Network equipment maker Brocade Communications Systems Inc is bolstering its partnership with IBM, in a sign it may be gaining market share from industry leader Cisco Systems Inc. International Business Machines Corp will rebrand ethernet switching and routing products made by Brocade as IBM products and sell them to mutual corporate customers, the companies said

Hewlett-Packard Co, the world's top PC maker, is launching a new line of inexpensive business laptops with fresh features targeting users at small and medium-size companies. The HP ProBook s-series, which starts shipping globally on Tuesday, is the company's new mainstream business notebook, following the release of its higher-end, lightweight EliteBook line last year. The

Facebook regularly attracts more than 200 million people to its website, but the company is now looking for ways to permeate the lives of its users without the need to check-in to the Facebook site. The Palo Alto, California company unveiled tools on Monday that allow third-party Web developers to harness the wealth of content

Top U.S. and Chinese trade officials discussed the importance of working together to restore global economic growth by boosting trade and avoiding protectionism, the office of the U.S. Trade Representative said. "Particularly during the current difficult global economic circumstance, both the United States and China have a tremendous stake in maintaining a vibrant, open, international

Asian stocks slipped for a second day on Tuesday on worries about the potential economic fallout from the swine virus outbreak, even as investor reaction reamined limited due to uncertainty about the full impact. More countries have reported cases of the flu, and countries such as Australia and South Korea were testing for the virus.