Autoliv, Kemira, Metso, Scania, Skanska, Stora, UPM: Nordic Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may rise or fall
in the Nordic markets. Symbols follow company names and prices
are from the last close.

The Dow Jones Nordic 30 Index lost 118.3, or 1.3 percent, to
9030.56 in Stockholm as 22 stocks fell, six rose and two were
unchanged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Denso, other Toyota suppliers lift H1 forecasts

(Reuters) - TOKYO, July 26 - Top Japanese auto parts maker
Denso Corp. posted a 15 percent jump in quarterly profit
as top shareholder Toyota Motor Corp. and other domestic
carmakers boosted production overseas, and it lifted its
half-year forecasts partly on the back of a weaker yen.




Other core suppliers of the Toyota group including
Aisin Seiki Co. also raised their forecasts as Toyota
expands rapidly overseas, while a rise in dividends received also
helped at Japan's top maker of transmissions.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 3-Stelco posts 2nd-qtr loss but sees profit ahead

(Reuters) - TORONTO, July 25 - Stelco Inc. reported
a second-quarter loss on Wednesday due to asset impairment
charges of C$38 million and other one-time
items, but its stock rose as revenue beat expectations and the
company saw profits ahead.




The steelmaker, which is on the auction block, said it lost
C$41 million in the second quarter, compared with a loss of
C$39 million in the first quarter. The company did not provide
a per-share figure.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-STATS ChipPAC quarterly profit falls

(Reuters) - The Singapore-based company posted a second-quarter net
profit of $7.4 million, or 4 cents per diluted American
Depositary Share , compared with a net profit of $18
million, or 9 cents per share, in the year-earlier quarter.




Revenue fell 12 percent to $370.2 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

AAA CDO, Subprime-Bond Credit Rating `Sins' Not Same, Bear Stearns Says

(Bloomberg) -- Investors fleeing even top-rated
subprime-mortgage securities are wrong to worry they may
default, according to a Bear Stearns Cos. analyst.

Even if they're right to feel ratings firms mistakenly
provided AAA assessments to some bonds from collateralized debt
obligations that will lose principal, the mortgage-bond CDO
securities are ``more fragile'' than the AAA pieces of subprime-
mortgage deals, Gyan Sinha wrote in a report yesterday. The
securities also have more ``cushion'' against likely losses than
AAA bonds backed by home equity loans, he said.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Sunrise weighs sale of senior-living chain

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 25 - Sunrise Senior Living Inc , the biggest U.S. owner of assisted living facilities for seniors, said on Wednesday its board is weighing strategic alternatives, including a possible sale of the troubled chain.



Sunrise, which has been under investigation by U.S. regulators and is in the midst of restating its earnings for 2003 to 2005, said its committee of nonmanagement directors has chosen Citigroup Global Markets as a financial adviser.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Anheuser-Busch 2nd-qtr profit rises, matches view

(Reuters) - The No. 1 U.S. brewer also raised its quarterly dividend.




Anheuser, which has sought to diversify through deals with InBev, Modelo , energy drink maker Hansen Natural Corp. and Grolsch , said net income rose 6 percent to $677 million, or 88 cents per share, from $638 million, or 82 cents per share, a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Mexico Bolsa Falls on Growth Concern; America Movil Slips; Petrobras Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Mexican shares fell for a second day on
concern subprime loan losses in the U.S. may signal a further
weakening in the economy that buys 80 percent of Mexican exports
and lead to higher borrowing costs.

Mexico's Bolsa index retreated 286.97, or 0.9 percent, to
31,175.18 as of 3:24 p.m. New York time, led by mobile phone
company America Movil SAB. The Bovespa Index of the most-traded
stocks on the Sao Paulo exchange was little changed.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-U.S. money mkt fund assets hit record--report

(Reuters) - Taxable money fund yields rose 1 basis point in the week to
an average 4.72 percent. Tax-free money fund yields rose 2
basis points to an average 3.07 percent.




