U.K.'S Brown, in U.S. Meeting, Seeks to Define His Relationship With Bus

(Bloomberg) -- Prime Minister Gordon Brown will
attempt to set a new tone for Britain's relationship with the
U.S. when he travels to Camp David, Maryland, this weekend for
meetings with President George W. Bush.

Brown, who took over from Tony Blair on June 27, has
stressed the need to preserve the U.K.'s ``special
relationship'' with the U.S. while distinguishing himself from
his predecessor by appointing aides critical of Bush's
administration.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

U.S. Economy Probably Accelerated Last Quarter on Manufacturing Rebound

(Bloomberg) -- The U.S. economy probably grew last
quarter at the fastest pace in more than a year as manufacturing
rebounded and exports improved, economists said before a
government report today.

The 3.2 percent annual pace of growth for gross domestic
product is the median estimate of 85 economists surveyed by
Bloomberg News. The growth rate would follow a 0.7 percent gain
in the first quarter that was the weakest since 2002.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Mexico's Central Bank May Keep Interest Rates Unchanged as Economy Slows

(Bloomberg) -- Mexico's central bank will probably
keep its overnight lending rate unchanged today after reports on
retail sales and industrial production signaled economic growth
may be slowing more than expected.

Policy makers will hold the benchmark rate at 7.25 percent,
according to 17 of 21 economists surveyed by Bloomberg. The bank
raised rates for the first time in almost two years in April as
a ``preventive'' measure and kept a ``restrictive bias'' last
month.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Kia Posts First Quarterly Profit in a Year on Pricer Sedans in South Korea

(Bloomberg) -- Kia Motors Corp., South Korea's
second-biggest carmaker, reported its first profit in a year
after it increased sales of Opirus sedans and trimmed costs.

Net income in the three months ended June 30 rose 36
percent to 61.4 billion won ($67 million) compared with 45.1
billion won a year earlier, the Seoul-based automaker said in a
statement today. That was higher than the 43 billion won median
estimate in a Bloomberg survey of seven analysts. Sales dropped
7.3 percent to 4.14 trillion won.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

VF Corp. COO sees store growth with Lucy, Seven

(Reuters) - He said the company also plans to open about 20 Lucy stores
a year, to add an additional 200 stores to the existing
50-store base.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

HMOs to start ad blitz against Medicare cuts

(Reuters) - U.S. health insurers will launch one of their biggest campaigns ever on Thursday to stem the loss of billions of dollars in Medicare payments and they will feature seniors, like Harry and Louise a decade ago, fretting over their benefit coverage.




The deep-pocketed industry is on defense as the U.S. House of Representatives considers slashing $47 billion in payments to private health plans in Medicare, the federal insurance for the elderly and disabled, to help expand a popular children's health program.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

European Bonds Rally, Pushing Benchmark Yield to Its Lowest in Two Months

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds rallied,
pushing 10-year yields to the lowest in more than two months, as
stocks slumped and the risk of holding corporate debt soared.

Benchmark bunds rose for a third day on rising concern about
loan defaults and as investors balked at funding takeovers.
Traders also scaled back bets that the European Central Bank will
push interest rates higher as a report showed business confidence
in Germany weakened for a second month.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Kellogg Co. 2nd-quarter profit rises

(Reuters) - The company, which makes foods including Special K cereal and Keebler cookies, said profit was $301 million, or 75 cents a share, in the second quarter, compared with $267 million, or 67 cents a share, a year earlier.



Analysts on average forecast 70 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Brazil's Telemar profit soars 65 percent

(Reuters) - Telemar, which controls Brazil's largest fixed-line
operator and the wireless company Oi, attributed the higher
earnings to 369,000 new users, 30 percent more than in the
preceding quarter; a strong operating performance; and
favorable interest rates and foreign exchange.




The profit was 36 percent higher than in the first
quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Genlyte quarterly earnings rise

(Reuters) - Analysts on average were expecting earnings of $1.29 a
share, excluding items, according to Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 2-Apache 2nd-qtr net profit dips, shares fall

(Reuters) - HOUSTON, July 26 - Independent oil and gas
producer Apache Corp. said on Thursday its
second-quarter profit fell 12 percent from a year-ago when it
recorded a one-time Canadian tax benefit.




The Houston-based company said its second-quarter profit
declined to $632 million, or $1.89 a diluted share, compared
with $722 million or $2.17 a diluted share in the 2006
quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 2-Harsco profit beats Wall St view; outlook raised

(Reuters) - "Our positive outlook for the second half of 2007 is
underpinned by continued strength in the majority of our
end-markets and positive global economic conditions," President
and Chief Financial Officer Salvatore Fazzolari said in a
statement.




