Stocks drop more than 1 percent on credit concerns

(Reuters) - Losses accelerated in the final minutes of trading, taking the Dow industrials down more than 200 points, a day after an equities sell-off that wiped out more than $300 billion in the value off the S&P 500.




"We've had this massive change in investor expectations in terms of new deal flow," said Fred Dickson, market strategist, director of retail research, D.A. Davidson & Co. Lake Oswego, Oregon. "The lifeguards have shouted, and investors are now starting to heed their warnings and head back to shore."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Brazil Magnesita owners negotiating possible sale

(Reuters) - "The decision has been taken to sell. Negotiations are
underway with French refractories producer LWB, Austrian
refractories producer RHI and Brazilian investment
group Tarpon Investimentos," a Magnesita sales official said.




The official, who did not want to be named, said the
Pentagna Guimaraes family controlling Magnesita had decided to
sell so the company could grow with fresh resources from a
larger group.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Latin Stocks Have Biggest Weekly Loss in Five Months; Cemex Shares Fall

(Bloomberg) -- Latin American stocks had their
biggest weekly decline in five months after investors sold
riskier assets on concern that higher borrowing costs will curb
earnings and economic growth.

The Morgan Stanley Capital International index of Latin
American shares fell 2.1 percent to 3674.60 today, bringing its
loss since July 20 to 8.6 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Canadian Stocks Post Worst Decline Since 2001 on M&A Concern; BCE Drops

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian stocks fell, pushing a
benchmark index to its worst weekly decline since the September
2001 terror attacks, on concern the U.S. housing crisis will
spread to global capital markets and end the takeover boom.

BCE Inc., target of the largest buyout, retreated after Citi
Investment Research cut its recommendation, citing growing risks
to its financing. Shares of Research In Motion Ltd. dropped after
more than trebling in a year, as investors anticipating further
market losses locked in gains.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Argentine bonds mixed after leading region's losses

(Reuters) - BUENOS AIRES, July 27 - Argentine bonds ended
mixed on Friday after three straight days of large losses,
spurred by worries about inflation readings and government
spending amid a broader emerging markets sell-off.




Argentine bonds finished unevenly, with prices ranging from
losses as steep as 2.4 percent and gains as great as 2.2
percent .


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-GE finds improper revenue booking at rail unit

(Reuters) - In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, GE said it discovered the improprieties after the
SEC requested information into transactions at the rail unit
between 2000 and 2003.




"Revenues had been inappropriately accelerated so that they
were recognized in the fourth quarter of each of the years 2000
through 2003 rather than in the first quarter of the following
year," the company said in an SEC filing.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 2-Washington Group shareholder to vote against URS deal

(Reuters) - BANGALORE, July 27 - Washington Group
International Inc.'s 10 percent shareholder David
Einhorn said in a regulatory filing that he will vote against
the engineering and construction company's proposed merger with
URS Corp. .




"Washington Group should remain a standalone company,"
Einhorn, president of Greenlight Capital Inc., said in a letter
to Washington Group board.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Oil Surges More Than $2 as U.S. Economic Growth Signals Demand Will Climb

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose more than $2 a barrel
in New York after a government report showed that the U.S.
economy grew more than expected in the second quarter, indicating
fuel demand will rise in the world's biggest energy consumer.

The economy grew 3.4 percent last quarter, the fastest pace
in more than a year. Economists surveyed by Bloomberg News before
the report predicted a 3.2 percent gain. The U.S. consumes 24
percent of global oil production.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Volatility on Major, Emerging Market Currency Options Rise Amid Aversion

(Bloomberg) -- Volatility on major and emerging-
market currencies options rose as investors shunned riskier
assets amid concern subprime mortgage defaults may rise.

Demand for options granting the right to sell high-yielding
currencies soared as traders bought protection against further
yen appreciation while investors exited so-called carry trades.
The strategy involves borrowing where interest rates are low,
such as in Japan with an 0.5 percent rate, and investing in
countries such as Australia where the benchmark is 6.25 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

UPDATE 2-Brazil's Vivo bids for two smaller rivals

(Reuters) - Brazilian business daily Gazeta Mercantil reported on
Friday that Vivo had agreed to buy Telemig and Amazonia for
about 3.5 billion reais . Telemig denied it had
been sold.




An acquisition of Telemig would give Vivo a much-coveted
foothold in Minas Gerais, the only state where it does not have
coverage.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Swiss Franc Records Largest Weekly Gain Against Euro Since March on Risk

(Bloomberg) -- The Swiss franc had its biggest
weekly gain against the euro in more than four months as a slump
in global stocks prompted traders to pay back loans in
Switzerland used to buy higher-yielding assets elsewhere.

