Siemens to buy Dade, fueling hopes for Beckman bid

(Reuters) - Shares of Beckman Coulter, the only major stand-alone company in the sector, were up nearly 8 percent.




Dade's deal with German industrial conglomerate Siemens is worth $77 per share, a 38 percent premium over Tuesday's closing price.


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Chrysler loan delayed but deal said on track

(Reuters) - Market sources also told Reuters Loan Pricing Corp. that underwriters remained committed to providing the needed financing for the deal, which marks the first time that a buyout firm has taken over a major U.S. automaker.




The delay in the sale of the loan and wider pricing for other Chrysler-related loans underscored a new skittishness in the debt markets. It also threatened to complicate pending asset sales that are part of the restructuring of the struggling U.S. auto industry.


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UPDATE 2-Stelco posts loss on charges but revenue rises

(Reuters) - The Canadian steelmaker, which is on the auction block,
said it lost C$41 million in the second quarter, compared with
a loss of C$39 million in the first quarter. The company did
not provide a per-share figure.




Excluding the charges, and also factoring out a C$30
million foreign exchange gain on long-term debt, Stelco turned
a profit before income taxes of C$5 million, it said.


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ConocoPhillips cuts 07 production on Venezuela

(Reuters) - Venezuela's president, Hugo Chavez, pushed the company and
Exxon Mobil Corp. out of their oil operations there
after they failed to strike deals to stay in huge projects that
the country wanted to take over.




Speaking on a company conference call, ConocoPhillips Chief
Executive Jim Mulva also said its capital spending could be as
high as $15 billion in 2008, partly due to higher costs.



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UPDATE 2-AMG 2nd-qtr profit up 24 pct, raises outlook

(Reuters) - BOSTON, July 25 - Asset management firm
Affiliated Managers Group Inc. posted on Wednesday a 24
percent jump in second-quarter profit that exceeded consensus
estimates and the firm raised its full-year outlook.




The bullish outlook helped spark a rebound in AMG's shares,
which had slumped as much as 7.3 percent on concerns about
slowing investor flows into the group's funds and overall stock
market volatility.


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Canadian Stocks Drop, Led by Barrick. Teck, on Signs of Slower U.S. Growth

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian stocks dropped a fourth
straight day, led by metals producers Teck Cominco Ltd. and Barrick
Gold Corp., as falling U.S. home sales heightened concern that
demand for raw materials may cool.

Home resales fell for a fourth straight month in June as the
U.S. housing market remained in the worst slump in 16 years,
according to the National Association of Realtors. Yesterday,
Countrywide Financial Corp., the biggest U.S. mortgage lender, cut
its profit forecast as a growing number of homeowners fell behind
on home-loan payments.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Brazil's air trouble due to politics, analysts say

(Reuters) - An air crash that killed at least 199 people in Sao Paulo
last week follows nearly a year of chaotic air travel in which
flight delays and cancellations became routine.




Critics say President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva appointed
friends and allies rather than career civil servants when he
created the new aviation authority ANAC last year. Previously,
the Air Force controlled civil aviation.


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