The report is based on reports from 1,264 taxable and 542
tax-free and municipal money-market funds.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Caterpillar sues UAW over retiree lawsuits

(Reuters) - "We think it's a breach of contract for the union to support a lawsuit that attacks the very terms the union proposed, negotiated and ratified during the bargaining," said Dan Day, Caterpillar's corporate human resources manager, in a statement.




A UAW spokesperson could not be immediately reached for comment.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Argentine Central Bank puts brakes on peso's fall

(Reuters) - BUENOS AIRES, July 25 - Argentina's Central Bank
put the brakes on a steep fall in the peso currency in
Wednesday afternoon trade by selling dollars on the interbank
foreign currency market, traders said.




Traders said the central bank sold a small, strategic
amount of dollars, enough to bring the peso back to
3.1650/3.1675 per dollar , after the asking price
slipped to 3.1875 in the morning.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 2-Ryder 2nd-qtr profit down, lowers 2007 view

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 25 - Truck leasing and logistics
company Ryder System Inc reported a lower second-quarter
profit on Wednesday despite rising revenue, citing a one-time
income tax benefit that boosted the same quarter in 2006.




Ryder also lowered its full-year earnings forecast, saying
widespread hopes in the transportation sector that the second
half of the year would see stronger U.S. economic growth and as
a result rising freight volumes appear to be ill-founded.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

SAC Capital may sell stake: source

(Reuters) - SAC could sell a stake of up to 20 percent to investors such as investment banks or pension funds, the source said, cautioning that talks are "very preliminary" and may not come to fruition.




"SAC was approached by multiple third parties about seeking a minority interest in the firm and they are considering it," the source said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Luxe Beans, Local Flair Help Independent Cafes Grind On Against Starbucks

(Bloomberg) -- The possible addition of another
Starbucks near one of Manthri Srinath's three independent coffee
shops in Santa Cruz, California, is cause for celebration.

``When Starbucks opens up next to us, we get more
business,'' said Srinath, 41.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

US STOCKS-Indexes rise on profits; credit worry weighs

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 25 - U.S. stocks rose on Wednesday
on strong profits from Boeing Co. and Amazon.com Inc.
, but gains were limited by concerns about financing
for takeovers.




Aircraft manufacturer Boeing's shares jumped to a record as
as the stock led advances on the Dow, while Internet retailer
Amazon.com shares climbed to a 7 1/2-year high, up more than 24
percent.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 4-Reynolds American profit falls short, but stock up

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 25 - Tobacco company Reynolds
American Inc. posted a 13.6 percent drop in quarterly
profit on Wednesday, falling short of expectations due to lower
U.S. cigarette shipments.




But Reynolds' shares rose more than 3 percent on Wednesday
after the maker of Camel cigarettes and Grizzly smokeless
tobacco raised its quarterly dividend 13.3 percent and said
acquisitions and share repurchases could be other actions it
might take with excess cash.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Canada deregulates some residential phone markets

(Reuters) - The decision affects Fort McMurray, Alberta, as well as
parts of New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island.




In April of 2006, the CRTC said it would move to deregulate
local phone services if the incumbent phone company in a market
has lost 25 percent of its market share to competitors.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

ConocoPhillips cuts 07 production on Venezuela

(Reuters) - Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, pushed the company and
Exxon Mobil Corp. out of their oil operations there
after they failed to strike deals to stay in huge projects that
the country wanted to take over.




Speaking on a company conference call, ConocoPhillips Chief
Executive Jim Mulva also said its capital spending could be as
high as $15 billion in 2008, partly due to higher costs.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Siemens new CEO starts with poor Q3, VDO sale

(Reuters) - Siemens posted a rise in new orders well below that reported by rivals in a booming infrastructure market and operating profit that missed market expectations by far, only partly due to negative equity related to its NSN telecoms joint venture.




