Gold Declines in Asia on Speculation Gains Overdone; Silver Price Rises

(Bloomberg) -- Gold fell in Asia as some investors
bet this week's rise to the highest in more than two months was
overdone. Silver gained.

Gold rose to its highest since May 10 as the dollar dropped
to a record low against the euro, boosting the appeal of the
precious metal as an alternative investment. The metal declined
today as the U.S. currency recovered.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

'Golden age' of private equity is behind-Carlyle

(Reuters) - "The profitability of our business will probably decline in
the coming years but not to the point where investors will shun
private equity."




He expected investment funds to continue to outperform other
types of investment, notably the stock market.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Freenet, Vattenfall Europe, Volkswagen May Move: German Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may rise or fall
in German markets.

Germany's X-DAX Index was little changed. The index provides
an estimate of the DAX Index, based on trading in DAX futures
after the Xetra electronic market closes. The DAX rose 1.2
percent to 7991.21 on the Xetra electronic-trading system.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-India's Satyam Q1 profit misses fcasts, shares fall

(Reuters) - BANGALORE, July 20 - India's Satyam Computer
Services Ltd. missed forecasts with a 7 percent rise
in quarterly earnings after a stronger rupee hit margins,
sending its shares down more than 1 percent in a bullish
market.




Satyam, India's No. 4 software exporter, has been winning
outsourcing contracts, but the rising rupee has been squeezing
margins.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Stricter rules push Thai insurers into M&A deals

(Reuters) - Stricter capital requirements imposed at the start of a
liberalisation drive a few years ago have already forced
several life and non-life insurance firms to merge or seek ties
with foreign investors such as U.S. investment bank Lehman
Brothers .




Analysts expect merger activity to accelerate as the
Department of Insurance, the government regulator, pushes firms
to strengthen their financial health and boost competitiveness.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

China's Stocks Climb to Highest This Month; Pudong Bank, Ping An Advance

(Bloomberg) -- China's stocks rose, leaving the
benchmark index set for its highest close this month. Shanghai
Pudong Development Bank Co. led lenders higher after it said
first-half profit climbed 50 percent and Ping An Insurance (Group)
Co. gained after a report showed premium incomes grew.

China is likely to raise interest rates this quarter to cool
inflation and investment after a report showed the economy grew
the most in 12 years, according to a Bloomberg survey of
economists. Some expect an increase today.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Shanghai Pudong Bank Says First-Half Profit May Rise More Than 50 Percent

(Bloomberg) -- Shanghai Pudong Development Bank Co.,
the Chinese partner of Citigroup Inc., said its first-half profit
probably rose more than 50 percent because of increasing loans
and fees from financial services.

Shares in Pudong Development Bank surged 4.6 percent to
39.10 yuan at 10:37 a.m. in Shanghai. The bank didn't give the
size of its profit in its statement to the Shanghai Stock
Exchange today.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

JGBs edge up but capped by rise in Tokyo shares

(Reuters) - Many investors kept a cautious footing before next week's
data on consumer prices as well as an election for parliament's
upper house on July 29 in which the ruling coalition of Prime
Minister Shinzo Abe is seen suffering a setback.




"JGBs are up this morning but may stick in the recent range
for a while without major domestic events near in sight," said a
senior JGB dealer at a Japanese bank.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Mexican brewer Modelo posts 12.6 pct rise in net

(Reuters) - The company , half-owned by Budweiser brewer
Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc. , said on Thursday its net
profit for the April-June reached 3.047 billion pesos .




Overall net sales rose 25.5 percent to 19.7 billion pesos
in the quarter, almost entirely due to an 84 percent rise in
revenues from exports, the company said.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 2-Mexico's Telmex profit rises, but loses clients

(Reuters) - MEXICO CITY, July 19 - Telmex, Mexico's largest
fixed-line phone company, posted a better-than-expected 16.4
percent jump in second-quarter net profit despite soft revenue
growth and a decline in the number of lines in use.