Net income in the second quarter rose to $83.1 million, or
98 cents a share, from $53.9 million, or 64 cents a share, a
year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Brunswick profit down 29 pct on softer U.S. demand

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 26 - Brunswick Corp. , the world's largest maker of recreational boats, posted a 29 percent drop in quarterly earnings on Thursday as U.S. consumers steered clear of big-ticket, discretionary purchases.



Second-quarter net profit fell to $59.3 million, or 65 cents per share, from $83.2 million, or 87 cents a share, a year before. Analysts, on average, expected 64 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-EDP first-half net rises 12.7 pct, below forecasts

(Reuters) - LISBON, July 26 - Energias de Portugal
reported a lower-than-expected 12.7 percent rise in first-half
on Thursday on higher electricity tariffs in Iberia and Brazil
and lower costs.




Net profit rose to 422.1 million euros ,
compared with an average forecast of 432 million in a Reuters
poll of 10 analysts.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

St. Jude gets US okay for heart access device

(Reuters) - The device also received a Health Canada license, the company said in a statement.






Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Apple jumps with earnings, upgrades

(Reuters) - That triggered a strong rise in the stock in early trading Thursday, with shares up $10.49, or 7.6 percent, at $147.75 on the Nasdaq. Apple's shares had already jumped 62 percent since the start of the year, when Chief Executive Steve Jobs unveiled the iPhone.




Combining a wireless phone, Web browser and media player that offers service over AT&T Inc.'s mobile network, the iPhone is Apple's attempt to build a third product line that will equal its computer and iPod businesses. It went on sale on June 29.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Gold slips to one-week low on profit-taking

(Reuters) - Gold slipped to a one-week low on Thursday as investors took profits from its 11-week highs, but analysts said firmer oil prices and weaker dollar outlook might support the metal.

Spot gold rose as high as $676.60 an ounce before falling to $666.40. It was quoted at $670.25/670.85 by 1431 GMT, against $674.40/675.20 late in New York on Wednesday when it dropped about 1.5 percent.


Read more at Reuters Africa

WCI says not received definitive acquisition offer

(Reuters) - WCI said it will continue exploring other strategic
options, including asset sales, strategic partnerships,
minority investments, and recapitalization transactions to
enhance shareholder value.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Sandell against Warburg offer for Bausch & Lomb

(Reuters) - PHILADELPHIA, July 26 - Sandell Asset Management Corp. said on Thursday it would vote against Warburg Pincus' $3.67 billion takeover bid for Bausch & Lomb Inc. and said the eye-care company's concerns about a rival $4.23 billion offer from Advanced Medical Optics Inc could be resolved.



Sandell said it believes Advanced Medical's $75 per share cash and stock offer is superior to the $65 per share cash offer by Warburg Pincus. The investment fund said Bausch & Lomb was unnecessarily dismissing the Advanced Medical proposal in favor of a transaction that significantly undervalues the company.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 2-Ford advances Jaguar, Land Rover sale talks

(Reuters) - LONDON, July 26 - U.S. carmaker Ford Motor Co.
said it plans to continue talks with selected suitors for
its Jaguar and Land Rover brands, but stopped short on Thursday
of committing itself to selling them.




"We are pleased with the positive expressions of interest in
the business we have received and in the strength and quality of
the interested parties," said Ford in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Blackstone has sold most Equity Office property: WSJ

(Reuters) - Blackstone completed its $23 billion acquisition of office landlord Equity Office Property Trust in February. Including debt, the deal was valued at $39 billion, making it the biggest leveraged buyout in history.




A Blackstone spokesman was not immediately available for comment.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Exxon profit dips on natgas price weakness

(Reuters) - The company's shares fell 4 percent to $89.08 on the New York Stock Exchange, weighing on the Dow Jones industrial average, of which it is a component.




Still, it was another enormous quarter for Exxon Mobil, the world's largest publicly-traded company, which has ridden the energy boom to previously unforeseen levels of profitability.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-U.S. June durable goods orders rose 1.4 pct

(Reuters) - Economists in a Reuters poll taken ahead of the report
were expecting durable goods orders to increase by a somewhat
bigger 1.8 percent. June's increase came after a 2.3 percent
decrease the prior month, a decline that had been driven by a
drop in aircraft orders.




U.S. Treasury debt prices rose on Thursday, stretching to
new session highs, after the weaker-than-expected data on
durable goods suggested flagging business growth in the latter
part of the second quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

European Stocks Fall on Takeover Concern; Credit Suisse, Axa, Atos Retreat

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks fell the most in four
months on concern mergers and acquisitions will diminish as the
financing of takeovers becomes more difficult.

