S&P cuts ComEd to junk on concerns about rate freeze

(Reuters) - "While the Illinois legislative session was extended into
the summer, making passage of any bill contingent on a
three-fifths majority vote, we believe that legislators remain
under pressure to address constituent demands for rate relief,"
S&P said in a statement.




"Reports that senators from the southern part of the state
refuse to allow the state's budget to go to a floor vote until
concrete rate relief in excess of the $500 million relief
package currently offered by the state's utilities and
generators is secured raises concerns that
the ultimate conclusion in this debate could very well be a
rate freeze," S&P said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Tropical Storm Barry Forms in the Gulf of Mexico, Second Storm of Season

(Bloomberg) -- Tropical Storm Barry, the second named
storm of this year's Atlantic hurricane season, has formed in the
Gulf of Mexico, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

Barry's center was about 320 miles (520 kilometers)
southwest of Tampa, Florida, and about 235 miles west of Key
West, Florida, as of 5 p.m. eastern time, the National Weather
Service's National Hurricane Center said on its Web site today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Coffee Rises to Three-Month High; Brazil Farm Subsidies May Boost Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Coffee in New York rose to a three-
month high after Brazil, the biggest producer, announced a
subsidy plan that may boost domestic prices for arabica beans.

The government said it will pay farmers as much as 40 reais
($21) to ensure they get 300 reais a bag, and will hold auctions
twice a month. Brazil will subsidize as many as 5 million bags
through the end of the harvest in October. Arabica, the mild-
tasting bean preferred by coffeehouse operators such as
Starbucks Corp., is traded in New York.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Liquor Barn CEO on leave in takeover battle twist

(Reuters) - "I have not received a phone call from the lawyers," he
said in an interview. "I'm somewhat in the dark."




Mather, who last week spent C$7.2 million to boost his
holdings in Liquor Barn to just under 20 percent, said he will
continue to look at alternatives to the bid. He believes the
offer is inadequate.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-U.S. court: Internet phone carriers must pay into fund

(Reuters) - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia said
the Federal Communications Commission was within its authority
last year when it issued an order requiring providers of
voice-over-Internet protocol, or VOIP, service to pay into the
Universal Service Fund.




The fund subsidizes phone service to rural and low-income
areas as well as communications services and Internet access for
schools, hospitals and libraries.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Takeover of Forzani Group doubtful, analysts say

(Reuters) - New York-based Cerberus Capital Management has been named
as Forzani's prime suitor, with two approaches by it already
spurned, the Globe and Mail newspaper reported.




Fellow private equity firm Apollo Management LP is also
named as being interested in the company, whose flagship sports
goods and sportswear chains include Sport Chek and Sports
Experts.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Vicious US bankruptcy court battles coming-experts

(Reuters) - In recent years, ballooning legions of hedge funds have
supplanted banks as major sources of credit for companies
through direct loans and the purchase of tradable bank and
high-yield debt.




But as today's business cycle turns, debt-laden companies
will find the new breed of creditors less forgiving than banks
in forging successful reorganizations, forcing more to
liquidate after costly legal battles, senior executives of some
of the top restructuring advisory firms said at conference.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. Treasuries Fall After Economy Adds More Jobs Than Forecast During May

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries declined, pushing 10-year
note yields to the highest level in more than nine months, after
reports showed the U.S. created more jobs in May than economists
forecast and manufacturing unexpectedly accelerated.

Ten-year securities headed for a fourth weekly loss as
investors reduced speculation the Federal Reserve will cut
interest rates as the economy recovers. Separate data showed the
Fed's preferred measure of inflation declined to what policy
makers have described as their ``comfort zone.''


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Ford's U.S. sales decline; Nissan, Chrysler up

(Reuters) - The three were the earliest of the major automakers to report results for May, which were expected to continue a downtrend for the industry that began late last year.