Telmex , controlled by billionaire
tycoon Carlos Slim, said on Thursday its April-June net profit
was 8.044 billion pesos , helped by a lower tax
rate.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-US SEC member criticizes "terrorist" watch list

(Reuters) - WASHINGTON, July 19 - The U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission should fix or drop a new online tool which
identifies corporations with investments in "sponsors of
terrorism" countries, an agency commissioner said.




Republican Commissioner Paul Atkins said the SEC needs to
fix it if possible or withdraw the Web search tool. "It needs
to be addressed as soon as possible," he told Reuters in an
interview on Wednesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 2-Stryker profit up 26 pct on knees, hospital goods

(Reuters) - The company reported second-quarter net earnings of $269.1
million, or 65 cents per share, compared with a profit of
$213.9 million, or 52 cents per share, a year earlier.




Adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations rose
to 61 cents per share. On that basis, analysts on average had
expected 62 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.
Stryker sold its outpatient physical therapy business to a
private equity group in June.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Mexico's Telmex quarterly net profit rises 16 pct

(Reuters) - Revenue was up 1.9 percent to 45.693 billion pesos.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

New Zealand Dollar Heads for Fifth Weekly Gain on Interest Rates Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- New Zealand's dollar is heading for
its fifth consecutive weekly gain amid expectations that central
bank Governor Alan Bollard will raise interest rates next week,
buoying demand for the currency.

Investors are attracted to the currency because they can
borrow at cheaper rates in economies such as Japan, where the
benchmark rate is 0.5 percent, and take advantage of New
Zealand's record-high yields. Eleven of 16 economists surveyed
by Bloomberg News expect Bollard will raise the official cash
rate to 8.25 percent on July 26.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Broadcom says offered Verizon deal to others

(Reuters) - The phones in question use a wireless chip technology that
is the focus of a patent dispute between Broadcom and
Qualcomm.




Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 2-New York City's traffic fee plan wins state OK

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - New York City's congestion
pricing plan cleared a key hurdle on Thursday, when the state
government finally authorized it to begin installing "the
needed equipment" though lawmakers denied it the ability to
impose an $8-per-car fee without their approval.




The accord was announced by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and
Gov. Eliot Spitzer -- a few days after a federal deadline for
$2 billion in aid sought by New York and eight other cities.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Stryker net earnings rise 26 percent

(Reuters) - The company reported second-quarter net earnings of $269.1 million, or 65 cents per share, compared with a profit of $213.9 million, or 52 cents per share, a year earlier.



Adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations rose to 61 cents per share. On that basis, analysts on average had expected 62 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Microsoft shares slip

(Reuters) - Shares were down at $31.20 in electronic trading after closing at $31.51 on Nasdaq.




Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Noble suspends share buyback due Nigeria probe

(Reuters) - In June, Noble said it is investigating whether its
Nigerian unit made illegal payments to customs agents while
trying to get permits to bring drilling equipment into Nigerian
waters.




During a conference call with analysts to discuss
second-quarter results, Chief Financial Officer Thomas Mitchell
said, "We have for now suspended the program
out of an abundance of caution during the ongoing independent
investigation."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. Stocks Rise on Earnings; Dow Average Closes Over 14,000 as IBM Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Technology companies rallied on
International Business Machines Corp.'s better-than-expected
earnings, sending the Standard & Poor's 500 Index to a record and
the Dow Jones Industrial Average over 14,000 for the first time.

IBM, Hewlett-Packard Co. and Microsoft Corp. led gains that
also pushed the Nasdaq Composite Index to a six-year high. Exxon
Mobil Corp., the world's biggest energy producer, climbed to a
peak after the price of oil rose to its highest in 11 months.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Gold hits 10-week high as dollar steadily weakens

(Reuters) - A breach of $677 an ounce and a further push beyond $682 might set gold for a move toward $700, analysts said. But they cautioned that the metal remained vulnerable to profit-taking.




