Rio Tinto near deal to buy Alcan for $37 bln - WSJ

(Reuters) - Global miner Rio Tinto was near a deal to buy Canadian aluminium giant Alcan Inc. for about $100 per share, or $37 billion, The Wall Street Journal Online reported on Thursday.

A final deal should be announced early on Thursday, the Journal said, citing people familiar with the transaction.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Japan Stocks Fall, Reversing Earlier Advances; Nomura Holdings Leads Drop

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's Topix index dropped, led by
brokerages including Nomura Holdings Inc. after Deutsche Bank AG
lowered its stock price forecast, citing possible valuation
losses related to subprime loans.

Some exporters advanced after the yen declined against the
dollar and euro in New York. Fanuc Ltd. and Canon Inc. led gains.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Utilities to Pay $39 Billion for Advanced Power Meters, Datamonitor Says

(Bloomberg) -- Utility companies in Europe and North
America may install advanced meters costing as much as $38.6
billion in households by 2012, to help customers cut energy use and
curb related carbon-dioxide emissions.

As much as 89 percent of homes in North America and 41 percent
of dwellings in Europe may have ``smart meters'' by 2012, compared
with just 6 percent at present, according to a report published
today by market research company Datamonitor. That means installing
about 189 million meters.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Halliburton, MedQuist, Motorola and Ruby Tuesday: U.S. Equity Preview

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

Abbott Laboratories (ABT US) lost $2.01, or 3.8 percent, to
$51.20 in trading yesterday after the close of U.S. exchanges.
The drugmaker and General Electric Co. have broken off an
agreement to sell Abbott's core laboratory and point-of-care
diagnostics businesses to GE. The decision has no impact on
Abbott's forecast earnings, excluding items, for 2007 and 2008,
the company said in a statement.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

South Korean Stocks Advance After Rate Increase; Posco Rises to Record

(Bloomberg) -- South Korean stocks advanced after
the Bank of Korea raised interest rates, reinforcing confidence
in the nation's economic recovery. Shinhan Financial Group Ltd.
led the climb.

Samsung Electronics Co. extended gains after the central
bank raised its benchmark interest for the first time in almost a
year to 4.75 percent. The Bank of Korea and the government had
raised their forecasts for this year's economic expansion earlier
this week.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

China Money Supply Growth Accelerates, Raising Prospects for Rate Increase

(Bloomberg) -- China's money supply growth
accelerated for the first time in four months, increasing the
likelihood that interest rates will rise.

M2, the broadest measure, rose 17.1 percent in June from a
year earlier to 37.8 trillion yuan ($5 trillion) after gaining
16.7 percent in May, the People's Bank of China said today on its
Web site. It topped the government target for the fifth straight
month and was higher than the 16.6 percent median estimate of 18
economists surveyed by Bloomberg News.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

`Manhattan Ladies' Fight for Hong Kong School Slots as China Trade Booms

(Bloomberg) -- Judy Carline helps expatriates settle
in after they've transferred to Hong Kong. These days, she spends
most of her time helping anxious parents who are trying to get
their kids into international schools.

``This year is particularly bad,'' says Carline, a real
estate agent at Savills Plc. There are more of ``these bankers,
between 35 and 42, with young children. These days, people think
their 3-year-olds are going to Harvard. The Manhattan ladies, they
are the worst. They work themselves into a state.''


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Samsung shares up on Q2 hopes

(Reuters) - "The second-quarter earnings will be poor, but it will at least meet the consensus expectation," said Park Suk-hyun, an analyst at Kyobo Securities. "Some had worried the results would come in worse. Also, the outlook for the second half is improving."




Samsung, the most valuable technology company outside the United States, is expected to report a net profit of 1.29 trillion won in the second quarter from 1.51 trillion a year ago, according to a Reuters poll of 10 analysts.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Valero Says Oklahoma Refinery Cracking Unit May Restart in 14 to 16 Days

(Bloomberg) -- Valero Energy Corp., the largest
U.S. refiner, said the fluid catalytic cracking unit at its
refinery in Ardmore, Oklahoma, may start up in 14 to 16 days
after shutting last week.

