SSAB prices Ipsco buy rights issue at 155 SEK/share

(Reuters) - The firm said existing shareholders had said they would take
up around 25 percent of the issue. The total size of the issue
had been previously announced.




Underwriter Deutsche Bank has subscribed for shares not
taken up by shareholders or other investors.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Turkey Enters `New Era' After Erdogan's Party Wins Mandate in Popular Vote

(Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's
election victory cracked the foundation of Turkey's 84-year-old
republic, pushing Islam into the political mainstream and
reshaping the legacy of the country's father figure, Mustafa
Kemal Ataturk.

Erdogan's win two days ago, the biggest share of votes since
1969, may give him a mandate to lift some of the curbs on Islam,
including the Muslim headscarf, which were the basis for the
formation of modern Turkey in 1923. Turkey's military, which has
ousted four governments since 1960, opposes such moves.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Japanese Shares Advance, Paced by KDDI on Earnings; Metal Producers Fall

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese shares advanced, led by KDDI
Corp. on speculation more companies will report higher earnings
for the fiscal first quarter.

Limiting gains, commodity producers such as Sumitomo Metal
Mining Co. and Inpex Holdings Inc. declined after prices of gold,
copper and crude oil fell.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Sony, Canon to shine as Japan elec makers report

(Reuters) - In contrast, plasma TV makers such as Matsushita and Pioneer Corp. are likely to report weak results, having lost dominance of the market for large TVs to the more popular liquid crystal display sets .




Sony, which ruled the $30 billion video game industry over the last decade, has seen tepid demand for its latest game console, the PlayStation 3, launched in November.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Philippine Bonds Slump as Fitch Says Fiscal Deficit May Double This Year

(Bloomberg) -- Philippine bonds fell after Fitch
Ratings said the government's fiscal deficit may almost double
this year because of lower-than-expected revenue.

``There is concern that revenues may not be enough to meet
targeted spending,'' said Roland Avante, treasurer at Chinatrust
(Philippines) Commercial Bank in Manila. ``Definitely, the
tendency is for yields to adjust upwards.''


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Taiwan Bonds Fall, Pushing Yields to Highest Since 2004, on Rate Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- Taiwan's 10-year bonds fell, sending
the benchmark yield to the highest since November 2004, after a
local newspaper said the central bank may raise interest rates
before its regular quarterly meeting. The currency gained.

Inflationary pressures may prompt the central bank to step
up the pace of increasing rates, the Chinese-language Economic
Daily News reported today, without citing anyone. The central
bank on July 19 said on its Web site its board ``can hold
extraordinary meetings at any time to cope with special
conditions.''


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Hong Long Holdings hires banks for bond sale-source

(Reuters) - It has hired Citigroup as sole bookrunner and Lehman
Brothers as joint lead manager for its debut
dollar-denominated bond issue, the source said.




Standard & Poor's Ratings Services has rated the issue
B and said the issue would be in the five to seven year tenor
segment. [ID:nWNA4620]


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 4-Bancrofts meet to discuss Murdoch bid for Dow Jones

(Reuters) - BOSTON, July 23 - Members of the Bancroft family,
which controls Dow Jones & Co. Inc. , may decide by the
end of the week whether to accept a $5 billion offer by Rupert
Murdoch's News Corp for the publisher of The Wall
Street Journal.




Family members met in Boston on Monday to hear
presentations by their advisers on the deal, but have not
decided if they will agree to the sale.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Dollar at 2-month low vs yen, near record low vs euro

(Reuters) - The market shrugged off comments from U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who said problems in the subprime mortgage loan sector could be contained and would not hurt the overall economy. He also said a strong dollar was in the U.S. interest.




"The dollar remains top-heavy as it has not risen despite such favorable factors as a rise in U.S. stocks and comments from Paulson," said the head of foreign-exchange sales at a European bank.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Taiwan's Export Orders Likely Rose Most in Three Months on China's Growth

(Bloomberg) -- Taiwan's export orders probably
increased the most in three months as China's economy expanded
at the fastest pace in 12 years and U.S. growth rebounded.

