Japanese Stocks Decline on U.S. Housing Concern, Strong Yen; Toyota Falls

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks slid as investors
shunned riskier assets after earnings from the largest mortgage
provider in the U.S. prompted concern the subprime loan problem
is slowing growth in the world's biggest economy.

Toyota Motor Corp. and Matsushita Electric Industrial Co.
led declines by companies that get a large proportion of their
earnings from the U.S. market, aggravated by a stronger yen.
Countrywide Financial Corp. said profit declined for a third
quarter, helping to drag U.S. stocks to their worst performance
in four months.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Salton says unable to agree on merger completion date with APN

(Reuters) - On Feb 8, Salton had said it had agreed to merge its
subsidiary SFP Merger Sub Inc. with APN Holding Co.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Raymond James quarterly profit up 20 pct

(Reuters) - Net income for the quarter ended June 30 rose to $68.35
million, or 57 cents a share, from $56.77 million, or 48 cents
a share, a year earlier.




Analysts, on average, had expected the St. Petersburg,
Florida-based company to report earnings of 53 cents a share,
according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Bancroft Dow Jones decision seen next week-source

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - The family that controls Dow
Jones & Co expects to decide by early next week if it
wants to sell the company to Rupert Murdoch's News Corp
for $5 billion, a source familiar with the matter said
on Tuesday.




The Bancroft family holds 64 percent of Dow Jones's voting
shares and their adviser, Hemenway & Barnes lawyer Michael
Elefante, is canvassing family members this week to see if they
would approve the bid.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Panera Bread 2nd-quarter earnings fall

(Reuters) - Wall Street analysts, on average, had been expecting
earnings of 39 cents per share, according to Reuters
Estimates.




In June Panera cut its second-quarter earnings forecast to
between 38 cents and 40 cents per share. It had previously
expected a profit of 47 cents to 51 cents a share.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Taubman second-quarter FFO rises

(Reuters) - The company also raised its forecast for the year.




Bloomfield Hills, Michigan-based Taubman reported
second-quarter funds from operations of $37 million, or
68 cents per share. Analysts had, on average, expected 61 cents
per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

MySpace deletes 29,000 sex offenders

(Reuters) - The new information was first revealed by U.S. state authorities after MySpace turned over information on convicted sex offenders it had removed from the service.




"The exploding epidemic of sex offender profiles on MySpace -- 29,000 and counting -- screams for action," Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

US STOCKS-Indexes slide as housing, profit concerns rise

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - U.S. stocks tumbled on
Tuesday, with the three major indexes posting their worst
one-day performance since March 13, as disappointing results
from DuPont Co. and Countrywide Financial Corp.
heightened concerns about the housing market.




Financial shares led decliners on the S&P 500 index, with
Countrywide suffering its biggest decline since October 2004
after revealing its mortgage lending problems extend beyond its
subprime business.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. engine maker Navistar adopts poison pill

(Reuters) - Navistar spokesman Roy Wiley said the company adopted the
plan "just to protect our shareholders because they don't have
current financial information" on the company that would permit
them to assess the fairness of any takeover bid.




Navistar has delayed filing its 2005 through 2007 earnings
and warned it will restate results back to 2002 to correct
errors that led it to fire its long-time auditor last year. It
has said it expects to report earnings through 2005 by the end
of September and 2006 and 2007 results by the end of the first
quarter of 2008.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Platinum Underwriters Q2 profit rises

(Reuters) - For the second quarter, analysts' consensus view was for
earnings of $1.20 a share, excluding items, according to
Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Apple, S&P Homebuilders ETF and Yahoo!: U.S. Equity Option Movers Final

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
with unusual option trading in U.S. exchanges today. Stock
symbols are in parentheses after company names. Option trading
and stock prices are as of 4 p.m. in New York.

Each call option gives investors the right to buy 100 shares
of a company at a certain price, called the strike price, by a
given date. A put conveys the right to sell 100 shares.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Qimonda's Q3 EBIT loss twice as big as expected

(Reuters) - According to a Reuters poll, 18 analysts expected a loss
before tax of 164 million euros on sales of 788
million euros on average.




Qimonda, a unit of German chipmaker Infineon , is
the world's third-biggest maker of memory chips by sales.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Avaya 3rd-qtr income rises, but US revenue falls

(Reuters) - Income jumped to $55 million, or 12 cents per share, for
the third quarter ended June 30, from $44 million, or 10 cents
a share, in the same quarter a year earlier.




