CME buy of CBOT looks likely as shareholders vote

(Reuters) - Most analysts are predicting victory for Chicago Mercantile
Exchange Holdings Inc. after the company improved its
bid for a third time on Friday in an 11th hour move to quell
dissent among CBOT Holdings shareholders.




A vote that looked like it might be a toss-up, given a
higher competing bid for CBOT from IntercontinentalExchange
Inc. ., now has the makings of a landslide.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Sarkozy May Clash With EU, Trichet Over Plans to Revive France's Economy

(Bloomberg) -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy has
a message for European finance ministers and central bankers
criticizing his plans to revive France's economy: Back off.

Sarkozy, 52, heads to Brussels today to meet officials from
the 12 other nations that share the euro. At the meeting, he
will defend his plan to cut taxes even though they may cause the
budget deficit to exceed government forecasts in 2008.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Retail Sales Stalled in June Amid Housing Recession: U.S. Economy Preview

(Bloomberg) -- Sales at U.S. retailers stalled in
June following the biggest gain in more than a year as the
housing recession led consumers to tighten their belts, a report
this week may show.

Retail sales were probably unchanged last month after a 1.4
percent gain in May, according to the median estimate in a
Bloomberg News survey ahead of a July 13 report. Rising fuel
prices boosted the cost of imports, caused the trade deficit to
swell and hurt consumer confidence, other reports may show.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Bristol-Myers Shares, With Few `Buys,' May Rise More on Experimental Drugs

(Bloomberg) -- Just when a majority of analysts say
Bristol-Myers Squibb Co. has done about all it can for
shareholders, new medicines for diabetes and cancer, together
with takeover speculation, may keep the stock rising.

Seventeen of 23 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg rate the
stock ``hold'' or ``sell'' after the New York-based drugmaker
reached the highest in five years. Bristol-Myers's revived
research pipeline helped the shares to the second-biggest gain
among the eight largest U.S. drugmakers this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Mom and pop to buy more global stocks: study

(Reuters) - By 2025, they will quintuple to nearly $700 trillion with
60 percent of future growth coming from Russia, India and
China, among the top prospect markets.




That is more than twice the growth rate expected from
developed markets like the United States, the study noted.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

EADS, EDF, Suez, Gaz de France, Total and Alstom: French Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of the following companies may
rise or fall on the Paris stock exchange. Symbols are in
parentheses after company names, and prices are from the July 6
close.

The CAC 40 Index advanced 43.16, or 0.7 percent, to 6102.69,
and rose 0.8 percent for the week of July 2 to July 6. The SBF
120 index gained 0.7 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Asia's Currencies Strengthen as Demand for Riskier Assets May Increase

(Bloomberg) -- Asian currencies, including the Thai
baht and the Malaysian ringgit, strengthened on speculation signs
of improving global growth will encourage investors to put money
in riskier emerging-market assets.

Seven of the 10 most-active Asian currencies, excluding the
yen, also gained today as rising regional equities may attract
more funds into the region. Taiwan's dollar and the yen, used as
funding currencies for the so-called carry trade, declined as
investors borrow them to buy higher-yielding assets elsewhere.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News