Orders, indicative of shipments in the next three months,
rose 12 percent in June from a year earlier, according to the
median estimate of 13 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. May's
gain was 11.9 percent. The number is due at 4 p.m. in Taipei.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Japanese Yen, Malaysia's Ringgit, Thailand's Baht: Asian Currency Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following events and economic
reports may influence trading in Asian currencies today.

Exchange rates are from the previous session.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Gasoline Futures Fall on Speculation U.S. Inventories Increased Last Week

(Bloomberg) -- The average U.S. pump price for
regular gasoline fell 9.1 cents to $2.958 a gallon in the week
ended today, the biggest decline since Sept. 25, a government
report showed.

Prices were 4.5 cents a gallon lower than a year ago,
according to the weekly report from the U.S. Energy Department in
Washington. Diesel-fuel prices were unchanged at $2.889 a gallon,
according to the report, based on a survey of about 800 filling
stations.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Five Wall Street Firms Target Goldman Sachs With Plan for Trading Platform

(Bloomberg) -- Five of Wall Street's biggest firms
are planning a trading system for unregistered securities,
seeking to compete with Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in a market on
pace for record sales this year, according to people familiar
with the plan.

Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Lehman Brothers
Holdings Inc., Merrill Lynch & Co. and Morgan Stanley are
developing a system to handle securities sold under so-called
144a market rules, which allow companies to avoid regulations by
selling bonds and stock to institutional investors, the people
said.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 3-XM, Sirius promise low cost packages, more choice

(Reuters) - NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, July 23 - U.S. satellite
radio companies Sirius and XM promised on
Monday a variety of subscription packages that cost up to 46
percent less than current plans if their merger is approved.




In a bid to allay critics' concerns that their merger would
raise prices and limit programming choices, the two companies
announced several new packages they said would offer consumers
more choices than they could provide individually.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US's Paulson says subprime woes 'containable'

(Reuters) - Paulson said the economy was "very, very healthy" despite
the problems in the subprime mortgage lending sector.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

S&P cuts Expedia's debt on stock buyback change

(Reuters) - Expedia, the online travel agency controlled by Barry
Diller, said on Monday it was cutting its plan to buy back its
own shares by almost 80 percent, blaming a lack of attractive
financing available in credit markets. For details, see
[ID:nN23339116]




Expedia said it would buy back a maximum of 25 million
shares at a price between $27.50 and $30 per share. In June, it
announced a plan to buy up to 116.7 million shares, or more
than one-third of those outstanding, in the same price range.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Tenneco to restate results to correct accounting

(Reuters) - In April 2004, Tenneco entered into three separate
interest rate swaps with two financial institutions, swapping a
total of $150 million of the company's 10.25 percent senior
secured notes to floating interest rate debt.




Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-PartnerRe quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - PartnerRe reported second-quarter net income of $105
million, or $1.66 a share, up from $77.5 million, or $1.20 a
share last year.




Operating income, which excluded after-tax net realized
gains and losses, rose to $139.2 million, or $2.39 a share,
from $115.9 million, or $2.01 a share last year.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Harris denies plans to push for UBS break-up

(Reuters) - The Sunday Times of London reported that Chicago-based
Harris had "secretly built a $1 billion stake" in UBS, which
has "faced calls from investors and analysts to split its
wealth management and investment banking divisions."




The paper did not directly say Harris was planning to
pressure UBS to split itself up. But it did say "the break-up
calls have gained support following the spectacular results of
TCI, the London hedge fund, in agitating for the break-up of
ABN Amro."


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

NYSE margin debt rises to record $378.2 bln in June

(Reuters) - Investors have taken on record amounts of debt to buy
securities since a rule change has made it easier to borrow --
and lure business that had moved offshore, to London in
particular.




Under a pilot program called portfolio margining that began
in April, several brokerage firms are now offering risk-based
margin rules to institutional investors.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Canadian National profit falls without tax gain

(Reuters) - Canada's biggest railroad also said it plans to buy back up
to 6.6 percent of its shares.







Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Nymex Gas Falls to Lowest Since December on Mild Weather, Ample Supplies

(Bloomberg) -- Natural gas fell in New York to its
lowest closing price since December as a combination of mild
temperatures and high inventories served to undercut demand and
push down prices.