Credit Suisse Group and Axa SA led a drop by financial
companies. Atos Origin SA and Iberia Lineas Aereas de Espana SA,
which have been in sale talks with buyout groups, also declined.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Canada Dollar Falls Most in 13 Months as Investors Unwind Carry-Trade Bets

(Bloomberg) -- The Canadian dollar fell the most in
13 months as declining global stocks led investors to unwind
risky bets on currencies where interest rates may be headed
higher.

Canada's dollar was one of 16 major currencies to drop
versus the yen today. Investors have borrowed in Japan, where
the benchmark rate is 0.5 percent, to buy assets in economies
such as Canada where rates are higher, in a bet known as the
carry trade. As stocks fall and speculation mounts that losses
will climb from subprime mortgages, investors become risk averse
and exit those carry-trade bets, buying back yen.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

UPDATE 1-Manila revives power sales with $930 mln deal

(Reuters) - MANILA, July 26 - The Philippine government sold a
600-megawatt coal-fired power plant for $930 million to a group
led by AES Transpower on Thursday, successfully reviving
its energy privatisation programme.




The winning bid was nearly two thirds higher than the $562
million price tag paid for the plant, in Masinloc, Zambales
northwest of Manila, in a 2004 sale that was later nullified.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

CORRECTION: Wall St set for slide on oil, housing, credit

(Reuters) - NEW YORK - Stocks headed for a sharply lower open on Thursday as worries about a rise in oil prices, housing slump and worsening climate for financing corporate takeovers drove a global sell-off in shares.




U.S. crude for September rose to $77.24 in electronic trade, stoking concern about the toll of higher energy prices on personal spending as consumers grapple with a stalled housing market.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

AmerisourceBergen quarterly earnings rise

(Reuters) - Fiscal third-quarter net income was $130 million, or 69 cents per share, compared with $119 million, or 58 cents per share, a year earlier, the Valley Forge, Pennsylvania-based drug wholesaler and pharmacy services provider said.



Excluding one-time items, AmerisourceBergen earned 60 cents a share. On that basis, analysts on average had forecast 62 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Equitable Resources 2nd-qtr earnings rise

(Reuters) - Income for the second quarter was $107.3 million, or 87
cents a diluted share, compared with $43.9 million, or 36 cents
a share in the same quarter a year earlier.




Pittsburgh-based Equitable recorded a $119.4 million
pre-tax gain for the sale of 81 billion cubic feet of gas into
a partnership with Range Resources under which the two
companies will jointly develop the Nora field in southwestern
Virginia.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Manor Care 2nd-qtr profit falls on buy-out costs

(Reuters) - Net income fell to $43.6 million, or 54 cents a share, from
$45.6 million, or 58 cents a year ago.




Revenue rose 7 percent to $958 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Office Depot posts lower quarterly profit

(Reuters) - Excluding special items, Office Depot said it earned 43 cents a share for the quarter. On that basis, analysts, on average, were expecting Office Depot to earn 43 cents a share for the quarter.




The Delray Beach, Florida-based company, which operates 1,186 stores in the United States and Canada, said quarterly revenue rose 4 percent to $3.6 billion. The average Reuters estimate was about $3.7 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Coca-Cola Enterprises 2nd-quarter profit falls

(Reuters) - The largest bottler of Coca-Cola Co drinks said
profit was $270 million, or 56 cents per share, for the second
quarter, down from $339 million, or 71 cents per share, in the
year-ago period, when earnings were boosted by a tax benefit.




Excluding restructuring charges and other items, profit was
58 cents per share for the company, which bottles, sells and
distributes more than three-quarters of the Coke drinks sold in
North America.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Thomson posts higher second-quarter profit

(Reuters) - OTTAWA, July 26 - Electronic publisher Thomson Corp. reported a higher second-quarter profit on Thursday, as it works to complete its purchase of Reuters Group Plc .



Thomson, which publishes legal, tax, financial, scientific and health care information, said it earned $377 million, or 58 cents per share. That was up from a profit of $173 million, or 26 cents per share, in the same period a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Pound Falls to Lowest in Week as Report Shows House-Price Growth Stalled

(Bloomberg) -- The pound fell to the lowest in more
than a week after a report showed U.K. house-price growth almost
stalled in July, signaling five interest-rate increases in the
past year are beginning to bite.

The U.K. currency slid from near a 26-year high against the
dollar after Nationwide Building Society said house prices rose
0.1 percent from June, the slowest pace of growth in 15 months.
Bank of England Deputy Governor John Gieve said this week that
benchmark borrowing costs are probably ``restrictive'' at a six-
year high of 5.75 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Credit Suisse, UBS at Risk if Buyout Slump Continues, Deutsche Bank Says

(Bloomberg) -- Credit Suisse Group and UBS AG,
Switzerland's biggest banks, could see earnings fall by as much
as 19 percent if revenue from arranging leveraged buyouts falls,
according to research by Deutsche Bank AG.

