Oil down as US gasoline stockpiles seen rising

(Reuters) - Oil prices dipped but held above $69 on Tuesday, as an expected rise in gasoline stockpiles in the United States weighed against OPEC supply curbs and worries over Iran's nuclear dispute.

London Brent crude, currently seen as more representative of the global market, was down 15 cents at $69.41 a barrel at 0333 GMT, after rising 87 cents on Monday. U.S. crude fell 15 cents to $65.82 after a $1.21 rally.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Allianz Sells Entire Hana Stake for $497 Million, Person Familiar Says

(Bloomberg) -- Allianz SE, Europe's biggest insurer,
sold 463 billion won ($497 million) of shares in Hana Financial
Group Inc., ending a seven-year equity partnership with the South
Korean bank, a person familiar with the sale said.

Allianz, based in Munich, sold the shares at 46,450 won each,
the top of a range earlier offered to investors, according to the
person, who asked not to be named because the information is
confidential.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Employers in U.S. to Keep Hiring at Same Pace Next Quarter, Manpower Says

(Bloomberg) -- Employers in the U.S. plan to
maintain hiring next quarter at the same pace as in the previous
three months, according to a private survey released today.

Manpower Inc., the world's second-largest provider of
temporary workers, said its employment index held at 18 percent
for July through September, the same as in the second quarter.
The gauge subtracts the percentage of employers planning to cut
jobs from those who plan to add workers and adjusts the results
for seasonal variations.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Nucor's Meaning, Yahoo's Search, H&R Block's Weakness: Timshel by Wilson

(Bloomberg) -- Takeover speculation may not be
enough to sustain a rally in U.S. steel stocks, based on the
reaction to Nucor Corp.'s second-quarter earnings estimate.

All seven steelmakers in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index
and the S&P MidCap 400 Index, a benchmark for smaller companies,
fell after Nucor forecast a bigger drop in profit than analysts
were anticipating. The projection from the second-largest U.S.-
based producer was 15 cents to 25 cents below the lowest
forecast of 13 analysts in a Bloomberg survey.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Asian Mining, Energy Stocks Advance on Rebound in Metals, Oil; BHP Climbs

(Bloomberg) -- Asian mining and energy stocks
advanced after prices of metals and crude oil rebounded.

BHP Billiton Ltd. climbed to a record, leading advances on
the Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia-Pacific Index.
Mitsubishi Corp., Japan's largest trading company, rose for the
first time in three days.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

JGBs fall on BOJ rate worries, 5-year auction eyed

(Reuters) - Yields on two-year notes, the most sensitive to changes in
the monetary policy outlook, struck a decade high as nervous
investors shunned bonds with shorter maturities ahead of a
two-day BOJ policy meeting that ends on Friday.




JGBs have been sold heavily since late May on a rapid rise in
overseas yields triggered by expectations for solid global growth
and tighter monetary policies to ward off price pressures,
compounding concerns of a BOJ rate hike as soon as August.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bancrofts to send new WSJ safeguard proposal-report

(Reuters) - The newspaper said it was unclear if the changes would
bridge differences over how to enforce rules designed to
protect the Wall Street Journal's independence.




News Corp. has offered $5 billion to buy Dow Jones, but the
Bancroft's have voiced concern that chairman Rupert Murdoch
could have too much influence over the company's flagship Wall
Street Journal.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Asian Stocks Advance on Rebound in Metals, Oil; BHP, Mitsubishi Corp Climb

(Bloomberg) -- Asian stocks rose for a second day,
led by materials and energy shares, after the price of metals and
crude oil rebounded.

BHP Billiton Ltd. climbed to a record, leading advances on
the Morgan Stanley Capital International Asia-Pacific Index.
Mitsubishi Corp., Japan's largest trading company, rose for the
first time in three days.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Dollar stays firm, focus returns to U.S. yields

(Reuters) - Treasury yields have risen sharply over the past week, pushing 10-year yields near a five-year high on diminishing expectations for Federal Reserve rate cuts and worries about global monetary tightening to combat inflation pressures.




"Because bond yields moved sharply last week, pulling the dollar higher, the market is focusing on whether U.S. bonds will stabilize, and also let the dollar pause from its recent gains," said Masafumi Yamamoto, currency strategist at Nikko Citigroup.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Mexico's Satmex says offers were below $500 mln

(Reuters) - Satmex, short for Satelites Mexicanos, decided to put
itself up for sale after a long debt restructuring, but said on
Friday it was suspending the sale because offers came in below
its expectations.




