Carrefour, Dane-Elec, Danone, Virbac May Move: French Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of the following companies may
rise or fall on the Paris stock exchange. Stock symbols are in
parentheses and prices are from the last close.

The benchmark CAC 40 gained 1.97, or less than 0.1 percent,
to 6104.66. The broader SBF 120 Index was little changed, gaining
1.32 points to 4449.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Ceylon Petroleum Seeks 300,000 Barrels of Gasoil for Delivery in August

(Bloomberg) -- Ceylon Petroleum Corp., Sri Lanka's
state refiner, is seeking to buy 300,000 barrels of gasoil for
August delivery, said a company official who cannot be named due
to company policy.

Details of the company's planned purchase are as follows:


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

BHP seeks partner for Alcoa bid - paper

(Reuters) - Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters last month
that BHP had appointed investment bank Merrill Lynch to
work on a possible bid for Canada's Alcan Inc , which is
the subject of a $28.7 billion hostile bid from Aloca.




The Times said Alcoa was BHP's preferred target, but it was
unwilling to pay a premium for assets that it does not want to
retain and so wanted to team up with a bid partner.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

HK shares hit record as mainland lenders jump

(Reuters) - Debuts by Anta Sports Products Ltd , an athletic shoemaker, and Chinese tissue paper maker Vinda International Holdings Ltd. beat expectations, but Regent Manner International Holdings Ltd. , a service provider for electronic products makers, saw a lukewarm reception.




"Anta plays on the concept of the 2008 Olympics, and it's cheaper than Li Ning," said Louie Shum, explaining the popularity of its shares.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

China's First-Half Oil Imports Rise 11 Percent as Domestic Demand Gains

(Bloomberg) -- China's first-half crude oil imports
rose 11 percent from a year earlier as production from domestic
fields failed to keep pace with energy demand in the world's
fastest-growing major economy.

Imports rose to 82 million metric tons (3.28 million barrels
a day), the Customs General Administration of China said in
Beijing today. June imports were 14.1 million tons. Oil exports
dropped 39 percent to 1.8 million tons in the first half and
stood at 220,000 million tons in June.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Blue chip - US consumer spending growth to slow

(Reuters) - After a pickup in business inventories and a narrowing of
the trade deficit, the economy is expected to have grown by a
more robust 3.0 percent annual pace during the second quarter,
following an anemic 0.7 percent rate in the first three months
of the year, the consensus found.




"That would mark a sharp improvement over the lackluster
0.7 percent rate registered in Q1 and represent the fasted pace
of growth since Q1 2006," the newsletter wrote.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Nikkei retreats, Honda, auto stocks down

(Reuters) - But the market received support from Mitsui & Co. Ltd. . Shares of the trading house climbed more than 3 percent after Goldman Sachs raised its target price on the stock to 3,100 yen from 2,170 yen.




Investors were also waiting for the closely watched settlement price, known in Japan as the special quotation or "SQ", which is calculated from the opening prices of the 225 shares on the Nikkei average on the second Friday of the month.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Tata Consultancy, Infosys May Post Slowest Profit Growth in Year on Rupee

(Bloomberg) -- Tata Consultancy Services Ltd.,
India's largest exporter of software, and Infosys Technologies
Ltd. may report the smallest profit growth in more than a year
after the rupee gained the most in three decades.

Infosys, second to Tata Consultancy in exports, probably
will say fiscal first-quarter net income rose 23 percent, the
slowest since the three months ended March 2006, to 9.80 billion
rupees ($243 million), based on the median estimate of nine
analysts Bloomberg surveyed. Tata Consultancy may report a 25
percent gain to 10.8 billion rupees, the survey showed.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Sprint up after report of SK Telecom's interest

(Reuters) - SK Telecom denied the article by Korea Economic Daily, while bankers and analysts had mixed views on the prospect.




Most ruled out a full takeover by SK Telecom, whose market capitalisation is less than a third of Sprint Nextel, but said a limited investment by SK Telecom was possible.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Marathon Oil second-quarter production declines

(Reuters) - Marathon said it estimates it sold about 336,000 boepd in
the quarter. The company estimates that exploration expenses in
the quarter were between $150 million and $180 million.