Excluding special items such as restructuring and
merger-related charges, profit rose to 15 cents from 8 cents,
in line with analysts' expectations.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Chubb 2nd-quarter earnings up, raises view

(Reuters) - Warren, New Jersey-based Chubb said operating earnings, which analysts use to measure performance because it excludes investments, increased 19 percent to $648 million, or $1.60 a share.




Analysts on average had expected the high-end property insurer to earn $1.39 a share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Vertex 2nd-quarter loss widens

(Reuters) - Excluding items, Vertex lost 74 cents per share. Analysts
on average expected a loss of 69 cents per share, according to
Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Becton Dickinson to buy back 10 mln shares

(Reuters) - The amount represents roughly 4 percent of the company's
245 million common shares outstanding as of March 31.




Becton Dickinson said it will use the shares for general
corporate purposes.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

US STOCKS-S&P, Nasdaq fall more than 2 pct

(Reuters) - The New York Stock Exchange said it instituted downside
trading colars at 3:24 p.m. EDT as U.S. stocks
dropped.




The Dow Jones industrial average was down 235.49
points, or 1.69 percent, at 13,707.93. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index was down 31.98 points, or 2.07 percent, at
1,509.59. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 55.40
points, or 2.06 percent, at 2,635.18


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 3-Argentine stocks, bonds fall in dollar chase

(Reuters) - BUENOS AIRES, July 24 - An unusual drop in
Argentina's currency triggered a sell-off in bonds and stocks
on Tuesday as investors liquidated assets and rushed to buy
dollars before the peso, at its weakest in more than four
years, declined further.




With agricultural exports booming and flooding the country
with greenbacks, usually dollars are chasing pesos in Argentina
and the Central Bank purchases dollars most days to keep the
country's currency from appreciating.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Fiat Q2 car profit up, group targets confirmed

(Reuters) - MILAN, July 24 - Italy's Fiat said on Tuesday its main car business more than doubled its second-quarter trading profit to 193 million euros , slightly below expectations, as popular models like the Panda boosted sales.



Fiat , whose brands include Lancia and Alfa Romeo, also reiterated its forecasts for the year.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

US STOCKS-Indexes decline on profit, housing concerns

(Reuters) - Adding to the negative tone on Wall Street, USG Corp.
, the world's largest seller of gypsum wallboard for
home building, gave a gloomy housing outlook while Countrywide
Financial Corp , the largest U.S. mortgage lender,
posted a drop in quarterly profit and cut its full-year outlook
For details, see [ID:nN24431178]




Energy company shares were also down following oil prices
lower. Shares of Exxon Mobil Corp. fell 1 percent to
trade at $92.52.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Mexican stocks fall, America Movil losses weigh

(Reuters) - The benchmark IPC stock index was down 1.14 percent
at 31,800 points, while the peso weakened 0.24
percent to 10.7925 per dollar.




Disappointing results from some U.S. bellwether companies
weighed on equities across the Americas and in Europe.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

S.Africa stocks dip on US worries, financials hit

(Reuters) - South African stocks slid more than 1 percent on Tuesday as a grim outlook for the U.S. housing market rattled global equity markets and Nedbank fell as takeover talk abated.

The Johannesburg Top-40 index of blue-chip stocks slid as much as 1.55 percent but recovered slightly to close down 1.09 percent at 26,806.08 points. The All-share index dropped 0.99 percent to 29,590.81 points.


Read more at Reuters Africa

RPT-TREASURIES-Bonds benefit as housing weighs on stocks

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - U.S. Treasury debt prices
rose on Tuesday and benchmark yields flirted with their lowest
levels in seven weeks as global equities sentiment sagged under
the weight of fresh housing market woes.




U.S. stock indexes slid on disappointing profits, with
Countrywide Financial Corp , the largest U.S. mortgage
lender, and building materials maker USG Corp giving
Wall Street's losses a fresh housing angle. See [.N] for the
latest on stocks.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

GLOBAL MARKETS-Housing woes hurt U.S. stocks, dollar

(Reuters) - The dollar made new lows on concerns that the the U.S.
housing slump would be prolonged and that it would spread to
other sectors of the economy.