Ford said overall sales fell 6.8 percent last month, dragged down by weak demand for its sedans and a planned cut in sales to daily rental fleets. Cars sales fell 17.7 percent and truck sales were flat.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Hovnanian says subprime took toll on quarter

(Reuters) - After the close of the market on Thursday, Hovnanian reported a fiscal second-quarter loss of $30.7 million, or 49 cents per share, which included about $34 million in pretax charges for land-related write-downs and impairments.




"We believe that the further slippage in housing demand in many locations was largely linked to the tightening of mortgage lending standards, particularly in the subprime market," Ara Hovnanian, the chief executive, said in a conference call with analysts.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Gold climbs to 2-week high after ECB news

(Reuters) - Gold extended gains on Friday to hit a two-week high on speculative buying after the European Central Bank said it had no plans to sell any more gold this year.

Other precious metals also extended gains, with silver hitting a three-week high and platinum and palladium rising to their highest in more than a week.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Hovnanian says may see more impairments

(Reuters) - "We'll continue to monitor conditions in all of our
markets, and if the weakness seen in the first few weeks of the
third quarter continues, then we may have additional
impairments in future quarters," Ara Hovnanian, the chief
executive said in a conference call with analysts.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Global factory growth steady, orders at 10-mth high

(Reuters) - Slower growth was seen in the euro zone as output and new
orders slipped, while an upturn was noted in the United States.




Price pressures also remained, with the input prices index
steady at April's eight-month high of 65.9. Stronger rates of
increase were seen in Japan, China and Britain, while input
price inflation slipped in the United States and the euro zone.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Dollar hits 7-week high vs euro on strong ISM data

(Reuters) - The dollar climbed to seven-week highs against the euro on Friday after U.S. manufacturing activity rose to its highest level since April 2006, slashing expectations of Federal Reserve interest rate cuts this year.

The factory survey followed a stronger-than-expected jobs reading for May and was consistent with a recent string of data showing a stable U.S. economy.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Gauge of U.S. economy flat in latest week - ECRI

(Reuters) - The annualized growth rate in the weekly index edged down
to 6.3 percent from 6.4 percent the previous week.




"With WLI growth holding near a three-year high, the U.S.
economic growth outlook remains positive," said Lakshman
Achuthan, managing director at the institute.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

CVS Caremark, Xerox Propelled U.S. Corporate Bond Sales to a Record in May

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. corporations from CVS Caremark
Corp. to Xerox Corp. sold a record $141 billion of bonds in May
amid signs the economy is rebounding from an economic slowdown
in the first quarter.

Sales shattered the previous high of $131.8 billion in
November, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The issue by
Stamford, Connecticut-based Xerox, the largest maker of high-
speed color printers, came four days after Standard & Poor's
raised the company's credit rating to investment grade, and the
offering from drug retailer CVS was the year's second-largest.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Canadian Stocks Rise on U.S. Job Growth, Gold Prices; Magna, Kinross Gain

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian stocks advanced on signs of a
strengthening U.S. economy after a government report showed U.S.
employers boosted hiring in May. Climbing oil and metal prices also
lifted shares of commodity producers.

``We're back to a resource bias in the market,'' said Paul
Hand, managing director, equity trading, at RBC Capital Markets in
Toronto. ``This is part of the trend that's been in place for the
last three to four years.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks extend gains after solid U.S. jobs data

(Reuters) - While the stronger jobs data initially dimmed expectations
of the Federal Reserve lowering borrowing costs, below-forecast
U.S. inflation data was seen as leaving open the option of
interest rate cuts.




The core personal consumption and expenditure index, a
favoured inflation measure of the Federal Reserve rose just 0.1
percent, below the 0.2 percent median forecast.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Oil Rises on Concern U.S. Gasoline Demand to Outpace Increasing Supplies

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose in New York amid
concern that U.S. refiners aren't increasing gasoline production
enough to replenish stockpiles.