The industrial group said it would sell VDO to Continental for 11.4 billion euros and acquire U.S. diagnostics company Dade Behring for about $7 billion to bolster its medical unit.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Dollar rises vs euro in technical rebound

(Reuters) - The dollar extended gains against the euro on Wednesday in a technical rebound from record lows plumbed on Tuesday.

Dealers apparently shrugged off a report showing U.S. existing home sales in June were lower than expected.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Iran Will Ration Gasoline Until 2009 After Cutting Consumption 25 Percent

(Bloomberg) -- Iran will continue to ration
gasoline until ``at least'' 2009 because the program launched
last month has already cut consumption by a quarter, an oil
official said.

``The system will remain in place at least as long as the
current government is in power,'' Hojatollah Ghanimifard,
National Iranian Oil Co.'s director for international affairs,
said in an interview at the oil ministry in Tehran yesterday.
President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad started his four-year term in
August 2005.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

U.S. Stocks Advance on Better-Than-Expected Earnings; Amazon, Boeing Gain

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rebounded from the
worst drop in four months after profits topped analysts'
estimates at Amazon.com Inc. and Boeing Co.

Amazon.com, the world's biggest online retailer, rallied
to a seven-year high on rising sales of electronics and
jewelry. Boeing, the second-largest commercial-jet maker,
climbed to a record after it said aircraft deliveries gained.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Astar withdraws indication of interest for ABX Air

(Reuters) - On July 24, ABX Air's Chief Executive Joseph Hete had
informed Astar that the company was determined not to proceed
with the proposal, Astar said in a statement.




Astar, in a letter to ABX board, said it has now decided to
pursue other alternatives, adding that it believes its proposal
reflects "a full and fair price" to ABX shareholders.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Meredith posts higher quarterly profit

(Reuters) - The publisher of Better Homes and Gardens and Family Circle magazines reported net earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter of $51.5 million, or $1.05 per share, up from $48.6 million, or 97 cents a share, a year before.



Revenue rose 2.1 percent to $428.5 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Convergys posts lower quarterly profit

(Reuters) - Revenue rose 2 percent to $707 million.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 2-National Oilwell 2nd-qtr profit soars, tops view

(Reuters) - HOUSTON, July 25 - National Oilwell Varco Inc.
said on Wednesday its second-quarter profit more than
doubled, well surpassing Wall Street estimates, as high energy
prices sparked strong demand for its oil and natural gas
drilling equipment.




Shares of the Houston-based company were up 5 percent, or
$5.66, to $117.99 in early trade on the New York Stock
Exchange.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Worst of Atlantic hurricane season still to come

(Reuters) - The peak of the six-month season is just around the corner and forecasters are still predicting a busy one.




"There's absolutely nothing out of the ordinary," Gerry Bell, a hurricane forecaster for the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, said of the Atlantic season's first two months. "It's not slow. It's not fast."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Brazilian Real Holds Near Highest Since September 2000 as Inflation Slows

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil's real held near the highest
since 2000 after an inflation report showed consumer prices rose
at a slower pace this month, boosting confidence the value of
local fixed-income assets will stay attractive. Bonds gained.

Signs of cooling inflation also increased bets the central
bank will have room to continue to reduce interest rates this
year, fostering economic growth. Brazilian central bankers have
lowered the benchmark lending rate by 8.25 percentage points
over the past two years to a record low of 11.50 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

TREASURIES-Bonds retreat in face of strong stock outlook

(Reuters) - S&P 500 and other stock index futures pointed to a
strong opening on Wall Street, luring money away from
safe-haven bonds. Also, the government will auction two-year
notes later in the session, and the fresh supply could press
bond prices lower.




