European Government Bonds Drop on Speculation ECB Will Signal Higher Rates

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds fell for a
third day on speculation European Central Bank President Jean-
Claude Trichet will signal further interest-rate increases after
policy makers conclude their monthly meeting.

The slide in debt has pushed yields on Europe's benchmark
bund up 11 basis points this week to the highest since June 25.
While all 42 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News forecast the
Frankfurt-based ECB will hold borrowing costs at 4 percent today,
futures trading shows investors are raising bets the key rate
will reach 4.5 percent by year-end.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

S.Korea says tax on Lone Star property deal legal

(Reuters) - Last year, U.S. private equity fund Lone Star appealed in Seoul the decision to impose a $26.6 million tax penalty on the property deal.




Read more at Reuters.com Business News

TPG, Affinity Partners Seek Asia's First Covenant-Lite Loan, People Say

(Bloomberg) -- TPG Inc. and Affinity Equity Partners
Ltd. plan Asia's first loan that provides banks with minimal
protection to fund their S$2.2 billion ($1.4 billion) buyout of
Singapore's United Test & Assembly Center Ltd., said two people
with direct knowledge of the transaction.

The firms hired JPMorgan Chase & Co., ABN Amro Holding NV
and Merrill Lynch & Co. to arrange $1.25 billion of bonds and
loans, including the first so-called covenant-lite structure in
the region, said the people, who declined to be named because
the information isn't public. Covenant-lite loans have less
protection for lenders than other bank debt.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

European Government Bonds May Decline on View ECB Will Signal Higher Rates

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds may fall on
speculation European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet
will signal further interest-rate increases after policy makers
conclude their monthly meeting.

While all 42 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News forecast
the Frankfurt-based ECB will hold borrowing costs at 4 percent
today, futures trading shows investors are raising bets the key
rate will reach 4.5 percent by year-end. Yields on Europe's
benchmark bund have risen 10 basis points this week.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Gafisa, Grupo Carso, Iansa, Votorantim: Latin American Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may make
significant gains or losses in Brazil and Mexico today. Symbols
are in parentheses after the company name, and stock prices are
from the last session.

In Brazil, preferred shares are the most commonly traded
class of stock.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Yuan Falls as China Government May Want Two-Way Moves to Curb `Hot Money'

(Bloomberg) -- The yuan fell on speculation China is
boosting currency fluctuations to deter so-called hot money
inflows into the country.

China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange last week
said it plans to begin inspection of bank loans to foreigners to
stop illegal inflows. Two-way yuan movements will increase the
potential losses for investors wagering the currency will keep
rising.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Western Mining Raises $816 Million in Shanghai at Top of IPO Price Range

(Bloomberg) -- Western Mining Co., a Chinese
producer of zinc, copper and lead, raised 6.2 billion yuan
($816.4 million) from an initial public offering in Shanghai to
raise funds for expansion and pay debt.

The company, based in Xining, Qinghai, sold 460 million new
shares at 13.48 yuan each, it said in a statement today. That's
the top end of the 12 yuan to 13.48 yuan range given July 2. UBS
AG's joint venture in China, UBS Securities Co., arranged the
sale, the first in China for Europe's biggest bank by assets.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Gloucester Coal Shareholders Vote Against $355 Million Xstrata Takeover

(Bloomberg) -- Gloucester Coal Ltd., which is under a
A$391 million ($335 million) takeover bid from Xstrata Plc, said
its shareholders voted against the proposal today.

Gloucester Coal would carry on with a business plan it had
in place prior to the bid, the Sydney-based company said in a
statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

European Naphtha Prices for August Drop For First Day in Three on Oil Drop

(Bloomberg) -- European naphtha prices fell for the
first day in three following a decline in crude oil before the
release of U.S. Department of Energy stockpiles data tomorrow.
Propane also dropped.

Naphtha swaps for August fell $5.68, or 0.8 percent, to
$671.37 a metric ton as of 5:05 p.m. in London, according to
energy broker PVM. The August naphtha spread to crude oil
narrowed $1.15 to $1.70 a barrel.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Taiwan: Asian Local Bond Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following events and economic
reports may influence Asian local-currency bonds today. Yields
are from the previous session.

China: The nation should ``strictly control'' an asset
bubble in the stock market to ease short-term speculation, an
affiliate of the nation's top planning agency said yesterday.
The absence of a capital gains tax on equity investments has
made short-term trading more attractive than holding stocks over
a longer period and made it the main model for most Chinese
investors, the State Information Center said.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Lawson, Diamond City, Snow Brand Milk Products: Japanese Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may move in
Japanese markets tomorrow. Prices are as of the close of trading.
Statements were released after the close. Stock symbols are in
parentheses.

Aeon Mall Co. (8905 JQ): The shopping mall developer said
first-quarter net income rose 6.7 percent to 3.14 billion yen
($25.6 million), with a 15 percent advance in revenue. The stock
gained 110 yen, or 2.9 percent, to 3,970.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Mexico's Lamosa plans share offer of up to $240 mln

(Reuters) - Lamosa announced on Monday it had agreed to buy
Porcelanite, a unit of Mexican conglomerate Carso
, which is controlled by billionaire tycoon Carlos
Slim, for $800 million.




