Alstom, Business Objects, CNP, GFI, Remy Cointreau: 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.

July futures on the CAC 40 Index sank 38.5 to 5978 at 8:18
a.m. in Paris.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Asian Oil-Product Tanker Rates May Fall on Adequate Japanese Fuel Supplies

(Bloomberg) -- Asian freight rates for shipping jet
fuel, gasoline and other clean petroleum products may extend last
week's decline because Japanese stockpiles are adequate, reducing
demand for vessels.

The cost of hiring medium-range or MR tankers capable of
shipping 30,000-ton oil-product cargoes on the benchmark
Singapore-Japan route fell 3.3 percent in the past week to
Worldscale 198.18, the fifth straight week of declines, the
London-based Baltic Exchange said. The rate has slumped 23
percent since May 25.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

PRESS DIGEST - Washington Post Business - June 26

(Reuters) - An announcement could come as early as Tuesday that Rupert
Murdoch's News Corp. and the Dow Jones bond of directors have
agreed on editorial protections for The Wall Street Journal,
allowing the two sides to start discussing Murdoch's bid for
the company and its high-profile newspaper.




---


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bank of England Struggles to Keep Economists Attracted by Bonuses in City

(Bloomberg) -- The Bank of England's governing board
said it's concerned about an exodus of economists last year,
lured by higher pay in London's financial services industry.

``There has been some concern that the implementation of
changes to the staff mix in the monetary analysis and financial
stability areas has been adversely affected by a higher rate of
resignation and vacancies in the past year,'' the U.K. central
bank's directors said in its annual report, published yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Dow Jones, Energy East, General Growth, RealNetworks: 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.

Christiana Bank & Trust Co. (CBTD US): National Penn
Bancshares Inc. (NPBC US) agreed to buy Christiana Bank for
$37.85 a share. The stock fell 20 cents to $25.90 in regular
trading yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Copper Drops in Asian Trading as Global Stockpiles Increase; Zinc Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices fell in Asia as global
inventories increased, raising concern demand for the metal used
in electrical wiring and plumbing was slowing.

Stockpiles in warehouses monitored by the London Metal
Exchange gained 1,200 metric tons, or 1 percent, to 119,025 tons
yesterday, the bourse said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Australian, New Zealand Dollars Drop as Carry Trades Pared on U.S. Shares

(Bloomberg) -- The Australian and New Zealand
dollars fell from the highest in around two decades on
speculation investors will pare carry trades after shares in the
U.S. slumped.

The New Zealand dollar, followed by Australia's, are the
biggest gainers among major currencies in the past year, as
traders bought higher-yielding securities with money borrowed
from nations with lower interest rates. U.S. stocks dropped for
a second day yesterday on concern over losses tied to subprime
housing loans.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

China Reserves Plan to Worsen Five-Month Bond Slump, Shenyin Wanguo Says

(Bloomberg) -- China's bonds may extend a five-
month slide as a government fund sells about 1.5 trillion yuan
($200 billion) of debt to buy some of the nation's foreign
exchange reserves, Shenyin Wanguo Securities Co. said.

China is setting up the State Investment Co. that will
purchase a portion of the country's $1.2 trillion foreign-
exchange reserves from the central bank to seek higher returns
in global markets. The government said this month lawmakers will
review plans for a ``special bond sale'' to fund the acquisition.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

UPDATE 2-Ecuador will not write off $1.1 bln cenbank debt

(Reuters) - QUITO, June 25 - Ecuador will not write off a
$1.1 billion debt owed to the central bank as previously
offered in a new banking bill, but will restructure it instead,
according to the president's partial veto of the legislation.




President Rafael Correa had surprisingly included scraping
the debt in his original banking bill that aims to boost state
control over the banking sector.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Japanese Yen, Indonesian Rupiah, Philippine Peso: Asian Currency Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following events and economic
reports may influence trading in Asian currencies today.

Exchange rates are from the previous session.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Equifax says prices $300 mln note offering

(Reuters) - It expects to use the proceeds of the deal to repay
short-term debt, a substantial portion of which was incurred
for its acquisition of TALX Corp, it said.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Upper Deck launches hostile offer for Topps

(Reuters) - Upper Deck said its cash offer is not conditioned upon any financing arrangements.




Topps could not be immediately reached for comment.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Paramount signs licensing pact for UAE theme park

(Reuters) - Ruwaad said the Paramount park in the UAE would be the hub
of a $2.5 billion, family-oriented development that is expected
to include resorts, boutique hotels and shopping centers.