The potential for hot weather forecast last week for the
high-demand areas of the U.S. East Coast later this week is now
``diminished,'' and temperatures will be lower than normal, MDA
Federal Inc.'s Earthsat Energy Weather of Rockville, Maryland,
said today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

UPDATE 2-XM, Sirius would offer low cost, a-la-carte option

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 23 - U.S. satellite radio
providers Sirius and XM said on Monday they
can offer consumers a variety of subscription packages that
cost up to 46 percent less than current plans if their merger
is approved.




In a bid to allay concerns among U.S. lawmakers that their
merger would raise prices and limit programming choices, the
two companies announced several new packages that they say
offer consumers more choice than they can individually.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

RLPC-Investors mull proposed changes to Boots loan

(Reuters) - The deal will also add an interest cover covenant to the
covenant lite loan to offer additional protection to investors
spooked by a steep sell-off in the debt markets in recent
weeks, sources told Reuters Loan Pricing Corporation.




KKR [KKR.UL] and Boots [AB.UL] Deputy Chairman Stefano
Pessina agreed in April to buy the retailer for 11.1 billion
pounds in Europe's biggest-ever private equity
deal and the first of a FTSE 100 company.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Colombia Peso Reaches One-Month High on Speculation Inflation Will Slow

(Bloomberg) -- Colombia's peso strengthened to a
one-month high on investor expectations that inflation will
slow, attracting buyers to the nation's assets.

The peso gained 0.4 percent to 1,910.65 per dollar,
reaching the strongest since June 20, according to the Colombian
foreign-exchange electronic transactions system, known as SET-
FX.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Early CPDOs far riskier than ratings imply-UBS

(Reuters) - Last week Fitch Ratings and Dominion Bond Rating Service,
neither of which have rated CPDOs, said that the early deals
may be highly sensitive to small changes in the assumptions
underlying them. For details, see [ID:nL18292745]




"We think that early CPDOs, the ones that were introduced
last summer and fall, have a very fundamental problem with
them," said Anthony Morris, executive director in structured
products research at UBS on a conference call on Monday.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Ill. power cos agree on $1 bln rate relief package

(Reuters) - For months, officials from Commonwealth Edison utility and
units of Ameren have been negotiating with elected officials on
ways to provide rate relief and avoid legislation that would
roll back prices to pre-2007 levels.




The officials, Illinois Senate President Emil Jones, House
Speaker Michael Madigan and Attorney General Lisa Madigan, also
said in a series of releases that the state would create a new
agency to procure electricity for utilities in the future.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

InterGen prices $1.875 bln high-yield bonds -source

(Reuters) - The size of the deal was reduced by $100 million, yields on
offer raised and pricing delayed from last week to Monday due to
the turmoil in the credit markets, where the benchmark Crossover
credit default swap index has risen 80 basis points in the last
week to 350 basis points.




Merrill Lynch, Lehman Brothers, Deutsche Bank and Barclays
Capital are managing the bond sale for InterGen, which has nine
power plants with 5,235 megawatts of capacity in five countries.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Mexican stocks rise, driven by America Movil gains

(Reuters) - The benchmark IPC stock index moved up 0.52 percent
to 32,089 points, while the peso firmed 0.144
percent to 10.7635 per dollar.




Shares of America Movil , Mexico's dominant
cell-phone operator and the most heavily weighted company on
the IPC index, advanced 0.70 percent to 34.50 pesos, while its
New York-traded shares gained 1.26 percent to $64.17.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Mexico's GAP 2nd-qtr net profit rises 55 pct

(Reuters) - Revenue in the quarter rose 16.1 percent to 847 million
pesos, the company said on Monday.




GAP operates 12 airports in Mexico, including Guadalajara,
Tijuana, Los Cabos and Puerto Vallarta.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

TEXT-S&P release on U.S. REITs and homebuilders

(Reuters) - REIT equities experienced a dip in the recent quarter, but the sector
maintains a relatively solid footing in terms of fundamentals given the ongoing
state of equilibrium within the commercial property markets. U.S. homebuilder
prospects darkened, however, as the sector strives to find a trough in the
market's current downturn.




