Datatec unit buys US ReView Video for $25 mln

(Reuters) - South African IT firm Datatec has acquired a U.S. video-conferencing and Voice over Internet distributor for $25 million to help boost its voice technology business, it said on Wednesday.

Datatec Ltd, which is listed in London and Johannesburg, said in a statement its unit Westcon would pay for the acquisition of ReView Video's assets with cash, and said the deal would enhance earnings in this financial year.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Australia Dollar Rises as RBA's Stevens Says High Level `Isn't Surprising'

(Bloomberg) -- The Australian dollar extended an
18-year high after Reserve Bank of Australia Governor Glenn
Stevens said the nation's terms of trade, at the strongest in a
century, were supporting the currency.

Australia's dollar also rebounded to a 16-year high versus
the yen as Stevens said ``I don't think it's that surprising
that we have a pretty high effective exchange rate.'' The
country's terms of trade, which measures the prices a country
gets for exports compared with those paid for imports, has
surged in the past five years as the price of commodities gained.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Copper Rises in Asia on Reduced China Supply; Zinc Up, Aluminum Unchanged

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices in Shanghai rose on
reduced supply of the metal for immediate delivery in China, the
world's biggest consumer, and amid continued threats to output
from strikes in Latin America.

China's refined copper imports, which have fallen month-on-
month since March, fell 6.1 percent in June, less than expected
amid speculation that the state may have bought the metal for its
reserves. Chile's Codelco, the world's biggest copper miner, said
yesterday that a labor protest and bad weather had reduced output.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Australian Dollar Strengthens to 18-Year High on U.S. Hedge Fund Losses

(Bloomberg) -- The Australian dollar rose to the
strongest in 18 years on speculation losses at hedge funds run by
Bear Stearns Cos. will bolster demand for financial assets
outside of the U.S. that are perceived as safer.

The currency also rebounded to rise to a 16-year high versus
the yen after Bear Stearns told investors in one of its hedge
funds that they won't get any money back. Losses in U.S.
securities may push investors to buy assets in other countries
such as Australia, where the economy is improving. Government
bonds gained for a third day, while emerging-market debt fell.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

South Korean Won to Advance on Economic Growth, Stock Inflows, HSBC Says

(Bloomberg) -- South Korea's won is likely to
extend its gains from the strongest in seven months as the
economy expands and overseas investors buy the nation's equities,
HSBC Holdings Plc said.

The won may advance to 905 against the dollar by the end of
this year, said Richard Yetsenga, a Hong Kong-based strategist
at Europe's biggest bank by market value. The currency has risen
1.3 percent this year as growth in Asia's third-largest economy
picked up and foreign funds put money into the stock market.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index Slides; China Mobile and Cnooc Lead Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong's stocks fell as investors
judged as excessive the market's recent rally. China Mobile Ltd.
led declines.

Shares also dropped on concern China will lift interest
rates to cool the economy. The government will probably say
tomorrow that the economy expanded 11 percent in the second
quarter, according to a Bloomberg News survey of economists.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Malaysian Ringgit Declines After U.S. Subprime Concern Spurs Risk Aversion

(Bloomberg) -- Malaysia's ringgit fell for a third
day on speculation losses related to U.S. subprime mortgages and
hedge funds will keep global investors away from emerging-market
assets. Bonds dropped.

The local currency headed for its biggest drop in a week
after losses reported by Bear Stearns Cos. hedge funds spurred
safe-haven demand for U.S. Treasuries. The risk premium on
emerging-market bonds widened to the highest in more than a week.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Gold up as euro hits record high

(Reuters) - -- Any signs of concerns from Bernanke about problems in the subprime market when he delivers his semi-annual testimony on monetary policy on Wednesday and Thursday may prompt more selling in the dollar, said dealers.