Financial details were not disclosed.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Catalyst says offer for BCE worth up to C$52 a share

(Reuters) - Catalyst, which did not have any ownership in BCE as of Friday, has proposed an offer to exchange each BCE share for a new stapled security made up of debt and equity. It said it presented its offer to a special committee of BCE's board on Monday morning.



) Keywords: BCE CATALYST/


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Catalyst says BCE offer worth up to C$52 a share

(Reuters) - Catalyst, which did not have any ownership in BCE as of
Friday, has proposed an offer to exchange each BCE share for a
new stapled security made up of debt and equity. It said it
presented its offer to a special committee of BCE's board on
Monday morning.




Catalyst's executive managing director, Brent Fullard, has
said he believes the deal is better than selling the telecom
company, parent of Bell Canada, to private equity firms or
merging it with rival Telus Corp. .


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

GLOBAL MARKETS-Subprime saps Wall Street, bonds benefit

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 25 - Stocks retreated on Wall
Street and Treasury bonds rallied as worries over the mortgage
mess in the United States gripped financial markets on Monday.




Oil clawed back heavy early losses to settle a shade higher
on the day at just above $69 . The dollar stuck to a
tight range against the euro at $1.3462 as traders were
cautious ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting later this week.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bear Stearns May Put Up Less Than Planned to Rescue Hedge Fund, People Say

(Bloomberg) -- Bear Stearns Cos. may put up only
$1.6 billion to rescue one of its money-losing hedge funds, half
as much as it offered last week, according to two people with
knowledge of the situation.

The size of the bailout dropped after the Bear Stearns High-
Grade Structured Credit Fund found buyers for some assets and
creditors sold others, said the people, who declined to be
identified because they aren't authorized to comment for the
firm. Bear Stearns, the biggest U.S. broker to hedge funds, said
June 22 it would assume $3.2 billion of loans to prevent lenders
from liquidating assets.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

U.S. Stocks Decline as Brokerage Shares Drop; Bear Stearn, Lehman Tumble

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks dropped and the Standard
& Poor's 500 Index extended its worst weekly decline since
March, dragged down by financial shares on concern losses will
worsen on investments tied to subprime mortgages.

Bear Stearns Cos. fell the most in the S&P 500 after a
Merrill Lynch & Co. analyst said the second-biggest U.S.
underwriter of mortgage bonds may have to salvage another of its
teetering hedge funds. Moody's Corp., whose founder created
credit ratings, and MBIA Inc., the largest bond insurer, also
dropped.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Infineon acquires Texas Instruments' DSL CPE business

(Reuters) - The transaction is expected to close in the summer of 2007.






Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-US FDA staff questions CryoCor device effectiveness

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, June 25 - CryoCor Inc.
failed to demonstrate the safety and long-term
effectiveness of its experimental treatment for a form of
abnormal heart rhythm, U.S. regulators said on Monday, sending
the medical device maker's shares down nearly 35 percent.




A U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel will
consider on Wednesday if the device should be approved for sale
in the United States.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Credit Suisse Names Shepley London-Based Global Head of Currency Research

(Bloomberg) -- Credit Suisse Group, the second-
largest Swiss bank, named Sean Shepley as head of global foreign
exchange research and strategy.

Shepley replaces Joe Prendergast, 41, who is taking a
sabbatical, according to a copy of an internal announcement
provided by Bruce Corwin, a Credit Suisse spokesman in New York.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Congress Must Safeguard Gas Market, Close Amaranth Loophole, Senator Says

(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. natural gas market lacks
sufficient oversight and Congress needs to close a federal
loophole that allowed Amaranth Advisors LLC to evade regulators
in the biggest-ever hedge fund collapse, Senator Carl Levin said.

``Congress needs to do much more to safeguard U.S. energy
markets from price manipulation and excessive speculation,''
Levin, the Michigan Democrat who chairs the investigations
committee, said today at a hearing on gas markets in Washington.
``The first step is to close the Enron loophole.''


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Soybeans Rise for First Session in Three as Drought Threatens China Crops

(Bloomberg) -- Soybeans in Chicago rose for the
first time in three sessions on speculation unusually dry
weather threatens crops in China, the world's biggest buyer of
the oilseed.

Parts of the North China Plain and all of the Manchurian
Plain were dry during the weekend, with temperatures rising as
high as 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 degrees Celsius), said John
Dee, president of Global Weather Monitoring in Mohawk, Michigan.
Unusually hot, dry weather will persist in the region through
next week, Dee said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Arbitron, Marchex, Omnicom, Omniture, Stanley Works: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes on U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 11:40 a.m. in New York.