The company said that its average selling price for crude
oil for the first two months of the second quarter, as compared
to the first quarter, rose $4.95 per barrel domestically and
$9.79 per barrel internationally.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

New Zealand Dollar Falls for a Third Day as Business Confidence Declines

(Bloomberg) -- The New Zealand dollar fell against
the dollar for a third day as a drop in business confidence
damped speculation the central bank will raise its benchmark
interest rate from a record 8 percent this month.

Three increases in the official cash rate this year have
attracted investors seeking higher yields, helping the currency
gain 27 percent the past 12 months. Companies are less
optimistic on third-quarter sales and profit, a private survey
released today showed.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

American Capital Strategies to offer $500 mln senior notes

(Reuters) - J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and Banc of America Securities
LLC are the joint book-running managers for the offering,
American Capital said in a statement.





Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

New Zealand Dollar Little Changed After Business Confidence Declines

(Bloomberg) -- The New Zealand dollar was little
changed after a private report showed business confidence fell
and companies said they were likely to employ less people.

The currency bought 78.08 U.S. cents at 10:11 a.m. in
Wellington, from 78.07 cents immediately before the report's
release and 78.19 cents in late Asian trading yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Lilly ads for dog drug misleading, U.S. FDA says

(Reuters) - Lilly's materials touted the percentage of dogs that improved with Reconcile compared with a placebo, but failed to mention that both groups received behavior modification training, the FDA letter said. The promotions "suggest that the product is more effective than has been demonstrated," the FDA said.



The materials also did not mention that some dogs improved with the behavioral training alone, according to the FDA.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

New Zealand's Dollar Declines on Prospect of Waning Business Confidence

(Bloomberg) -- The New Zealand dollar dropped on
speculation a report today will show business confidence fell
and companies employed less people, easing pressure on the
central bank to raise interest rates.

New Zealand's record 8 percent official cash rate has
helped the currency, known as the kiwi, gain 27 percent the past
year with investors lured to the nation's higher-yielding assets.
New Zealand Institute of Economic Research Inc.'s quarterly
survey of business opinion may show fewer capacity constraints
and declining confidence, ANZ National Bank Ltd. said.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Hub Group terminates agreement to acquire Interdom Partners

(Reuters) - On June 6, Hub Group had said it agreed to acquire the
assets of Interdom for about $26 million in cash.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Mexico stocks drop as telecoms fall, peso gains

(Reuters) - The benchmark IPC stock index fell 1.00 percent to
32,088.25 points, with dominant cell phone company America
Movil and fixed line giant Telmex
dragging hardest on the index.




Mexico's antitrust commission, known as the CFC, said last
week it has new powers to investigate market dominance in the
telecom sector. In 1997, it declared Telmex a dominant player
in Mexico. The telecom appealed and years later had the
designation overruled.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

More U.S. hedge funds launch in first half of 2007

(Reuters) - Data compiled by Absolute Return magazine shows that 72 new
funds began trading between January and June 2007, marking a
roughly 41 percent increase from the 51 funds that launched
during the first six months of 2006.




Investors put $14 billion into the funds started this year
after adding $11.7 billion to the funds launched a year ago,
the magazine found.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Oil Falls From 10-Month High as U.S. Refineries Increase Gasoline Outputt

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from a 10-month high
on expectations that demand will decline because of the
unexpected shutdown of units at U.S. refineries.

BP Plc is shutting the largest of three crude units at its
Whiting, Indiana, refinery, a person familiar with the plant
said. Units were shut at refineries in Texas and Kansas last
week. Oil rose last week on unrest in Nigeria, Africa's biggest
producer. U.K. authorities said a three-year-old British girl
abducted July 5 in Nigeria was freed yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

ICE won't say if higher CBOT offer will be made

(Reuters) - ICE is in a battle with the Chicago Mercantile Exchange to purchase the Chicago Board of Trade . The CME on Friday increased its takeover offer for CBOT to $11.9 billion, besting the ICE's current offer worth about $11.8 billion.



"I can't talk about it. Give me a break," ICE Chairman Jeffrey Sprecher told Reuters before testifying at a Senate hearing on excessive speculation in U.S. natural gas markets.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 2-Schnitzer posts strong Q3 results, shares rise

(Reuters) - Shares of the metals recycler rose more than 17 percent, or
$9.01, to $61.33 in afternoon trade, after touching an all-time
high of $62.11 earlier, on the Nasdaq.




