Nigeria braces for general strike after talks fail

(Reuters) - A general strike in Africa's top oil producer will go ahead on Wednesday as planned after unions rejected government concessions on fuel prices as too little too late.

Unions met on Tuesday to consider the government's offer to reduce pump prices by 5 naira (4 cents) a litre, but decided only a full reversal of the 10-naira rise could avert the action, which may cut oil supplies from the world's eighth largest exporter.


Read more at Reuters Africa

West Africa seen topping 100 mln mobile users by 2011

(Reuters) - West Africa's booming cell phone market will double by 2011 to more than 100 million subscribers, driven by growth in the continent's biggest market, Nigeria, industry executives and analysts said on Tuesday.

With fixed-line telecoms infrastructure scarce in many parts of Africa, a fall in the cost of mobile handsets and in the price of calls has sparked a boom across the continent.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Sakhalin Energy Offers 730,000 Barrels of Vityaz Crude for August Loading

(Bloomberg) -- Sakhalin Energy Investment Co. is
offering to sell one 730,000 barrel cargo of Vityaz crude for
loading in August, said traders who received offer documents.

---------------------------------------------------------------
Crude:         Vityaz from Russia's Sakhalin Island
Quantity:      730,000 barrels
Loading:       August
Offer closes:  June 26
Validity:      June 27
---------------------------------------------------------------

To contact the reporter on this story:
Christian Schmollinger in Singapore at
christian.s@bloomberg.net .


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - June 20

(Reuters) - * Two Bear Stearns hedge funds were close to being
shut down as a rescue plan fell apart. Lender Merrill said it
would move to seize collateral and sell it.




* Microsoft Corp. has agreed to make changes to
Vista following complaints by Google Inc. to antitrust
officials that the software hampers rival desktop search
programs.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Mortgage Rate Increase Pushes U.S. Housing Market, Economy to 'Blood Bath'

(Bloomberg) -- The worst is yet to come for the
U.S. housing market.

The jump in 30-year mortgage rates by more than a half a
percentage point to 6.74 percent in the past five weeks is
putting a crimp on borrowers with the best credit just as a
crackdown in subprime lending standards limits the pool of
qualified buyers. The national median home price is poised for
its first annual decline since the Great Depression, and the
supply of unsold homes is at a record 4.2 million, according to
the National Association of Realtors.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Brown Shoe, Brush, Home Depot, Littelfuse, Shenandoah: 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.

Brown Shoe Company Inc. (BWS US): The owner of the Famous
Footwear retail chain plans to open more than 500 stores in China
by 2012 through a joint venture with Hongguo International
Holdings Ltd. Shares of Brown Shoe gained 13 cents to $26.16 in
regular trading yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

China's AVIC I may bid for Airbus plants -paper

(Reuters) - The Securities Times cited AVIC I General Manager Lin Zuoming
as saying at the Paris air show that his company was interested
in bidding for the facilities.




AVIC I could not immediately be reached for comment.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Asian Stocks Climb for Fifth Day, Led by Hon Hai, Nissan on Bond Yields

(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks climbed for a fifth day
as declining U.S. bond yields eased concern borrowing costs will
rise in the world's largest economy.

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. and Nissan Motor Co. led an
advance among companies that rely on U.S. sales, helping a
regional benchmark to a record. The yield on the 10-year U.S.
Treasury note retreated for a third day after touching a five-
year high last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Asian Stocks Advance for Fifth Day, Led by Hon Hai, Nissan on Bond Yields

(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks climbed for a fifth day
as declining U.S. bond yields eased concern borrowing costs will
rise in world's largest economy.

Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. and Nissan Motor Co. led an
advance among companies that rely on U.S. sales, helping a
regional benchmark to a record. The yield on the 10-year U.S.
Treasury note retreated for a third day after touching a five-
year high last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

HIGHLIGHTS-Japan Q2 big manufacturers' sentiment worsens

(Reuters) - *Click on [ID:nT307536] for a table of the survey.




