Egypt shares down on negative sentiment, profit taking

(Reuters) - Egypt's main stock indexes edged down on Monday, with a global downturn in equities leaving foreign investors wary of Egypt and retail investors reaping profits in the real estate and banking sectors, traders said.

"Foreign institutions are waiting till the bottom, and then they'll enter, and that's because of what's been happening in the U.S... right now it's not at that bottom," said Teymour el-Draini of Beltone Financial.


Read more at Reuters Africa

US Congress recesses amid Democratic achievements

(Reuters) - WASHINGTON, Aug 6 - After months of being flogged
for accomplishing little, Democrats who control Congress headed
into a summer recess having passed several high-profile bills
from raising the minimum wage to bolstering U.S. security and
expanding children's health care.




Their top priority -- ending the Iraq war -- remains
frustratingly unfulfilled. But the Democrats who took over in
January were able to go home early on Sunday for a monthlong
break having won more support in the U.S. Senate and House of
Representatives for bringing combat troops home by early next
year, marking a significant turnaround from last year.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

S.Africa's 1time airline to list on local bourse

(Reuters) - South Africa's second largest low-cost airline, 1time, is set to list on Johannesburg's smaller bourse AltX and capitalise on strong growth in air travel, it said on Monday.

1time said it would list on AltX, operated by the Johannesburg Securities Exchange, on Aug 14 and would offer 30 million ordinary shares at an issue price of 100 cents per ordinary share, raising 30 million rand.


Read more at Reuters Africa

American Home Mortgage files for bankruptcy

(Reuters) - The filing came after American Home closed most operations on Friday, laying off all but about 750 workers. It said it had started the year with more than 7,400 employees.







Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Funai Q1 profit tumbles on higher LCD panel prices

(Reuters) - Consolidated operating profit came to 1.17 billion yen
in April-June, down 52 percent from 2.44 billion
yen a year earlier, when Funai compiled its group results using
its overseas subsidiaries' earnings in the previous quarter.




Funai changed the accounting practice starting this quarter
and the results for the latest quarter reflect the April-June
performance of its overseas units.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Archstone-Smith sees merger to close around Oct 5

(Reuters) - In May, Archstone-Smith agreed to be acquired by Tishman
Speyer and investment bank Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.
.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Europe shares pare losses; M&A counters credit woes

(Reuters) - European shares pared losses in mid-morning trade on Monday as merger and acquisition news helped distract investors from credit market worries.

At 0940 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 of top European shares was down 0.6 percent at 1,507.81 points after earlier falling as low as 1,500.39.


Read more at Reuters Africa

ABN, Barclays up as Fortis investors back ABN deal

(Reuters) - Shares in ABN were up 1.7 percent at 35.61 euros after the pivotal Fortis shareholder vote. In the first of two votes due on Monday, 94 percent of Fortis shareholders who voted were for its proposed rights issue, well above the 75 percent needed. Click on .




Barclays shares rose 1.4 percent. Shares in Fortis were down 1.7 percent and RBS and Santander shares were down 0.8 percent. Shares in the winning bank or banks are expected to come under pressure in the short term from concerns about the high price of the deal and execution risk.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Stocks Retreat in Europe; UBS, BNP, Philips, BHP, Lafarge Lead the Drop

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks fell, following
declines in Asia and the U.S., on mounting concern that losses in
the U.S. mortgage market will erode economic growth and raise
financing costs for companies.

UBS AG and BNP Paribas SA led a drop by financial shares.
Royal Philips Electronics NV and Lafarge SA decreased as the
dollar traded near a record low against the euro. BHP Billiton
Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group slipped after copper fell in Shanghai.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Fortis seeks shareholder approval for ABN buy

(Reuters) - BRUSSELS, Aug 6 - Belgian-Dutch financial services
group Fortis sought shareholder approval on Monday for
its part of a three-bank bid to buy ABN AMRO , a crucial
vote for the biggest ever bank takeover.




