Daily Investor Briefing: Wall Street ends up on earnings,...

	Click to View in Browser 04/29/2014 Wall Street ends up on earnings, rebound in high-growth shares NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Tuesday, boosted by upbeat results from companies including Merck & Co and a rebound in Facebook and other high-growth shares. Twitter reports 255 million users, disappointing Street SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Twitter Inc on Tuesday reported 255 million monthly active users, up 5.8 percent from the previous quarter but not enough to satisfy investors increasingly concerned about its struggle to gain a mass following. EBay's first-quarter profit tops Wall Street, but outlook disappoints SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - EBay Inc posted a better-than-expected first-quarter profit on Tuesday, boosted by its PayPal payments unit, but the e-commerce giant's second-quarter forecast fell short of estimates. U.S. consumer confidence near six-year high, home prices rise NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. consumer confidence dipped in April but remained near a six-year high, while home prices rose in February, suggesting the economy continued to regain momentum after a winter lull. Spring expected to usher in strong U.S. job growth WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. employment likely rose at its fastest clip in five months in April and the jobless rate probably dropped in a show of strong economic momentum after a gloomy winter. Pimco equity chief plans hires as expansion picks up LONDON (Reuters) - Pimco's new global equity chief plans a first batch of new hires that could see her investment team grow by half as the U.S. bond powerhouse boosts its stock offering - and one of those running money will be her. Santander seeks Brazil unit buyout, sees Europe recovery MADRID/SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Banco Santander SA launched a 4.7 billion euro ($6.5 billion) offer on Tuesday for the 25 percent of its Brazilian unit it does not already own, giving investors a chance to gain exposure to a budding recovery of the euro zone's largest bank. Barclays dealmaker McGee quits as U.S. head LONDON (Reuters) - Hugh 'Skip' McGee, one of the British bank Barclays' highest earners, has quit as head of its Americas business, the bank saying he did not want to oversee the task of establishing a new holding company required under tougher U.S. rules. Siemens says to make Alstom offer if it can see its books PARIS/FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Germany's Siemens said on Tuesday it would make an offer to French engineering group Alstom if it is given four weeks to examine its books and draw up a detailed plan to rival a move by General Electric . Apple, Samsung make final pitches to U.S. jury in patent trial SAN JOSE, California (Reuters) - Apple has vastly exaggerated the importance of its patented iPhone features, a Samsung attorney said on Tuesday as the two companies delivered closing arguments to jurors after a month-long trial over mobile technology. Related Video Pickens: Long natural gas, short OPEC UK sees fastest growth in 6 years Related News New Medicare coverage of long-term care off to a rocky start Take a pass on TBTF crapshoot: James Saft A daily digest of breaking business news, coverage of the US economy, major corporate news and the financial markets. Register Today   The latest Reuters articles on M&A, IPOs, private equity, hedge funds and regulatory updates delivered to your inbox each day. Register Today   » MORE NEWSLETTERS - 3 Times Square New York, NY 10036 USA © Copyright 2010 Thomson Reuters Ensure delivery of Reuters Newsmails, add mail@nl.reuters.com to your address book. Details Subscribe to other Reuters newsletters. Unsubscribe from this newsletter. Follow us on Twitter Friend us on Facebook Forward to a friend