European shares fell with lower commodity prices weighing
on energy and mining companies, and concerns about the surging
euro hurting exporters.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Verizon Wireless: No impact from Broadcom deal

(Reuters) - It said it will pay Broadcom $6 for each handset it sells with these chips, or up to $40 million per calendar quarter and up to a maximum of $200 million.




"Given the limits of the payments under the agreement, Verizon does not expect that there will be a material effect on Verizon Wireless's annual results," the company said in a filing.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Brazil's Bovespa Falls, Led by Petrobras, on Tax Bill, Drop in Oil Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil's main stock index slid for the
second time in three days, led by state-controlled oil company
Petroleo Brasileiro SA, as oil prices dropped and the company
received a bill for $710 million in unpaid taxes.

The Bovespa Index of the most-traded stocks on the Sao Paulo
exchange fell 551.49, or 1 percent, to 57,485.28 as of 11:08 a.m.
New York time. Petrobras accounted for one-fourth of the drop.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Coffee Rises as Cold Winter Weather Increases Threat of Frost in Brazil

(Bloomberg) -- Coffee rose in New York as forecasts
for colder-than-normal temperatures spurred concern that a crop-
damaging frost may develop in Brazil, the world's largest
producer.

Cold air in northern Argentina is expected to move across
the south of Brazil's Parana coffee-growing region July 26,
bringing the lowest temperatures since winter began in June,
according to Meteorlogix LLC in Woburn, Massachusetts. Brazil's
harvest runs through October.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Blackstone finds another benefit in China

(Reuters) - Not only did it find a wealthy new investor and position itself for deals in the world's most populous nation, but also the deal raised the profile of its M&A advisory business by leading to a highly visible role of advising the Chinese government on the acquisition of a stake in Barclays .




In doing so, Blackstone links its name to what is likely to be the year's biggest deal -- the sale of Dutch bank ABN AMRO . Barclays has used the investment from China to help increase its bid to 67.5 billion euros in a battle with a rival group led by the Royal Bank of Scotland .


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Apple falls on initial iPhone activation numbers

(Reuters) - Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves said that while iPhone sales figures for coming months would be more telling than the first few days, AT&T's number had disappointed investors as some analysts estimated sales "north of 500,000."




Hargreaves had himself estimated 400,000 iPhone sales for the first two days, he said.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Paraguayans hoping for windfall from "sweet herb"

(Reuters) - Stevia, a shrub whose extracts are up to 300-times sweeter than sugar but without the calories, has been the sweetener of choice among Paraguay's Guarani Indians for centuries.




Coca-Cola announced in May it would team up with U.S.-based agricultural company Cargill Inc. to produce a stevia-based sweetener, and Paraguay's farmers hope demand for stevia will increase even though it is not approved as a food additive in the United States or the European Union.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Ensco International Q2 earnings rise

(Reuters) - Revenue rose 15 percent to $548.6 million.




Analysts on average were expecting it to earn $1.65 a share
before exceptional items, on revenue of $552.1 million,
according to Reuters Estimates.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Idex quarterly profit rises 19 percent

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 24 - Idex Corp. , which makes pumps and fire-suppression equipment, on Tuesday posted a 19 percent increase in quarterly profit as orders rose.



Net income in the second quarter rose to $41.6 million, or 51 cents a share, from $35 million, or 43 cents a share, a year earlier. Sales rose 16.2 percent to $344.5 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

AT&T profit rises on wireless; iPhone disappoints

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - Top U.S. telecommunications service provider AT&T Inc. said on Tuesday quarterly profit and revenue rose, helped by growth in wireless and Internet subscribers. Second-quarter net profit rose to $2.9 billion, or 47 cents a share, from $1.8 billion, or 46 cents a share.



On an adjusted basis, which excludes costs and accounting effects related to acquisitions, profit rose to 70 cents per share from 58 cents.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Pentair profit tops view, helped by growth abroad

(Reuters) - BOSTON/NEW YORK, July 24 - Diversified manufacturer Pentair Inc. reported better-than-expected profit on Tuesday as strength in its commercial and municipal businesses and abroad helped to offset the weak U.S. swimming pool market.