The start date is a preliminary estimate, Valero spokesman
Bill Day said in a telephone interview. The unit, which was
idled for unplanned maintenance, can process 26,000 barrels a
day of partially processed petroleum.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Japan's Nikkei 225 Average, Topix Advance; Canon and Komatsu Lead Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose
54.82, or 0.3 percent, to 18,104.33 as of 9:04 a.m. in Tokyo. The
broader Topix index added 5.97, or 0.3 percent, to 1773.69.

Canon Inc. and Komatsu Ltd. led the advances.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

France's Total Restarts Oil Refinery at Port Arthur, Texas, After Flaring

(Bloomberg) -- Total SA, Europe's third-largest oil
company, restarted two units after they lost power at its plant
in Port Arthur, Texas, which lead to flaring and the release of
sulfur dioxide into the air.

The Paris-based company reported the loss of power to two
sour water stripper units, which prompted them to shut down, in a
filing with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
Restarting each unit necessitated emergency flaring, during which
chemicals are burned off into the air.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Sony Ericsson posts higher profit and phone sales

(Reuters) - Analyst, on average, expected earnings of 385 million euros, according to a recent poll of 20 analysts conducted for Reuters.




Sales rose to 3.1 billion euros from 2.27 billion euros, with the average analyst expectation at 3.1 billion euros.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Level 3 buys online video delivery firm Servecast

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 11 - Telecommunications carrier Level 3 Communications Inc. said on Wednesday it had acquired Servecast Ltd., an Irish Internet and mobile video delivery company, for about $45 million in cash.



The deal follows a series of acquisitions by Level 3, which has a large metro fiber network, in an effort to expand in the online content delivery network business.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Argentina stocks close at record high on energy shares

(Reuters) - The MerVal index of 21 leading rose 0.56 percent to
end at 2,266.09 points, surpassing the previous day's
record-high close of 2,253.30 points.




"The MerVal's new high was focused on the renewed boom of
Tenaris and other from the energy sector like
Petrobras, but selectivity was the order of the day," said
Dionisio Corneille, director of the Corneille brokerage.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Yen May Extend Declines Versus Dollar, Euro Before Announcement on Rates

(Bloomberg) -- The yen may fall versus the dollar
and euro for a second day as the Bank of Japan is expected to
keep its benchmark interest rate at 0.5 percent, the lowest
among major economies.

Traders may continue to borrow in yen to fund so-called
carry trade investments in higher-yielding assets. Japan's
consumers were the most pessimistic in more than two years last
month, a Cabinet Office report showed yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Level 3 buys Web and mobile video firm Servecast

(Reuters) - The deal follows a series of acquisitions by Level 3, which has a large metro fiber network, in an effort to expand in the online content delivery network business.



Dublin-based Servecast sells live and on-demand video management and streaming services for companies. It had about $5 million in annual revenue for 2006, Level 3 said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Bankruptcy Court approves Tower sale to Cerberus

(Reuters) - By David Bailey



CHICAGO, July 11 - The U.S. Bankruptcy Court on Wednesday approved Tower Automotive Inc.'s $1 billion sale to private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management [CBS.UL] and the auto parts maker's reorganization plan.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Resources Connection quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - Revenue for the quarter rose 21 percent to $200.5 million.




For the latest fourth quarter, analysts were expecting
earnings of 31 cents a share, before exceptional items, on
revenue of $198.3 million, according to Reuters Estimates.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Refco examiner faults lawyers, auditors in collapse

(Reuters) - The examiner also said the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges
LLP could be sued for failing to use appropriate care in its
representation of Refco, though this was also a close call.




Hochberg filed his report with the U.S. bankruptcy court in
Manhattan. His recommendations could provide grounds for
lawsuits by Refco creditors, many of whom received only a
fraction of the amounts they claimed they were owed.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Marriott International, NYSE Euronext: U.S. Equity Option Market Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
with unusual option trading in U.S. exchanges today. Stock
symbols are in parentheses after company names. Option trading
and stock prices are as of 2:45 p.m. in New York.

Each call option gives investors the right to buy 100 shares
of a company at a certain price, called the strike price, by a
given date. A put conveys the right to sell 100 shares.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Playtex shares jump after CEO cancels presentation

(Reuters) - A spokeswoman said that Chairman, President and Chief Executive Neil DeFeo canceled his presentation at the conference because a scheduling conflict kept him from being in Boston on Wednesday, where the conference is being held.