Fortis , Royal Bank of Scotland and Spain's
Santander have offered 71 billion euros
for the Netherlands' largest bank in a bidding war that has
featured legal and stakeholder battles.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Munich Re -maximum subprime loss around 100 mln eur

(Reuters) - A slide presentation showed that about 600 million euros of
the company's 179 billion euros of invested assets were exposed
to the subprime market, or about 0.33 percent of the total.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

S.Africa's largest oil refinery shuts down due to strike

(Reuters) - SAPREF, South Africa's largest oil refinery, said on Monday it had shut down due to a strike that has crippled the industry and led to petrol shortages at filling stations.

"In response to CEPPAWU's call for a national strike, a safe shutdown has been completed at the SAPREF refinery," Prudence Mbatha said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters Africa

U.S. Treasuries Are Little Changed Amid Asian Stock Slide, Slower Growth

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries were little changed as
Asian stocks fell and speculation increased that losses tied to
subprime mortgages will prompt the Federal Reserve to cut
interest rates this year.

Ten-year notes may extend their gains into a fifth week
after reports showed employers added fewer jobs than expected
last month and bond investors are becoming less bearish.
Treasuries are on track to return 5.3 percent this year, the
most since 2002, according to a Merrill Lynch & Co. index.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Cerberus taps Nardelli to run Chrysler

(Reuters) - Chrysler's current chief executive, Tom LaSorda, will stay on as president and vice-chairman and continue to lead ongoing talks with the United Auto Workers union as the automaker's No. 2 executive and a consultant to Cerberus.




In a further shake-up, Chrysler's current chief operating officer, Eric Ridenour, will leave and his post responsible for production and product planning will not be filled.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-Buyout group owns 99.54 pct of Endemol after offer

(Reuters) - The group, called Edam Acquisition said in a statement 99.54
percent of Endemol shares have been tendered or committed.




It bought 75 percent of Endemol shares from Spanish telecoms
group Telefonica for 2.63 billion euros
last month and about 6 percent of shares from a Cyrte investment
fund.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

European Stocks May Decline; UBS, ING, Philips, BHP Billiton Might Drop

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks may fall, following
declines in Asia and the U.S., as concern mounts that losses in
the U.S. mortgage market will erode economic growth and raise
financing costs for companies.

UBS AG and ING Groep NV may lead financial stocks lower.
U.S.-traded shares of Royal Philips Electronics NV and Nokia Oyj
dropped as the dollar traded near a record low against the euro.
BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group declined in Australian
trading after copper fell in Shanghai.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Gold off 1-week high, Tokyo dips on firmer yen

(Reuters) - Gold dipped in profit taking on Monday after touching a one-week high last week, while Tokyo futures fell on a firmer yen.

Spot gold fell to $671.90/672.40 an ounce at 0320 GMT, from $674.10/674.90 late in New York on Friday, when it hit its highest in a week at $674.20 an ounce as the dollar weakened on lower-than-expected U.S. data on jobs growth.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Indonesia's Mobile-8 says may defer dlr bond issue

(Reuters) - "We have not decided yet, Lehman is still studying whether
we should go ahead or not," Merza Fachys, Mobile-8's corporate
affairs director, told Reuters.




"This week we may come up with a conclusion," Fachys added.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Berkshire, Diebold, Jones Apparel, Rowan, Paychex: U.S. Stock Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares may have unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
tomorrow. This preview includes news that broke after exchanges
closed. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.

Berkshire Hathaway Inc. (BRK/A US): The investment company
run by billionaire investor Warren Buffett said second-quarter
profit from continuing operations increased to $1,625 a share,
helped by gains from insurance and investments. The result topped
the $1,436 estimate of Charles Gates, an analyst at Credit
Suisse. The stock fell $100 to $109,900 in regular trading.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Copper Futures Tumble in Shanghai on Concern U.S. Economic Growth May Slow

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices fell the most in more
than two months in Shanghai amid speculation that an economic
slowdown in the U.S., the second-largest consumer of the metal,
will reduce demand. Zinc and aluminum futures also dropped.

