Thomas & Betts to buy Danaher's power quality unit for $280 mln

(Reuters) - For 2007, the acquisitions will contribute about $70
million to revenue and have a negligible net impact on earnings
per share due to the amortization of acquisition-related
intangible assets, the company said in a statement.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Chinese game developer Perfect World files for IPO

(Reuters) - The company said in a registration statement with the
Securities and Exchange Commission that Morgan Stanley, Credit
Suisse, CIBC World Markets and Susquehanna Financial Group,
LLLP were underwriting the IPO.




The preliminary filing did not state how many ADSs the
company intends to offer or their expected price.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Citizens Financial to go private

(Reuters) - Fractional shares resulting from the reverse stock split
will not be issued, but will instead be purchased by the
company at $7.25 a share on a pre-split basis, the insurance
holding company said.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Ticketmaster to buy ticketing service Paciolan

(Reuters) - Paciolan's selling shareholders include venture capital groups Technology Crossover Ventures, Argentum Capital Partners and Marwit Capital Co. Ticketmaster is part of IAC/InterActiveCorp .




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Larry Ellison's NetSuite files for $75 mln IPO

(Reuters) - BOSTON, July 2 - NetSuite Inc., billionaire Larry
Ellison's software company that sells computer programs accessed
over the Web, filed on Monday to raise up to $75 million in an
initial public offering.




Ellison, the founder and chief executive of Oracle Corp.
, controls 74 percent of NetSuite common stock, according
to the company's S-1 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US STOCKS-Indexes rally on M&A frenzy, factory growth

(Reuters) - Caterpillar Inc. and United Technologies Corp.
led the Dow industrials higher after a surprising
rise in the Institute for Supply Management's factory index to
its highest level in more than a year.




Takeover activity showed few signs of abating despite
concerns about tightening credit. Canada's largest telephone
company, BCE Inc. , agreed to a US$32.6 billion
buyout. For details, see [ID:nN02315411].


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Mexico's Debt Rating Outlook Raised by Standard & Poor's; Peso, Bonds Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Mexico's credit rating outlook was
raised to positive from stable by Standard & Poor's Ratings
Services, fueling a surge in the country's currency, stocks and
government bonds.

S&P, which rates Mexican foreign debt BBB, the second-
lowest investment-grade rating, said the change in outlook was
driven by the country's efforts to reduce its foreign debt and
by expectations congress will approve legislation to bolster tax
collection. S&P rates Mexico's local debt A, the sixth-highest
rating.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

EDF CEO says markets expect French stake sale

(Reuters) - Asked if there was a deadline, he answered: "No, there is
absolutely no deadline."




Gadonneix declined to comment directly on the possibility that
EDF could merge with another French utility group.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-S&P revises Mexico outlook to 'positive' from 'stable'

(Reuters) - "Steps to strengthen the government's tax base, building
upon the recent reform of public sector pensions, could
strengthen Mexico's public finances and underscore the
government's ability to act effectively, leading to an
upgrade," the ratings agency said in a statement.




Mexico's President Felipe Calderon sent to Congress last
month a long-awaited reform plan aimed at boosting government
revenues by closing off corporate tax loopholes. Expectations
that Mexico's Congress will approve the reform program have
been boosting Mexico's financial markets.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

TREASURIES-Bonds add gain, 10-year yields below 5 pct

(Reuters) - Benchmark 10-year Treasury notes were up 7/32
in price for a yield of 4.997 percent versus 5.03 percent late
Friday. The 10-year note's yield was last below 5 percent on
June 7. Bond prices and yields move in opposite direction.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. Stocks Advance After Manufacturing Growth Accelerates; Costco Surges

(Bloomberg) -- Faster-than-expected growth in
manufacturing ignited the U.S. stock market on July's first
trading day, extending the best second-quarter advance for the
Standard & Poor's 500 Index since 2003.

Costco Wholesale Corp. climbed to a record after Goldman,
Sachs & Co. advised buying the shares, helping push the Nasdaq
Composite Index to a six-year high. Caterpillar Inc., United
Technologies Corp. and Honeywell International Inc. carried the
Dow Jones Industrial Average to its first gain in three days.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Crude Oil Rises to 10-Month High on Tightening Year-End Supply Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to a 10-month high on
speculation inventories will decline as demand increases later in
the year.