Peter Hillyard, head of metals sales at ANZ Investment bank, said many factors combined to push gold through the $670 barrier, changing the complexion of the market.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Illinois Tool may divest more businesses - CEO

(Reuters) - Over the past year, Illinois Tool has sold businesses with
about $170 million in annual revenue, the CEO said. "
more that we're looking at," he said.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Fed sees growth risks "more balanced": FOMC minutes

(Reuters) - "Participants agreed that the risk that inflation would fail to moderate as expected remained their predominant concern," the minutes said.




The FOMC members said economic activity was still expanding at a moderate pace and they interpreted the most recent information on business spending, business sentiment and the labor market "as suggesting that the risks to growth were more balanced than at the time of the May meeting, despite the ongoing adjustment in the housing sector and the significant recent increases in longer-term interest rates."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Broadcom, Verizon Wireless in licensing pact

(Reuters) - The U.S. International Trade Commission has banned the
import or sale of certain phones with chips made by Qualcomm.
Verizon Wireless said it would cease efforts to overturn the
ITC ban under its agreement with Broadcom.




Verizon Wireless is a venture of Verizon Communications and
Vodafone Group Plc.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

RLPC-UPDATE 1-Tower Automotive sweetens pricing on loan

(Reuters) - The first-lien term loan has been increased to 400 basis
points over the London interbank offered rate from 325 basis
points to 350 basis points over LIBOR, while the second-lien
term loan is being raised to 750 basis points over LIBOR from
625 to 650 basis points over LIBOR, sources said.




The first-lien loan, which did not have call language
earlier, now benefits from 101 soft-call and is being issued at
98.5.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Novartis wins EU backing for Galvus, 2 other drugs

(Reuters) - The agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use



also backed the Swiss group's Exelon Patch, which delivers a treatment for Alzheimer's disease through a skin patch, and once-yearly Aclasta for women with postmenopausal oesteoporosis. Recommendations for marketing approval by the agency's Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use are normally endorsed by the European Commission within a couple of months.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Fidelity Brokerage's new assets down 26 pct

(Reuters) - Net new client assets -- including sales of Fidelity and non-Fidelity mutual funds and individual securities -- fell 26 percent to $30.9 billion in the three months to June 30 from the year-earlier period, though Fidelity Brokerage Co. said the first few weeks of the third quarter were "very positive."




The drop in new client assets comes as rival Charles Schwab Corp. , a discount broker, said this week second-quarter net new assets rose 41 percent to $26.4 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Sherwin-Williams had interest in SigmaKalon

(Reuters) - "We did participate, as many of the press releases
indicated, in the process," Sherwin Chief Executive Chris
Connor said in response to a question during the company's
earnings conference call.




PPG said in its statement that Bain Capital, the global
private investment firm that owns SigmaKalon, granted it a
period of exclusivity and intends to respond to its offer after
discussion with worker representative entities.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 2-Dutch fund ABP mulls cutting oil investments

(Reuters) - SCHIPHOL, The Netherlands, July 19 - ABP, one of
the world's largest pension funds, is considering reducing oil
investments in favour of other commodities to diversify its
portfolio, the Dutch pension fund said on Thursday.




"It might be wise to reduce the stake of oil assets in our
commodities portfolio," Tom Steenkamp, ABP chief investment
officer for allocation and research, told reporters.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

ABX subprime index may be near a bottom--JPMorgan

(Reuters) - "We are near, we think, a bottom in that sector," said
Christopher Flanagan, an analyst at J.P. Morgan Securities in
New York.




"The fundamental outlook for subprime credit remains very
bleak," Flanagan said, referring to subprime mortgages, or home
loans granted to borrowers with patchy credit histories.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Ford says parties interested in Jaguar, Land Rover

(Reuters) - By Poornima Gupta



DETROIT, July 19 - Ford Motor Co. said on Thursday it has had contact with interested parties for its Land Rover and Jaguar luxury brands and is evaluating the level of interest.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Citigroup, Lehman receive IRS. requests

(Reuters) - Citigroup Inc. and Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.
, in April received information document requests from
the IRS, which questioned the use of derivatives by offshore
investors. These clients may have sidestepped withholding taxes
on U.S. stock dividends, the people said.