The U.S. company, which also makes industrial fluid-handling and heat-exchange systems, said that net income fell 9.6 percent as higher commodity prices took a toll on margins.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Nedbank falls 3 pct as M&A talk wanes

(Reuters) - Shares in South Africa's fourth-biggest banking group Nedbank fell as much as 3 per cent on Tuesday as takeover talk around the group faded, traders said.

At 1253 GMT Nedbank shares were down 2.6 percent at 140 rand, having earlier hit 139.51 rand, underperforming the JSE Securities Exchange's banking sector which was 0.7 percent weaker.


Read more at Reuters Africa

US STOCKS-Wall St set for drop on profit woes

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - U.S. stocks headed for a drop
at the open as disappointing profits from chemical company
DuPont Co. and building materials maker USG Corp
raised concerns about the housing slump and its impact on the
economy and earnings.




Apple Inc was another disappointment, with its
stock down 4.2 percent at $137.65 in electronic trade after
AT&T Inc. , the network carrier for Apple's iPhone,
reported disappointing data on activations for the handset.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

TREASURIES-Bonds benefit as housing weighs on stocks

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - U.S. Treasury debt prices
rose on Tuesday and benchmark yields flirted with their lowest
levels in seven weeks as global equities sentiment sagged under
the weight of fresh housing market woes.




U.S. stock indexes slid on disappointing profits, with
Countrywide Financial Corp , the largest U.S. mortgage
lender, and building materials maker USG Corp giving
Wall Street's losses a fresh housing angle. See [.N] for the
latest on stocks.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UTStarcom's Chinese sales contracts under review

(Reuters) - Previously issued financial statements issued for the years
2000 through 2006, including interim periods, should no longer
be relied upon, the company said in a statement.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-Time Warner's AOL to buy ad firm Tacoda

(Reuters) - The deal is the latest acquisition by AOL to bolster its
online advertising tools following its decision to move away
from its Internet access business and instead offer consumers
free services supported by ads.




Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed by the
companies. A person familiar with the situation said AOL was
paying $275 million in cash for Tacoda.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Countrywide profit down 33 pct, slashes outlook

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income for the Calabasas, California-based company fell to $485.1 million, or 81 cents per share, from $722.2 million, or $1.15, a year earlier. Revenue fell 15 percent to $2.55 billion.




Analysts on average expected profit of 93 cents per share on revenue of $2.9 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

UPDATE 1-LabCorp quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net earnings rose to $128.7 million, or
$1.05 per share, compared with $116.4 million, or 87 cents, a
year earlier.




Excluding special items, earnings were $1.09 per share,
matching the average estimate of analysts polled by Reuters
Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-BNSF quarterly profit slips on fuel charges

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 24 - U.S. railroad Burlington Northern Santa Fe Corp. said on Tuesday that quarterly net profit fell as a result of higher fuel expenses.



The Ft. Worth, Texas-based company reported second-quarter net income of $433 million or $1.20 a share, compared with $471 million or $1.27 a share a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Dollar Declines to Record Low Against Euro on Speading U.S. Mortgage Woes

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar declined to a record
versus the euro and weakened against 12 of the other most active
currencies on speculation subprime mortgage losses will deepen
and reduce demand for U.S. assets.

Countrywide Financial Corp., the biggest U.S. mortgage
lender, reported its third straight decline in quarterly profit
on increases in late loan payments and reduced its forecast for
earnings this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

US STOCKS-Futures extend losses on profits, housing woes

(Reuters) - S&P 500 futures fell 7.3 points, below fair value, a
mathematical formula that evaluates pricing by taking into
account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the
contract.




Dow Jones industrial average futures were off 66
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 11.25 points.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.K. FTSE 100 Index Drops, Paced by Home Retail; Johnson Matthey Falls

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks declined, led by
retailers after Sports Direct International Plc said it expects
flooding and higher interest rates to hurt earnings this year.
Home Retail Group Plc paced the drop in the FTSE 100 Index.

Johnson Matthey Plc declined after its forecasts fell short
of analysts' estimates and Merrill Lynch & Co. downgraded the
shares. BG Group Plc fell with the price of oil. Friends
Provident Plc paced declines among insurers.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Omnicom quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - The publisher of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the Lincoln



Journal Star said second-quarter net income totaled $11.9 million, or 26 cents per share, compared with $14.4 million, or 32 cents a share a year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

EMC profit up as software, hardware sales increase

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 24 - EMC Corp , the No. 1 maker of corporate data storage equipment, posted a 20 percent rise in quarterly profit Tuesday on strong software and hardware sales. Second-quarter net income rose to $334.4 million, or 16 cents per share, from $279.1 million, or 12 cents a share, a year earlier.



