Market Updates: Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA), News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWS), Citigroup (NYSE:C), Bank of America (BAC)

News Corporation (NASDAQ:NWS) said Tuesday it earned $254 million in the most recent quarter, thanks to an advertising recovery as revenue rose 10%. The media group also raised outlook as its 20th Century Fox movie studio continues to ride the tail wind of Avatar. Shares jumped 4.3% in premarket trading. Bank of America (BAC), meanwhile, has approved more than $4 billion in 2009 pay for its investment bankers and traders, according to the Wall Street Journal. –Daily Finance

Citigroup (NYSE:C) is selling its five percent stake in the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Ltd., or MCX, to Ashmore Group Plc for $40 million, the Mint newspaper said, citing two people familiar with the transaction. The deal values India’s largest commodity exchange at $800 million, less than the $1 billion value at which MCX sold stakes to private equity investors in 2007, the report said. -Bloomberg

China First Heavy Industries raised 11.4 billion yuan ($1.67 billion) in its initial public offering Wednesday, after becoming the first company to fail to price a Shanghai IPO at the top of an indicative range since China reopened the primary market in June. A series of weak debuts on the Shanghai Stock Exchange has depressed demand for new listings, and high valuations have weighed on their trading performance. The last two companies to list on the exchange have fallen below their IPO prices, a far cry from recent years, when stocks making their debuts in China’s stock market were almost guaranteed to post strong gains. China First Heavy Industries, the country’s largest heavy machinery producer, said in a statement it sold two billion Class A shares, or 30.6% of its enlarged capital, at 5.70 yuan, the higher end of an indicative price range of 5 yuan to 5.80 yuan. –The Wall Street Journal

Comcast (NASDAQ:CMCSA) said Wednesday that its fourth-quarter profit more than doubled as costs declined and it gained new subscribers for its digital video, broadband and telephone services. The results exceeded most Wall Street forecasts. The company said it earned $955 million, or 33 cents a share, compared with a profit of $412 million, or 14 cents a share, in the year-earlier period. Earnings in the latest three months include tax benefits of $130 million, or 4 cents a share. Revenue at the nation’s largest cable-television operator rose 3% to $9.06 billion. -MarketWatch

The European Union executive says it backs Greece’s plan to cut its budget deficit sharply over next four years. EU Economy Commissioner Joaquin Almunia said the Greek government’s targets were “achievable” but “not easy.” -Forbes

-Update provided by Jutia Group