Growth in U.S. service industries slowed more than forecast
in July, and U.S. employers added fewer jobs last month than
projected, reports showed Aug. 3. Stockpiles of copper, which
sometimes moves in tandem with economic growth, also increased
last week as summer holidays and maintenance hurt demand.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Hynix, Toshiba Shares Rise on Outage at Samsung Electronics Chip Factory

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of Hynix Semiconductor Inc. and
Toshiba Corp. rose, bucking declines across Asia, on speculation
a power outage at Samsung Electronics Co. may spur increased
orders for the two smaller memory chipmakers.

Hynix's stock gained as much as 2.8 percent in Seoul and
Toshiba shares climbed 1.8 percent in Tokyo as benchmark indexes
in Asia fell. On Aug. 4, South Korea's Samsung said it resumed
production at the six production lines that were halted a day
earlier because of a power outage, estimating 40 billion won ($43
million) in lost sales.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Vietnam's June Reserve Increase Will Be Last for Now, Policy Maker Says

(Bloomberg) -- Vietnam's recent increase in bank
reserves will be the last for now as the government assesses the
effect on inflation, said the policy maker in charge of banking.

Any perceived reluctance to quell the fastest inflation in
17 months is likely to deter overseas investors from buying
Vietnam's stocks and bonds. The threat of inflation ``calls for
action'' by the central bank to reduce the amount of money in the
banking system, HSBC Holdings Plc said in research last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Samsung shares pare losses following outage

(Reuters) - Samsung's Kiheung sprawling complex was hit by a power shortage on Friday afternoon that shut down six of its chip production lines, raising the prospect of price increases and boosting shares of rival memory chip makers.




Some analysts on Friday said the incident could wipe out as much as a month's worth of Samsung's total output of NAND flash memory chips, but the firm later said damage from the accident would be smaller than expected.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

South Korea's Kospi Index Falls, Led by Samsung, Posco and Kookmin Bank

(Bloomberg) -- South Korea's benchmark stock index,
the Kospi Index, fell 2.41 percent at 9:05 a.m.

The index of 733 companies traded on the Korea Exchange
fell 45.19 to 1,831.61. Among the stocks in the index, 88 rose,
566 fell and 79 were unchanged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Dollar Falls to Four-Month Low Against Yen on Concerns About U.S. Growth

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar fell to a four-month low
against the yen on signs losses related to subprime mortgages
are starting to slow U.S. economic growth.

The dollar also traded near a record low against the euro
after the yield spread between U.S. and German two-year bonds
narrowed to the least in 2 1/2 years. The Standard & Poor's 500
Index slid the most in five months and two-year Treasury yields
dropped to an 18-month low Aug. 3 as reports on employment and
services suggested housing market weakness is causing economic
growth to slow.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Vattenfall Prolongs Maintenance Shutdown by Six Days at Forsmark Reactor

(Bloomberg) -- Vattenfall AB, the Nordic region's
biggest utility, said its Forsmark B2 nuclear reactor will be
shut down for maintenance work six days longer than previously
reported.

The reactor, with a maximum capacity of 1,000 megawatts,
will be off until Aug. 23 instead of Aug. 17, Forsmark Kraftgrupp
AB said today in a statement distributed by the Nord Pool ASA
power exchange. The Forsmark nuclear plant is located on Sweden's
east coast, north of Stockholm.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

ACA Capital shares could fall on subprime: Barron's

(Reuters) - Should the U.S. subprime troubles prove to be systemic across different geographies, then not only would shares be hammered, but the company could be toast, Barron's said.




If ACA buckles under, Wall Street firms whose securities the company insured would also be hurt. The $61 billion of ACA's insured exposure would come cascading back to balance sheets of the likes of Bear Stearns , Merrill Lynch , Lehman Brothers , and Citigroup along with some 25 other Wall Street counterparties, Barron's said.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Fed to weigh hit of credit crunch

(Reuters) - The Fed is widely expected to hold overnight interest rates steady at 5.25 percent, where they have been for more than a year. The policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee is expected to release a statement outlining its views on the economy at around 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday.