Revenue rose 21 percent to $3.12 billion, driven by strong sales of information storage products.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Anixter International quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - Sales rose to $1.51 billion from $1.24 billion a year ago.




The company said the latest second-quarter results included
sales of $39.7 million from a series of acquisitions completed
over the past year.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-CME profit rises as historic merger completed

(Reuters) - CME Group was formed by the purchase of the Chicago Board
of Trade's parent by Chicago Mercantile Exchange Holdings,
which closed earlier this month.




Second-quarter net income for CME Holdings was $126 million
or $3.57 per share against $109.5 million or $3.12 a year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-DemandTec sees IPO of 6 mln shares at $10-$12 each

(Reuters) - In an amended filing with the U.S Securities and Exchange
Commission, the provider of consumer demand management software
said Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, William Blair & Co., JMP
Securities, Montgomery & Co., LLC and Pacific Crest Securities
were underwriting the IPO.




The San Carlos, California-based company, which applied for
a Nasdaq listing under the symbol "DMAN," said it plans to give
underwriters an option to purchase up to an additional 900,000
shares to cover over allotments.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

REFILE-Time Warner's AOL to buy ad firm Tacoda-source

(Reuters) - Tacoda's technology allows brand advertisers to target
messages to specific audience segments.




The New York Post, which first reported the deal, said the
behavioral-targeting market was expected to grow to $3.8
billion in 2011 from $350 million last year.



Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

European shares mixed in early trade; BP gains

(Reuters) - European shares were mixed early on Tuesday, as investors digested contrasting signals from company results as credit market worries intensified and the euro stayed near record highs against the dollar.

At 0815 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 0.08 percent at 1,611.05 points, after teetering either side of unchanged through early trade.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Alliance Boots LBO Delay Damps Prospects for European Stocks, UBS Says

(Bloomberg) -- Delays in financing the takeover of
Alliance Boots Plc have placed a ``moratorium on large-scale
leveraged buyouts'' that may weigh on European stocks, according
to a UBS AG strategist.

Shares of companies that have benefited from bid
speculation, including Adidas AG, Smith & Nephew Plc and Reed
Elsevier Plc, ``are less likely to retain a private equity''
support to their valuations, Daniel Stillit, London-based market
analyst at UBS, wrote in a report today. All three stocks have
risen at least 13 percent this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

German Benchmark Index Decreases, Paced by Infineon, Bayer, Siemens Shares

(Bloomberg) -- Germany's benchmark stock index
dropped, led by Infineon Technologies AG after U.S. chipmaker
Texas Instruments Inc. reported lower profit and revenue that
missed analysts' estimates.

Shares of Bayer AG, Germany's biggest drugmaker, and
Siemens AG, Europe's largest engineering company, also fell.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European shares dip in early trade; BP gains

(Reuters) - European shares dipped early on Tuesday, led by banks, as investors ploughed through a flurry of company results, credit market worries intensified and the euro stayed near record highs against the dollar.

At 0716 GMT, the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was down 0.07 percent at 1,608.6 points after gaining 0.6 percent on Monday.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Aquarius Platinum strike over, lost 4,700 oz output

(Reuters) - Miners returned to work at two South African mines owned by Aquarius Platinum on Monday night after a deal was agreed with a trade union, the firm said on Tuesday.

The firm said last week more than 3,000 contract workers had been dismissed after they launched an unauthorised strike over implementation of a previous wage deal, but a statement on Tuesday said an agreement had been reached to rehire them.


Read more at Reuters Africa

General Electric to Maintain Earnings Growth on Sales in Emerging Markets

(Bloomberg) -- General Electric Co., whose profit
rose 25 percent in 2006, expects to maintain its sales and
earnings growth for the next three to five years as revenue
surges in emerging markets including India and China.

Sales from China will rise to almost $6 billion this year
from $5 billion in 2006, Nani Beccalli-Falco, chief executive
officer of the U.S. company's international units, said in Kuala
Lumpur today. Sales to India may quadruple to $8 billion by 2010.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News