The company reported third-quarter net income of $43.8
million, or $1.47 a share, compared with $30.2 million, or 98
cents a share, a year ago. Revenue rose 40 percent to $709.4
million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Delphi ends Cerberus deal; sees new plan in July

(Reuters) - Delphi terminated the $3.4 billion equity investment plan on Saturday. Cerberus, which is buying Chrysler Group from DaimlerChrysler AG , was a co-lead investor in the plan with Appaloosa, Delphi's biggest shareholder.




The developments are not expected to prevent Delphi from exiting bankruptcy this year and Delphi's board is scheduled to meet July 16 to consider the matters, it said.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Richards Bay Coal Prices Fall as Chinese Producers Step in to Supply Japan

(Bloomberg) -- The price of coal shipped from South
Africa's Richards Bay, site of the largest export terminal for
the fuel, fell to a four-week low after Chinese producers stepped
in to supply Japan after Australian shipments were halted.

The price dropped $2.30, or 3.9 percent, to $56.90 a metric
ton as of July 6, according to weekly data from McCloskey Group
Ltd. Total shipments from the port, the main source of coal for
European power plants, increased 18 percent last month to 5.45
million metric tons, even after a temporary closure because of
high waves that could be dangerous for ships.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

GLOBAL MARKETS-U.S. stocks mixed, oil hits 11-month high

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 9 - U.S. stocks were mixed on
Monday as a gain in shares of plane maker Boeing Co. was
countered by disappointing profit outlooks and concerns about
oil prices that hit an 11-month high.




The Dow Jones industrial average rose but a broader
Standard & Poor's 500 Index was slightly weaker. The Nasdaq
Composite Index, however, turned lower after briefly touching
its highest level in more than six years. Global stock markets
were mostly higher and Japan's Nikkei closed at a seven-year
high.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Nymex Gas Rises as Warmer-Than-Normal Weather Boosts Demand in U.S. East

(Bloomberg) -- Natural gas futures in New York rose
for the first time in five trading sessions as hot weather pushed
into the eastern U.S., boosting demand for electricity to power
air conditioners.

New York's high temperature today is forecast to reach 96
degrees Fahrenheit (36 Celsius), about 12 degrees above normal,
according to the National Weather Service. The hot weather will
last through July 11, with maximum temperatures of 95 degrees
tomorrow and 91 the following day, the forecaster said.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

UPDATE 1-Pennsylvania shuts services amid budget impasse

(Reuters) - PHILADELPHIA, July 9 - Pennsylvania idled about
25,000 state workers and shut down noncritical services early
on Monday after Republican lawmakers and Democratic Gov. Ed
Rendell failed to agree on measures he set as a precondition
for signing a budget for the new fiscal year.




Rendell said the two sides were close to agreement on
"three or four" items, but not close enough to allow him to
call off the furlough of nonessential employees.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

FACTBOX-Possible impacts of ABN takeover ruling

(Reuters) - - - - -




Possible ruling:


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Bovis Says Higher U.K. Interest Rates Scaring Buyers; Housing Stocks Slump

(Bloomberg) -- Bovis Homes Group Plc shares fell
the most ever and other U.K. homebuilders tumbled after the
company said higher interest rates have scared away buyers.

Bovis stock dropped as much as 8.6 percent and newly
formed Taylor Wimpey Plc, Britain's biggest homebuilder,
declined 4.7 percent. Persimmon Plc and Barratt Developments
Plc, ranked second and third in the U.K., also fell.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

CME's battle to buy CBOT set to end in victory

(Reuters) - Most analysts predict victory for Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings Inc. after the company improved its bid for a third time on Friday to quell dissent among CBOT Holdings shareholders.




A vote that looked like it might be a toss-up, given a higher competing bid for CBOT from IntercontinentalExchange Inc. , now has the makings of a landslide.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Intel May Post Sales at High-End of Forecast, Analysts Say; Shares Climb

(Bloomberg) -- Intel Corp. shares climbed for a fifth
day after analysts at UBS AG and JPMorgan said the world's
biggest chipmaker may report second-quarter sales at the high-end
of the company's own forecast.

Intel may post revenue of $8.6 billion in the period ended
June, above the midpoint of the company's April forecast of $8.2
billion to $8.8 billion, according to UBS. Analysts led by Uche
Orji raised their 12-month share-price forecast by $3 to $30,
saying the stock will also get a boost as Intel expands its gross
margin, the percentage of sales left after production costs.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

National Grid, KeySpan in merger settlement

(Reuters) - Front-month natural gas futures are trading above $6.50
per million British thermal units on the New York
Mercantile Exchange. Those prices are high by historical
standards, but off their highs for the year. Natural gas prices
began soaring in 2001.




