France, Germany Seek More Power to Regulate Internet Firms 

Europe escalated its war against U.S. technology superpowers as the Continent's two largest economies and the European Parliament on Thursday backed fresh efforts to rein in the growing influence of companies such as Apple Inc., Facebook Inc. and Google Inc.

 
Rio Tinto Committed to Higher Investor Returns in 2015 

Rio Tinto, the world's No. 2 iron-ore miner, said it was committed to giving significantly more money back to shareholders in 2015 despite a sharp slide in iron-ore prices, reiterating plans for heftier returns to investors after years of heavy spending.

 
BAIC Motor Tests Investor Appetite for IPO 

BAIC Motor, a Chinese car maker partly owned by Daimler, is planning to start gauging investor interest next week in an initial public offering that could raise between $1.2 billion and $1.5 billion in Hong Kong, a person familiar with the situation said Friday.