-- The business survey index on sentiment at large
manufacturers in the April-June quarter fell to minus 2.2 from
plus 0.1 in January-March. It was the first time the index was
negative since April-June 2005, when the index was minus 2.4. The
decline was led by a worsening in sentiment among automobile,
general machinery and metal industries.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Japan's Topix Rises, Nikkei Is Little Changed; Mitsubishi Corp. Lead Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's Topix index added 1.93, or
0.1 percent, to 1782.42 at 9:21 a.m. in Tokyo, after slipping as
much as 0.1 percent.

The Nikkei 225 Stock Average was little changed at
18,166.16.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Smart Triumph Offers Cash, Bonds to Buy Out China Oriental, Standard Says

(Bloomberg) -- A shareholder of China Oriental Group
Co., a Chinese steelmaker, said it plans to buy out the Hong
Kong-listed company because of it's ``dissatisfied'' with the
management's performance.

Smart Triumph Corp., which owns 28 percent of the Hong Kong-
listed company, is offering HK$18 in cash and two exchangeable
bonds for every 9 China Oriental shares held by existing
shareholders, Smart Triumph said in an announcement published in
Hong Kong's the Standard newspaper today.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Japanese Stocks May Climb, Led by Canon, Exporters; Komatsu May Advance

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks may gain after
declining U.S. bond yields eased concern that higher borrowing
costs will curb profit growth. Exporters such as Canon Inc. may
advance.

Machinery makers may also rise after the Nikkei newspaper
reported Boeing Co. agreed to help sell Mitsubishi Heavy
Industries Ltd's passenger jet. The newspaper also said Komatsu
Ltd. and Hitachi Construction Machinery Co. separately plan to
expand into the leasing business in China.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Markets may spoil wealth management party--survey

(Reuters) - "There is a feeling that there is easy money to make at the
moment, but our research shows that long-term successes are
only built on sensible strategies," the London-based
consultancy group said in a statement on Wednesday.




Numerous banks have started or expanded their wealth
management business, a sector that is estimated to sit on more
than $30 trillion in client assets worldwide and is one of the
fastest growing financial industries.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Crude Oil Is Little Changed at Nine-Month High on Nigerian Strike Threat

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil was little changed at a
nine-month high in New York amid concern that a strike will curb
fuel shipments from Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil producer.

The strike will start tomorrow, according to John Odah,
general secretary of the Nigeria Labour Congress. Union
representatives demanded that the government rescind a motor-fuel
price increase implemented last month.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

ICE says it can speed up growth in Russell futures

(Reuters) - Sprecher's comments were monitored via Webcast.




On Monday ICE, which is staging a hostile takeover bid for
the parent of the Chicago Board of Trade , said it had
obtained the exclusive right to trade futures and options on
the family of stock indices produced by Tacoma, Washington,
based Russell.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

GE Shares Rise the Most in Three Years Following Upbeat Paris Airshow

(Bloomberg) -- General Electric Co. shares surged
the most since January 2004 amid expectations that profit from
selling commercial jet engines will increase because of plane
orders announced this week at the Paris Air Show.

Airbus SAS, the world's largest commercial-aircraft maker,
yesterday won $42.6 billion in contracts. Boeing Co., Airbus's
nearest rival, today announced an $8.8 billion order from
International Lease Finance Corp. GE is the world's largest
maker of jet engines.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

U.S. newspapers adjust Web image as print dims

(Reuters) - At the Newspaper Association of America's annual Mid-Year Media Review in New York, publishers touted their online strategies and efforts to rein in costs as print advertising revenue falls.




Media General Inc., which publishes the Tampa Tribune and the Richmond Times Dispatch, said it expects publishing profit to decline in 2007 compared with last year.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Kennedy asks US student lender cuts, shares climb

(Reuters) - WASHINGTON, June 19 - The chairman of the U.S.
Senate education committee on Tuesday introduced legislation to
cut government subsidies to student loan companies, but the
cuts were milder than some expected and lender stocks rose.




Massachusetts Democrat Edward Kennedy proposed a cut of
0.50 percentage point in the "special allowance payment" made
to companies that handle federally guaranteed student loans.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Blackstone issues of interest to SEC: agency head

(Reuters) - The SEC is under pressure from leaders of the Senate
Finance Committee, House Financial Services Committee and the
AFL-CIO who say Blackstone's IPO has the potential to
jeopardize the integrity of the federal tax code and the
corporate tax base.