Markets will watch keenly for any sign the U.S. central bank, which has persistently identified the risk of inflation as its main concern, is beginning to worry a bit more about the potential for an undesirable weakening in the economy.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

HK financier Francis Leung joins CVC as adviser

(Reuters) - Leung, a long-time banker to Hong Kong tycoon Li Ka-shing with close China ties, was with Citigroup Global Markets as chairman of Asia until last year focusing on developing Citigroup's Greater China investment banking business, CVC said.




CVC, which is a major shareholder in global motor racing business Formula 1, owns interest in Australia's media group PBL Media, Japan's restaurant chain Skylark, Singapore's precision metals stamping firm Amtek, Malaysia's largest paper packaging firm GS Paper and Packaging, and Chinese wood fibreboards maker Plantation Timber Products.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 3-Bush tours site of wrecked Minnesota bridge

(Reuters) - MINNEAPOLIS, Aug 4 - Divers searched for bodies
in debris in the murky Mississippi on Saturday as President
George W. Bush toured the site of this week's deadly rush-hour
bridge collapse and promised quick federal help in rebuilding.




Bush got a bird's eye view of the ruined bridge in a
10-minute helicopter tour, then donned an orange hard hat and
wind-breaker to walk a section of the 40-year-old bridge on
foot as rain fell.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Court will wait to rule on CBOT exercise rights

(Reuters) - CME Group Inc., the world's largest futures exchange, was
created with the merger of CBOT Holdings Inc. and Chicago
Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. in July. The CBOE is the
largest U.S. options market.




The exercise rights allow full members of the Chicago Board
of Trade to trade options on CBOE without owning CBOE
membership.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

White Nile lobbying removal from Sudan oil block

(Reuters) - Britain's White Nile Plc is lobbying against a decision to remove them from south Sudan's oil Block B, saying it had halted all drilling work in the swampy area.

South Sudan's industry minister, Albino Akol Akol, told Reuters in July a long-standing dispute over the massive Block B had been resolved in favour of French oil giant Total SA which held rights to the block granted by the northern government.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Pound Has Biggest Weekly Gain Versus Yen Since June as Carry Trades Resume

(Bloomberg) -- The pound had its biggest weekly gain
since June against the yen as rebounding credit markets prompted
investors to restart so-called carry trades.

The pound posted a weekly advance against the dollar as
traders bought high-yielding currencies with loans from Japan.
The U.K. currency was also buoyed by speculation that the Bank of
England will raise interest rates at least once more from 5.75
percent by year-end.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Clean tech becomes big business

(Reuters) - "Clean technology is everywhere," write Ron Pernick and Clint Wilder in "The Clean Tech Revolution: The Next Big Growth and Investment Opportunity" .




They describe clean tech as "any product, service, or process that delivers value using limited or zero nonrenewable resources and/or creates significantly less waste than conventional offerings."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Nike CEO Parker earns $1.25 million salary in 2007

(Reuters) - During fiscal 2007, Parker also exercised $7.38 million in option awards and vested $1.2 million in stock awards.




For fiscal 2006, Parker was paid a salary of $1.14 million, received a bonus of $1.29 million and received more than $2 million in restricted stock awards and other compensation.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

NYSE Brokers Say Some Stock Orders Were `Lost' in Final Minutes of Trading

(Bloomberg) -- Traders at the New York Stock Exchange
said they couldn't confirm that some buy and sell orders were
filled in the final minutes of floor trading today.

``The orders somehow got lost in cyberspace,'' said Theodore
Weisberg, president of Seaport Securities Corp. in New York. ``As
best we can tell, we weren't able to get any fills. What shows up
here Monday morning remains to be seen.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

TREASURIES-Bonds rally on stock rout, subprime fears

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, Aug 3 - The U.S. Treasury debt market
rallied on Friday with benchmark 10-year yields falling to
their lowest levels since May, as subprime fears drove
investors from stocks into bonds and other low-risk assets.