Acquisitions have been a part of the growth strategy at Playtex since DeFeo joined the company. The company most recently bought the Hawaiian Tropic sun care brand in April.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

L'Oreal USA buys Maly's West for undisclosed sum

(Reuters) - It said Maly's had facilities in the western states and sold to 30,000 salons. The acquisition follows that of Beauty Alliance, acquired by L'Oreal USA last April.



Maly's West achieved sales of $187 million in 2006. L'Oreal expects the acquisition of Maly's West would be add to earnings per share as of 2008.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Soybeans Futures Rise as Hot, Dry Weather Threatens Crops in U.S. Midwest

(Bloomberg) --Soybeans rose in Chicago, extending
a rally to a three-year high, on speculation hot, dry weather
will expand drought conditions in the U.S. Midwest, damaging
flowering crops.

There's no widespread rain in the forecast for the central
U.S. for the next 10 days, according to John Dee, president of
Global Crop Monitoring in Mohawk, Michigan. Starting July 16,
high temperatures will approach 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38
Celsius), Dee said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

AMO blasts shareholder on Bausch deal

(Reuters) - Advanced Medical Optics Chief Executive James Mazzo, responding to a critical letter from ValueAct, said he was "surprised and disappointed" by ValueAct's opposition to the $4.23 billion hostile bid for Bausch & Lomb.




Mazzo said this was "especially hard to understand given expressed interest on June 12th in investing $700 million in equity in a Bausch & Lomb acquisition and your reaffirmation of a desire to participate in financing the transaction as recently as July 5."


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Bogota to Sell $300 Million of Bonds in First Foreign Offering Since 2001

(Bloomberg) -- Bogota, Colombia's capital city,
plans to sell $300 million of 21-year, peso-denominated bonds in
its first offering in international markets in six years.

The city will finish the sale next week, said Gustavo
Marulanda, Bogota's acting credit public director. The bonds
will pay back principal over 2026, 2027 and 2028 and will be
payable in U.S. dollars.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Chico's, Freeport-McMoRan, New Brunswick, Yum! Brands: 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 11:40 a.m. New York time.

Oil-service companies: Merrill Lynch & Co. downgraded some
oil-service companies on concern that oil prices will fall and
producer demand will wane. Noble Corp. (NE US), GlobalSantaFe
Corp. (GSF US) and Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (DO US) were
cut to ``neutral'' from ``buy.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

LBO Credit Quality Declines to Nine-Month Low in Europe, Derivatives Show

(Bloomberg) -- Loans used to finance leveraged
buyouts are the riskiest in at least nine months on speculation
that losses on subprime mortgage securities will spread to other
markets, according to traders of credit-default swaps.

The iTraxx LevX Index of credit-default swaps on loans to
35 European companies fell as much as 1 percent to the lowest
since the index started last October, according to Deutsche Bank
AG prices. The LCDX index of loans to 100 U.S. companies dropped
as much as 0.57 percent to 96, Phoenix Partners Group in New
York said.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Gold, Silver Prices Drop in New York on Speculation Dollar to Halt Slide

(Bloomberg) -- Gold fell in New York as the dollar
halted a slide against the euro, eroding the appeal of the
precious metal as an alternative investment. Silver dropped.

Gold generally moves in the opposite direction of the
dollar, which rebounded against the euro after dropping to a
record. Before today, the metal had gained 4.1 percent this year
while the euro had climbed 4.2 percent against the dollar.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

TEXT-Fitch release on CMBS loan defaults

(Reuters) - Though CMBS loan defaults fell 15% by balance last year to $1.57 billion,
cumulative CMBS loan defaults increased to $13 billion .




Additionally, the cumulative vintage 10-year average default rate is likely
to rise above the current level of 7.88%. 'Loans issued in 2005, 2006 and this
year contain more IO loans and loans that have or allow for additional
subordinate debt that will be especially sensitive to future market downturns,'
said Senior Director Britt Johnson.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

AMO blasts shareholder's opposition to Bausch deal

(Reuters) - Advanced Medical Optics Chief Executive James Mazzo, responding to a critical letter from ValueAct, said he was "surprised and disappointed" by ValueAct's opposition to the $4.23 billion hostile bid for Bausch & Lomb.



