IBT Staff Reporter

Stocks were set to dip at Tuesday's opening after a handful of companies, including Viacom Inc and Office Depot Inc, posted disappointing quarterly results and investors sought more evidence of the economic rebound.

IBM Corp. said Tuesday it plans to acquire SPSS Inc., a technology services company that helps businesses predict future trends and observe consumer patterns and behavior, for $1.2 billion.

Auto dealership chain Sonic Automotive Inc (SAH.N) posted a plunge in second-quarter profit on Tuesday as the economic recession hurt consumer demand for new vehicles.

Canadian auto parts maker Magna (MGa.TO) has increased the amount of upfront capital it will inject in its offer for General Motors' European unit Opel, a German government source said on Tuesday.

Canadian auto parts maker Magnahas increased the amount of upfront capital it would inject into Opel in its offer for the General Motors European unit, a German government source said on Tuesday.

Viacom Inc reported a steep fall in quarterly earnings, hit by poor advertising revenue and a dropoff in sales of its Rock Band video game.

Japan's Toyota Motor Corp plans to launch a hybrid compact for around 1.5 million yen ($15,760) in Japan in late 2011, broadening its hybrid car line-up, the Asahi newspaper reported on Tuesday.

Stocks headed for a lower open on Tuesday as a handful of companies, including Office Depot Inc , posted disappointing quarterly results and investors turned cautious before key data on home prices and consumer confidence.

International Business Machines Corp plans to buy technology services company SPSS Inc for about $1.2 billion in cash, the companies said on Tuesday.

Office Depot Inc reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss on Tuesday as the recession weighed on sales at the No. 2 U.S. office supplies retailer, and its shares fell 13 percent.

The greenback recovered from its earlier losses against the majors as the US equity bourses slipped into negative territory by afternoon trading.

Deutsche Bank AG braced for an economic slump by raising loan loss provisions in the second quarter, overshadowing a nearly 70 percent rise in net profit driven mainly by its investment bank.

Senior U.S. housing officials and leading mortgage companies on Tuesday will make a fresh commitment to help troubled borrowers keep their homes and will promise to expand foreclosure-prevention aid, sources familiar with the plans said.

International Business Machines plans to buy technology services company SPSS Inc for $50 a share, in a cash deal valued at about $1.2 billion, the companies said on Tuesday.

Weak demand for energy and slumping prices hurt utilities in Spain and Austria in the first half as the financial crisis dents power sales to key industrial customers and prevents companies from raising prices.

Bank of America Corp is planning to reduce its 6,100-branch network by about 10 percent, the Wall Street Journal cited the bank's chief executive Kenneth Lewis as telling investors.

China is bringing 150 senior officials, including nearly its whole Cabinet, to the United States this week for talks whose symbolic value is likely to trump concrete achievements.

Stock index futures dropped to session lows on Tuesday as several companies, including Office Depot Inc , posted lackluster quarterly results and investors turned cautious ahead of key reports on home prices and consumer confidence.

Australia's government is considering doubling compensation for coal miners under its carbon trade scheme, media reports said on Tuesday, as a new poll found Australians want carbon laws delayed to next year.

India will unveil its first solar power target as soon as September, pledging to boost output from near zero to 20 gigawatts (GW) by 2020 as it firms up its national plan to fight global warming, draft documents show.

Stock futures slipped on Tuesday due to caution ahead of key reports on home prices and consumer confidence.

U.S. home sales surged in June, a sign the U.S. housing market may have hit bottom and is starting to rebound, but two big U.S. companies, diversified manufacturer Honeywell and health insurer Aetna, saw economic weakness continuing.

Today at 10am EST a consumer confidence report will be released, the results of a survey over 5,000 consumers indicating the consumer attitudes over the past months. A greater consumer confidence could be a factor to rise the consumer sales.

The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission is planning to issue a report next month that suggests that wild swings in oil prices were significantly driven by speculators, the Wall Street Journal reported on its website on Tuesday.

Futures for the Dow Jones industrial average, the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 fall 0.2-0.3 percent, pointing to a weaker Wall Street open on Tuesday.

Ontario Finance Minister Dwight Duncan is pressing the Canadian government to block the proposed $1.13 billion acquisition of Nortel Networks Corp's wireless division, Toronto's Globe and Mail reported on its website.

Canadian auto parts maker Magnahas increased the amount of upfront capital it will inject in its offer for General Motors' European unit Opel, a German government source said on Tuesday.

Oil giant BP Plc said it had increased its cost reduction targets for 2009 by 50 percent to $3 billion, as it reported a halving in second quarter profits due to lower oil prices and weaker refining margins.

China has banned websites featuring or publicizing online games which glamorize mafia gangs, saying violators will be severely punished, state media reported on Tuesday.