UBS AG, Europe's largest bank by assets, raised its 2007
forecast for West Texas Intermediate by 6.5 percent to $65 a
barrel from $61 because of low inventories and strong demand. Oil
use peaks in the fourth quarter, when refiners make heating fuel
for the Northern Hemisphere winter. Gasoline consumption in the
U.S., the world's biggest oil user, usually rises in summer.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Medtronic stent meets goal; Abbott seeks injunction

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 2 - Medtronic Inc. on
Monday said its Endeavor drug-eluting stent compared favorably
to Boston Scientific Corp.'s Taxus stent in a key
study, bringing the product a step closer to market.




The data, from Medtronic's "Endeavor IV" clinical trial,
will be used to support the device maker's application to the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration to sell the Endeavor stent in
the United States.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Asustek, Gas Negara, Filinvest, Hyundai Heavy: Asia Ex-Japan Stock Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may rise or fall in
Asian markets, excluding Japan. This preview includes news that
broke after markets closed. Prices are from the local market's last
close. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.

PT Aneka Tambang (ANTM IJ): Indonesia's second-biggest nickel
producer said it may not be able to achieve its 2007 output target
of 20,000 tons as repairs to its newest smelter, which leaked last
month, are taking longer than expected. The shares gained 300
rupiah, or 2.4 percent, to 12,850.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Nymex Natural-Gas Price Is Steady on Trader Short Covering, Light Volume

(Bloomberg) -- Natural gas in New York was steady,
erasing earlier declines, as traders covered short positions.

``The market is weak but it's also fairly vulnerable to a
reflex rally,'' said Dan Chesler, an independent market analyst
in Wellington, Florida, at the start of today's trading. ``If
you're short you may want to play it a little defensive.''


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Manor Care Options Trading Jumped Before Carlyle's Buyout Was Announced

(Bloomberg) -- Trading in options to buy shares of
Manor Care Inc. surged to a record June 29, the last trading day
before the operator of nursing homes and assisted-living centers
said it agreed to be acquired by Carlyle Group for $6.3 billion.

Manor Care option trading soared April 11 when the Toledo,
Ohio-based company said it hired investment bank JPMorgan Chase &
Co. to take advantage of its ``very strong financial position''
and ``enhance shareholder value.'' Since then, an average of
1,257 call-option contracts have traded each day, more than 3 1/2
times the prior year-to-date figure.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Parmalat to appeal class action lawsuit ruling

(Reuters) - Parmalat said in a statement that the Manhattan district court's construction "is not consistent ... with the opinions of ... Italian courts".



U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan said in a June 28 ruling that the reorganized Parmalat "expressly agreed" when it emerged from Europe's largest bankruptcy in 2005 to assume the old Parmalat's liabilities for fraud that the investors alleged.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

FDA adds black box to Genentech asthma drug Xolair

(Reuters) - Xolair, given as an injection and known generically as
omalizumab, is approved to treat adults and adolescents age 12
and above for moderate to severe asthma.




The FDA has warned that anaphylaxis, a dangerous
inflammatory reaction characterized by shortness of breath,
rash, wheezing and low blood pressure, occurs in about one in
one thousand patients taking the medication.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-Parmalat must defend US investor class-action suit

(Reuters) - By Jonathan Stempel



NEW YORK, July 2 - A Manhattan federal judge has rejected Parmalat SpA's request to dismiss an investor class-action lawsuit stemming from the Italian dairy company's December 2003 collapse in an accounting scandal.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Virgin Media says receives bid approach

(Reuters) - Virgin Media's Nasdaq-listed shares surged almost 20 percent to $28.88, giving the group a market capitalization of $9.4 billion. Analysts said an offer could be pitched between $30 and $35 per share and draw other bidders into an auction.




Virgin Media said in a statement it had already started a review of its strategic options, including a sale of the group, and the proposal would be considered as part of that process.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

AMB, Centennial, ECI, New York Times, Schwab, Vornado: 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 1:10 p.m. New York time.

Real estate investment trusts advanced after UBS AG said the
stocks may jump 21 percent as a group in the next 12 months and
Merrill Lynch & Co. upgraded Vornado Realty Trust (VNO US).


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Pound Rises to 26-Year High Against Dollar as Rate Advantage Set to Widen

(Bloomberg) -- The U.K. pound rose to a 26-year high
against the dollar on expectations the Bank of England will keep
raising interest rates, boosting the country's yield advantage.