U.S. gasoline supplies in the week ended May 25 were 6.7
percent lower than the five-year average for the period, the
Energy Department said yesterday. Refineries operated at 91.1
percent of capacity last week, unchanged from the week before.
U.S. gasoline consumption peaks during the summer driving season.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Athenahealth, Led by President Bush's Cousin, to File for IPO, People Say

(Bloomberg) -- Athenahealth Inc., the medical-
software company headed by a cousin of President George W. Bush,
plans to go public, taking advantage of a U.S. government push
to automate health-care records, according to people with
knowledge of the matter.

Jonathan Bush, 38, plans to file for Athenahealth's initial
public offering this month, said the people, who declined to be
identified because the decision hasn't been announced.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

May jobs growth unexpectedly strong

(Reuters) - The monthly unemployment rate was unchanged at 4.5 percent
in May.




The department revised April's job-creation figures to show
that 80,000 jobs were created instead of the 88,000 it reported
a month ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Canada's Dollar Rises to 30-Year High as Harper Says Gain Reflects Growth

(Bloomberg) -- The Canadian dollar strengthened to a
30-year high after Prime Minister Stephen Harper said the
Canadian dollar's appreciation reflects an improving economy.

The currency rose to 93.78 U.S. cents at 8:20 a.m. in
Toronto from 93.55 U.S. cents yesterday. It touched 93.79 U.S.
cents, the highest since July 27, 1977. One U.S. dollar buys
C$1.0661.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

European Stocks Advance; Iberdrola, Lafarge, British Energy Lead Gains

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks climbed for a second
day as takeover speculation buoyed the utility and construction
industries and investors speculated a report today will show
economic growth in the U.S. is rebounding.

Iberdrola SA and Lafarge SA rose after a report Belgian
billionaire Albert Frere's Groupe Bruxelles Lambert SA plans to
sell shares, using the proceeds to increase his stakes in the
Spanish and French companies. Volkswagen AG and Groupe Danone
paced gains by companies most dependent on the U.S. for revenue.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Reed Elsevier, British Airways: European Credit-Default Swap Market Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The risk of owning European corporate
bonds fell today, according to traders in the credit-default
swaps market.

Contracts based on 10 million euros ($13 million) of debt
included in the iTraxx Crossover Series 7 Index fell 500 euros
to 189,500 euros, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

ASML Holding, Daily Mail, Enel Plan to Sell Debt: European Bond Alert

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of bond sales
denominated in euros or pounds and expected in the coming days
and weeks.

Investment-Grade Sales


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Top supervisor concerned about U.S. Basel implementation

(Reuters) - Wellink, made the remarks in answer to a question after
addressing an annual gathering of bankers and financiers
organised by the Institute of International Finance .




His comments follow concerns voiced by top European bankers
that the United States may not meet the deadline.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Morgan Stanley Seeks $3.3 Billion of Debt to Fund Investa Bid, People Say

(Bloomberg) -- Morgan Stanley plans to raise about
A$4 billion ($3.3 billion) of debt to fund its bid for Investa
Property Group, the biggest overseas acquisition of Australian
real estate, three people with direct knowledge of the deal said.

Morgan Stanley has invited Citigroup Inc. and Credit Suisse
Group to help it raise the debt for the purchase, which values
Sydney-based Investa at A$6.6 billion, said the people, who
declined to be named because the information isn't public. The
three banks are working out financing details, which may include
loans and mortgage-backed bonds, they said.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Qatari Diar plans $660 mln Morocco resort

(Reuters) - Qatari Diar Real Estate & Investment Co will invest $660 million in a luxury coastal resort of hotels, holiday homes and a golf course near the northern Moroccan city of Tangier.

Nasser Al Ansari, chief executive of the state-owned company, told a news conference on Thursday the al Houara Resort-Tangier would span 234 hectares of prime Atlantic coastal land and would be fully developed by 2011.


Read more at Reuters Africa