The probe is focused on derivatives trades where securities
firms buy stocks from offshore hedge-fund clients. In return,
the banks pay them any principal return and dividends these
stocks generated.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Gold hits 10-week high, platinum sets new peak

(Reuters) - Gold climbed to a 10-week high on Thursday, boosted by firm oil prices and a weaker dollar that traded near record lows against the euro.

A breach of $677 an ounce and then a further push beyond $682 might set the ground for gold's move towards $700, but the metal remained vulnerable to profit-taking, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Safeway 2nd-qtr profit down but beats expectations

(Reuters) - The No. 3 U.S. grocer, which has been remodeling stores to try to increase sales, narrowed its forecast for full-year earnings, saying it was "on track" to post results toward the top end of its previous forecast range.




"I'm sure some of you, maybe all of you, would prefer that we increase our guidance," said Chief Executive Officer Steve Burd on a conference call with analysts. "But as good as we feel about the back half, and we're off to a good start, we think it's more prudent to simply narrow that range."


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Rostelekom 2006 net profit jumps 49 pct

(Reuters) - The company said its earnings to International Financial
Reporting Standards increased to 1.46 billion roubles from 0.98 billion roubles in 2005.




It also said international outgoing traffic rose by 9.2
percent in 2006, while inbound traffic was up 31.2 percent. Its
long-distance traffic increased 4.0 percent from 2005.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Brazil's Bovespa Gains on Growth, Led by Petrobras; Randon, ALL Advance

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil's main index gained for the
second time in three days as confidence in company profits was
bolstered by a report the Chinese economy grew faster than expected
and an interest rate cut at home.

The Bovespa Index of the most-traded stocks on the Sao Paulo
exchange rose 568.11, or 1 percent, to a record 58,123.96. State-
controlled oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA led the gains.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

DEALTALK-Private stock placements now rival IPOs

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - A fast-growing market for
private placements of stock has emerged to rival the initial
public offering as a way for U.S. companies to raise capital by
selling shares.




Last year, the value of private placements of unregistered
stock, or 144A transactions, reached $162 billion, outpacing
the $154 billion raised in public offerings, according to
Nasdaq Stock Market .


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US STOCKS-Futures rise as profits top estimates; IBM up

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - U.S. stock index futures
signaled a higher market open on Thursday as companies reported
earnings that beat forecasts, shifting investors' focus back to
corporate profits and away from subprime credit worries.




Shares of International Business Machines Corp.
rose in extended-hours trading on Wednesday after the world's
largest computer services company reported earnings that beat
Wall Street expectations. For details, see [ID:N18415715].


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-InterGen ups guidance on high-yield bonds -source

(Reuters) - Intergen plans to sell 250 to 300 million pounds of 10-year
bonds yielding 9.375 to 9.5 percent, versus earlier guidance of
around 9 percent, the source said.




It also plans to sell 200 to 300 million euros of 10-year
bonds yielding 8.375 to 8.5 percent, versus guidance of 8
percent area, and 10-year dollar bonds yielding 8.875 to 9
percent, versus guidance of 8.5 percent area, the source said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-PPG offers to buy SigmaKalon for 2.2 bln euros

(Reuters) - SigmaKalon is owned by private equity group Bain Capital,
which said it would respond to the PPG offer after discussions
with appropriate employee representative bodies.




"This acquisition would give us a more balanced coatings
business in Europe, approximately doubling our European sales,"
PPG Chief Executive Charles Bunch said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Foot Locker mulls selling itself - paper

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - Foot Locker Inc. is considering putting itself up for sale following disappointing performance at its U.S. shoe stores and the failure to buy Genesco Inc. , the New York Post reported on Thursday, sending the retailer's shares up nearly 12 percent.