"The offer could happen between the last quarter of this
year and the final quarter of 2008," Lamosa chief financial
officer Tomas Garza told Reuters on Wednesday. He said the
offer would be between $160 million and $240 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Platinum Declines as Users May Seek Cheaper Alternatives; Palladium Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum fell in London on speculation
carmakers, the biggest users, will seek cheaper alternatives.
Palladium rose.

Platinum is more than three times the cost of palladium.
Carmakers, the biggest consumers of both metals to reduce
pollution from tailpipes, switched to using more platinum after
palladium prices soared to a record in 2001.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

REFILE-Mexican stocks rise, driven by America Movil gains

(Reuters) - Trading volume was low as investors in the United States,
who are big players in Mexican markets, stayed away for the
U.S. Independence Day holiday.




Shares in America Movil pushed hardest
among the index's winners, gaining 1.29 percent to 35.45
pesos.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

BMW, Mercedes mull subcompact partnership: magazine

(Reuters) - Heavy cost pressure means Mini runs the risk of losing money should its Oxford, England, plant not run at full capacity, so parent BMW is considering finding a partner.




Discussions could include Honda and existing partner PSA , and Mercedes, its arch-rival, as well.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Biofuels to buoy farm prices in next decade: OECD/FAO

(Reuters) - The study, co-written by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization , said biofuels would have a major impact on the agriculture sector between 2007 to 2016.




"Bioenergies have become a key factor in the functioning of agriculture markets," Loek Boonekamp, a senior OECD official, told reporters after the release of the study.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Mice move in to new New York Times building

(Reuters) - "There are going to be issues . And a very typical issue is mice," said David Thurm, the company's chief information officer who oversaw the building project.




Designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, the building dominates the skyline on the western side of Midtown Manhattan, its antenna topping out at 1,142 feet.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

China state fund to target company stakes-Deloitte

(Reuters) - The state fund would probably take a different approach, as
it did with the recent $3 billion purchase of a 10 percent
non-voting stake in U.S. private equity house Blackstone Group
, Budden said.




The fund will invest $200 billion of the country's $1.2
trillion in foreign exchange reserves, aiming to earn higher
returns by making riskier investments.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

S.Africa maize deliveries up at 3.622 mln T - SAGIS

(Reuters) - White maize deliveries from South African farms rose to 2.25 million tonnes in the week to June 29 while yellow maize was up at 1.372 million tonnes, data showed on Wednesday.

The data means South Africa could face an even bigger harvest deficit this season, given a gap between the deliveries and official crop forecasts.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Lead Climbs to Record on Supply Disruption, Chinese Demand; Copper Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Lead climbed to a record for a third
consecutive session in London on speculation that supply disruptions
and slowing production of the metal in China, the world's largest
producer, will curb output. Copper and aluminum gained.

Production of refined metal in China has slowed this year as
smelters cut output due to shortages of lead concentrate, a raw
material that is smelted into metal, Standard Bank Group Ltd.
said in a report. The shortage has been exacerbated by a stoppage
at Ivernia Inc.'s Australian mine that halted deliveries in March
following a lead-poisoning investigation, the bank said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Private equity bidding for Livedoor's Yayoi-sources

(Reuters) - Japanese Internet firm Livedoor bought Yayoi in November
2004 from Japanese private equity firm Advantage Partners for
about 20 billion yen , sources have said.




Since then Livedoor has suffered a series of setbacks. Its
shares were delisted last year after its founder Takafumi Horie
was imprisoned for securities fraud.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

South Sudan spends $9.5 mln to save biggest bank

(Reuters) - South Sudan has spent $9.5 million to bail out the autonomous region's biggest bank, privately owned Nile Commercial Bank Plc, after an ambitious expansion forced a restructuring.

NCB has received around 15 million Sudanese pounds from the south's central bank and 4 million from the government to save it, said NCB Operations Manager Samson Arap Ephraim.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Buyout firms circle $4.2 billion HK property firm

(Reuters) - The firm issued a statement on Wednesday confirming discussions, but it would not comment further on a South China Morning Post report on Tuesday that mentioned bids from the Children's Investment Fund Management , Och-Ziff Capital Management Group, Marathon and Fortress Investment Group, and U.S. buyout firm Texas Pacific Group .




Its shares hit a record high of HK$16 in morning trade, and were trading up 19 percent at HK$14.66 by 0722 GMT, giving the firm a market value of HK$33 billion .


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

China Banks Face Battle to Stop Loans for Buying Stocks, Ex-FSA Head Says

(Bloomberg) -- Chinese banks, lacking information on
borrowings and seeking short-term profits, are struggling to
control loans from being illegally used for stock purchases, the
former chairman of Britain's Financial Services Authority said.

``When a company asks for a loan to replenish its working
capital, banks have a hard time figuring out whether it's telling
the truth,'' Sir Howard Davies said yesterday in an interview in
Beijing, where he and other overseas advisers met with the China
Banking Regulatory Commission.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News