Bloomberg (12/18/13) Ari Levy

Freelance sourcing websites Elance Inc. and ODesk Corp. have announced plans to merge. Fabio Rosati, chief executive officer of Elance, will head the combined entity.

Bloomberg (12/19/13) Michelle Jamrisko

Jobless claims rose by 10,000 to 379,000 in the week ended Dec. 14, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. The increase was a nearly nine-month high, reflecting the fluctuation in claims that often occurs near the end-of-year holidays. Economists polled by Bloomberg had forecast a decline to 336,000. The four-week moving average rose to 353,500 from 330,250 a week earlier.

Wall Street Journal (12/19/13) Jon Hilsenrath; Victoria McGrane

U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke yesterday said at a press conference that the U.S. economy has improved and that the central bank will begin winding down its bond-buying program in January. The Fed will buy $75 billion a month in mortgage and Treasury bonds as of January—down from $85 billion. Bernanke said the central bank will look to cut its purchases in $10 billion increments at subsequent meetings, but he warned, “the steps that we take will be data-dependent.”

The bond-buying program would be completed by the end of 2014, with nearly $4.5 trillion in bonds, loans, and other assets held. Bernanke will remain chair of the Fed until Jan. 31; he will preside over one more policy meeting Jan. 28-29.