Blackstone is one of the country's largest private equity
firms. The company is expected to price its IPO on Thursday,
according to underwriter Morgan Stanley, with common units at
$29 to $31 each for proceeds as high as $4.13 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Gold, Silver Climb on Speculation U.S. Housing Slump to Pressure Dollar

(Bloomberg) -- Gold and silver in New York rose on
speculation a slump in the U.S. housing market will hurt growth,
weakening the dollar and boosting the appeal of precious metals
as alternative investments.

Gold generally moves in the opposite direction of the
dollar, which fell for the third session in a row against a
basket of six major currencies. A government report showed home
construction slowed in May, a signal the Federal Reserve may not
raise interest rates anytime soon. Gold has gained 4.2 percent
this year, while the dollar index fell 1.1 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Bonds rally as data support weak housing view

(Reuters) - Benchmark bond yields, which move inversely to prices, slipped to their lowest levels in a week as weaker stocks and gains in euro zone government bonds also attracted investors to Treasuries, analysts said.




"What is helping the Treasury market is this idea that housing is remaining a very big risk to the economy. The figures today in many eyes reinforce that," said Tony Crescenzi, chief bond market strategist with Miller, Tabak & Co. in New York.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

No victims, no smoking gun: Conrad Black

(Reuters) - Edward Greenspan, launching his closing argument in Black's
criminal fraud case, said the prosecution's main appeal seemed
to be instead that Black was guilty because he had accumulated
great wealth.




"In America, you do not convict people for being rich,"
Greenspan said. "The government is trying to distract you ...
you cannot hold it against him because he has a party with
Michael Bloomberg, Henry Kissinger and Donald Trump as guests."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Portman to step down as White House budget chief

(Reuters) - Portman, who is also a former congressman, said through a spokesman that he had decided that after many years in public life, he wanted to spend more time with his family.




Nussle, a Republican, is a former chairman of the House of Representatives Budget Committee. He ran for governor in 2006 but lost to Democrat Chet Culver.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Canada to prod provinces on securities regulation

(Reuters) - Flaherty said he will propose to provincial securities
ministers that a detailed securities regulation act be put
together, which would form the basis for negotiations.




"What I'm going to put forward is a six-month plan where we
would have a group of experts ... examine for us and show us
what a national securities act would look like in Canada so
that we can start to be constructive and move forward on the
issue," Flaherty told reporters after testifying at the Senate
finance committee.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

RBS close to Sempra Commodities takeover -source

(Reuters) - By Humeyra Pamuk



LONDON, June 19 - Royal Bank of Scotland , Britain's second largest bank, is close to a deal to buy trading firm Sempra Commodities, owned by U.S.-based Sempra Energy , a source told Reuters on Tuesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Rand little changed vs dollar, seen in ranges

(Reuters) - South Africa's rand barely moved against the dollar late on Tuesday and should drift within present ranges in the short-term, mostly tracking other emerging market currencies and the euro, traders said.

At 1535 GMT the domestic currency was at 7.09 against the dollar, just 0.04 percent off Monday's New York close of 7.0872. It drifted between 7.0765 and 7.1225 during Johannesburg's session.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Bonds rise on sluggish housing starts data

(Reuters) - Benchmark bond yields, which move inversely to prices, slipped to their lowest levels in a week, as weaker stocks and gains in Bunds also enticed Treasury investors, analysts said.




"What is helping the Treasury market is this idea that housing is remaining a very big risk to the economy. The figures today in many eyes reinforce that," said Tony Crescenzi, chief bond market strategist with Miller, Tabak & Co. in New York.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Best Buy says still optimistic about growth

(Reuters) - "Despite what we believe to be the first industrywide interruption in six years, we have never been more optimistic about our future growth opportunities," Chief Operating Officer Brian Dunn said during a conference call with analysts.




"Does this mean that people are changing their minds, turning away from technology and entertainment products and solutions? We don't think so," he said. "They simply hit the pause button."