"Mergers and acquisitions again drove most of our otherwise subdued U.S.
REIT rating actions in the second quarter," said credit analyst Elizabeth
Campbell.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Burundi coffee sales up 400 pct on output - board

(Reuters) - Burundi's coffee earnings jumped 400 percent to $58.2 million in 2006/07 on higher production compared with the previous season, an official from the state-run coffee board said on Monday.

The Burundi Coffee Board (OCIBU) said it sold 29,951 tonnes of beans in 2006/07 versus 6,178 tonnes the previous season when the tiny central African country earned $11.6 million.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Gold, Silver Futures Decline After U.S. Dollar's Slump Against Euro Stalls

(Bloomberg) -- Gold fell from a two-month high in
New York as the dollar's decline against the euro stalled,
reducing the appeal of the precious metal as alternative
investments. Silver also dropped.

The dollar rebounded from a record $1.3845 against the euro
as a price chart some investors use to predict currency
movements suggested the decline was too rapid. Before today,
gold has gained 7.3 percent this year, and the dollar slumped
4.8 percent against the euro.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Williams, Amherst, Rated Tops by U.S. News, Won't Join Rankings Protest

(Bloomberg) -- Sixty small American colleges have
mounted the biggest protest yet against U.S. News & World Report
magazine's annual rankings of higher education. The survey's 25
premier schools aren't joining the rebellion.

The presidents of Holy Cross, Lafayette, Trinity and 57
other liberal arts schools have pledged in the past 10 weeks to
withhold cooperation from Washington-based U.S. News on the most
controversial element of its 24-year-old survey, a questionnaire
asking colleges to assess competing schools.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Treasury Yields Rise as Stocks Gain Amid Declining Fear of Subprime Losses

(Bloomberg) -- Treasury yields rose as gains in
stocks suggested less concern among investors that losses on
subprime loans in the U.S. will hurt the broader economy.

Traders said the rapid drop in 10-year yields from 5.327
percent on June 13 to 4.93 percent July 20 was unsustainable and
that an inability to push yields lower this morning led to
selling.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

TREASURIES-Bonds dip on bright stocks outlook

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 23 - U.S. Treasuries eased on
Monday, pulling benchmark yields back from recent six-week lows
as a firm equities outlook signaled at least a temporary
recovery in other markets from last week's subprime credit
scare.




Financial market losses related to subprime, the mortgage
sector that targets borrowers with poor credit, led to a flight
to quality by investors into Treasuries last week, giving
10-year notes their best rally since since March.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Crude Oil Declines on Report That OPEC Is Concerned About High Oil Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell after Reuters reported
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries was concerned
about high oil prices and their impact on the world economy.

The group may pump more oil to increase supplies, though
it's unclear whether extra production will be needed this year,
OPEC President Mohamed al-Hamli said, according to Reuters. OPEC,
which produces 40 percent of the world's oil, considers $60 to
$65 a barrel a ``reasonable'' price for crude, KPC World, the
monthly bulletin of the Kuwait Petroleum Corp. reported.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

European Bonds Climb, Pushing Yields to Lowest in Two Months, on Subprime

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds gained,
pushing 10-year yields to a two-month low, as the U.S. subprime
mortgage crisis continued to stoke demand for the safest assets.

Bunds also advanced for a second day as the risk of owning
European corporate debt rose, according to traders of credit
default swaps, prompting investors to switch to safer government
securities. European 10-year yields dropped the most in 3 1/2
years last week as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said
the housing market woes may slow the wider U.S. economy.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Canada Dollar Rises Most in Week on Speculation Retail Sales Gained in May

(Bloomberg) -- The Canadian dollar gained the most
in a week before a government report that analysts forecast will
show retail sales rose in May, bolstering speculation the
central bank will lift interest rates.