-- Gold has struggled to breach key technical levels after hitting a five-week high of $669.05 an ounce last week, but might get support from firm oil prices and the dollar, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Wachovia CEO optimistic despite mortgage slump

(Reuters) - Wachovia, the fourth-largest U.S. bank, acquired Golden
West last October in a deal valued at $24.2 billion.




Golden West was almost entirely an adjustable rate mortgage
lender, and the market for those loans has suffered in the
slump for subprime loans.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Australian Stocks Fall, Led by BHP, Woodside, Newcrest on Commodities Drop

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's benchmark stock index,
the S&P/ASX 200 Index, fell 0.18 percent at 10:05 a.m.

The index of 201 companies traded on the Australian Stock
Exchange fell 11.60 to 6,370.00. Among the stocks in the index,
33 rose, 77 fell and 91 were unchanged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Moody's May Cut Ratings on Some Alt A Mortgage Bonds as Scrutiny Widens

(Bloomberg) -- Moody's Investors Service may cut
credit ratings of $318 million of securities backed by so-called
Alt A mortgages that were packaged by issuers including Bear
Stearns Cos., Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and Morgan Stanley.

The potential downgrades affect 66 securities from 2005 and
2006, Moody's said today in a statement. Bonds from at least 11
issuers are on review for a possible downgrade.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Champion Enterprises posts quarterly profit

(Reuters) - The company earned $7.5 million, or 10 cents a share, in
the quarter compared with $112.1 million, or $1.44 a share, a
year ago. The year-ago quarter included a $101.9 million gain.




Net sales fell 11 percent to $330.4 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

U.S. Stock Index Futures Fall After Intel, Yahoo Reports: After-Hours Wrap

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock index futures dropped
after results from Intel Corp., the biggest chipmaker, and Yahoo!
Inc., owner of the most-visited U.S. Web site, spurred concern
that profit forecasts for technology companies are too high.

Intel slid $1.17, or 4.4 percent, to $25.16 as of 6:09 p.m.
in New York after its profit margin trailed forecasts. Yahoo lost
$1.08, or 3.9 percent, to $26.49 as earnings declined.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Start revamp of NY economic arm with its name: study

(Reuters) - A.T. Kearney Inc., which the state hired to analyze the Empire State Development Corporation, said, "The fact that economic development is often funded by legislative appropriation rather than through products administered by the Empire State Development is a strong reminder that the state has lost confidence in the agency's ability to carry out its key mission."




" sidelined by more agile, entrepreneurial and scientifically trained competition, the state has been desperately trying to get back into the economic competitiveness race for over a decade," it added.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 2-CSX profit tops Street view, pricing lifts revenue

(Reuters) - In post-market trading, CSX's stock hit a 12-month high.




Second-quarter net income fell 17 percent to $324 million,
or 71 cents a share, from $390 million, or 83 cents a share, in
the year-earlier quarter. Analysts had expected second-quarter
earnings per share of 64 cents, according to Reuters
Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-El Paso gets Wells Notice from SEC, shares fall

(Reuters) - The staff of the SEC has been conducting an investigation
into the company's Dec. 31, 2003 revisions of natural gas and
oil reserves, it said.




Shares of El Paso fell nearly 3 percent to $17 in extended
trading after closing at $17.49 on the New York Stock
Exchange.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

US CREDIT-Countrywide swaps may tighten on debt plans

(Reuters) - Countrywide said on Monday that pending
foreclosures as a percentage of outstanding loans more than
doubled in June from a year earlier and delinquencies hit a
six-month high. For details, see [ID:nN16240369].




The cost to insure the debt of Countrywide Home Loans,
which is the most actively traded credit derivative on
Countrywide's debt, rose by around 2 basis points to 62 basis
points on Tuesday, or $62,000 per year for five years to insure
$10 million in debt.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US House Democrats to offer predatory lending bill

(Reuters) - Rep. Keith Ellison of Minnesota, a member of the House
Financial Services Committee, said the legislation takes a
tough stand against predatory lending by state-regulated
mortgage brokers and is modeled after a new Minnesota law.




