Fed seen keeping options open on pace of bond buying

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Federal Reserve policymakers will likely announce on Wednesday that they will keep buying bonds at a monthly pace of $85 billion, while keeping their options open to scale back the program later this year if the U.S. labor market continues to improve.

Asia business sentiment rises in second quarter, global growth risk still dominates

SEOUL (Reuters) - Asia's top companies have become more optimistic about their business outlook with the retail and shipping industries rebounding sharply in the second quarter of 2013, the latest Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Survey shows.

Nikkei outperforms Asian stocks as Fed looms

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Japanese stocks rose on Wednesday, thanks to a positive lead from Wall Street plus a softer yen, outperforming the rest of Asia which anxiously seeks clarity on the Federal Reserve's next policy step.

Empire State Building gets 'left-field' $2 billion offer to sell

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A New York City real estate company offered to buy the Empire State Building for $2 billion, a written offer showed, significantly below the skyscraper's appraisal price and about three weeks after investors in the iconic building approved a plan to take the tower public in a real-estate investment trust.

Mexican oil producer Pemex evacuates headquarters after bomb threat

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Mexico's state oil producer, Pemex, said on Tuesday it had evacuated its Mexico City headquarters, the site of a deadly explosion in January, after a bomb threat.

GM aims for 10 percent of China's luxury car market by 2020

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - General Motors Co said on Wednesday it aims to quadruple its share of China's luxury auto market to 10 percent by 2020 as the U.S. automaker launches new Cadillac models and expands its distribution network in the world's largest car market.

United Dreamliner diverted due to possible oil filter problem

SEATTLE (Reuters) - United Airlines said on Tuesday that a Boeing Co 787 on its way to Tokyo from Denver was diverted to Seattle after an indication of a problem with an oil filter, but the plane landed without incident.

Dish abandons Sprint bid for now to focus on Clearwire

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Dish Network Corp said it would not make a new offer to buy No. 3 U.S. wireless provider Sprint Nextel in time for a Tuesday deadline and would instead focus on its tender offer for Clearwire Corp.

Adobe expects third-quarter Creative Cloud subscriber adds to exceed second-quarter

(Reuters) - Adobe Systems Inc, known for its Photoshop and Acrobat software, reported a higher-than-expected adjusted second-quarter profit and said demand rose for Creative Cloud, the subscription-based version of its flagship software package.

Kodak prepares $406 million offering as it eyes bankruptcy exit

(Reuters) - Eastman Kodak Co on Tuesday said it will seek court approval for a $406 million rights offering that could give creditors a big equity stake in the company after it emerges from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.

Ex-Lockheed official joins board of Norwegian titanium firm

PARIS (Reuters) - Chris Kubasik, fired last year as Lockheed Martin Corp's incoming CEO after having an affair with a subordinate, said he has joined the board of directors of a Norwegian titanium producer that works closely with Spirit AeroSystems Inc .

Tinkler gives up half of Whitehaven stake to lender

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Struggling Australian tycoon Nathan Tinkler has given up nearly half of his stake in Whitehaven Coal Ltd for about $285 million to pay down debt to a U.S. hedge fund, easing concern about a forced selldown that had weighed on the miner's value.

Dish abandons Sprint bid for now to focus on Clearwire

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Dish Network Corp said it would not make a new offer to buy No. 3 U.S. wireless provider Sprint Nextel in time for a Tuesday deadline and will instead focus on its tender offer for Clearwire Corp.

Vodafone raises Kabel Deutschland offer after rival bid: report

(Reuters) - Britain's Vodafone Group Plc has raised its preliminary offer to buy Germany's largest cable operator, Kabel Deutschland Holding AG, a day after U.S. media group Liberty Global Plc made a rival bid, Bloomberg reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the bid.

U.S. lawmakers urge careful review of American-US Airways deal

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Two U.S. lawmakers with antitrust oversight have urged the Obama administration to carefully review a planned merger of American Airlines and US Airways Group to ensure that it will not lead to higher prices for air travelers.

Exclusive: SunGard explores $2 billion data unit sale - sources

NEW YORK (Reuters) - SunGard Data Systems Inc, the computer software maker that was taken private in 2005 for $11.4 billion, is exploring a sale of its data managing operations that could fetch up to $2 billion, several people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

UK's Osborne to unveil future of state-controlled banks

LONDON (Reuters) - The fate of Britain's two state-controlled banks will become clearer on Wednesday, when finance minister George Osborne is likely to start the clock ticking for the sale of the government's stakes.

Dolce and Gabbana face verdict on alleged tax evasion

MILAN (Reuters) - An Italian court is expected to rule on Wednesday on whether legendary fashion duo Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana should be sent to prison for allegedly hiding hundreds of millions of euros from the tax authorities.

United Technologies told to pay $473 million to U.S. in lawsuit

(Reuters) - A federal judge has ordered United Technologies Corp to pay $473 million plus interest for manipulating costs to win U.S. Air Force jet engine contracts in the 1980s.

Icahn seeks Dell share buyback, buys Southeastern stock

(Reuters) - Billionaire investor Carl Icahn promised Dell Inc shareholders that the company would buy back up to $16 billion of stock if they join his campaign to stop the computer maker from going private.

Chrysler relents, to recall 2.7 million Jeeps over fuel tanks

DETROIT (Reuters) - Chrysler Group LLC said it would recall 2.7 million older Jeep models after initially fighting a recall request from U.S. regulators in a dispute over crash protection for their fuel tanks.

Google challenges surveillance court on First Amendment grounds

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Google Inc asked the U.S. Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court on Tuesday to allow it to publish aggregate numbers of national security requests it receives separately from criminal requests, on First Amendment grounds.

From the ashes of Webvan, Amazon builds a grocery business

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The online grocery start-up Webvan may have been the single most expensive flame-out of the dot-com era, blowing through more than $800 million in venture capital and IPO proceeds in just over three years before shutting its doors in 2001.

Adobe profit beats as Creative Cloud subscriptions soar

(Reuters) - Adobe Systems Inc, which makes the Photoshop and Acrobat software, reported a higher-than-expected adjusted quarterly profit as demand rose for Creative Cloud, the subscription-based version of its flagship software package.

Duke Energy turns to insider to succeed CEO Rogers

(Reuters) - Duke Energy Corp has turned to an insider, Chief Financial Officer Lynn Good, to take over as chief executive when Jim Rogers steps down as part of a regulatory settlement linked to its $18 billion takeover of Progress Energy.

Ex-fund managers can remain free during U.S. insider trading appeal

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Two former hedge fund managers persuaded a U.S. appeals court on Tuesday to allow them to remain free on bail as they seek to have their insider-trading convictions thrown out.

Wall St. extends rise, investors see no change in Fed policy

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks advanced for a second straight day on Tuesday as investors bet the Federal Reserve would temper statements which were interpreted to mean a sooner-than-expected winding down of stimulus efforts.

Exclusive: Facebook reaches 1 million active advertisers

(Reuters) - Facebook Inc said on Tuesday it now has 1 million active advertisers globally who used the platform in the last 28 days, a milestone for the company that is seeking to revive its revenue growth.

Deloitte to pay $10 million to settle misconduct accusations

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A financial advisory unit of Deloitte LLP has agreed to pay $10 million and accept other New York state penalties to settle accusations of misconduct related to an investigation of money laundering at Standard Chartered Bank.

Huawei says has no plans to buy Nokia

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Chinese network equipment and cellphone maker Huawei Technologies Co said it "has no plans to acquire Nokia", responding to a Financial Times report that it would consider buying the Finish phone maker.