Wall St indexes fall, late oil spike hits futures

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell on Tuesday after a weak consumer confidence report fueled concerns the housing slowdown may spread to the broader economy and hurt corporate profits.

After the closing bell, U.S. crude oil futures spiked over $5 a barrel on concerns about Iran, sending U.S. stock futures sharply downward in electronic trading.


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Sudan top target for Chinese investment in Africa

(Reuters) - The biggest target for Chinese investment in Africa is Sudan, the oil-producing country facing mounting international pressure over rights abuses in Darfur, according to figures released by a U.N. agency on Tuesday.

The U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) said Sudan received $351.5 million in Chinese direct investment in 2005, the latest period for which data was available, making it Beijing's ninth-largest target for such flows worldwide.


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Morocco's largest fund CDG 2006 profit up 50 pct

(Reuters) - Morocco's largest fund Caisse de Depot et de Gestion (CDG) posted a 50 percent increase in net profit for last year, its managing director said on Tuesday.

Net profit rose to 2.48 billion dirhams in 2006 from 1.66 billion in 2005, Mustapha Bakkoury told a news conference.


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Gold at 4-week high on oil, eyes Bernanke testimony

(Reuters) - Gold prices rose to their highest level in almost four weeks on Wednesday, in sympathy with surging crude oil which raises the metal's allure as a hedge against inflation.

Spot gold rose as high as $668.80 an ounce and was at $665.20/666.20 by 0144 GMT, higher than $662.90/663.90 late in New York on Tuesday.


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Asian Stocks Fall on U.S. Economy Concern; Honda, Samsung Drop

Asian stocks were set for the first back-to-back drop in two weeks, led by companies that sell to the U.S. after consumer confidence and home prices fell in the region's largest export market.
Honda Motor Co., which had more than half of its sales in the U.S. and Canada last fiscal year, and Samsung Electronics Co. fell.

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Bear Stearns upgrades Martha Stewart, shares rise

(Reuters) - He raised his rating on the stock to "peer perform" from "underperform."

Meltz cited Martha Stewart's planned merchandising ventures with other companies in 2007 including paint at Lowe's Cos. Inc. , crafts at Michael's and home products at KB Studios.


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UPDATE 2-Delta Air sees profit swing, lower debt

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, March 27 - Delta Air Lines Inc. , which plans to emerge from bankruptcy in late April, said on Tuesday it expects to swing to a profit this year on cost reductions and higher revenue.

It also plans to slash debt and generate billions in cash flow.


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Africa attracting more Asian investment - UN report

(Reuters) - Africa is the target of growing volumes of Asian investment, a U.N report said on Tuesday.

Asia accounted for a fraction of the estimated $40 billion in foreign investment projects in Africa in 2006 but it is expected to grow as Asian firms seek opportunities, a joint report by the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and the U.N. Development Programme said.


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India's Hutch inquiry may delay Vodafone deal-paper

(Reuters) - MUMBAI, March 27 - Vodafone Group Plc's deal to buy control of India's Hutchison Essar could be delayed as the government investigates the structure of Hutchison Telecommunication's stake, the Economic Times reported on Tuesday.

The Economic Times said the finance ministry had sought the law ministry's opinion on a 12.26 percent stake held by Hutchison Essar Chief Executive Asim Ghosh and investor Analjit Singh, and on whether Hutchison Telecom was the beneficial owner of that stake.


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US home prices fell in January - S&P/Case Shiller

(Reuters) - The composite month-over-month Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index of 20 metropolitan areas showed a 0.6 percent drop in January, to a 202.03 reading, or a 0.2 percent percent year-over-year loss.




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Home prices plunge in January: S&P/Case Shiller

(Reuters) - "The annual declines in the composites are a good indicator of the dire state of the U.S. residential real estate market," Robert J. Shiller, chief economist at MacroMarkets LLC, said in a release.

"The 10-City and 20-City Composites are both showing negative annual returns, a striking difference from the 15.1 percent and 14.7 percent returns they reported this time last year," he said. "The dismal growth in the 10-City composite is now at rates not seen since January 1994."


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UPDATE 1-McCormick quarterly profit higher on cost-cutting

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, had been expecting the Sparks, Maryland-based company to earn 31 cents per share before the charges.

The company expects 2007 earnings to be up 8 percent to 10 percent on a comparable basis, excluding the impact of restructuring charges.


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Home-builder stocks fall on sales data

(Reuters) - The Dow Jones U.S. Home Construction Index , a yardstick that measures home-builder performance, was down 2.24 percent.

