Citigroup muni chief to serve as next MSRB chairman

(Reuters) - Chin has headed Citigroup's public finance department since
1993. He will succeed John Lawlor, who runs the municipal
markets group at Merrill Lynch & Co. .




O'Brien has been a national syndicate manager at Morgan
Stanley's tax-exempt department since 1996. He will succeed
James Rogers, chief operating officer of J.J.B. Hilliard, W.L.
Lyons, Inc.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

U.S. Stocks Decline on Financing Concern; Citigroup, JPMorgan Shares Drop

(Bloomberg) -- Most U.S. stocks fell for a second
day after concern grew that financing for takeovers is drying
up and a drop in metals prices hurt earnings prospects for
miners.

Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. led declines in
the Standard & Poor's 500 Index after people with knowledge of
the deals said lenders couldn't find investors to fund the
buyouts of Alliance Boots Plc and Chrysler. Freeport-McMoRan
Copper & Gold Inc. posted its steepest decline in five months
after copper prices plunged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

NYSE fines Citigroup's Smith Barney $50 million

(Reuters) - Of the $50 million total, $5 million will go to the state of New Jersey in connection with a separate regulatory matter arising out the same conduct. The remaining $5 million will be paid to NYSE Regulation.




NYSE Regulation said the Citigroup unit, an NYSE member firm, violated rules by failing to supervise trading of mutual funds and maintain adequate records.


Read more at Reuters.com Business 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

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

U.S. Stocks Retreat After Google, Caterpillar Earnings Miss Estimates

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks stumbled at the end of
a week of second-quarter earnings, pulling down the Standard &
Poor's 500 Index and Dow Jones Industrial Average from records.

Google Inc., owner of the most-popular Internet search
engine, plunged the most since February 2006 after posting
profit below analysts' estimates. Caterpillar Inc. accounted
for almost half of the Dow average's decline after earnings
dropped because of falling demand for truck engines. Citigroup
Inc. pushed financial shares to the steepest drop in the S&P
500 after predicting bad loans will increase.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

US CREDIT-Derivatives seen better bet than corporate bonds

(Reuters) - "Judging by the gyrations of the spread, one would think we are staring into
an abyss," Citigroup analyst Mikhail Foux wrote in a report
sent on Monday. "It's hard to remember the last time its move
was so abrupt."




The derivative index widened to as far as 52 basis points
last Tuesday on rising concerns about weakness in some
residential mortgages extending into corporate credit, but has
since retraced to around 43 basis points.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Goldman hires former U.S. Trust CEO Scaturro

(Reuters) - Scaturro assumed the top job at U.S. Trust in 2005. Prior to joining Citigroup, he was a partner at Bankers Trust.




Goldman, the world's largest investment bank by market value, is also one of the fastest-growing money managers that is expanding its reach among wealthy individuals. In less than six years, private wealth management client assets have almost doubled.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

European Stocks May Fall; Volkswagen, Lufthansa, Rio Tinto Might Decline

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks may decline for the
first time in three days as crude oil traded near an 11-month
high. U.S.-traded securities of Volkswagen AG, the region's
biggest carmaker, and airline Deutsche Lufthansa AG slipped.

Rio Tinto Group, the world's third-largest mining company,
dropped in Australia after Citigroup Inc. cut its recommendation
on the shares. Royal Philips Electronics NV may be active after
saying second-quarter profit rose fivefold.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Pound Rally Fools Biggest Traders as Rising Bond Yields Lure Kokusai, Axa

(Bloomberg) -- Investors who listened to the world's
three biggest currency traders and bet against the pound this
year couldn't have been more wrong.

Instead of falling, the U.K. currency has risen 3.8 percent
to a 26-year high of $2.0367. Strategists at Frankfurt-based
Deutsche Bank AG, UBS AG in Zurich and Citigroup Inc. of New York
predicted in December it would trade at $1.96 or lower this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

PKN postpones bond issue on volatile market -lead

(Reuters) - The iTraxx Crossover index , a barometer of
European credit market sentiment, has widened sharply throughout
Tuesday's trading session, and was 22 basis points wider by 1319
GMT at 268 basis points, according to prices from Deutsche Bank.