Safety bids for Treasuries and the stock sell-off
intensified after a top executive at Bear Stearns, whose
subprime hedge funds racked up heavy losses, said fixed-income
market conditions were at their worst in 22 years.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

July job growth slowest in five months

(Reuters) - In another sign of slowing growth, the Institute for Supply Management reported the service sector grew more slowly in July as its index fell to 55.8 from 60.7 in June.




There were indications that problems in the housing sector, where lenders face rising mortgage defaults and prices are declining in many metro markets, appeared to be spreading into hiring as construction businesses cut 12,000 jobs last month.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

U.S. Stocks Retreat on Credit-Market Woes; Bear Stearns, Oil Shares Drop

(Bloomberg) -- Stocks tumbled on evidence losses in
the mortgage market may slow the economy and reduce bank profits,
sending the Standard & Poor's 500 Index to its worst three-week
retreat since 2003.

Bear Stearns Cos., the manager of two hedge funds that
collapsed last month, helped carry financial shares to their
biggest decline in five years after S&P cut the company's credit
outlook. Energy shares fell to the lowest since May, led by Exxon
Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp., on speculation weaker job growth
and falling oil prices will hurt earnings.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Bear Stearns says weathering "extreme" credit storm

(Reuters) - Bear Stearns' chief financial officer said the shockwaves hitting lending markets, triggered by rising mortgage losses, were as bad as crises such as the Internet bubble bursting in 2001 or the 1998 collapse of hedge fund Long-Term Capital Management.




"These times are pretty significant in the fixed-income market," CFO Sam Molinaro said on a conference call with analysts. "It's as been as bad as I've seen it in 22 years. The fixed-income market environment we've seen in the last eight weeks has been pretty extreme."


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

US STOCKS-S&P drops 1 percent as Bear Stearns sinks

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, Aug 3 - U S. stocks dropped on Friday,
with the S&P 500 losing more than 1 percent, after Standard &
Poor's cut Bear Stearns Cos. Inc.'s rating outlook,
dragging down shares of the investment bank and other
financial-sector stocks.




The Dow Jones industrial average was down 118.52
points, or 0.88 percent, at 13,344.81. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index was down 14.72 points, or 1.00 percent, at
1,457.48. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 21.67
points, or 0.84 percent, at 2,554.31.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

At American Home, it's one last day at the office

(Reuters) - By Lynn Adler



MELVILLE, New York, Aug 3 - In some respects it was a normal summer Friday in this Long Island hamlet roughly 50 miles east of Wall Street. The weather was hot, a bit steamy. The weekend approached, and employees of American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. awaited their paychecks.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Wachovia unit halts Alt-A home loans

(Reuters) - Wachovia stopped making Alt-A loans through all brokers on Thursday, the spokesman said. Wells Fargo & Co. has said it is also curtailing such loans.



Alt-A loans, short for "Alternative-A," fall between prime and subprime in quality. Investors have shied away from the loans on concern about rising defaults, and that credit issues affecting riskier "subprime" loans would spread to higher-quality loans.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Chile stocks down in variable trade; peso slips

(Reuters) - Chilean and global markets were rattled by continuing
concerns about U.S. credit and worse-than-expected jobs data.




"Things have been volatile and unpredictable, both
domestically and abroad," a trader said. "On top of that, we
are still expecting earnings reports from major blue-chip
companies."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Nymex Gas Falls as U.S. Has Ample Fuel Supply to Meet Hot-Weather Demand

(Bloomberg) -- Natural gas in New York fell on
expectations the U.S. will have ample supplies of the power-plant
fuel to meet increased demand during hot spells this summer

U.S. gas inventories rose 77 billion cubic feet last week,
exceeding analyst expectations. The gain left supplies 2.3
percent higher than a year earlier, at 2.84 trillion cubic feet,
heading toward a record by winter, the Energy Department reported
yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

UPDATE 1-Telus files $2.8 bln mixed shelf offering

(Reuters) - The company plans to put the proceeds for debt repayment,
capital spending and other general corporate purposes,
according to a shelf registration statement filed with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission.