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Subprime mortgage bond index drops to record low

(Reuters) - Losses at a hedge fund run by top mortgage bond dealer Bear Stearns Cos. have captivated the industry as investors prepare for possible sales of low-rated assets from the fund. Bear Stearns last week sold about $4 billion of the fund's best bonds to cover losses, and today is meeting with creditors and private equity firm Blackstone Group to prevent its collapse, according to people familiar with the situation.




A government report on Tuesday showed U.S. housing starts set an annual pace of 1.474 million units in May, off from the 1.506 million rate in April. The National Association of Home Builders on Monday said its confidence index is at its lowest level in 16 years.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Tyco to focus on growth after spin-offs

(Reuters) - The conglomerate plans to split into three parts later this month, with Tyco International continuing as a stand-alone company. Tyco Electronics and Covidien health care will then operate as independent, publicly traded entities.




The company aims for long-term revenue growth, factoring out the effect of any acquisitions, of about 4 percent to 6 percent a year, said Chris Coughlin, executive vice president and chief financial officer.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Oil Falls From a Nine-Month High on Expected U.S. Gasoline Inventory Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from a nine-month high
on speculation that an Energy Department report tomorrow will
show U.S. gasoline inventories rose for a seventh week.

Gasoline stockpiles increased 1.44 million barrels in the
week ended June 15, according to the median of responses by 14
analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. Refiners probably increased
operating rates for the first time in four weeks, the survey
showed. Crude-oil prices often follow gasoline during the driving
season, which lasts from late May to early September.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Louisiana council OKs Valero project bonds--report

(Reuters) - Valero plans to decide later this year if it will go forward with the
expansion.




The bonds must also be approved by the State Bond Commission.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. Stocks Retreat on Drop in Housing Starts; Lennar, Best Buy Decline

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks fell a second day after
housing starts dropped in May, stoking concern the real-estate
slump will continue to weigh on economic growth.

NVR Inc., Centex Corp. and Hovnanian Enterprise Inc. led
declines in homebuilders. Best Buy Co., the biggest consumer
electronics chain, slid after reporting earnings that trailed
analyst estimates.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Areva Wins $1.3 Billion 20-Year Uranium-Enrichment Contract in South Korea

(Bloomberg) -- Areva SA, the world's largest maker
of nuclear plants, said it won a long-term uranium-enrichment
contract with Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. valued at more than
1 billion euros ($1.34 billion).

The agreement will enable KHNP to ``secure its nuclear fuel
supply at a competitive price'' and Areva to ``develop stable and
long term partnerships with major utilities,'' Paris-based Areva
said in an e-mailed statement.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

OECD jobs report shows darker side of globalisation

(Reuters) - Globalisation is good, but people are earning less of the wealth generated by economic growth and integration as the decades go by, the OECD said on Tuesday.

In a report on jobs policies, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development remained faithful to its mandate as a promoter of free markets, trade and investment, but said it was time for a reality check on globalisation's darker side too.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Goldman Sachs, Fidelity May Be Forced to Cut Stakes in Indian Exchanges

(Bloomberg) -- Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and
Fidelity International Ltd. may be forced to pare their stakes
in India's biggest commodity exchanges should the government
push through a plan to cap investment.

The Reserve Bank of India may limit ownership in the
commodity bourses to 5 percent for a single investor, mirroring
rules set for stock exchanges, Yashwant Bhave, secretary at the
Department of Consumer Affairs, said in a June 14 interview.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Humana to buy dental and vision benefits provider

(Reuters) - Atlanta-based CompBenefits provides dental and vision benefit plans to more than 4.8 million members, Humana said.



"When combined with our current HumanaDental business unit, this acquisition will give Humana the type of comprehensive integrated product offering that employers are seeking," Humana CEO Mike McCallister said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-GE to buy stake in Regency Energy for $603 mln

(Reuters) - Under the deal with HM Capital Partners LLC, GE Energy
Financial Services has acquired an estimated 37 percent of
Regency's limited-partner units outstanding, the Journal said.