The main potential positive for Treasuries appeard to be
the existing home sales data that is due at 10 a.m. .
This has the potential to limit the bond market's losses if it
heightens worries about the troubled housing sector, which
punished stocks and lifted Treasuries on Tuesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Tyco Electronics Group S.A. to sell $1.5 bln notes

(Reuters) - The joint lead managers on the sale are UBS Investment Bank
and Goldman Sachs.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Freeport-McMoRan's quarterly profit triples

(Reuters) - Net earnings rose to $1.1 billion, or $2.62 per share, from
$367 million, or $1.74 per share, a year earlier, the
Phoenix-based company said.




Revenue quadrupled to $5.81 billion from $1.42 billion.
This was the first full quarter that included earnings and
production from Phelps Dodge, which Freeport acquired in
March.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-P.F. Chang's 2nd-quarter earnings rise

(Reuters) - Net income for the Asian-themed restaurant operator was
$9.3 million, or 36 cents per share, compared with $8.1
million, or 30 cents per share, a year earlier.




Wall Street analysts, on average, had been expecting
earnings of 36 cents per share, according to Reuters
Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Freeport-McMoRan's second-quarter profit trebles

(Reuters) - It said revenue quadrupled to $5.81 billion from $1.42
billion as a result of acquiring Phelps Dodge's mines.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Glaxo sweetens Avandia blow with $25 bln buyback

(Reuters) - By Ben Hirschler, European Pharmaceuticals Correspondent



LONDON, July 25 - GlaxoSmithKline more than doubled its share buyback programme to 12 billion pounds


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Stelco widens loss in second-quarter on charges

(Reuters) - The Canadian steelmaker, which is on the auction block,
said it lost C$41 million, compared with a loss of C$39 million
a year earlier. The company did not provide a per-share
figure.




Excluding the charges, and also factoring out a C$30
million foreign exchange gain on long-term debt, Stelco turned
a profit before income taxes of C$5 million, it said.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Fitch ups South Africa BBB+ rating outlook to positive

(Reuters) - Ratings agency Fitch raised its outlook on South Africa's 'BBB+' sovereign credit rating to positive from stable on Wednesday, citing the country's rapid economic growth and improved prospects.

"The change in outlook reflects South Africa's improved growth performance and prospects as a result of rapidly rising public and private investment and ongoing micro-reforms in the economy," Veronica Kalema, a director in Fitch's sovereign team, said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters Africa

European Stocks Pare Declines; GlaxoSmithKline, AstraZeneca Shares Advance

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks pared declines as
shares of GlaxoSmithKline Plc and AstraZeneca Plc advanced.

Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index was little changed at
389.03 at 12:30 p.m. in London, after losing as much as 0.9
percent. The Stoxx 50 added 0.1 percent, while the Euro Stoxx 50,
a measure for the euro region, fell 0.2 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-IHOP 2nd-quarter earnings rise

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income was $14.1 million, or 82 cents
per share, compared with $10.3 million, or 56 cents, a year
earlier.




Wall Street analysts, on average, had been expecting the
pancake restaurant operator to earn 60 cents per share,
according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Cache posts lower quarterly profit

(Reuters) - The latest quarterly results include 4 cents a share in
legal settlement costs.




Net sales fell to $71.0 million from $71.7 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

RLPC-Kazkommertsbank launches $400 mln loan

(Reuters) - Netherlands-based Kazkommerts International B.V., a
subsidiary of Kazkommertsbank, is the borrower, which is used
solely to raise international financing for the parent company.




The bullet term loan, for which Kazkommertsbank is acting as
guarantor, has been launched to senior and general syndication.
Proceeds will be used to finance various import and export
contracts of the bank's clients and for the partial prepayment
of the borrower's loan facility signed in August 2006.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

IHOP earnings rise

(Reuters) - Wall Street analysts, on average, had been expecting the pancake restaurant operator to earn 60 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.




IHOP earlier this month said it would buy bar-and-grill chain Applebee's for $1.9 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Steris quarterly profit falls, reaffirms full year view

(Reuters) - July 25 - Sterilization systems maker Steris Corp. said its first-quarter profit fell even as revenue rose 6 percent.