Under a shelf registration, a company may sell securities
in one or more separate offerings with the size, price and
terms to be determined at the time of sale.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Poland's Zloty Posts Weekly Gain as Investors' Appetite for Risk Returns

(Bloomberg) -- The Polish zloty posted a weekly gain,
advancing to an eight-day high against the euro, as investors
regained their appetite for emerging-market assets.

Investors resumed buying stocks and higher-yielding
currencies such as the zloty, the Turkish lira and the South
African rand as concern abated that losses on U.S. subprime
mortgages would slow global economic growth. The risk of holding
European corporate debt fell for the first week in seven.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Marsh completes Putnam sale; acquisitions ahead?

(Reuters) - Marsh & McLennan said in a statement that it would discuss the use of the money at its earnings conference call on Aug. 7, immediately after announcing second-quarter earnings.



But Chief Executive Michael Cherkasky has already indicated his first priority will be acquisitions to boost the broker's current businesses and add to earnings within the next 18 month.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Deutsche Bank, JPMorgan Abandon Second Loan Offering for KKR Boots Buyout

(Bloomberg) -- Deutsche Bank AG, JPMorgan Chase &
Co. and UniCredit SpA canceled the sale of 1 billion pounds ($2
billion) of loans for Alliance Boots Plc after failing to find
investors, two people with direct knowledge of the deal said.

The underwriters withdrew the offer of second-lien loans,
debt that ranks after senior loans for repayment, said the
people, who declined to be identified because the discussions
are private. Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co.'s bankers, which last
month pulled 5 billion pounds of senior loans, will only
syndicate 750 million pounds of mezzanine debt that ranks last
for repayment and pays the highest interest.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Israeli Blue Square to buy 51 pct stake in pvt retailer

(Reuters) - The Bronfman-Alon Group owns Blue Square.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

India's Wipro in talks to buy U.S. firm -TV

(Reuters) - The size of the deal is expected to be between $450 million and $500 million, it said. A spokesman for New York-listed Wipro said the company would not comment on market speculation.



Wipro, which offers IT solutions such as system integration, software development and back-office services to companies looking to cut costs, has made a string of acquisitions in the last 1-? years to boost growth.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 3-S&P changes Bear outlook to negative; shares fall

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, Aug 3 - Standard & Poor's on Friday
changed its rating outlook on Bear Stearns Cos. to negative
from stable, indicating a greater chance of a downgrade over
the next two years, as it warned of problems that could hurt
the firm's performance "for an extended period."




S&P said issues include problems at some of Bear Stearns'
managed hedge funds.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Regulator seeks comments on "unfair" lending

(Reuters) - The proposal comes at a time when U.S. banking authorities, including the Federal Reserve, have been criticized for responding too late to problems in home loans made to borrowers with poor credit histories, so-called subprime loans.




The OTS, which regulates more than 800 savings and loan institutions with $1.5 trillion is assets, typically focuses on mortgage lending.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-Barclays, ABN advisers' fees seen at 311 mln stg

(Reuters) - In a filing to U.S. regulator the Securities and Exchange
Commission late on Friday, Barclays also said its shareholders
will be asked to vote on the deal on September 14.




The British bank is expected to formally launch its offer
for ABN by a deadline to do so on Monday.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Allianz beats forecasts as life insurance shines

(Reuters) - "The good results from the first half year provide an excellent platform for attaining our goals in 2007-2009," Chief Executive Michael Diekmann said in a statement.