Mazzo said this was "especially hard to understand given


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

U.S. Stocks Rise on M&A, Earnings Optimism; Steelmaker Shares Advance

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose as takeovers and
speculation second-quarter earnings will exceed analysts'
estimates outweighed concern subprime mortgage losses will slow
the economy.

A gauge of steelmakers in Standard & Poor's indexes posted
its biggest gain in a month after Chaparral Steel Co. agreed to
be purchased for $4.22 billion. Yum! Brands Inc., the owner of
Pizza Hut and Taco Bell chains, advanced on a UBS AG upgrade
before its earnings report later today.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

White House: No specific terror threat against U.S.

(Reuters) - White House officials said it was a regularly scheduled meeting and not attended by the most senior national security officials.




"There continues to be no credible, specific intelligence to suggest that there is an imminent threat to the homeland," White House spokesman Tony Fratto said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US reviewing hedge fund, private equity practices

(Reuters) - The hearing comes as Congress focuses on an industry that
has amassed vast wealth in recent years and that some lawmakers
think should pay higher taxes.




Steel said the size and scope of private pools of capital
merit "appropriate attention" given potential risks to
investors and the possibility that a financial failure at one
company could trigger a series of collapses that would
undermine the entire financial system.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Bradesco, Equatorial, Gerdau, Tam, Vale do Rio Doce: Brazil Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil's main stock index was little
changed, with mining company Cia. Vale do Rio Doce rising and
steelmaker Gerdau SA falling.

The Bovespa Index of the most-traded stocks on the Sao Paulo
exchange rose 26.87, or less than 0.1 percent, to 55,909.57 as of
9:44 a.m. New York time.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

ABX at record lows after credit raters weigh in

(Reuters) - ABX 07-1 "BBB-" index, which is tied to loans made to risky borrowers in last year's second half, opened Wednesday's session at 50.50, falling below its record 51.42 low close on Tuesday. During the prior session, the index used to hedge subprime mortgage bets hit an intraday low of 49 bid, before rebounding toward the end of the session, traders said.



The ABX 06-2 index, which reference loans from 2006's first half, was quoted at 58 in early trade, down from its 58.58 low close in the prior session.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Airbus German workers set terms for plant sales

(Reuters) - HAMBURG, Germany, July 11 - The German works council of aerospace group EADS unit Airbus will not oppose the sale of Airbus factories in Germany under some conditions, works council head Ruediger Luetjen said.



The workforce would go along with such divestments if a buyer agrees to maintain the plants for the long term and honours current wage agreements, he told a news conference on Wednesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 2-China revises 2006 GDP growth up to 11.1 percent

(Reuters) - BEIJING, July 11 - China revised its 2006 economic
growth data on Wednesday to a 12-year high of 11.1 percent, from
10.7 percent, underscoring the strong momentum behind the
world's fourth-largest economy.




The announcement, about a week before the National Bureau of
Statistics is due to report second-quarter gross domestic
product growth and other data for June, could complicate
the way those figures are interpreted, economists said.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Russia's Mechel Q1 2007 net profit up 226 pct

(Reuters) - Earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and
amortisation were $355.5 million, up 164.5 percent.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Bausch & Lomb says Greenville plant compliant

(Reuters) - Earlier this year, the company started a limited recall of
its ReNu multiPlus contact lens solution manufactured at the
Greenville plant.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Newmont Mining reiterates 2007 gold sales, capex outlook

(Reuters) - It also expects second-quarter results to be similar to the first quarter.







Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Stock futures flat as housing worries linger

(Reuters) - News of Gerdau Ameristeel Corp.'s $4.22 billion takeover of Chaparral Steel Co could offer support for the stock market.




In addition, retreating oil prices and the dollar's decline were seen boosting overseas earnings of U.S. companies.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

China Tightens Drug Approval Oversight, Sets Fines, Bans for Fake Products

(Bloomberg) -- China's food and drug regulator
strengthened penalties for making fake medicines and tightened
standards for approving new drugs, aiming to clean up an industry
saddled with corruption and fraud.

Companies that send in fake medicine samples for approvals
will be fined as much as 30,000 yuan ($3,967) and face a three-
year ban from drug tests, deputy head of the State Food and Drug
Administration's supervision department Wu Zhen said in a Webcast
today on the agency's Web site.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Little threat to Asia from U.S. subprime: Moody's

(Reuters) - Moody's cut ratings on 399 mortgage-backed securities and said it may cut ratings on further 32, affecting $5.2 billion in debt.