"They are the protections that we believe the rest of the
nation deserves as well," Ellison said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

ABN board member bought shares before TCI letter

(Reuters) - The purchases came before British hedge fund TCI sent a letter to ABN's management on February 20, calling on the bank to consider a breakup.




But Scaroni told Reuters on Tuesday he declared his stake as soon as he learned his own investment vehicle had bought the shares automatically based on their dividend yield.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Wheat Falls, Giving Up Gains, as Harvest Approaches Completion in Midwest

(Bloomberg) -- Wheat fell in Kansas City and
Chicago, giving up earlier gains, as harvesting of the U.S.
winter crop neared completion and boosted supplies.

Seventy percent of the crop was cut as of July 15, compared
with a five-year average of 73 percent, the U.S. Department of
Agriculture said yesterday. Harvest was ahead of schedule in
parts of the eastern Midwest including Ohio, which was
99 percent finished. Farmers in southern Plains states including
Oklahoma and Kansas were almost done, USDA data show.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 1-Air One pulls out of Alitalia auction

(Reuters) - The departure of Air One, the front-runner to win the
auction after a slew of suitors threw in the towel, leaves only
U.S. fund MatlinPatterson still in the fray ahead of Monday's
deadline for final offers for the airline.




But few expect the U.S. fund to bid, and Italy's transport
minister Alessandro Bianchi has said he is skeptical of the
fund's interest since "they don't seem to give big signs of
life" in the tender.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-U.S. Steel joins others eyeing Stelco -union chief

(Reuters) - Bill Ferguson, union president at Stelco's Lake Erie works,
said U.S. Steel officials had visited Stelco last week and that
he had met with representatives of Russian steelmaker OAO
Severstal .




That follows similar visits to Stelco recently by
representatives of Ukraine's Metinvest and Essar Global Ltd.,
the parent firm of Essar Steel Ltd. , Ferguson, head
of the United Steelworkers Local 8782, told Reuters.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Fed's Hoenig says rate policy could go either way

(Reuters) - Hoenig, speaking to a group of local business leaders, said
he could make a case for the Fed to either raise or lower rates
depending on how the outlook evolved.




"As you look at the economy and you weigh these risks right
now, I can make a case for ... both an easing or tightening as
you move forward," said Hoenig, a voting member of the Federal
Open Market Committee in 2007.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Durect, EDO, Modine, Novellus, Orbital, Skechers: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 1:10 p.m. New York time.

American Express Co. (AXP US) rose $2.71, or 4.4 percent, to
$64.59. The No. 4 U.S. credit-card issuer was upgraded to ``buy''
from ``neutral'' at Goldman, Sachs & Co., which said its card-
network business was ``undervalued'' compared with its rivals.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Motorola reshuffles its business units

(Reuters) - The company, which has warned of a second quarter loss due to
weak phone sales, also said it plans to report results for its
enterprise equipment and email software as a separate unit.
Motorola had previously included enterprise equipment in the same
division as wireless equipment for public networks.




The world's second biggest mobile phone maker also said it
would move its mobile e-mail business, from its recent purchase of
Good Technology, to its enterprise mobility unit from its mobile
devices division.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Escalon shares soar as analyzer gets FDA nod

(Reuters) - Escalon's Trilogy device measures glucose, creatinine and
urea nitrogen in serum. These measurements are used in the
diagnosis of various kidney and metabolic diseases such as
diabetes, the tiny medical devices company said.




The Wayne, Pennsylvania-based firm's shares rose $2.50 to
$8.40 in afternoon trade on the Nasdaq.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

New Argentine economy minister seen as lame duck

(Reuters) - The former industry secretary, Peirano is due to be sworn
in as minister on Tuesday evening, a day after Felisa Miceli
resigned over a judicial investigation into some $60,000 in
cash found inside her office bathroom.




