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Amazon.com Inc. said Wednesday that Alexa, the Echo, Echo Plus and the Echo Dot voice-controlled speakers are available in India by invitation. The devices will start shipping in India later this month. And both Alexa and the Echo will be available in Japan later this year. Amazon is also expanding its Alexa Skills Kit and the Alexa Voice Service, said Tom Taylor, senior vice president of Amazon Alexa in a statement, making it possible for developers and hardware creators to make localized Alexa experiences for Indian and Japanese customers. Amazon shares are down 0.4% in premarket trading, and up 27.6% for the year so far. The S&P 500 index is up 13.2% for 2017 to date and the Dow Jones Industrial Average is up 14.6% for the period.

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Shares of Catabasis Pharmaceuticals Inc. rocketed 49% in premarket trade Wednesday, putting them on track to open at the highest level seen during regular session hours since January, after the biopharmaceutical company reported positive phase-2 trial data for its treatment for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The company said MoveDMD demonstrated improved efficacy across all key assessments. In addtion, supportive changes in measures of muscle health were seen. Based on the results, Catabasis plans to initiate a phase 3 trial in the first half of 2018, with top-line results expected in 2020. The stock had already doubled in the past three months through Tuesday, while the iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF had climbed 8.7% and the S&P 500 had gained 4.4%.

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Shares of PepsiCo Inc. edged up 0.5% in premarket trade Wednesday, after the beverage and snack giant beat fiscal third-quarter profit expectations, which offset a sales miss and a lowered sales growth outlook. Net income for the quarter to Sept. 9 rose to $2.14 billion, or $1.49 a share, from $1.99 billion, or $1.37 a share, from the same period a year ago. Excluding non-recurring items, adjusted earnings per share came to $1.48, above the FactSet consensus of $1.43. Revenue increased to $16.24 billion from $16.03 billion, but missed the FactSet consensus of $16.35 billion. Frito-Lay North America sales increased 3% to $3.79 billion, missing the FactSet consensus of $3.83 billion, while North America beverages sales fell 3% to $5.33 billion, below expectations of $5.50 billion. The company lowered its 2017 sales growth outlook to about flat from a year, compared with its previous estimate of 3% growth. Adjusted EPS is now expected to be $5.23, above the FactSet consensus of $5.16. The stock has lost 5.5% over the past three months, while the SPDR Consumer Staples Select Sector ETF has slipped 1.7% and the S&P 500 has gained 4.4%.

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Shares in Mylan NV rose 15% in premarket action after the maker of generic drugs late Tuesday announced that the Food and Drug Administration had approved its generic versions for Teva Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd.’s Copaxone, a drug for people with relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis. Teva’s stock fell 9% in premarket trading.

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The European Commission has ordered Luxembourg to recoup €250 million ($294 million) from Amazon.com Inc. in back taxes, saying the U.S. e-commerce giant has received illegal state aid. The EU’s antitrust body said Wednesday Luxembourg had granted Amazon “undue tax benefits” that allowed the company to pay substantially less tax than other businesses. “As a result, almost three quarters of Amazon’s profits were not taxed,” said Margrethe Vestager, the EU’s competition commissioner. “This is illegal under EU state aid rules. Member states cannot give selective tax benefits to multinational groups that are not available to others,” she said. Amazon shares were down 0.3% in thin premarket trade. The Amazon ruling comes amid a renewed crackdown by the EU to scrutinize tax arrangements between its various member states and big multinationals operating in Europe. Last August, the commission ordered Apple Inc. to repay Ireland €13 billion in uncollected taxes. Both Ireland and Apple have contested the ruling. Also on Wednesday, the EU said it had referred Ireland to the European Court of Justice for failing to recover the alleged illegal state aid from Apple.

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Some of the Russian-backed ads on Facebook Inc. during the 2016 presidential election specifically targeted Michigan and Wisconsin, two battleground states that President Donald Trump won by narrow margins, CNN reported late Tuesday. A number of the ads appeared to target key demographic groups, sources told CNN, and delivered divisive messages on hot-button topics, including anti-Muslim messages. Trump ended up winning Michigan by just 10,700 votes, and Wisconsin by 22,700 votes. Facebook has sent congressional investigators more than 3,000 Russian-linked ads as part of multiple probes looking into Russian meddling in the election. On Monday, Facebook said about 10 million Americans saw Russian-backed ads before and after the election.

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Shares of Tesla Inc. rose nearly 1% in after hours Tuesday after analysts at Nomura started covering the stock, rating it a buy and giving it a $500 price target. They forecast “an unprecedented run-up in Tesla’s revenue” to $58 billion in 2021, from $8 billion in 2016, the analysts said in a note. Tesla has “an insurmountable lead in vehicle range per dollar,” benefits from “what we believe is a largely inferior competitive field,” and will overcome Model 3 production constraints, they said. Nomura’s $500 price target on Tesla, representing a 44% upside from Tuesday’s prices, is the highest among 19 recorded by FactSet, and compares with an average $304. Tesla ended the regular session up 1.9%.

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Amazon.com Inc. has bought startup Body Labs, according to a blog post by a Body Labs executive. “No doubt that Amazon will drive innovation at an exhilarating scale and it has been my honor to help make it happen,” wrote Ali Javid, Body Labs’ vice president of business development, who said he has decided not join Amazon. No numbers were disclosed, but Techcruch cited $50 million and $70 million in a report earlier Tuesday. Amazon.com did not immediately return a request for comment. New York City-based Body Labs uses artificial intelligence, body modeling and computer vision to create 3D body shapes and motion for the apparel and other industries.

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CytomX Therapeutics Inc. roared 35% higher in after-hours trading Tuesday to prices that would be record highs after announcing a partnership with biotech giant Amgen Inc. The companies will collaborate on an immuno-oncology product focusing on t-cell therapeutics developed by CytomX, with CytomX leading early development and Amgen taking over for later development and commercialization. Amgen is paying CytomX $40 million and buying $20 million in CytomX stock, and CytomX has the opportunity to earn up to $455 million based on milestones and share in profits from the U.S. while receiving royalties on non-U.S. sales of the drug. Amgen also receives the right to develop and commercialize three undisclosed CytomX candidates, with CytomX eligible to receive $950 million based on the performance of those therapies as well as royalties. CytomX stock topped $25 in late trading, a level it has never cracked in regular trading, after closing at $19. Amgen shares were stable in after-hours action.

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