Reuters - Business Today

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Wednesday, January 3, 2018

Stock futures rise on signs of strong global economic growth

(Reuters) - U.S. stock futures pointed to a higher opening for Wall Street on Wednesday as signs of quickening economic activity around the world encouraged risk-on sentiment among investors.

Petrobras to pay $2.95 billion to settle U.S. class action over corruption

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Brazil's state-controlled oil company, Petroleo Brasileiro SA , said on Wednesday that it has agreed to pay $2.95 billion to settle a U.S. class action brought by investors who claim they lost money as a result of a corruption scandal.

Spotify hit with $1.6 billion copyright lawsuit

(Reuters) - Music streaming company Spotify was sued by Wixen Music Publishing Inc last week for allegedly using thousands of songs, including those of Tom Petty, Neil Young and the Doors, without a license and compensation to the music publisher.

Dominion Energy to buy Scana Corp in $14.6 billion deal

(Reuters) - Dominion Energy Inc said on Wednesday it would buy troubled utility Scana Corp in an all-stock deal worth about $14.6 billion, including debt.

U.S. blocks MoneyGram sale to China's Ant Financial on national security concerns

(Reuters) - Ant Financial's plan to acquire U.S. money transfer company MoneyGram International Inc collapsed on Tuesday after a U.S. government panel rejected it over national security concerns, the most high-profile Chinese deal to be torpedoed under the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump.

Pershing Square, Valeant to appear in court on insider trading suit settlement

(Reuters) - A U.S. court on Tuesday asked Valeant Pharmaceuticals International Inc and activist investor Bill Ackman's Pershing Square to appear for a hearing to discuss the proposed settlement in an insider trading lawsuit.

China central bank can tell local governments to regulate bitcoin miners' power use: source

BEIJING (Reuters) - China's central bank told a top-level government internet finance group that the monetary authority can tell local governments to regulate the power usage of bitcoin miners to gradually reduce the scale of their production, a source said.

Amazon, Google cut speaker prices in market share contest: analysts

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Amazon.com Inc and Alphabet Inc's Google both discounted their virtual assistant speakers so deeply over the holiday shopping season that they likely lost a few dollars per unit, highlighting a sharply different strategy from Apple Inc as it prepares its HomePod speaker, analysts said.

More than half of new Norway car sales now electric or hybrid

OSLO (Reuters) - Sales of electric and hybrid cars exceeded half of new registrations in Norway in 2017, a record aided by generous subsidies that extended the Nordic nation's lead in a shift from fossil-fuel engines, data showed on Wednesday.

Oil hits new two-and-a-half year highs as higher output looms

SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Wednesday to new two-and-a-half year highs as robust output in the United States and Russia balanced tensions from a sixth day of unrest in OPEC member Iran.