The transaction also gives GE Energy Financial Services a
91 percent stake in Regency's general partner, meaning GE will
have operational control of the company.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Futures dip ahead of data, Yahoo up

(Reuters) - Shares of Internet media company Yahoo Inc. traded up more than 5 percent in Europe, however, so a bounce in technology could cushion the market.




Data on U.S. housing starts is due before the bell, a day after a survey showed sentiment among U.S. home builders fell in June to the lowest since February 1991.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Linktone to acquire 49 pct stake in eChinaCash unit

(Reuters) - Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Heritage-Crystal files for $37 mln IPO

(Reuters) - The filing did not reveal how many shares the company
planned to sell or their expected price.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

U.S. Stock-Index Futures Fall; Home Depot, Microchip Decline in Europe

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures fell before
a housing report that may show the real-estate slump will
continue to weigh on economic growth.

Home Depot Inc., the world's largest home-improvement chain,
slipped in Europe. Microchip Technology Inc. dropped after the
maker of microcontrollers and analog chips cut its fiscal first-
quarter sales forecast.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Retail Stocks Drop, Led by Tesco; Invensys, Thales Gain

(Bloomberg) -- European retail stocks fell after
Tesco Plc, the U.K.'s largest supermarket operator, reported
sales that missed analysts' estimates. Marks & Spencer Plc and
Carrefour SA paced the decline.

Invensys Plc gained after Citigroup Inc. recommended buying
shares of the maker of Whirlpool washing machines on prospects
for higher profitability. Thales SA rose the most in three months
after the defense company was shortlisted for a $2.7 billion
contract from the U.S. Navy. KarstadtQuelle AG jumped after the
retailer said it may sell shares in its department store unit.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Czech Obchodni Banka Seeks Judgement Over $80 Million Claim Against State

(Bloomberg) -- KBC Groep NV's Czech unit asked a
Paris arbitration panel to rule on its 1.7 billion-koruna ($80
million) claim against the Czech state, saying the sum is part of
guarantees it received after it took over a failed bank in 2000.

Ceskoslovenska Obchodni Banka AS, the Czech Republic's
biggest lender by assets, filed the arbitration claim against the
Czech Finance Ministry in Paris last week, said Obchodni spokesman
Milan Tomanek and Finance Ministry spokesman Ondrej Jakob in phone
interviews today.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Euro Little Changed Versus Dollar, Yen Before German Confidence Report

(Bloomberg) -- The euro was little changed before a
report today that economists say will show investor confidence in
Germany, Europe's largest economy, rose to the highest in a year.

The currency earlier touched a record against the yen and
reached its highest in more than a week versus the dollar on
speculation the European Central Bank will keep raising borrowing
costs to quell inflation. ECB executive board member Jose Manuel
Gonzalez-Paramo said yesterday monetary policy was accommodative,
indicating interest rates have room to rise from 4 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

'Near-recessionary' U.S. growth until '08-report

(Reuters) - Exports, business investment and wealthy consumers will
help propel the recovery from below-trend growth through the
first quarter of next year, according to the outlook by the
UCLA Anderson Forecast unit.




The economic forecasting unit sees the Federal Reserve as
hesitant to lower interest rates despite the first quarter's
weak growth and an outlook for "continued softness" this year
while core inflation holds above its "comfort zone."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Israel Corp buys Globeleq Americas for $543 mln

(Reuters) - Israel Corp said in a statement to the Tel Aviv Stock
Exchange it financed the payment from its own resources and will
now seek bank financing.




Israel Corp had signed an agreement with Indian partner DS
Construction Ltd under which the companies would each hold a 50
percent stake in Globeleq Americas. But DS Construction has not
yet received regulatory approval in India.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Ex-regulator to head China's Pudong Bank -sources

(Reuters) - SHANGHAI, June 19 - A former senior Chinese banking
regulator will be appointed soon as the new president of Shanghai
Pudong Development Bank , a partner of Citigroup Inc.
, sources close to the situation said on Tuesday.




Xu Feng, who oversaw foreign banks' operations in China as a
regulator, will replace Fu Jianhua as president of the major
Shanghai-based institution, the sources said.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News