The pound climbed the most against the dollar in a month
before a central bank meeting this week at which policy makers
are forecast to raise rates a quarter-point to a six-year high
of 5.75 percent. In contrast, the U.S. Federal Reserve held its
benchmark borrowing cost at 5.25 percent last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

UPDATE 1-Schwab sets $3.5 bln capital restructuring plan

(Reuters) - The program includes a special dividend, share buyback plan
and debt offerings.




The company said it would return $1.2 billion to
shareholders through a special cash dividend of $1.00 per
share.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-DuPont completes some filings on corn trait

(Reuters) - Seeds with the Optimum GAT trait are more tolerant against
certain types of herbicides, which help control weeds, but also
pose a risk to the crop itself.




"We are excited about the strong progress we are making to
bring the Optimum GAT trait closer to market," said Erik
Fyrwald head of DuPont's Agriculture & Nutrition division, in a
statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Crude Oil Falls After Refinery Shutdown in Kansas Curbs Petroleum Demand

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from a 10-month high in
New York as a refinery shutdown in Kansas cut demand.

Coffeyville Resources LLC shut its refinery in Coffeyville,
Kansas, yesterday because of flooding on the Verdigris River,
according to as statement on its Web site. The 108,000-barrel-a-
day refinery can produce about 2.1 million daily gallons of
gasoline.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

US STOCKS-Indexes climb on factory growth, M&A buzz

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 2 - U.S. stocks kicked off the
third quarter on a high note on Monday, boosted by
merger-and-acquisition activity and data showing stronger
manufacturing growth in June even as price pressures eased.




Economically sensitive stocks, such as heavy equipment
maker Caterpillar Inc. and industrial conglomerate
United Technologies Corp. , were some of the session's
leaders after the Institute for Supply Management posted a
surprising gain in factory activity.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Proxy Governance recommends vote for CME-CBOT deal

(Reuters) - "We believe if this deal is voted down, CBOT's shares may
fall precipitously, and we do not see the board accepting an
ICE proposal," Proxy Governance said in a report.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Sugar Falls for Fourth-Straight Session as Brazil Harvests Record Crop

(Bloomberg) -- Sugar in New York fell for the
fourth-straight session as a record cane harvest in Brazil, the
largest producer, exceeds demand from ethanol mills.

Brazil will produce 32.45 million metric tons of raw sugar
this year, 17 percent more than last year, according to a report
today by commodity researcher F.O. Licht. Trading houses posted
notices on June 29 that 604,000 tons of raw sugar would be
delivered for the July contract, with a ``surprising'' 389,000
tons from Brazil, Fimat USA LLC in New York said in a report.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

U.K. FTSE 100 Index Falls, Led By British Airways; Legal & General Drops

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks dropped for the first day
in three, paced by British Airways Plc and EasyJet Plc after
Britain raised its terror alert.

Legal & General Plc and Royal & Sun Alliance Insurance Group
Plc led insurers lower also on concern claims tied to floods in
the U.K. will rise. Mining stocks limited declines, paced by
Lonmin Plc on speculation the platinum producer maybe a takeover
target.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Danone rises on talk it may sell biscuit unit

(Reuters) - PARIS, July 2 - Shares in Danone rose as much as 3.1 percent on Monday as a source familiar with the matter and media reports said the French food group is looking to sell its biscuit unit to focus on its yoghurts and drinks.



Over the weekend, a trade union source told Reuters Danone's biscuit unit management and trade union representatives would meet on Tuesday to discuss possible changes at LU biscuits, sparking speculation over the division's future.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

S.African stocks close stronger, led by Anglo jump

(Reuters) - South African shares closed stronger on Monday with index heavyweight Anglo American jumping over seven percent ahead of the separate listing of its paper manufacturing unit Mondi on Tuesday.

"The broader market was in positive territory today, and there was lots of value unlocking around the Anglo stock today because of Mondi," a Johannesburg-based trader said.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Short-covering, safety bid boost prices

(Reuters) - "The fact that the market did almost nothing on somewhat stronger ISM numbers sparked short-covering in a quiet pre-holiday market so here we sit with some small gains, settling into a range," said John Canavan, analyst at Stone and McCarthy Research Associates.