Citing sources, the newspaper said the athletic shoe retailer has hired Lehman Brothers to advise it on a potential sale.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Virtusa sees $14-$16/shr price band for 4.4-mln-shr IPO

(Reuters) - The company expects net proceeds of about $57 million from
the offering, assuming an initial public offering price of $15
per share, it said in an amended filing with the U.S.
Securities and Exchange Commission.




It plans to use about $30 million from the proceeds to set
up a facility at its planned campus in Hyderabad, India.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Baxter quarterly net rises as sales climb 7 pct

(Reuters) - In the latest quarter, net earnings were $431 million, or 65 cents per diluted share, compared with $309 million, or 47 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.




Excluding special items, second-quarter earnings were $477 million, or 72 cents per share.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Cooper Industries posts higher qarterly profit

(Reuters) - Earnings rose to $209.2 million, or $1.12 a share, from $99.5 million, or 53 cents a share, a year earlier.



Excluding one-time items, Cooper earned 78 cents a share. On that basis, analysts' average forecast was 77 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Avici posts higher Q2 profit, doubles '07 revenue view

(Reuters) - The North Billerica, Massachusetts-based company said it
raised its revenue outlook based on final orders for its router
products.




The company, which provides Internet infrastructure
equipment that enables network service providers to transmit
data, now sees 2007 revenue of $110 million to $125 million, up
from its April view of $50 million to $60 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Hershey posts lower net on charges, cuts outlook

(Reuters) - Aside from facing higher costs, Hershey's has not been keeping pace with competitors in the fast-growing premium and dark chocolate sector.




To try to help address this, the company on Thursday announced a deal with Starbucks Corp. to market premium chocolate under the coffee shop chain's brand, starting this fall.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

TD Ameritrade 3rd-quarter profit rises

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, were expecting the brokerage to earn
25 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

OptionsXpress Q2 profit up

(Reuters) - Analysts on average expected the Chicago-based brokerage to
earn 35 cents per share, excluding items, and revenue of $57.5
million, according to Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Honeywell profit up on aerospace, construction

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, had expected profit of 76 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.




Results at the company, which also makes heating and ventilation systems for homes and industrial buildings, were helped by strong investment in commercial construction, both in the United States and abroad.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Jobless claims fall 8,000 in latest week

(Reuters) - Economists polled by Reuters forecast that initial claims would rise slightly to 311,000 from the original reading of 308,000 in the week ended July 7.




The four-week moving average, a more reliable gauge because it irons out much of the weekly fluctuations, fell to 312,000 from 318,250 the previous week.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Egypt's AMOC 2006/7 net profit rises 9 percent

(Reuters) - Egypt's Alexandria Mineral Oils (AMOC) made a net profit of 867.4 million Egyptian pounds in the financial year to end-June, 9 percent up on the previous year, the stock exchange said on Thursday.

The government sold a 20 percent stake in the oil products company in September 2005 and has been trying to sell a further 50 percent to a strategic investor.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Gold May Advance in London as Dollar Trades Near Record Low; Silver Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Gold may rise in London on
speculation the dollar may decline further, spurring demand for
the metal as an alternative investment. Silver gained.

Gold has more than doubled since 2000 as the dollar
declined more than a quarter against a basket of six currencies
including the euro and yen. Gold has gained 5.7 percent this
year and the dollar has declined 4.5 percent against the euro.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Baxter quarterly net rises as sales climb 7 percent

(Reuters) - The Deerfield, Illinois-based company, which also makes hospital products and kidney dialysis equipment, also raised its outlook for the year, forecasting earnings per share of $2.65 to $2.70, with sales up 4 to 5 percent.



Baxter said second-quarter net earnings were $431 million, or 65 cents per diluted share, compared with $309 million, or 47 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Zloty Advances as Investors' Appetite for Emerging Market Assets Returns

(Bloomberg) -- The Polish zloty rose as investors
regained their appetite for risk and bought emerging-market
stocks.