"We are expecting net income of around 8 billion euros for the year 2007."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Mortgage fallout weighs on Wall Street

(Reuters) - Standard & Poor's said it changed its ratings outlook on Bear Stearns, the biggest U.S. underwriter of mortgage bonds, to "negative" from "stable," indicating there is a better chance of a downgrade over the next two years.




"People are very concerned. They do not know how deep these loan problems are and how it will affect the economy," said William Lefkowitz, options strategist at brokerage firm vFinance Investments in New York.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

FTSE up as miners support but credit fears remain

(Reuters) - The FTSE 100 index of Britain's leading shares edged up on Friday after U.S. stocks climbed overnight as robust earnings tempered nervousness about more weakness in credit conditions.

Such worries were heightened after Accredited Home Lenders Holding Co. -- a subprime lender in the process of being sold -- which raised concern about its ability to stay in business. For details, see.


Read more at Reuters Africa

S.Africa 3-mth T-bill discount rate down at 8.84 pct

(Reuters) - The average discount rate for South African three-month Treasury Bills decreased to 8.84 percent on Friday from 8.86 percent last week, the Reserve Bank said.

The average yield was also down at 9.04 percent from 9.06 percent and applications for the 2.3 billion rand of bills on offer totalled 5.02 billion rand.


Read more at Reuters Africa

S.Africa's c.bank casts doubt on maize for ethanol

(Reuters) - South Africa's central bank chief Tito Mboweni has questioned the wisdom of using maize as a source for ethanol, saying global trends have shown this would push up prices of the staple food.

"It seems that we in South Africa think that we are going to produce ethanol from maize," Mboweni said at a dinner.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Jobs data show US economy strong-WH's Lazear

(Reuters) - He was speaking after data showed a less than expected 92,000
new U.S. jobs were created in July.




He also said that rising oil prices had only had a minimal
impact on growth, although he noted that high energy prices were
clearly a negative, and welcomed recent declines in the cost of
gasoline.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Cocoa Gains on Speculation Adverse Weather Will Hurt Indonesia's Harvest

(Bloomberg) -- Cocoa gained for the first time in three
days in London on speculation adverse weather in Indonesia, the
world's third-biggest producer, will lead to a smaller harvest.

Production in Indonesia's Central Sulawesi province may fall
``more than 10 percent'' this year after floods and landslides
last month damaged plantations and cut off distribution, Herman
Agan, head of the local chapter of the Indonesian Cocoa
Association, said in a telephone interview yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Toyota keeps FY global sales forecasts

(Reuters) - Its sales forecasts by region were also unchanged. In North America it expects to sell 2.99 million vehicles, in Japan 2.32 million units.



The figures include sales at truck maker Hino Motors Ltd. and compact car maker Daihatsu Motor Co. .


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

RBS sees June, July flood losses at 250 mln stg

(Reuters) - RBS Chief Executive Fred Goodwin said losses from July's
flooding would be "very similar" to June.




He declined to be drawn on the possible consequence for the
prices paid by RBS insurance customers, but said the group,
which owns brands including Direct Line and Churchill, would be
watching the market and moves by rivals.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-KeySpan 2nd-quarter earnings rise

(Reuters) - Net income was $52.2 million, or 29 cents per share,
compared with $49.4 million, or 28 cents per share, a year
earlier.




Analysts, on average, expected the company to earn 19 cents
per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Top Tankers posts Q2 net profit, shares rise

(Reuters) - Shares of the Greek company rose more than 7 percent to
$7.14 in early morning trade on the Nasdaq.




The company posted a net profit of $5.8 million, or 18
cents a share for the quarter, compared with a net loss of $6.8
million, or 24 cents a share, in the year-ago period.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Subprime Housing Defaults Blamed for Corporate America's Earnings Setbacks

(Bloomberg) -- Railroads, chemical producers and
insurance companies are blaming the worst U.S. housing slump in 16
years for their earnings woes.

Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp., the second-biggest U.S.
railroad, said lower shipments of housing products and lumber
reduced second-quarter earnings. DuPont Co., the third-largest
chemical maker, said slumping demand for kitchen and bathroom
countertops was partly responsible for its profit drop. Genworth
Financial Inc., the former insurance unit of General Electric Co.,
said earnings will be at the ``lower end'' of its forecast this
year as mortgage-insurance claims increase.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Toyota Electric Car May Have Half the Range of GM's, People Familiar Say

(Bloomberg) -- Toyota Motor Corp.'s plug-in electric
car may have less than half the range of a competing vehicle
planned by General Motors Corp., people with knowledge of both
companies' development programs said.

GM wants its Chevrolet Volt to travel at least 40 miles
after being charged once at a normal household outlet, while the
Toyota model may go no more than 20 miles on a single charge,
said the people, who asked not to be identified because details
of the plans are still secret.


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Canada's Dollar Falls on Credit Fears, Depressing Commodity Currencies

(Bloomberg) -- Canada's dollar fell for the first
time in four days as investors sold currencies tied to commodity
exports on concerns U.S. subprime credit losses will spread,
slowing the global economy.

Commodity-linked currencies fell last week as investors
shunned the practice known as ``carry-trade'' in which investors
borrow in Japan to buy assets in economies such as Canada where
rates are believed headed higher. The benchmark lending rate in
Japan is 0.5 percent, while Canada's is 4.50 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Anglo Plans $4 Billion Share Buyback After Posting Record Six-Month Profit

(Bloomberg) -- Anglo American Plc, the world's
second-biggest mining company, reported record profit, announced
a $4 billion stock buyback and said it may sell the Tarmac
asphalt unit. Anglo shares rose as much as 4 percent.

Net income climbed 15 percent to $3.38 billion, or $2.41 a
share, in the six months to June 30, from $2.94 billion, or $2,
a year earlier, the company said today in a statement.


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JGBs rise as Treasuries climb, Nikkei erases gains

(Reuters) - Bond investors watched movements in the Tokyo stock market
closely this week as they believe the Bank of Japan will take
recent volatility in equities into account when it decides
whether to raise interest rates at its Aug. 22-23 policy meeting.




"The JGB market will stay under the strong influence of
external factors as the BOJ is unlikely to lift interest rates
before investor risk aversion ends," said Naomi Hasegawa, a
senior fixed-income strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Securities.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 2-Pakistan issuer defers bond, others may follow

(Reuters) - KARACHI/HONG KONG, Aug 3 - Pakistani textile and
fertiliser maker Azgard Nine has postponed its
international bond issue due to poor market conditions, sources
familiar with the deal said on Friday, with other pending high
yield issues from Asia also seen as vulnerable.




Azgard Nine said in May its debut international bond,
sponsored by Citigroup , would be worth up to $260 million,
and have a tenor of between seven and 10 years.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Weyerhaeuser earnings tumble

(Reuters) - Excluding items, the company earned 48 cents a share in the latest quarter.




The company's shares have fallen 16.1 percent over the last three months, tracking a 12 percent drop in the Standard & Poor's Paper and Forest Products Index.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Weyerhaeuser 2nd-qtr results beat expectations

(Reuters) - Excluding items, the No. 2 U.S. timber and forest products
company earned 48 cents a share in the latest quarter, well
above Wall Street's expectations of 40 cents a share, according
to Reuters Estimates.




However, Weyerhaeuser's second-quarter net earnings tumbled
to $32 million, or 15 cents a share, from $298 million, or
$1.19, a year earlier on weak prices for lumber products and a
lower profit margin from its real estate business.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Canadian Retail Stocks May Decline After Jean Coutu Results Miss Estimates

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian retail stocks may fall after
earnings at Jean Coutu Group Inc., Canada's second-biggest
pharmacy chain, fell short of analysts' estimates.

A report showing that U.S. employers created fewer jobs last
month may weigh on the Canadian market, reinforcing concern that
economy of Canada's biggest trading partner is slowing. Energy
producers such as Imperial Oil Ltd. may advance along with crude
oil prices.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News