Car rental companies: Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (HTZ US),
Avis Budget Group Inc. (CAR US) and Dollar Thrifty Automotive
Group Inc. (DTG US) were downgraded by Morgan Stanley as
travelers balk at higher car rental prices. The companies'
ratings were cut to ``underweight'' from ``equal-weight'' by
Morgan Stanley analyst Christina Woo. Hertz lost 4 cents, or 0.2
percent, to $25.50. Avis fell $1.38, or 4.7 percent, to $28.10.
Dollar Thrifty dropped $2.28, or 5.4 percent, to $40.18.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Cocoa Rallies to 1-Month High as Strike in Nigeria Disrupts Farmer Exports

(Bloomberg) -- Cocoa rose to a one-month high in
New York after a four-day strike in Nigeria, the fourth-largest
producer last year, disrupted exports and renewed concerns that
demand may outpace supply.

The strike will cause ``delayed exports,'' Akinwale Ojo,
the secretary-general of the Cocoa Association of Nigeria, said
June 22. Ports were shut and a fuel shortage prevented farmers
from transporting beans. The International Cocoa Organization
says global demand will exceed supply by 145,000 metric tons
this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Norilsk says S.Africa regulator clears LionOre bid

(Reuters) - Norilsk's all-cash offer expires on June 28. The latest
offer trumped a bid by Anglo-Swiss miner Xstrata Plc .




Norilsk and LionOre both have operations in South Africa.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

US stock indexes climb on lower bond yields

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Monday as data on existing-home sales were in line with analysts' forecasts, allowing investors to focus on the recent pull-back in bond yields and the Federal Reserve's policy-setting meeting this week.

General Motors Corp. gave a boost to the Dow after Goldman Sachs lifted its rating on shares of the largest U.S. automaker.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Lula says air travel order restored in Brazil

(Reuters) - A work slowdown by controllers, most of them air force
officers, had caused renewed chaos in airports last week.
Hundreds of flights were delayed or canceled, affecting
business travel between the main hubs like Sao Paulo and Rio de
Janeiro in Latin America's largest country.




"In view of this fact of insubordination, I determine that
the air force command put the house in order, do whatever needs
to be done. But we have to keep the airports functioning well,
maintain military discipline," Lula said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

America First, Bear Stearns, Freedom Acquisition: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes on U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 10:15 a.m. in New York.

Car rental companies: Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (HTZ US),
Avis Budget Group Inc. (CAR US) and Dollar Thrifty Automotive
Group Inc. (DTG US) were downgraded by Morgan Stanley as
travelers balk at higher car rental prices. The companies'
ratings were cut to ``underweight'' from ``equal-weight'' by
Morgan Stanley analyst Christina Woo. Hertz lost 26 cents, or 1
percent, to $25.28. Avis fell $1.38, or 4.7 percent, to $28.10.
Dollar Thrifty dropped $2.74, or 6.5 percent, to $39.72.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 2-India's ONGC Q4 net falls 13 pct, lags f'cast

(Reuters) - NEW DELHI, June 25 - India's state-run Oil and
Natural Gas Corp. Ltd. said its fourth-quarter
net profit fell 13 percent, lagging forecasts, due to higher
mandatory discounts to refiners and one-off staff costs.




ONGC, India's second most valuable listed company with a
market cap of $48 billion, also said it was in talks with oil
majors Chevron , Total and Royal Dutch Shell
to swap stakes in oil blocks and planned to spend $10.3
billion in acquiring and developing overseas assets by 2012.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Inter-Tel says PROXY Governance recommends Mitel merger deal

(Reuters) - In April, Mitel Networks had agreed to buy Inter-Tel for
$25.60 per share in cash.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Standard Bank buys control of Kenya's CFC Bank

(Reuters) - The Kenyan unit of South Africa's Standard Bank plans to acquire a 60 percent stake in Kenya's CFC Bank, subject to regulatory approval, the two banks said on Monday.

The CFC Bank group, with assets of 40.4 billion shillings at the end of 2006, would be renamed CFC Stanbic Holdings.


Read more at Reuters Africa

UPDATE 1-Silver State sees share offering at $22-$24/shr

(Reuters) - In an amended filing with the U.S Securities and Exchange
Commission, the bank holding company said Sandler O'Neill &
Partners L.P. and Howe Barnes Hoefer & Arnett Inc. were
underwriting the offering.




The underwriters may buy up to 480,000 additional shares to
cover any over-allotments.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Investor morale eases in June on rising energy costs-UBS

(Reuters) - The Personal Dimension of the Index, which measures
optimism about investors' own personal investment portfolios,
decreased 8 points in June to 67 from 75 in May, UBS said.