An Oct. 28 presidential election will sharply limit
Peirano's ability to make his mark, and financial markets
barely reacted to his Monday night appointment.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

SSAB shares tumble as Q2 disappoints

(Reuters) - SSAB, which expects to complete the Ipsco takeover this week, reported a pretax profit of 1.86 billion crowns versus a forecast 2.31 billion crowns in a Reuters poll and 1.78 billion in the same quarter of 2006.




The steel maker's shares dived on the news, to trade 44.50 crowns lower at 269.50 crowns at 1515 GMT.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Sale of Dominion assets gets US antitrust approval

(Reuters) - Loews, a conglomerate with other energy investments, has
agreed to pay about $4.03 billion for Dominion's gas assets in
the Permian Basin in Texas as well as in Michigan and Alabama.




XTO, a natural gas producer, will pay about $2.5 billion
for the operations in the Rocky Mountains and South Texas
region, including the Gulf Coast, San Juan Basin and
Louisiana.



Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Australian Dollar Snaps 4-Day Rally, Retreating From 18-Year High

(Bloomberg) -- The Australian dollar snapped a
four-day rally to an 18-year high on speculation traders betting
the central bank will raise interest rates won't add to holdings.

The currency has surged 4.5 percent in the past month as
interest-rate futures show speculators have fully priced in that
the Reserve Bank of Australia will lift borrowing costs by year-
end. Traders have increased bets on the Australian dollar,
figures on July 13 by the Washington-based Commodity Futures
Trading Commission show. It slid the most in a week today.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Goldman, JPMorgan Get Saddled With LBO Debt They Can't Sell to Investors

(Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan
Chase & Co. and the rest of Wall Street are stuck with at least
$11 billion of loans and bonds they can't readily sell.

The banks have had to dig into their own pockets to finance
parts of at least five leveraged buyouts over the past month
because of the worst bear market in high-yield debt in more than
two years, data compiled by Bloomberg show.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

TD Bank to put C$4 bln into BCE deal -report

(Reuters) - VANCOUVER, British Columbia , July 17 - Toronto-Dominion Bank plans to commit about C$4 billion



to help finance the takeover of BCE Inc. , the Globe and Mail newspaper reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed people familiar with the matter.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Plains Exploration to Buy Pogo Producing for $3.6 Billion in Cash, Stock

(Bloomberg) -- Plains Exploration & Production Co.,
the U.S. oil company that made a failed takeover bid last year
for Stone Energy Corp., agreed to buy Pogo Producing Co. for
$3.6 billion.

Pogo stockholders will receive 0.68201 share of Plains and
$24.88 in cash for each of their shares, the Houston-based buyer
said today in a statement. That values Pogo at $59.79 a share,
an 18 percent premium to yesterday's closing price.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

J&J beats forecasts with strong overseas demand

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 17 - Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday said second-quarter profit rose on higher sales of medical devices and prescription drugs, beating Wall Street expectations on especially strong demand in overseas markets.



The diversified health-care company said it earned $3.08 billion, or $1.05 per share, compared with $2.82 billion, or 95 cents per share, in the year-ago period.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

EU court to rule on Microsoft in September

(Reuters) - The Luxembourg-based court, second-highest in the EU, confirmed a June 5 Reuters report that the ruling will come on September 17, the final working day before the retirement of court president Bo Vesterdorf, who is presiding over the case.




The EU's executive Commission found in 2004 that Microsoft had broken competition rules by abusing the dominance of its Windows product, muscling out competitors unable to make software that would work smoothly on the operating system.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Bernanke Tries to Placate Congress by Chipping Away at Greenspan's Legacy

(Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S.
Bernanke is mobilizing to placate Democrats in Congress who
claim he isn't doing enough to crack down on predatory lending.

