IBT Staff Reporter

The efforts by Facebook to raise as much as $1.5 billion outside of regulated markets is the latest test of the walls between private and public markets.

U.S. private employers added 297,000 jobs in December compared with a revised gain of 92,000 in November, a report by a payrolls processor showed on Wednesday.

Firefox has dethroned Internet Explorer (IE) in December 2010 to become the number one browser in Europe, as Google’s Chrome stole share from the Microsoft browser, a report said.

A surprise surge in private-sector employment last month for its biggest-ever rise in a private payrolls report provided the most bullish signal in months that the economy is on the mend.

Qualcomm Inc plans to buy Atheros Communications Inc for roughly $3.2 billion in cash, showing its determination to become a major player in supplying chips for smartphones and tablet computers.

Credit Suisse upgraded Barnes & Noble Inc shares, citing benefits the top U.S. bookstore chain could reap from the woes faced by smaller rival Borders Group Inc , which is meeting with publishers this week to negotiate new payment terms.

Wirlesss carrier Sprint has unveiled a new 4G-enabled smartphone HTC Evo Shift priced at $149.99, which will be available starting Jan. 9.

Mazda North American Operations (MNAO) today reported December 2010 sales of 21,479, up 17.7 percent versus December 2009 while year-to-date 2010 sales came in at 229,566, up 10.5 percent versus 2009. There were 27 selling days in December 2010 compared to 28 in December 2009, and 308 selling days in 2010 compared to 310 in 2009.

Nearly 40 Australian and international scientists will sail from Hobart on the Aurora Australis to investigate the break-up of a major Antarctic glacier.

Nine months after last hearing from the Mars rover Spirit, NASA is stepping up efforts to regain communications with the rover before spring ends in Mars' southern hemisphere in mid-March.

Ford said its Sync radio system has been installed in more than 3 million vehicles, since it was first introduced late in 2007.

In Tuesday's midweek fixtures of the English Premier League, Manchester United increased their lead the top to three points with a 2-1 win over Stoke City, while Fulham and Birmingham climbed out of the relegation zone at the expense of West Brom and Blackpool.

Applications for 2011 entry have risen by 2.5% till December 20, according to UCAS data

Stocks were set to open lower on Wednesday with materials shares looking weak on falling commodity prices, but losses were capped after a report showed a big jump in new private-sector jobs.

American packaged foods company Kraft Foods has filed a law suit in an Indian court against Indian biscuits and dairy business company Britannia Industries for trademark and copyright violations of its popular Oreo cookies.

The University emerges at the top of a list by Kiplinger magazine that ranks public educational institutions by academic quality and affordability

Stock index futures fell on Wednesday as commodity prices dropped for a second day, pressuring global equity markets.

Oil prices fell further from 27-month highs on Wednesday as a stronger dollar sapped investor risk appetite for commodities, despite signs of tighter oil supply fundamentals.

U.S. stock index futures fell on Wednesday as commodity prices dropped for a second day, pressuring global equity markets.

American Airlines is in active discussions and expects to reach settlements with the two largest U.S. online travel agents, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a senior executive at the airline's parent AMR Corp .

Global food prices rose in December, with the FAO Food Price Index at a record high, the U.N Food and Agriculture Organization said on Wednesday, past 2008 highs when rising food prices sparked riots in a number of countries.

Commodity prices fell for a second day in a row on Wednesday, hurt by profit-taking and a stronger dollar and putting pressure on world equity markets.

Applications for U.S. home mortgages ebbed in the last two weeks of the year amid the holiday season as loan rates hovered around their highest levels in seven months, an industry group said on Wednesday.

Samsung Group will boost investment by nearly one-fifth to a record amount this year, seeking to build new businesses and to widen its lead in technology sectors such as display screens, South Korea's largest business group said on Wednesday.

Time Warner , and U.S. private equity funds, KKR and TPG , are on a short list of potential buyers of assets belonging to Dogan Yayin , Turkey's biggest media group, sources familiar with the deal said on Wednesday.

Commodity prices fell for a second day in a row on Wednesday, hurt by profit-taking and a stronger dollar and putting pressure on world equity markets.

Stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Wednesday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.5 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.4 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.5 percent at 1000 GMT (5 a.m. ET).

People.com.cn, the online news portal run by People's Daily, the mouthpiece of China's Communist Party, aims to list in Shanghai this year, the state-run China Daily reported on Wednesday.

A sudden drop in commodity prices prompted investors to take profits on Asian stocks on Wednesday while the U.S. dollar held firm ahead of job data due later in the week, though the bull market in raw materials was seen as far from over.