In addition, National Grid will share equally with
customers the annual merger savings from its New York City and
Long Island businesses.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US STOCKS-Earnings optimism, Boeing push indexes up

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 9 - U.S. stocks rose on Monday at
the start of the earnings reporting season as investors bet
companies will beat profit forecasts following signs of
strength in the economy.




Positive broker comments on companies, including Google Inc
and Home Depot Inc , also added to the positive
tone, along with a rise in plane maker Boeing Co.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Limited Brands to sell majority of namesake chain

(Reuters) - The company said it expects to post software license revenue of $86 million in the fourth quarter, compared with its previous outlook of $69 million to $73 million for the period.



Total fourth-quarter revenue is expected to be $158 million, above Tibco's prior outlook of $140 million to $144 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Chile Peso Rises to 7-Week High on Expectations Central Bank to Lift Rates

(Bloomberg) -- Chile's peso strengthened to a seven-
week high on expectations the central bank will raise interest
rates this week for the first time in a year.

The peso also gained as the price of copper, the country's
largest export, rose to a two-month high as workers at Chile's
third-largest mine producing the metal plan to go on strike.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

TREASURIES-Bonds rise as high yields attract bidders

(Reuters) - The benchmark 10-year note yield's rise to 5.20 percent
after Friday's strong jobs report "has a lot to do with the
bid," on Monday, said Jim Caron, co-head of global rates
research with Morgan Stanley in New York.




In addition, investors are mulling the extent to which the
subprime mortgage debt market has deteriorated over the past
month and are anticipating signs that has taken a toll on
consumers in June economic reports, Caron added.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UBS Assents to Rohner, `Ordinary Guy' From Aarau Whose Guild Cleans Creek

(Bloomberg) -- Marcel Rohner, who replaced the
deposed Peter Wuffli as chief executive officer of UBS AG, can
thank his hometown for giving him at least one qualification for
dealing with the mess at Switzerland's largest bank.

The 42-year-old Rohner earlier this year was inducted into
the Heinerich-Wirri-Zunft zue Arau der Stadt, the all-male guild
whose biggest annual event is the cleansing of the creek, once
the city's economic engine, where a year's worth of garbage is
removed after the water is drained.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Telestone Technologies to acquire Shandong Guolian

(Reuters) - One year following the agreement, Guolian is also eligible
to receive an additional 100,000 restricted common shares
subject to it meeting certain performance thresholds, Telestone
said.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

TREASURIES-Bonds edge up, awaiting week's data, Bernanke

(Reuters) - Benchmark 10-year yields had climbed to 2-week highs around
5.20 percent on Friday, after U.S. June nonfarm payrolls were
stronger than expected and the government sharply revised
higher the numbers for April and May, causing a bond market
selloff.




The 5.20 percent area remained a key level on Monday, with
5.25 percent and 5 percent still still seen as the top and
bottom of the 10-year note's near term yield range,
respectively, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Egypt to buy six ships from S.Korea's STX - agency

(Reuters) - National Bank of Egypt said on Monday it had signed an agreement with South Korea's STX Shipbuilding Co. to fund Egypt's purchase of six ships for $251.6 million, according to state news agency MENA.

Atiya Salem, vice chairman of National Bank of Egypt told MENA the bank was funding the purchase of four vessels with a capacity of 81,000 tonnes and two with capacity of 85,000 tonnes for the state's National Maritime Company.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Central African to Make $1.56 Billion All-Stock Offer for Katanga Mining

(Bloomberg) -- Central African Mining & Exploration
Co., a miner of copper in the Democratic Republic of the Congo,
said it will make an all-stock bid for Katanga Mining Ltd. that
values the company at 773.1 million pounds ($1.56 billion).

Central African, based in London, will offer 15 of its
shares for each share of Toronto-based Katanga, it said today in
a statement distributed by the Regulatory News Service. It
already owns 22 percent of Katanga, it added.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Gilead, Illinois Tool, Royal Caribbean, SonoSite: U.S. Equity Preview

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

Boeing Co. (BA US): The commercial aircraft maker today
unveils its new 787 Dreamliner, which has won 677 orders, making
it the company's most successful jetliner ever. Boeing stock rose
52 cents to $98.88 on July 6.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

EMI, Virgin Media, Italease, Altadis: Credit-Default Swap Market Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The risk of owning European corporate
bonds fell, according to traders of credit-default swaps.