The only region where home sales rose was in the West. Yet, that did not protect home builders, such as Standard Pacific Corp. , which focuses on that region. Its shares, which are more thinly traded than those of its larger brethren, fell 4 percent, or 94 cents, to $22.26 percent, in late morning trading on the New York Stock Exchange.


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Sanofi declines comment on possible BMS deal

(Reuters) - There have been regular rumors about a friendly tie-up between the two groups to create a global drugs giant.




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Enel could sue Caja Madrid over Endesa: source

(Reuters) - Late on Monday, Caja Madrid did a deal to sell E.ON its 9.9 percent stake in Endesa in two years but to keep its voting rights until then, potentially giving E.ON a louder voice at Endesa than Enel and its ally Acciona .

Analysts said the bidding war for Endesa, Caja Madrid's decision and threats of lawsuits from all sides could lead to a split-up of Spain's largest utility or a drawn out legal battle.


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Barclays says in strong position on ABN

(Reuters) - "We are in a strong position," said Bob Diamond, head of Barclays' investment banking and a key figure in the talks. "We feel terrific that we have a period of exclusivity, and we have a lot of work to do," he said.

Barclays and ABN last week outlined a framework to create a bank listed in London, headquartered in Amsterdam and with its two top jobs split. Analysts said that leaves price as the key issue to be resolved.


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GameStop profit rises on strong game sales

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, had seen the company posting a profit of 80 cents per share on revenue of $2.1 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.




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U.S. benefits from dollar role: Fed's Pianalto

(Reuters) - However, she said: "The United States benefits from the fact that the largest share of world currency reserves are held in dollar-denominated assets. Among these benefits is our ability to borrow from the rest of the world at a low interest rate."

Speculation that world central banks may diversify some of their reserves into other currencies such as the euro was one of the factors that contributed to dollar weakness in 2006. Countries including China, Russia, Sweden and Iran have cut dollar allocation in their reserves.


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Lennar scraps outlook as profit falls

(Reuters) - "Until we see prices stabilize... we will not be able to project the timing or the scope of margin recovery," Stuart Miller, president and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

For the fiscal first quarter ended February 28, Lennar said it earned $68.6 million, or 43 cents per share, down from $258.1 million, or $1.58 per share in the year earlier quarter.


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Rosneft outbids TNK-BP in YUKOS carve-up auction

(Reuters) - State-controlled Rosneft, which has been widely tipped to take over the bulk of YUKOS's assets, paid 197.84 billion roubles for the first lot, 9.44 percent of its own shares, a 10 percent discount to the market price.

It plans to recycle the shares into the market, gaining new assets and increasing its own free float on the stock market.


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High court to review securities fraud case

(Reuters) - A federal court dismissed the case, concluding that the companies were not liable under U.S. securities law because they were not a central player in the alleged fraud.

The decision was affirmed by a U.S. appeals court in St. Louis, which said making third parties liable for securities fraud in such a case would impose "potential far reaching duties and uncertainties" on them.


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DaimlerChrysler to build test fleet of electric vans

(Reuters) - Plug-in hybrids, an alternative to traditional combustion engines and strongly favored by some environmental advocates, can run on battery power alone for short trips and can be recharged with a standard electrical outlet.

DaimlerChrysler said it would combine the rechargeable battery on the Dodge Sprinter with a diesel engine for a bigger gain in fuel economy, saying that would be the first real-world test of that technology.


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Microsoft names Netflix CEO to board

(Reuters) - He founded online DVD rental company Netflix in 1997 and took the company public in 2002.

Microsoft's board was scaled back to nine members last year, when former U.S. Labor Secretary Ann McLaughlin Korologos retired at its annual shareholder meeting in November.


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Citigroup may cut 15,000 jobs: papers

(Reuters) - The proposed cuts would affect 5 percent of Citigroup's work force of 327,000, and may include attrition, according to the Wall Street Journal and New York Times.

Citigroup may take a charge exceeding $1 billion, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.


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CNMV confirms 6-mth ban on Enel/Acciona Endesa bid

(Reuters) - It referred investors back to the first point it made in a statement released on Friday in which it said Enel and Acciona could not launch a bid for six months after the E.ON bid ended, due on April 3.




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Uranium miners mired in logjam despite price spike

(Reuters) - The sector is flush with cash but short on geologists, drill crews and regulatory staff -- the key ingredients to transform prospects to production.

"It's like when you drive on the highway and it gets crowded. It slows up because the slowest guy keeps it slower than you want it to be," said Denison Chief Executive Peter Farmer. "We're into a logjam right now."


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Oracle suit may prompt criminal action against SAP

(Reuters) - SAN FRANCISCO, March 26 - Oracle Corp.'s lawsuit charging rival business software maker SAP AG with corporate theft could spur criminal as well as civil legal action against the company or "rogue" individuals acting on their own.