"As the summer driving season gets started, investors are
clearly noticing the impact of higher gas prices on their
bottom line, which in turn affects sentiment about their
investments," Maury Harris, chief U.S. economist at UBS
Investment Bank, said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Dow Average Futures Advance as Bond Yields, Oil Drop; GM, Blackstone Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Dow Jones Industrial Average futures
rose after bond yields fell and oil prices dropped.

General Motors Corp. climbed after Goldman, Sachs & Co.
advised clients to buy shares of the biggest U.S. automaker
because the United Auto Workers union may offer larger-than-
expected concessions. Blackstone Group LP, the private-equity
firm valued at $38 billion after its initial public offering June
22, also gained.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

S.Africa maize stocks jump on harvest deliveries

(Reuters) - South African maize prices slid on Monday, pressured by losses in Chicago, while data showed that maize stocks jumped as farmers delivered from the harvest.

The stocks surged to 3.501 million tonnes at the end of May from a revised 2.07 million the previous month, the South African Grain Information Service (SAGIS) said in its monthly bulletin.


Read more at Reuters Africa

No job cuts seen in Intel-STMicro memory venture

(Reuters) - TEL AVIV, June 25 - The newly appointed head of Intel Corp. and STMicroelectronics' flash memory joint venture said on Monday no layoffs were anticipated after the companies' activities are combined.



Intel and Franco-Italian STMicro said last month they would hive off their flash memory units and put them together with the backing of private equity firm Francisco Partners.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

CORRECTED - CORRECTED-Compton to acquire Stylus Energy for C$19 mln

(Reuters) - The deal, which includes the assumption of about C$12
million of net debt, represents a 20 percent premium to the
most recent closing price of the common shares of Stylus, the
companies said in a joint statement.





Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Corporate Bond Risk Jumps in Europe on Concern Over U.S. Housing Market

(Bloomberg) -- The risk of owning European company
bonds jumped to the highest in almost three months on concern a
slowing U.S. housing market will hit global corporate earnings
growth, 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 of 50 European
companies increased 7,500 euros to 222,000 euros, the highest
since April 5, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. An increase in
the cost of the contracts, used to bet on a company's ability to
repay debt, shows a deteriorating outlook for credit quality.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

ConocoPhillips Extends Maintenance at U.K. North Sea's J-Block Gas Field

(Bloomberg) -- ConocoPhillips said maintenance at
the J-Block natural-gas fields in the North Sea was continuing
today, beyond its expected completion yesterday.

``The shutdown is ongoing,'' ConocoPhillips spokeswoman
Sandra Ross said today by telephone from Aberdeen, Scotland. ``I
don't have any estimations of when it's back up.''


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Japan utilities buy South Africa coal - shipping executive

(Reuters) - A Japanese power generating firm has bought at least one cargo of South African coal for July shipment as it worried over low inventories due to shipment delays from Australia, a shipping executive said on Monday.

The executive, who declined to be named, said the company was sending a vessel to South Africa to fetch coal, while dispatching another ship to Newcastle in Australia. He gave no further details.


Read more at Reuters Africa

GLOBAL MARKETS-Interest rate and credit worries rattle stocks

(Reuters) - European and Asian stocks were lower, tracking Friday's
losses on Wall Street, after a warning from the Bank for
International Settlements about the need for higher interest
rates and continuing concerns about troubled U.S. hedge funds.




Demand for safe-haven government bonds was higher and the
Japanese yen stuck near 4-1/2 year lows against the dollar.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

No relief for yen as carry trades continue

(Reuters) - The comparatively high-yielding New Zealand dollar recovered all the losses it incurred on suspected central bank intervention late on Friday, striking a 22-year high against the dollar and climbing near to a 20-year peak against the yen.




Despite falls in equity markets fueled by rising global interest rates and renewed concern about the U.S. housing market, currency investors continued to put on carry trades, in which they borrowed in low-yielding currencies like the yen to fund purchases of higher-return units.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

French Stocks Decline, Led by France Telecom, Alcatel-Lucent and Unibail

(Bloomberg) -- French stocks declined, led by
France Telecom SA, Alcatel-Lucent and Unibail Holding SA.

The CAC 40 Index lost 47.43, or 0.8 percent, to 5975.82 at
9:06 a.m. in Paris. The SBF 120 Index dropped 0.2 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Asian stocks sag, yen under pressure

(Reuters) - European shares were seen also tracking U.S. peers lower with financial bookmakers expecting falls of 24 to 33 points for London's FTSE 100 index , 30 to 44 points for Germany's DAX and 25 to 32 points for France's CAC 40 .




Demand for high-yielding currencies kept the yen pinned near an all-time low versus the euro and a 4-1/2-year low against the dollar. The Bank of Japan, unlike other central banks, was seen in no hurry to raise interest rates.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News