis and made clear the next tranche of aid for Greece could not be paid out unless big parties in the country committed in writing to back austerity.

Former Olympus Corp CEO Michael Woodford said on Wednesday that Tokyo police were best able to get to the truth behind one of Japan's biggest accounting scandals, as speculation mounts of possible links to organised crime.

Stock index futures pointed to a weaker open for equities on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500, for the Dow Jones and for the Nasdaq 100 down 0.5 to 0.8 percent.