Traders said a safety bid linked to attempted car-bomb attacks in London on Friday, Saturday's attack on Glasgow's airport in Scotland, and the killing of four Spanish tourists in a blast in Yemen, also kept a floor under the market.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Parmalat must defend US investor class-action suit

(Reuters) - The ruling is a defeat for the Italian dairy company and
Chief Executive Enrico Bondi. Both have been trying to distance
themselves from prior management, and are seeking billions of
dollars of damages from the company's former bankers.




Parmalat had filed Europe's largest bankruptcy under about
14 billion euros of debt, after uncovering a 4
billion euro hole in its accounts.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

TREASURIES-Short-covering, safety bid boost prices

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 2 - U.S. Treasury debt prices rose
and yields sank to three-week lows on Monday as short-covering
and a safety bid outweighed a negligible reaction to slightly
stronger-than-expected data on the U.S. manufacturing sector.




"The fact that the market did almost nothing on somewhat
stronger ISM numbers sparked short-covering in
a quiet pre-holiday market so here we sit with some small
gains, settling into a range," said John Canavan, analyst at
Stone and McCarthy Research Associates.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Dollar Declines to 26-Year Low Against the Pound on Interest-Rate Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar fell to a 26-year low
versus the British pound and approached the weakest level against
the euro on speculation the Federal Reserve will keep borrowing
costs unchanged while other central banks extend their increases.

The U.S. currency also declined the most in more than three
months versus the yen after terrorists targeted central London
and Glasgow, Scotland, prompting investors to pare holdings of
riskier assets such as equities and emerging-market assets funded
by loans in Japan, a practice known as the carry trade.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Archer Daniels, ECI, Option Care, Trump, Vornado: 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 11:40 a.m. New York time.

Archer Daniels Midland Co. (ADM US) rose $1.02, or 3.1
percent, to $34.11. The world's largest grain processor was
upgraded to ``buy'' from ``neutral'' at Banc of America
Securities LLC. Analyst Ed Roesch said the company could benefit
from inexpensive corn at harvest. Cheaper corn may lower the
company's ethanol costs and boost the company's earnings
prospects, he wrote.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

U.S. regulators stymie mortgage lenders again

(Reuters) - Rising foreclosures following five heady years of mortgage
lending prompted regulators to write guidelines they say will
curb risky lending practices and protect consumers. The move
followed last year's clampdown on issuance of "exotic"
mortgages, including interest-only loans.




The Federal Reserve and four other regulators on Friday did
not bend to industry concerns that the guidance on subprime
loans would stifle an industry already in the throes of
crisis.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Israel's ECI Telecom to be bought for $1.2 bln

(Reuters) - TEL AVIV, July 2 - Israel's ECI Telecom Ltd. said it has agreed to be acquired by a group of investors led by Swarth Group for about $1.2 billion, sending the shares up nearly 5 percent.



ECI shareholders will receive $10 per share in cash on closing, representing a premium of 22 percent over ECI's average closing share price during the 30 trading days to June 15, the telecom equipment maker said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Wall Street gains on data, takeover news

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on Monday, lifted by takeover news and data showing stronger manufacturing growth in June even as price pressures eased.

As the data reassured investors about the economy, shares of large industrial companies such as Caterpillar Inc. and Honeywell International gained.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Virgin Media buyout would wring profit from taxes

(Reuters) - The UK cable operator said on Monday it appointed long-time adviser Goldman Sachs to find a possible buyer after receiving a takeover approach.




Private equity firm Carlyle Group was behind the offer, people familiar with the situation say.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Treasuries Advance as Concern on Housing Spurs Investors' Flight to Safety

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries rose on speculation
weakness in the subprime mortgage market may curb U.S. economic
growth and on concern over potential terror threats before the
Fourth of July holiday.

``It's a combination of the fear the housing sector will
continue to be a drag on the economy and a flight to quality
from global tensions,'' Gary Pollack, who helps oversee $12
billion as head of fixed-income trading in New York at Deutsche
Bank AG's Private Wealth Management unit.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

U.S. Stocks Advance After Manufacturing Growth Accelerates; ADM Rises

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rose after the fastest
manufacturing growth in 14 months spurred speculation that the
economy will pick up.