The franc advanced against the Australian and New Zealand
dollars as investors unwound so-called carry trades that take
advantage of borrowing costs in Switzerland, which are the
second lowest among major economies. New Zealand's key interest
rate is 5.75 percentage points higher than the Swiss benchmark.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

IPO VIEW-Weak market seen likely to hurt new offerings

(Reuters) - The Dow Jones industrials average dropped again on Friday,
adding to the losses suffered on Thursday as investors dumped
stocks on deepening signs of weakness in the housing market and
deterioration in the credit market. Thursday marked the worst
single session since the Feb. 27 global market sell-off.




The market slump sets a tough environment for new
offerings, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

European Stocks Decline, Led by Royal Bank of Scotland, Man Group, Valeo

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks had their biggest
weekly decline in almost five months on mounting concern
financing difficulties in the credit markets will stifle mergers
and acquisitions.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc and Man Group Plc led a
drop in financial shares today. Valeo SA, Europe's third-largest
maker of car parts, and computer-services company Cap Gemini SA
slipped after earnings missed analysts' estimates.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Qwest ex-CEO Nacchio ordered to forfeit $52 mln

(Reuters) - A sentencing hearing begins on Friday morning for Nacchio,
58, who is one of the most senior executives targeted in a
series of U.S. government cases charging illegal financial
dealings.




Nacchio was convicted in April on 19 counts of insider
trading for grossing some $52 million in sales of Qwest stock
in 2001 with information unknown to investors about the
company's true financial picture. He was acquitted on 23 other
charges. His attorneys said they will appeal the conviction.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Corporate Bond Risk Soars by Most Ever on Concern About Mortgages, Buyouts

(Bloomberg) -- The risk of owning corporate bonds
soared to the highest on record in the U.S. and Europe on concern
that banks and hedge funds face widening losses from subprime
mortgages and leveraged buyouts.

The cost to protect debt of companies from Goldman Sachs
Group Inc. to Deutsche Bank AG and Australia's Westpac Banking
Corp. jumped as investors shunned all but the safest of debt,
according to credit-default swap traders.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

US FDA staff questions Biogen MS drug for Crohn's

(Reuters) - WASHINGTON, July 27 - The effectiveness of Biogen Idec and Elan Corp.'s drug Tysabri in Crohn's disease is not clearly different from other approved therapies, U.S. drug reviewers said in documents released on Friday ahead of an advisory panel meeting.



The companies are seeking approval to market the multiple sclerosis drug for Crohn's, a bowel disorder.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Kimco posts rise in quarterly FFO

(Reuters) - About 8 cents per share was attributed to income associated with joint ventures within and outside of the United States, analysts said.




Analysts were expecting FFO of 60 cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Fannie Mae portfolio grows in June, down in 2007

(Reuters) - Fannie Mae said that its non-agency securities totaled $122.8
billion at the end of the second quarter, of which $47.2 billion
were backed by subprime loans. Nearly all of the subprime-backed
bonds, $46.9 billion, were rated 'AAA' or the equivalent by at
least two ratings agencies and none of them have been downgraded,
Fannie Mae said.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Fannie Mae portfolio grows, subprime stable

(Reuters) - The largest U.S. home funding company's growth in June and
May comes as mortgage assets have cheapened considerably.




Mortgage securities have sharply underperformed Treasuries
as risk-averse investors fear greater housing, credit and
lending fallout from a crisis in the subprime mortgage sector.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

July consumer sentiment up, risks linger: U.Mich

(Reuters) - But it bounced back from June's final reading of 85.3, a 10-month low, and posted the index's best showing since February, when it stood at 91.3.




July's month-on-month gain was tied to consumers' favorable outlook about the economy, particularly regarding future employment and income prospects, the Reuters/University of Michigan Survey of Consumers said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

European Stocks Recover From Earlier Losses; Volkswagen and Nokia Advance

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks rose, erasing earlier
losses. Volkswagen AG, the region's largest carmaker, and Nokia
Oyj, the world's biggest maker of mobile handsets, led the
advance.

The Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index added 0.2 percent to 375.28 as
of 3:18 p.m. in London, after earlier dropping as much as 1.1
percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Horizon Lines profit up, misses Wall Street view

(Reuters) - Net income rose to $9.6 million, or 28 cents a share, in
the second quarter from $6.4 million, or 19 cents a share, a
year earlier. Excluding one-time items, earnings were 29 cents
a share.