Bernanke, who begins two days of testimony to Congress
tomorrow, has ordered Fed staff to determine whether he has
authority to probe mortgage units of financial institutions the
Fed supervises. The central bank, which House Financial Services
Committee Chairman Barney Frank has threatened to strip of some
regulatory powers, also plans an overhaul of lenders' disclosure
standards.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Dollar Advances Versus Yen as Foreigners Buy Record Amount of U.S. Assets

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar rose against the yen,
snapping a three-day slide, as a government report showed
foreigners added a record amount of U.S. securities in May,
fueling optimism that demand for the nation's assets persists.

The advance in the dollar began on an earlier report
showing a measure of prices paid to producers rose more than
forecast last month, which may cool speculation the Federal
Reserve will cut interest rates this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Strauss-Kahn to make lobbying trip on IMF candidacy

(Reuters) - Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the French candidate to head the International Monetary Fund, said on Tuesday he would tour key world capitals in the North and South to convince IMF members of his merits.

European Union countries have said they support Strauss-Kahn's candidature to head the body, but many countries in the developing world question the tradition that a European heads the IMF and an American leads the World Bank.


Read more at Reuters Africa

UPDATE 1-St-Gobain in talks to sell reinforcement unit

(Reuters) - "Saint-Gobain announces that discussions regarding the plan
to merge its Reinforcements and Composites activities with the
Reinforcements business of Owens Corning, are now focusing on a
sale project ... rather than on the creation of a jointly-owned
company," Saint-Gobain said in a statement.




No financial terms were disclosed.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Canadian Stocks May Fall with Metals Prices; Barrick, Eldorado May Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian stocks may fall for a second
day as declining prices for gold, silver and nickel push down
shares of raw material producers.

Gold and nickel prices fell in London. Investors speculated
that central banks are increasing sales of bullion and nickel
declined as stainless-steel mills, the biggest user of the metal,
cut production and reduced demand.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Owens to sell two facilities in Belgium and Norway

(Reuters) - Owens Corning also said it was in "active discussions" with
Saint-Gobain on the potential conversion of the proposed joint
venture into an outright acquisition by Owens Corning of the
French company's Vetrotex business.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Criminal probes often weigh on debt ratings - study

(Reuters) - The report by Moody's Investors Service looked at
the credit rating agency's actions regarding companies that
reached pretrial agreements with federal prosecutors
investigating allegations of wrongdoing.




These pacts, generally called deferred prosecution or
non-prosecution agreements, have become increasingly common as
companies in the government's crosshairs seek to avoid the fate
of accounting firm Arthur Andersen, which went out of business
following its indictment in 2002.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Ford's China 2007 vehicle shipments seen up 30 pct

(Reuters) - Ford is expected to ship 300,000 to 350,000 vehicles to dealers in the country this year, up from 260,000 to 270,000 units in 2006, the source said.




Ford declined to comment on the matter.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Basell to buy Lyondell for $12 billion

(Reuters) - Basell, which is owned by U.S. industrialist Len Blavatnik's Access Industries, will pay Lyondell stockholders $48 per common share. That's a 19.6 percent premium to Monday's closing price of $40.12.




The all-cash deal, valued at $12.14 billion, is based on Lyondell's shares outstanding as of March 31.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Kenya shilling eases vs dollar on slight demand rise

(Reuters) - The Kenyan shilling eased against the dollar on Tuesday briefly breaking through the key 67.00 level on rising demand for the U.S. currency from all sectors, dealers said.

At 1045 GMT, commercial banks quoted the shilling at 66.90/67.10 to the dollar, compared with Monday's close of 66.75/85.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Treasuries Little Changed Before Bernanke, Report on International Demand

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries were little changed
before testimony by Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke
tomorrow, and a report today forecast to show waning foreign
demand for U.S. assets.