Archer Daniels Midland Co., the biggest grain processor,
gained after Banc of America upgraded the stock to ``buy.''
Costco Wholesale Corp., the largest U.S. warehouse club,
climbed after Goldman, Sachs & Co. advised buying the shares.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

US STOCKS-Indexes extend gains after factory data

(Reuters) - The Dow Jones industrial average was up 91.37
points, or 0.68 percent, at 13,499.99. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index was up 11.55 points, or 0.77 percent, at
1,514.90. The Nasdaq Composite Index was up 21.70
points, or 0.83 percent, at 2,624.93.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

TREASURIES-After dip on ISM, safety bid lifts bonds

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 2 - U.S. Treasury debt prices
briefly slipped on Monday, reacting to a somewhat stronger than
expected reading on the U.S. manufacturing sector, then quickly
erased those minor losses as a safety bid provided support.




The Institute for Supply Management said its manufacturing
index rose to 56.0 in June from 55.0 in May, slightly firmer
than Wall Street had forecast.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Benchmark subprime ABX indexes plunge to new lows

(Reuters) - The ABX 06-2 "BBB-" series, which references loans made in
last year's first half, also fell to a record low 59 bid, after
hitting a new low of 60.84 on Friday. The index has fallen 38
percent this year.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

S.Africa millers see tight maize stocks, back fcast

(Reuters) - South Africa's Chamber of Milling on Monday backed a rosier forecast for the season's maize harvest although it expects supplies to remain precarious.

Local maize prices have rallied to record peaks this year after drought hit the agricultural heartland and left the country facing a supply crunch.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Manufacturing growth is stronger in June: ISM

(Reuters) - The June reading was the survey's highest since April of 2006 and the report reinforced the view that economic growth was recovering after nearly stalling in the first quarter.




"We continue to see a rebound in growth in the second half," said Don Kowalchik, debt strategist at A.G. Edwards & Sons in St Louis, Missouri.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Emerging-Market Bonds Gain as Investors' Interest in Risky Assets Returns

(Bloomberg) -- Emerging-market bond demand
increased, led by Ecuador and Venezuela securities, reflecting
greater investor willingness to accept risk.

Developing nations' bonds are rebounding from losses last
week, when concern about contagion from the U.S. subprime
mortgage market slump triggered aversion to high-risk assets.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Crude Oil Falls After Refinery Shutdown in Kansas Curbs Petorluem Demand

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell from a 10-month high in
New York as a refinery shutdown in Kansas cut demand.

Coffeyville Resources LLC shut its refinery in Coffeyville,
Kansas, yesterday because of flooding on the Verdigris River,
according to as statement on its Web site. The 108,000-barrel-a-
day refinery can produce about 2.1 million daily gallons of
gasoline.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

US STOCKS-Indexes rise on telecoms takeovers

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 2 - U.S. stocks rose on Monday,
boosted by takeover news in the telecommunications sector.




Canada's largest telephone company, BCE Inc
, agreed to a US$32.8 billion buyout, excluding debt,
from a group that includes the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan on
Saturday, in the biggest buyout in Canadian corporate history.
For details, see [ID:nN02315411].


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Indonesian Inflation Slows to Seven-Month Low; Bank May Cut Interest Rate

(Bloomberg) -- Indonesia's inflation eased to a
seven-month low in June, and the pace may encourage the central
bank to cut interest rates further to spur economic growth.

Consumer prices rose 5.8 percent from a year earlier after
gaining 6 percent in May, the Central Statistics Bureau said in
Jakarta today. The median estimate of 16 economists surveyed by
Bloomberg News was for a 5.9 percent increase. Inflation
accelerated to 0.2 percent from a month earlier.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

AirAsia to Order 25 Airbus A320s Planes Valued at $1.8 Billion, People Say

(Bloomberg) -- AirAsia Bhd., Southeast Asia's
largest budget carrier, plans to place an order for 25 single-
aisle planes, valued at $1.8 billion from Airbus SAS, two people
with direct knowledge of the deal said.

AirAsia is converting options for A320 planes that were
part of an order placed in January, said the people, who
declined to be identified before details are made public.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

South Korean Won Rises as Export Growth Quickens; Government Bonds Advance

(Bloomberg) -- South Korea's won had its highest
close since Dec. 14 on speculation growth in Asia's third-
largest economy will accelerate, helped by rising exports.
Government bonds declined.

The won gained for a third day as a government report today
showed exports, which account for about 40 percent of the
economy, grew faster than expected in June. The finance minister
said improving overseas sales will help drive a quicker economic
expansion in the next six months. The currency touched the
highest in almost 10 years against the yen on June 22 and is
trading within 0.3 percent of that level today.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News