ABN to hear other bids but recommends Barclays deal

(Reuters) - Rijkman Groenink, ABN's top executive, said the board would hear other offers in line with its fiduciary duties, but said a merger with Barclays was the "best option" for shareholders.

The Royal Bank of Scotland Plc , Belgian-Dutch group Fortis and Spain's Santander have been preparing a counter takeover proposal for ABN and had been scheduled to meet with ABN's top management on Monday. Groenink said he still planned to meet with the three banks.


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CORRECTED - UPDATE 1-BA considering consortium bid for Spain's Iberia

(Reuters) - However, BA said it had ruled out making an independent bid for the airline.

"Any consortium bid would not involve further capital investment by British Airways," Europe's third-biggest airline said in a statement.


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European Government Bonds Little Changed; 10-Year Yield at 4.20 Percent

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds opened little changed in London.

The yield on the benchmark 10-year German bund was at 4.20 percent by 7:06 a.m. in London, near its highest in a week. The price of the 3.75 percent bond due January 2017 rose 0.02, or 20 euro cents per 1,000 euro ($1,358) face amount to 96.48. Bond yields move inversely to prices.


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Nestle Q1 sales rise ahead of expectations

(Reuters) - ZURICH, Apr 23 - Nestle , the world's largest food company, posted a 6.4 percent increase in sales for the first quarter to 24.25 billion Swiss francs on Monday, ahead of expectations.

The group posted organic growth of 7.4 percent, also stronger than expected, as demand rose, especially in emerging markets and in Nestle's pharmaceutical division.


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Japan's Government Bonds Halt Declines as 10-Year Yields Attract Investors

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese government bonds halted declines as 10-year yields near the highest since February attracted some investors.

Bonds were supported by speculation the central bank will cut its inflation forecast for this fiscal year. Japan's debt rating was raised one level to AA from AA- by Standard & Poor's after the government cut borrowing.


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Barclays agrees to buy ABN, to sell LaSalle

(Reuters) - ABN shareholders will receive 3.225 Barclays shares for each share they own. They said the deal values each ABN share at 36.25 euros. Barclays shareholders will own about 52 percent of the enlarged company, to be called Barclays Plc.




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RIM to roll out "virtual BlackBerry" software

(Reuters) - The Waterloo, Ontario-based company will make the software available on devices offered by a number of telecom companies later this year, likely in the fall.

"We're working very closely with AT&T, as an example," RIM co-Chief Executive Jim Balsillie said in an interview. "There'll be other carriers that are highly supportive of this."


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