Analysts on average had expected the Charlotte, North
Carolina-based company to earn 32 cents a share, according to
Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Novartis to make Zelnorm available on limited basis

(Reuters) - ZURICH, July 27 - Swiss drugmaker Novartis said on Friday it would make its bowel drug Zelnorm available to U.S. patients on a restricted basis after pulling the product from the market at the request of regulators.



Novartis said it has established a restricted access programme for Zelnorm in cooperation with U.S. regulators.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Dow Corning second-quarter profit falls

(Reuters) - Net sales rose to $1.23 billion from $1.06 billion.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

PIMCO'S Gross says stocks are appropriately valued

(Reuters) - Speaking on CNBC Television, Bill Gross, chief investment officer for Pacific Investment Management Co., also said he does not believe an economic recession is looming.




Corporate earnings are holding up fine in a reasonably performing U.S. economy, Gross said, dismissing a notion that the turmoil in markets was signaling a sharp deceleration in the economy.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

US STOCKS-Futures cut losses after GDP data

(Reuters) - S&P 500 futures were off 9.50 points, below fair
value, a mathematical formula that evaluates pricing by taking
into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration
on the contract.




Dow Jones industrial average futures were down 69
points, and Nasdaq 100 futures were down 6.50 points.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Bush meets economic advisers to discuss GDP

(Reuters) - A spokesman said Bush's meeting with his "economic team,"
due to begin at 9:10 a.m. EDT , had been previously
scheduled to coincide with release of Friday's Gross Domestic
Product report.




The Commerce Department reported that U.S. economic growth
rebounded during the second quarter to its strongest pace since
the beginning of last year.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Lubrizol second-quarter earnings rise

(Reuters) - Excluding one-time items, earnings from continuing
operations were $1.17 per share, compared with 94 cents a year
earlier.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Platinum, Palladium Decline as New Catalyst From Nissan Reduces Metal Use

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum and palladium fell in London
after Nissan Motor Co. announced new technology that may slash
demand for the metals used in catalytic-converters.

Nissan developed a gasoline-powered catalyst that uses half
the platinum, palladium and rhodium in existing technology, the
company said in a statement today. Platinum usage in catalytic
converters rose 11 percent last year to a record, London-based
catalyst producer Johnson Matthey Plc said in May.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

KeyCorp to buy NY bank USB Holding for $575 mln

(Reuters) - U.S.B., based in Orangeburg, New York, operates 31 branches
in southern New York state and Connecticut.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

TREASURIES-Bonds up on weak stocks, await growth data

(Reuters) - Investors may have difficulty maintaining their usual focus
on GDP with stock futures pointing to another fall at the Wall
Street open and traders citing continued worries over tighter
financing conditions in credit markets.




"It's not about GDP right now and we all know the second
quarter is a lot stronger than the first quarter and the third
quarter will be considerably weaker," said David Ader head of
government bond strategy at RBS Greenwich Capital in Greenwich,
Connecticut.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Kumba gives upbeat outlook after strong H1

(Reuters) - Africa's biggest iron ore producer, Kumba Iron Ore, posted a 38 percent rise in first-half earnings driven by higher prices, sales volumes and output.

Kumba, majority owned by Anglo American, reported on Friday rosy prospects for the second half and next year, citing continued strong Chinese demand and a higher spot price, with few new mines opening up globally to meet demand.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Asian firms eye overlooked parts of Angola economy

(Reuters) - Chinese and other Asian firms are diversifying in Angola, seeking out investments in overlooked sectors of the oil-dependent southwestern African nation's economy, a senior Angolan official said on Friday.

China, which is expanding its trade links with Africa in a bid to find natural resources for its energy-hungry economy, has already invested several billion dollars in the Angola economy through an oil-backed credit loan.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Medtronic to acquire Kyphon for $3.9 billion

(Reuters) - The offer represents a 32 percent premium over Kyphon's closing price on Thursday, the company said.




The deal value excludes $320 million in payments related to various transactions.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Platinum Declines, Erasing Its Earlier Advance in London; Palladium Drops

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum fell in London, erasing an
earlier gain. Palladium declined.

Platinum for immediate delivery dropped 75 cents to
$1,310.75 an ounce as of 11 a.m. in London, after earlier today
rising to $1,325.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Lead Heads for Largest Weekly Loss in Eight Months in London; Nickel Falls

(Bloomberg) -- Lead headed for its biggest weekly
drop in eight months after traders judged that last week's record
prices no longer reflected the outlook for supply. Nickel and
copper also declined.