Standard & Poor's said it may cut ratings on $12 billion of subprime-related debt on forecasts of more delinquent and defaulted U.S. home loans.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Stock index futures indicate firm market open

(Reuters) - In takeover talk, Canada's Globe and Mail newspaper reported that Alcan has begun negotiating toward a merger agreement with Rio Tinto to fend off a hostile bid from U.S. rival Alcoa .




Dow Jones & Co. , in talks for a takeover by News Corp. , met supermarket magnate Ron Burkle and Internet entrepreneur Brad Greenspan on Tuesday in an effort to find an alternative offer, a source familiar with the situation said.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

U.S. Stock-Index Futures Rise; Genentech, Yum! Brands Advance in Europe

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures advanced as
investors shrugged off concern about the housing market and bet
that second-quarter earnings will beat analyst estimates.

Genentech Inc., the world's biggest maker of cancer
medicines, and Yum! Brands Inc. gained before reporting results.
Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's biggest oil company, climbed in
Europe after Bear, Stearns & Co. raised its earnings estimates
for the biggest oil companies.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

NIBC, CRH, Kommunekredit, Interpipe Plan Debt Sales: European Bond Alert

(Bloomberg) -- CRH PLC, the world's second-biggest
building materials supplier, and NIBC Holding NV are among
borrowers seeking to raise the equivalent of at least 1.5 billion
euros ($2 billion) in bond sales in euros and pounds, according
to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Companies have in sold $1,026 billion of bonds so far this
year, up from $820 billion in the same period last year.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Japan summer retail JGB sale brisk on high coupons

(Reuters) - The amount jumped from 1.18 trillion yen at the previous sale
of similar bonds three months ago and was the third highest since
the ministry first offered JGBs to retail investors in 2003.




During the spring sale of retail-oriented JGBs in 2005, the
MOF sold bonds worth a record 2.34 trillion yen.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Emission Permits Fall to Near Two-Month Low as German Power Prices Drop

(Bloomberg) -- European Union carbon dioxide
permits fell to near a two-month low as German power for next
year dropped, potentially making generation less profitable.

Permits for delivery in December 2008 fell 20 cents, or 1
percent, to 20.80 euros a metric ton in Amsterdam, according to
prices from the European Climate Exchange at 9:38 a.m. local
time. They earlier fell as low as 20.60 euros, near their lowest
since May 15.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Government Bonds Rise Worldwide After Moody's Cut Ratings on Subprime Debt

(Bloomberg) -- Government bonds rose around the
world after Moody's Investors Service cut the ratings on $5.2
billion of bonds backed by subprime mortgages, spurring demand
for the safest assets.

Benchmark 10-year Treasuries and German bunds gained for a
third day and Japanese government bonds had their biggest rally
in more than 10 months on speculation a deepening U.S. housing
slump will slow the world's biggest economy.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Pound Rises Versus Dollar to 26-Year High on Rates View, Subprime Concern

(Bloomberg) -- The pound traded at its highest in 26
years against the dollar on speculation the Bank of England will
raise interest rates further this year while a slowdown in the
U.S. housing market keeps the Federal Reserve on hold.

The currency yesterday gained by the most in three months
after Standard & Poor's said it may cut ratings on $12 billion of
bonds backed by U.S. subprime mortgages. The pound has gained 3.5
percent against the dollar this year as investors bought the U.K.
currency to take advantage of the highest rates among the Group
of Seven industrialized nations.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

German DAX Benchmark Index Retreats; Led by Continental, TUI, Siemens

(Bloomberg) -- German stocks dropped, led by
Continental AG, TUI AG and Siemens AG.

The benchmark DAX Index lost 89.49, or 1.1 percent, to
7875.27 as of 9:10 a.m. in Frankfurt. The HDAX Index of the
country's 110 biggest companies also dropped 1.1 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Carrefour, Safran, STMicroelectronics Shares: French Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of the following companies
may rise or fall on the Paris stock exchange. Symbols are in
parentheses after company names, and prices are from the
previous close.

July futures on the CAC 40 Index slid 52 to 5972.5 at 8:16
a.m. in Paris.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News