Analysts highlighted the details included in the 43-page complaint accusing an SAP business unit in Texas of illegally using customer log-ins to steal copyrighted materials and other materials from its password-protected Web site.


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Former Houghton Mifflin owners bid for Thomson unit

(Reuters) - German media giant Bertelsmann is considering teaming up with that bidding group, according to a separate source. Reuters reported last week that Bertelsmann was mulling an offer with private equity for the unit, but did not identify the firms.

Apax Partners and Warburg Pincus are also involved in the auction, sources said, with the two buyout firms bidding separately for the unit.


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Asterisk marked Conrad Black's payment: witness

(Reuters) - A handwritten asterisk on the closing documents in a 2000 sale of eight to 10 newspapers from Black's Hollinger International Inc. to Community Newspaper Holdings Inc. directed that $4.5 million in non-compete payments be transferred to Black, another $4.5 million to partner David Radler, and $250,000 each to two of Black's co-defendants, the jury heard.

"The deal was with Hollinger International. We thought that was where the proceeds were supposed to go," said Michael Reed, the former chief executive of the Birmingham, Alabama-based newspaper group, which in all bought more than 100 Hollinger-owned papers over the years.


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Sanofi chairman favors Bristol-Myers deal: paper

(Reuters) - At the same time, Chief Executive Gerard Le Fur has emphasized the need to focus on Sanofi's internal drug research and development program, it reported.

The Times cited unnamed banking sources as saying there was a "significant difference" in tactics between the pair.


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ADB sees Asian 2007 growth easing after 2006 peak

(Reuters) - Regional powerhouses are set to lead the pack with China's economy seen expanding by 10.0 percent this year and India recording 8.0 percent growth, the Manila-based multilateral institution said in its annual economic outlook.

The region's growth is expected to nudge up to 7.7 percent in 2008 even as China's expansion is seen slowing slightly to 9.8 percent, it said. India is likely to grow 8.3 percent next year.


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UPDATE 1-Diageo's S. Korea unit says in tax authority probe

(Reuters) - "We do not know the exact reasons of this investigation, but we have been cooperating and delivering documents," Lee Won-ho, Diageo Korea's corporate relations director, said by telephone.

"This is not a tax evasion issue," Lee added.


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Cingular launches mobile banking with U.S. banks

(Reuters) - AT&T said customers could download the software from privately held Firethorn Holdings LLC onto their phones.

Along with Wachovia, U.S. banks such as BancorpSouth Inc. , Regions Financial Corp. and SunTrust Banks Inc. are offering mobile banking to AT&T customers.


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Delta Air sees 2007 pretax profit

(Reuters) - Delta, which plans to relist on the stock market in early May, said it expected to reduce net debt to $7.6 billion in 2007, compared with $16.9 billion as of June 30, 2005. The company expects to have a market value of about $10 billion.

Speaking on a Webcast of an investors; meeting, Delta Chief Executive Gerald Grinstein said he hopes the carrier chooses an internal candidate to replace him when he steps down after the company exits bankruptcy.


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FTSE firm, led by commodities and banks

(Reuters) - Britain's leading share index kicked off Tuesday's trading session in firm territory, as healthy oil and copper prices bolstered commodity stocks and banks bounced back.

Among miners, Kazakhmys added 2.4 percent and Rio Tinto gained 1.7 percent, while Xstrata, Anglo American and BHP Billiton were also standout gainers, after copper futures hit a three-month high.


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S.Africa forex markets unhurt by global jitters - c.bank

(Reuters) - South Africa's currency markets did not experience a huge decrease in liquidity during the global market sell-off that started in late February, central bank governor Tito Mboweni said on Tuesday.

"The average daily turnover in South African currency markets is $14-billion and we did no see a sharp drop in turnover during the sell-off," Mboweni told parliament's finance committee.


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European shares rise early as M&A aids recovery

(Reuters) - European shares rose in early trade on Tuesday, helped by miners, banks and oil shares as acquisition activity bubbled along and investors focused on German business sentiment and U.S. consumer confidence data.

At 0807 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 0.45 percent at 1,517.08 points, recovering from a 0.9-percent fall in the previous session when investors worried about weaker-than-expected U.S. housing data.


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US tech stock edge up, but oil and housing hit Dow

(Reuters) - U.S. technology stocks rose on Monday, pulled higher by positive broker comments on companies such as Dell Inc., but renewed signs of weakness in the housing market halted a five-day winning streak for the Dow.

Following the start of trade, new-home sales data sent the market tumbling, with the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 100 points.


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