Lead surged more than 15 percent last week after an
explosion cut output at Doe Run Resources Corp.'s Herculaneum
smelter July 13. The smelter will resume full production next
month and lost supply is probably small, said analysts including
Stephen Briggs at Societe Generale in London.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Infineon-no plans to sell Qimonda stake to investor

(Reuters) - Earlier, Ziebart said Infineon was actively exploring ways
to sell its stake and was considering many options.




Qimonda reported surprisingly big losses for the June
quarter this week, pushing Infineon's results deep into the red.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Treasuries Fall, Snapping Seven-Day Rally as Stocks Rise Before GDP Report

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries fell, snapping a seven-
day run of gains, as European shares and U.S. stock-index
futures rebounded before second quarter economic growth figures.

Bonds pared a third weekly advance as technical charts
suggested the rally has been too rapid and some investors said a
U.S. housing slump won't prompt the Federal Reserve to cut
interest rates. The Commerce Department will probably say the
economy expanded at an annualized 3.2 percent rate, the fastest
in more than a year, according to a Bloomberg survey.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 2-Wal-Mart's Seiyu estimates H1 operating loss

(Reuters) - TOKYO, July 27 - The Japanese unit of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. , Seiyu Ltd. , will post an operating loss for the first half of the year as weak sales sidelined its forecast return to profit, the Nikkei business daily said on Friday.



Shares of Seiyu fell 3.1 percent in late afternoon trade, compared with a 1.6 percent drop in the Tokyo index of retail stocks .


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Proton sees return to profit this year - state media

(Reuters) - KUALA LUMPUR, July 27 - Lossmaking Malaysian national car maker Proton Holdings Bhd expects to return to profit this financial year, helped by the launch of a new model, state media reported on Friday.



The company will introduce an as-yet unnamed replacement in mid-August for its most successful-ever model, the 14-year-old 'Wira' sedan, the Web site of the company's Proton Edar retail unit said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Coal for 2008 Rotterdam Delivery Heads for Fourth Straight Daily Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Coal for delivery next year to
Rotterdam, Europe's largest port, headed for its fourth straight
decline.

The fuel for shipment to Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Antwerp
for settlement in 2008 fell 50 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $80.50
a metric ton at 9:18 a.m. in London, according to ICAP Plc
prices on Bloomberg. A close at that price would be the lowest
since July 17.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Reuters H1 profit beats forecasts, sales strong

(Reuters) - LONDON, July 27 - News and information provider Reuters Group Plc , which is being taken over by Canadian publisher Thomson Corp , posted a higher-than-expected interim trading profit and said sales were strong.



"Against the backdrop of the pending Thomson-Reuters transaction, Reuters stayed focused on driving growth in the first half and delivered the strongest six months of sales and installations in more than five years," Reuters Chief Executive Tom Glocer said in a statement on Friday.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Standard Bank sees H1 headline EPS up by 20-30 pct

(Reuters) - South Africa's Standard Bank expects headline earnings per share for the six months to end-June to be between 20-30 percent higher than in the comparable period last year, it said on Friday.

The group said it expects growth in earnings per share and fully diluted headline earnings per share on both a normalised and IFRS basis to also be between 20-30 percent higher.


Read more at Reuters Africa

De Beers H1 earnings up 5 pct, outlook solid

(Reuters) - De Beers, the world's biggest diamond producer, reported a 5-percent rise in first-half underlying earnings on Friday and said prices and demand of rough diamonds remained solid.

It said underlying earnings in the six months to end-June rose to $324 million thanks to the favourable impact of a reduction in net finance charges and a tax credit.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Yen Gains Versus New Zealand, Australian Dollars as Global Stocks Decline

(Bloomberg) -- The yen rallied against the New
Zealand and Australian dollars as a slump in global stocks
prompted traders to cut investments in higher-yielding assets
funded by borrowing Japan's currency.

The Japanese yen headed for the biggest weekly advance
against the U.S. dollar in almost five months and a second week
of gains against the euro after a drop in Asian equities and
corporate bonds.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Australian Shares Slump Most Since 2001, Completing Worst Week in 15 Years

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index tumbled
the most since September 2001, completing its worst week in 15
years. James Hardie Industries NV and BHP Billiton Ltd. led the
slide on concern a worsening U.S. housing slump will slow growth in
the world's biggest economy and prompt investors to shun stocks.

``You've got an economic impact from lower housing prices
and housing demand,'' said Simon Doyle, a strategist at Schroder
Investment Management Australia Ltd. in Sydney, which manages the
equivalent of $11.4 billion. ``That's where we feed back through
into the local market. If the U.S. is under question, there might
be a broader contagion.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News