IBT Staff Reporter

Apple Inc's South Korean unit has been fined 3 million won ($2,855) by the country's communications regulator after the iPhone and iPad maker collected location data from users without proper authorization.

Wall Street equity futures rose on Wednesday, indicating the market may snap its longest losing streak since October 2008, as investors awaited data on the labor market.

Reports have emerged of a possible Chelsea bid for AC Milan's Brazilian star Alexandre Pato in a player-plus-cash deal.

Stock index futures pointed to a higher open on Wall Street on Wednesday following the previous session's sharp sell-off, with futures for the S&P 500 up 0.51 percent, Dow Jones futures up 0.34 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures up 0.54 percent at 0925 GMT.

Mobile developers more than ever want to devote their energies to writing apps for Apple's iOS and Google's Android platforms at the expense of their less popular rivals, a study released on Wednesday showed.

Manchester United have, reportedly, made a formal offer for Wesley Sneijder and the Dutchman has one week to decide whether he wants to take a massive pay-cut and move to Old Trafford.

The Swiss National Bank announced a shock cut in interest rates and threatened more action to cap a soaring Swiss franc, but was seen fighting a losing battle as investors seek respite from debt crises elsewhere.

Asia's best hope for insulation against a worsening economic outlook in the United States and Europe rests on China, and it may not be willing or able to do the job.

Breaking Benjamin, the Pennsylvania based alternative metal band, are no longer together. The band is facing some internal legal issues.

An Oregon woman, who spent three nights at the Mount Hood National Forest after falling off a cliff, said she ate berries and bugs, drank water from a creek and tried to scoot to safety on her bottom as she could not walk.

Arsenal will soon receive a second offer from Barcelona for Cesc Fabregas, as the Catalans prepare a bid around the region of £35 million, including £5 million as add-ons.

The United States had its triple-A rating confirmed by two key ratings agencies on Tuesday after Washington struck a last-minute deal to avoid a debt default, but threats of future downgrades remain.

Japan kept markets on guard for currency intervention and more monetary easing on Wednesday, with the finance minister vowing to stem the yen's rise and the prime minister calling for central bank action to protect the economy.

Jennifer Lopez calls herself an eternal optimist about love. ?I?m a hopeless romantic and passionate person when it comes to love,? says the superstar. The heartbroken Lopez shares that her biggest dream, love, hadn?t made an happy ending in her family with Anthony, though she really worked hard at it. Will Lopez soon find her right man again? Check out her three previous marriages and several significant relationships in her pursuit of love:

The Swiss National Bank cut its interest rate target band on Wednesday in a surprise move to stem the rapid rise of the Swiss franc, which investors have flocked to seeking harbor from the European and U.S. debt crises.

In a matter of days, investor relief that the United States avoided default has been replaced by fears Europe's debt crisis is deepening and the world's biggest economy may be slipping back into recession.

Outback Australian farmers - hardened from dealing with extreme weather, fires and pests - now have to wrestle with modern trading tools and technology after a tough day tilling the land as they adapt to the rigors of a deregulated market.

Research In Motion on Wednesday took the wraps off two more powerful versions of its touchscreen BlackBerry Torch, aiming to buy time until it can introduce a radically new software package in its smartphones.

World stocks tumbled toward five-month lows on Wednesday and top-rated government bonds rallied as worries grew that fiscal cutbacks and stagnating factory output would prolong a global economic slowdown and aggravate Europe's debt crisis.

Asia-focused bank Standard Chartered reported a record-beating 17 percent rise in first-half profits on Wednesday as a booming Hong Kong market and increased restraint on costs outweighed a slump in India.

Asian stocks fell more than 2 percent and gold sat near a record above $1,660 an ounce on Wednesday, with fears increasing that Washington's efforts to cut spending will slow growth at a time when global factory output is already stagnating.

A NASA satellite caught a stunning video of an enormous plasma twister rising from the sun's surface on July 12.

China is considering a proposal to create a ministerial-level body to manage its state-owned banks and non-bank financial enterprises, two sources with knowledge of the plan said, a move that would strengthen Beijing's grip on its lenders.

Hutchison Whampoa Ltd <0013.HK>, Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing's flagship ports-to-telecoms company, is set to post a record high first-half net profit, thanks in part to hefty one-off gains from the spin-off of its port assets.

China is considering a proposal to create a ministerial-level body to manage its state-owned banks and non-bank financial enterprises, two sources with knowledge of the plan said, a move that would strengthen Beijing's grip on its lenders.

Asia-focused Standard Chartered Bank Plc reported a market-beating 17 percent rise in first-half pretax profit on Wednesday, helped by strong growth in some key markets such as Hong Kong, keeping it on track for another year of record profits.

While last month?s record-breaking temperatures do not seem to cool down, central and southern states continued to suffer in sizzling heat today and the heat wave is expected to expand eastward as the week continues. Check out lifesaving tips on heat wave safety and heat disorder symptoms, provided by the NWS to keep you safe during this heat wave:

A senior official at rating agency Standard & Poor's said on Wednesday that global markets have already discounted a possible U.S. ratings downgrade, and that Asian nations' ratings were generally on an uptrend despite global economic woes.

A homeless man was taken into Secret Service custody on Tuesday after he climbed over the White House fence.