U.S. 10-year notes snapped two days of gains fueled by
speculation losses in securities backed by subprime mortgage
loans would increase demand for safer government debt. Bernanke
may reiterate in his semi-annual testimony that policy makers
are focused on restraining inflation, suggesting the Fed won't
lower its benchmark interest rate from 5.25 percent this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Osaka Bourse to Next Month List Japan's First Gold Exchange-Traded Fund

(Bloomberg) -- The Osaka Securities Exchange will
list Japan's first exchange-traded gold fund next month, as it
taps increasing interest in commodities from investors
diversifying portfolios.

The fund will be managed by Nomura Holdings Inc. and list on
Aug. 10, the Tokyo-based company and the bourse, operated by
Osaka Securities Exchange Co., said in a statement today.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Basell to buy Lyondell for $48 a share

(Reuters) - Lyondell shares closed on Monday at $40.12.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Iraq War Refugees Recreate Baghdad's Enmities in an Uneasy Damascus Exile

(Bloomberg) -- In Iraq, Shiite and Sunni Muslims
live uneasily close to each other as bitter foes in a bloody
conflict. In Sayeda Zeinab, a working-class district on the
outskirts of Damascus, they live uneasily close as refugees.

More than a million Shiites and Sunnis have crossed the
border into Syria, where the ruling Baath Party pursues a pan-
Arab ideology. Even though they now live under a government that
downplays religious differences, the two groups have created a
little replica of Baghdad in the Syrian capital -- one so
reminiscent of the city they left that mainly Sunni and Shiite
areas are segregated by a thoroughfare called Iraq Street.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Lend Lease May be Target of a Leveraged Buyout, Credit Defaults Swaps Show

(Bloomberg) -- Lend Lease Corp., Australia's biggest
property developer, may be the target of a leveraged buyout,
according to traders betting on the creditworthiness of companies.

Speculation that private equity firms are poised to bid has
increased the risk of holding Lend Lease debt to the highest
since August 2005. Credit-default swaps are financial instruments
based on corporate bonds and loans used to speculate on a
company's ability to repay debt.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Hoganas Q2 just shy of consensus, keeps outlook

(Reuters) - The firm, whose products are used in the auto industry,
posted pretax earnings of 160 million Swedish crowns versus a year-ago 107 million and a mean forecast of
166 million seen in a Reuters survey of 6 analysts.




Hoganas said sales rose to 1.52 billion crowns from 1.31
billion a year ago, above the 1.43 billion seen by analysts.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

U.K. Natural Gas Falls From 7-Month High as Supply Adequately Meets Demand

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. natural gas for delivery a day
ahead retreated from yesterday's seven-month high as supply
adequately met demand even after halts at two sub-terminals for
North Sea gas on the east coast of England.

Day-ahead gas fell as much as 5.2 percent to 32.9 pence a
therm, according to prices on Bloomberg from broker ICAP Plc. It
traded at 33 pence a therm at 8:19 a.m. A price of 33 pence a
therm is equivalent to $6.73 a million British thermal units. A
therm is 100,000 Btus.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Tokyo Electric Ordered to Keep Kashiwazaki Nuclear Plant Shut After Quake

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's government ordered Tokyo
Electric Power Co. to keep its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power
station, the world's biggest, shut pending safety checks after an
earthquake caused a radioactive leak.

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Niigata prefecture in
central Japan, killing nine people, toppling houses and causing
contaminated water from the No. 6 reactor building to escape into
the sea. Trade Minister Akira Amari today handed the order to
utility President Tsunehisa Katsumata, the ministry said. Tokyo
Electric shares dropped to a seven-month low.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Asian Stocks Rise, Led by Taiwan; Japan's Shares, Millea Drop on Quake

(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose, paced by Taiwan's
biggest companies after UBS AG raised its estimate for the
nation's benchmark. Japanese stocks fell, led by insurers and
power producers, after yesterday's earthquake.

Taiwan Cement Corp. and Cathay Financial Holding Co. paced
gains after the brokerage raised its 12-month estimate for the
nation's Taiex index to 12,000.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News