ABN AMRO, BNP Paribas, Citigroup and SG CIB are managing the
PKN Orlen bond sale.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Citigroup, Foreign Banks Triple China Profit Growth Through Yuan Services

(Bloomberg) -- Profit growth at Citigroup Inc., ABN
Amro Holding NV and other foreign banks in China tripled this
year after they were allowed to offer local-currency services, a
central bank report said.

Overseas banks earned a combined 3.05 billion yuan ($401
million) in the first five months, up 43 percent from a year
earlier, the People's Bank of China said in a research report
published by China Securities Journal. Profit growth accelerated
from an average 14 percent over the past five years.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

European Stocks Rise, Led by Energy, Mining Shares; BP, BHP, Nestle Gain

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks rose for the first time
in six days as higher commodity prices lifted energy and mining
companies and Citigroup Inc. said shares in the region are cheap.

BP Plc, Europe's second-biggest oil producer, and BHP
Billiton Ltd., the world's largest mining company, advanced.
Nestle SA increased after Deutsche Bank AG recommended buying
stock in the food company. Groupe Danone rose on a report the
yogurt maker will likely sell its LU cookies division.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Chittenden, H&R Block, Nuvelo, Spectra, SurModics: 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 10:10 a.m. New York time.

Oil Refiners: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. downgraded
shares of Valero Energy Corp. (VLO US), the largest U.S. refiner,
and Tesoro Corp. (TSO US), the largest refiner in the U.S. West,
to ``sell'' from ``hold'' because of valuations. Sunoco Inc. (SUN
US), the biggest refiner in the Northwest, was cut to ``hold''
from ``buy.'' Valero fell $2.61, or 3.5 percent, to $72.05.
Sunoco lost $3.56 to $76.77 and Tesoro retreated $2.80 to $55.11.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Andrew, BAE, Guitar Center, Sunoco, Valero Energy: 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. Share prices are as of 8:10 a.m. New York time.

Oil Refiners: Citigroup Global Markets Inc. downgraded
shares of Valero Energy Corp. (VLO US), the largest U.S. refiner,
Sunoco Inc. (SUN US), the biggest refiner in the Northweat, and
Tesoro Corp. (TSO US), the largest refiner in the U.S. West, to
``sell'' from ``hold'' because of valuations. Valero fell $1.06
to $73.60 in trading before U.S. exchanges opened. Sunoco lost 35
cents to $79.98 and Tesoro retreated $1.51 to $56.40.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Malaysian Government Bonds to Account for 0.4% of Citigroup's Global Index

(Bloomberg) -- Malaysian bonds will make up about
0.4 percent of Citigroup Inc.'s World Government Bond Index, a
benchmark tracked by some $1 trillion of global funds, the
world's biggest financial firm said.

Malaysia's ringgit-denominated government debt will be
included in the index for the first time as scheduled on July 1,
according to Susan Y. Lin, head of the bond index team in Hong
Kong. A total of $39.6 billion of Malaysia's securities qualify
for inclusion in the benchmark based on June 22 prices, she said.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Road show planned to raise funds in Chrysler deal: WSJ

(Reuters) - J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Bear Stearns Cos. , Goldman Sachs Group Inc. , Citigroup Inc. and Morgan Stanley are helping Cerberus raise some $62 billion in debt for the deal, which includes Chrysler's finance arm, WSJ said.




On May 14, DaimlerChrysler AG announced that it was selling Chrysler to Cerberus in a $7.4 billion deal.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Most U.S. Stocks Drop After Bond Yields Gain; Citigroup, JPMorgan Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Most U.S. stocks fell after 10-year
Treasury bond yields rose for the first time in four days,
reviving concern higher borrowing costs will curb growth.

Citigroup Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.
led declines in companies that benefit from low interest rates.
All 32 energy companies in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index
retreated after the price of oil slid from a nine-month high.


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

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