A ``permanent breakdown in the LBO market'' is the ``biggest
risk to our positive view on investment banks,'' London-based
Deutsche Bank analyst Matt Spick said in a report to investors
today. Deutsche currently has ``buy'' ratings on both banks.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Dow Chemical second-quarter profit rises

(Reuters) - Analysts on average had forecast quarterly earnings of
$1.05 a share, according to Reuters Estimates.




Dow has announced numerous joint ventures over the last few
months in Libya, China, Brazil and Saudi Arabia, in an attempt
to gain access to cheaper raw materials and overcome soaring
energy costs.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Angola wants foreign investors for diamond sector

(Reuters) - Angola's state-run diamond company wants foreign companies as partners to tap what it believes are vast undiscovered pockets of the precious gems, a company official said on Thursday.

In an interview with Reuters, Endiama spokesman Sebastiao Panzo said the mineral-rich southwestern African nation wanted to attract investors who were interested in bottom-up diamond exploration and prospecting.


Read more at Reuters Africa

UPDATE 2-EU okays Roche's new anaemia drug Mircera

(Reuters) - ZURICH, July 26 - Swiss-based pharmaceuticals firm
Roche Holding AG said on Thursday the European
Commission had approved its long-acting drug Mircera to treat
anaemia associated with chronic kidney disease.




The potential blockbuster drug belongs to a class of
medicines known as erythropoiesis stimulating agents. They are
used to boost red blood cells in anaemia patients to help avoid
the need for blood transfusions.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Firms scour Botswana, Zambia for uranium after lull

(Reuters) - Companies are piling into African countries like Botswana and Zambia that could hold rich uranium deposits, but where exploration was abandoned decades ago when prices crashed.

A 10-fold surge in uranium prices over the past five years has spurred a new rush to find deposits.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Platinum Gains as South African Talks May Lead to Strike; Palladium Rises

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum rose in London for a second
straight day on speculation pay talks will lead to a strike in
South Africa, the world's biggest producer of the precious
metal. Palladium declined.

Anglo Platinum Ltd., accounting for more than half of South
Africa's output, will resume pay talks today at its Rustenburg
office with the National Union of Mineworkers. Platinum has
climbed 3.9 percent this month as unresolved industry wage talks
since May heightened speculation miners will strike.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Nordic Stocks Including Volvo, Skanska Gain; Electrolux Shares Fall

(Bloomberg) -- Nordic stocks including Volvo AB, the
world's second-largest truckmaker, and Skanska AB, Europe's
third-largest construction company, advanced.

Statoil ASA and Norsk Hydro ASA, the Nordic region's largest
oil and gas companies, also advanced as oil prices rose for a
second day.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Bonds Decline After Euro-Region Money Supply Growth Accelerates

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds fell after
a report showed money supply growth in the euro region economy
accelerated in June.

Euro region M3 money supply grew an annual 10.9 percent last
month, after increasing a revised 10.6 percent in May. Economists
surveyed by Bloomberg News had forecast growth of 10.7 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Second Australia hedge fund hit by subprime woes

(Reuters) - SYDNEY, July 26 - A second Australian hedge fund
has been hit by the crisis in the U.S. subprime mortgage
market, suspending withdrawals from two funds to avoid a fire
sale in a market deserted by buyers.




Sydney-based Absolute Capital, half-owned by Dutch bank ABN
AMRO , said it temporarily closed two funds with a
combined A$200 million in assets because it was
tough to offload investments in collateralised debt obligations
.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US stock indexes gain on profits, energy; Apple up late

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose in volatile trading on Wednesday as a 3 percent rise in oil prices lifted energy shares while strong profits from Boeing Co. countered market concerns about merger financing.

Boeing shares jumped to a record high and led advancers on the Dow, while Internet retailer Amazon.com Inc. paced the Nasdaq with a 24-percent rise after tripling its profit.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Goldman leads in bid for Pirelli RE fund

(Reuters) - Through its Zwinger vehicle, Goldman offered 913 euros
for each unit of the fund, while Merrill's Galante
vehicle offered 827 euros.




The Berenice fund owns mostly office buildings in Rome and
Milan. At the end of June, the market value of its assets was
more than 800 million euros.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Japanese 20-Year Bonds Advance After Debt Auction Is Better Than Expected

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's 20-year bonds rose, erasing
earlier losses, after a government auction of the securities
drew higher-than-expected bidding prices.

The 800 billion yen ($6.64 billion) debt sale generated
demand on speculation investors will be attracted to longer-
dated securities after the premium offered by yields on 20-year
debt relative to five-year notes widened this week to near the
most since May. Bonds also gained as a decline in stocks boosted
demand for government debt.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News