Contracts based on 10 million euros ($13 million) of debt
included in the iTraxx Crossover Series 7 Index fell 2,000 euros
to 242,500 euros at 9:30 a.m. in London, according to JPMorgan
Chase & Co.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Hong Kong Stocks Rise for a Fifth Day; Sun Hung Kai, Cheung Kong Advance

(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong stocks rose, driving the
Hang Seng Index to a record for a fifth day. Sun Hung Kai
Properties Ltd. climbed after the South China Morning Post said
the company sold a house at a record price.

``We favor Hong Kong developers because the property market
is rebounding,'' said Mona Chung, who helps manage more than
$1.2 billion at Daiwa Asset Management Ltd. in Hong Kong. ``In
particular, luxury property prices are on a rising trend.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Kirin sees smaller H1 profit fall on SanMig, drugs

(Reuters) - Kirin now expects its net profit for the six months ended
June 30 to come in at around 15 billion yen , 50
percent higher than an earlier estimate.




That would, however, still fall short of the 19 billion yen
booked in the same period a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Slovak Koruna Gains Versus Euro on Quicker-Than-Forecast Industrial Growth

(Bloomberg) -- The Slovak koruna advanced to a 2 1/2
month high against the euro after a government report showed
industrial output grew quicker than forecast in May.

The koruna was the best performer today of European and
African currencies after the government's statistical office said
factory production, adjusted for working days, grew 17.4 percent,
mainly driven by exports. The report underpinned expectations of
an improvement in the currency's current account.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Roche backs RNAi research with $1 bln Alnylam deal

(Reuters) - The agreement is the largest drug discovery partnership in the field to date and a further vindication of the emerging area of biotechnology research which involves blocking disease-causing proteins.




Roche will pay Alnylam $331 million upfront in cash and equity investment, including a stake of 1.975 million Alnylam shares at $21.50 each, or just under 5 percent of Alnylam's outstanding common stock, the two firms said on Monday.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Uranium Prices Decline for a Second Week as Demand Drops, TradeTech Says

(Bloomberg) -- Uranium spot prices fell for a second
straight week as ``extremely weak'' demand from utilities forced
miners of the metal to settle for less, industry consulting
company TradeTech LLC said.

A decline by $2 to $133 a pound of uranium oxide concentrate
coincides with the volume of spot supply increasing by 28 percent
to 3.2 million pounds last week, while demand remained at 900,000
pounds, Denver-based TradeTech said July 6 in its weekly Nuclear
Market Review. The last time spot prices fell for two consecutive
weeks was in May 2001.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Nikkei hits 7-year closing high; tech, machine stocks up

(Reuters) - But shares of real estate firms such as Mitsui Fudosan and Mitsubishi Estate weighed on the market after the data fuelled concern about higher interest rates.




Shares of Sony Corp. ended down a touch after a company executive told Reuters in an interview in San Francisco that it plans to cut the price of its PlayStation 3 consoles in the United States by $100, or 17 percent, to $500.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

UK body changes tack and backs Lilly's drug Alimta

(Reuters) - The decision reverses a 2006 NICE opinion that Alimta, which is also known as pemetrexed disodium, was not cost-effective.




Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Rand barely moves against vs dollar, seen stuck in ranges

(Reuters) - South Africa's rand was barely moved from previous levels against the dollar early on Monday and should be stuck in ranges in the absence of key driving factors during the session, traders said.

The rand was at 6.9915 versus the dollar at 0630 GMT, 0.09 percent off its New York close of 6.9850 on Friday.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Dollar May Advance to 125 Yen According to Technical Charts, Shinko Says

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar may rise to a 4 1/2-year
high of 125 yen next week should it sustain gains above 123.67,
said Kengo Suzuki, currency strategist at Shinko Securities Co.
in Tokyo, citing the technical analysis of its price chart.

The level of 123.67 yen is a parabolic stop and reversal
point. A rise above this price signals traders should close bets
for dollar weakness. The width between the dollar's upper and
lower Bollinger band is narrowing, suggesting the currency will
prolong its rally started July 3. Resistance at 125 is near the
U.S. currency's Dec. 6, 2002 high of 125.50.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News