The currency strengthened against 14 of 16 major
currencies. Canada's dollar rose to 95.71 U.S. cents at 7:41
a.m. in Toronto from 95.35 U.S. on July 21. The currency climbed
to 96.14 U.S. cents on July 18, the highest since February 1977.
One U.S. dollar buys C$1.0448. The currency has gained 11.6
percent this year as the economy strengthened and commodities
prices surged.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Merck, Halliburton rise on earnings

(Reuters) - Merck stock rose 2 percent to $50 and Halliburton gained 2.5 percent to $37.49.




Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

LifePoint Hospitals 2nd-qtr net falls

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income declined to $13.4 million, or 23 cents per share, from $34.8 million, or 62 cents per share, a year ago.






Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Halliburton profit up, tops Street view

(Reuters) - Also included in second-quarter 2007 operating income was an after-tax gain of 3 cents a diluted share from the sale of an investment, Halliburton said.




Excluding one-time items, analysts on average had expected the company, which was once headed by U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney, to report a profit of 56 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Teleflex to buy Arrow International for $2 bln

(Reuters) - Teleflex expects the transaction to be dilutive to 2007
financial results. The company expects the deal to add to its
earnings by 2009.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

InterGen cuts bond size, ups yields -source

(Reuters) - All of the yields are 0.125 percentage points higher than
the top end of the previous ranges announced last Thursday.




Order books close on Monday afternoon, with pricing to
follow, the source said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Halliburton quarterly operating profit up 19 pct

(Reuters) - Also included in second-quarter 2007 operating income was an
after-tax gain of 3 cents a diluted share from the sale of an
investment, Halliburton said.




Excluding one-time items, analysts on average had expected
the company, which was once headed by U.S. Vice President Dick
Cheney, to report a profit of 56 cents a share, according to
Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Cerberus to buy United Rentals for $4 bln: report

(Reuters) - Its shares closed on Friday at $32.37.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Rubber Falls as Yen Advances Against U.S. Dollar, China Imports Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Rubber futures in Tokyo fell for the
first day in four as the yen strengthened to its highest in more
than six weeks against the dollar and China reported imports of
the commodity declined last month.

A gain in Japan's currency damps the value of yen-
denominated contracts for commodities such as rubber, which
trades globally in dollars. China's natural rubber imports
dropped 1 percent in June to 118,417 metric tons from a year ago,
the Beijing-based Customs General Administration said today.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 1-China silences green GDP study, report says

(Reuters) - BEIJING, July 23 - China has stopped the public
release of an official study putting a cost to the nation's
environmental damage, a government researcher told a Chinese
newspaper, blaming official reluctance to confront pollution.




The Beijing News reported on Monday that the release of a
"green GDP" report computing the cost of pollution and ecological
degradation in 2005 had been "indefinitely postponed".


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Dead Zone Is Price Louisiana Gulf Coast Pays as Farms Cash In on Ethanol

(Bloomberg) -- The crop that's bringing prosperity
to farmers is making it harder for commercial fishermen in
Louisiana to make a living.

U.S. farmers this spring planted the most acreage with corn
since 1944, after demand for ethanol pushed the grain's price to
a 10-year high in February. Scientists blame farm waste flowing
into the Mississippi River basin for creating a pocket along the
Louisiana coast where shrimp and other sea life can't survive.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Ex-Anglo American exec to sit on RUSAL board - paper

(Reuters) - Russia's United Company RUSAL plans to offer a seat on its board of directors to Simon Thompson, former managing director of mining group Anglo American, Vedomosti daily reported on Monday.

Vedomosti, quoting sources close to RUSAL, said Thompson may also become chairman of the firm's 12-member board replacing oil-to-metals tycoon Viktor Vekselberg.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Norsk Hydro to build alumina refinery with CVRD

(Reuters) - "Investment cost in the first stage for the total
project is preliminary estimated at $1.5 billion," it said.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Japan ready to accept IAEA inspectors after quake

(Reuters) - TOKYO, July 23 - Japan will work with the
International Atomic Energy Agency to inspect the world's
biggest nuclear power plant after a powerful earthquake last week
caused radiation leaks and renewed fears about nuclear safety,
the government said on Monday.




Japan's nuclear industry -- which supplies about one-third of
the country's electricity needs and is central to its efforts to
battle global warming -- has been tarnished by cover-ups of
accidents and fudged safety records.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News