Net income in the quarter fell to $13.2 million, or 20 cents per share, from $14.7 million, or 22 cents per share, in the year-ago period.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Stock futures up, earnings, home sales eyed

(Reuters) - U.S. markets took a tumble on Tuesday, with the three major indexes posting their worst one-day performance since March 13, as some disappointing earnings results heightened concerns about the housing market.




"Results have been varied so far. There have been a few positive updates but also some that were not so pleasant and that has showed that earnings are not so stable," said Heinz-Gerd Sonnenschein, strategist at Germany's Postbank.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Jakks Pacific Q2 earnings fall

(Reuters) - Analysts on average were expecting earnings of 25 cents a
share, excluding exceptional items, on revenue of $130.9
million, according to Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

U.K. Natural Gas Falls for a Third Day on Forecast of Fuel Supply Surplus

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. natural-gas prices fell for a
third day amid forecasts that supplies will exceed demand.
Electricity prices rose.

Gas for same-day delivery declined as much as 2.10 pence, or
6.8 percent, to 28.70 pence a therm, according to prices on
Bloomberg from the broker Spectron Group Plc. It traded at 28.90
pence at 9:04 a.m. London time. That's equivalent to $5.9 a million
British thermal units. A therm is 100,000 Btus.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

U.K. FTSE 100 Index Pares Losses; Paced by SABMiller, Vodafone Group

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks pared losses, paced by
SABMiller Plc and Vodafone Group Plc.

The benchmark FTSE 100 Index lost 2.3, or 0.1 percent, to
6496.4 at 9:59 a.m. in London. The measure earlier dropped as
much as 0.6 percent. The FTSE All-Share Index slid 5.07, or 0.2
percent, to 3354.87. Ireland's ISEQ Index dropped 92.66 to
8737.01.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

India's Infosys says to make announcement 1000 GMT

(Reuters) - Media reports earlier said Nasdaq-listed Infosys
may announce an acquisition in Europe in the back-office
services segment.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

European stocks at 1-month low on US worries

(Reuters) - European stocks fell across-the-board in early trade on Wednesday, tracking sharp losses on Wall Street, as equities were hit by renewed worries about the U.S. economy, while some earnings also disappointed.

By 0715 GMT, the pan-European FTSEurofirst 300 index was down 0.3 percent at 1,581.6 after falling to its lowest since June 27. The index lost 1.5 percent on Tuesday.


Read more at Reuters Africa

CEZ, Terna, Sparebanken, Kommunekredit to Sell Debt: European Bond Alert

(Bloomberg) -- Network Rail Ltd., the government-
backed owner of Britain's railways, is among borrowers seeking to
raise the equivalent of at least 3.5 billion euros ($4.8 billion)
from sales of bonds in euros and pounds, according to data
compiled by Bloomberg.

Companies sold the equivalent of $1.04 trillion of bonds
denominated in euros and pounds so far this year, up from $844
billion in the same period in 2006.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Luxury group Hermes warns on profits, cites Japan

(Reuters) - By Nick Antonovics



PARIS, July 25 - French luxury goods group Hermes International warned on Wednesday that full year profits would fall short of forecasts, citing a slowdown in Japan and unfavourable currency movements.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Yen Climbs to Four-Week High Against Euro; Stock Drop Spurs Risk Aversion

(Bloomberg) -- The yen climbed to four-week high
against the euro as a slump in global stocks prompted traders to
pare investments in higher-yielding assets funded by borrowing
the currency.

The Japanese yen also headed for a fourth day of gains
against the dollar, matching this year's longest rally, after
declines in emerging-market, corporate and mortgage-backed debt.
The currency has rebounded 3.2 percent from a 4 1/2-year low on
June 22. It advanced the most against the British pound as
confidence in so-called carry trades waned.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News