Poland's WIG 20 index saw its biggest gain in more than two
weeks and stocks in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Romania also
rose after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke allayed
concern that a housing slump would brake U.S. economic growth.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

SAP sees double-digit growth continuing in Europe

(Reuters) - SAP earlier reported that second-quarter licence sales grew
by 22 percent in Europe, their steepest rise since the third
quarter of 2004.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Virtusa sees $14-$16/shr price band for 4.4-mln-shr IPO

(Reuters) - The Westborough, Massachusetts-based company said it
applied for a Nasdaq listing under the symbol "VRTU."





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

French Stocks Rise, Led by Cap Gemini, Danone, Renault, Eramet, Vallourec

(Bloomberg) -- French stocks advanced, led by Cap
Gemini SA and Groupe Danone SA. Eramet SA surged after a report
in Les Echos that Areva SA may buy a 37 percent stake.

The CAC 40 Index gained 32.61, or 0.5 percent, to 6028.58
at 12:14 p.m. in Paris. The SBF 120 Index added 0.6 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Election of Erdogan May Boost Turkish Shares, Cheaper than All of Europe's

(Bloomberg) -- Turkish stocks, cheaper than equities
in the markets of the European Union, are attracting investors
who say this year's rally is just the beginning.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has sold state
industries and reduced the budget deficit, will retain power in
this weekend's elections, according to six opinion polls. The
mostly Muslim nation of 72 million has had 21 straight quarters
of economic growth and inflation is near a five-year low.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

Gold Gains in London, Erasing an Earlier Decline; Silver Also Advances

(Bloomberg) -- Gold rose in London, erasing an
earlier decline. Silver also advanced.

Gold for immediate delivery added $1, or 0.2 percent, to
$674 an ounce at 10:03 a.m. local time, after earlier falling as
much as $1.51. Prices this year peaked at $694.25 an ounce on
April 23.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

U.K. Pound Declines Versus Dollar on Slower Retail Sales, Mortgage Loans

(Bloomberg) -- The pound dropped against the dollar
after reports showed retail sales rose less than expected and
mortgage lending slowed in June.

The pound fell to $2.0505 by 9:41 a.m. in London, after
earlier touching $2.0543, near the highest since June 1981. It
was trading late yesterday at $2.0528.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

UPDATE 1-Ford to receive bids for Jaguar, Rover - reports

(Reuters) - NEW YORK/MUMBAI, July 19 - The Ford Motor Company
is expected to receive opening bids on Thursday for its
Jaguar and Land Rover brands from a number of companies
including private equity firms and other automakers, the New
York Times reported on Thursday, citing people with direct
knowledge of the situation.




Bidders for the two British car companies are expected to
include Cerberus Capital Management [CBS.UL], the investment
group that purchased the Chrysler Group in May from
DaimlerChrysler , sources said on Wednesday night,
according to the Times.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

International banks shun Cuba under U.S. scrutiny

(Reuters) - Cuba ceased exporting armed revolution to Latin America two decades ago, but Washington still lists Communist Cuba as a "rogue" state that sponsors terrorism, along with Iran, Syria, Sudan and North Korea.




The USA Patriot Act allows U.S. authorities to confiscate assets and penalize institutions that fail to report money laundering and terrorist financing.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-Standard Chartered eyes S.Africa's Nedbank -report

(Reuters) - JOHANNESBURG, July 19 - Emerging markets specialist Standard Chartered is in takeover talks with South Africa's fourth-biggest bank, Nedbank Group , financial daily Business Day reported on Thursday.



The newspaper, citing unnamed sources, said Asia-focused Standard Chartered had been in discussions with Nedbank for some time.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Barclays says may include cash in ABN offer

(Reuters) - Barclays, whose all-share bid for Dutch group ABN is
currently worth about 65 billion euros , also
said it had been given an extension by the Dutch markets
regulator until Aug. 6 to launch its formal offer.




"Barclays is considering possible alternative offer
structures, including introduction of a partial cash
consideration element into the offer," Britain's third-biggest
bank said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News