"The reference price that had been mentioned was $500
million," Cisneros told Reuters by telephone. "The figures were
close, but they didn't reach the 500, and not reaching 500
meant it wasn't possible to go forward."


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

BHP Billiton, ChemGenex, Coles, Multiplex: Australian Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares may rise or fall in Australia. This preview includes
news announced after markets closed on Friday. The Australian
stock exchange was closed yesterday for a holiday. Prices are from
Friday's close unless otherwise stated. Stock symbols are in
brackets after the company names.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index futures contract due in June rose 0.9
percent to 6280 at 6:59 a.m. in Sydney. The Bank of New York
Australia ADR Index was little changed in New York.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Goldman to expand Moscow office to 100 this year

(Reuters) - Goldman Sachs declined to comment.




Goldman is been a perennial champion in global and U.S.
M&A, but it has faced a tougher fight in Europe and especially
in Russia, one of the world's fastest growing markets and a top
priority among Wall Street firms.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Comverse Technology posts Q1 loss

(Reuters) - The software maker posted a loss from operations of $60.4
million for the latest first quarter, compared with an income
from operations of $8.6 million in the same period a year ago.




Before items, including about $31.4 million in expenses
related to the investigation, the company's adjusted income
from operations fell to $7.9 million from $37.1 million,
Comverse said in its statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Take-Two to cut costs as it posts quarterly loss

(Reuters) - The company also named Lainie Goldstein as its chief financial officer. Goldstein had been serving as interim CFO since her predecessor, Karl Winters, resigned in April. She was previously senior vice president of finance.




The fiscal second-quarter net loss was $51.2 million, or 71 cents per share, compared with a loss of $50.4 million, or 71 cents, a year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-CME deal to buy CBOT gets U.S. antitrust approval

(Reuters) - After a protracted investigation, the Justice Department
said it concluded that the two exchanges "seldom compete head
to head" and were "unlikely to introduce new products that
compete directly with the other's entrenched products."




"While the evidence suggests that competition between CME
and CBOT has, at times, provided some incentive for them to
develop and offer new products, it does not indicate that
continued innovation depends on competition between the
parties," the Justice Department said.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

TREASURIES-Bonds wobble on inflation jitters

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 11 - U.S. government bond prices
fell on Monday in a continuation of last week's rout as hawkish
inflation comments by a Federal Reserve official added to the
conviction that interest rates would not be cut in 2007.




But benchmark 10-year yields held just off Friday's peak
around 5.25 percent amid some mild short-covering. Traders said
a rebound in commodity prices also heightened inflation fears
among investors.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Stratos recommends acceptance of new CIP bid

(Reuters) - Stratos, which provides telecom services to customers in
remote parts of the world, said CIP has raised its offer to C$7
a share from C$6.40.




"We are pleased that CIP Canada decided to increase its
offer price following discussions initiated by Stratos with
certain of our major shareholders," Stratos Chairman Charles
Bissegger said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

CapitaLand, Chalco, Hana, Hynix, SAAG, YTL: Asia Ex-Japan Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may rise or fall
in Asian markets, excluding Japan. This preview includes news
that broke after markets closed. Prices are from the local
market's last close. Stock symbols are in parentheses after
company names.

Markets in Australia and the Philippines will resume trading
after a holiday.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Former Thatcher aide testifies for Conrad Black

(Reuters) - The $62,000 party for Black's wife, Barbara Amiel Black, at La Grenouille restaurant in New York was "a business event masquerading as a social occasion," said John O'Sullivan, a veteran editor and columnist who once worked for Thatcher as a special adviser.




Prosecutors contend the 62-year-old Black fraudulently charged the company that ran his former newspaper empire, Hollinger International Inc., $40,000 for the party, which they contend was a social affair.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Nucor sees earnings below analysts' view

(Reuters) - The earnings warning sent Nucor shares down almost 7 percent before recovering slightly and drove other U.S. steel stocks lower.




Nucor said it expects second-quarter earnings of $1.05 to $1.15 per share. Analysts, on average, were expecting $1.39, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

U.S. Stocks Rise, Led by Energy Shares; Exxon Mobil, H&R Block Advance

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks gained after a jump in
oil prices lifted energy producers and investors speculated
companies in the financial services and automotive industries
may be acquisition targets.

Exxon Mobil Corp., the largest oil producer, led the
Standard & Poor's 500 Index higher. H&R Block Inc., the biggest
tax preparer, had its steepest gain since last November after
UBS AG said it may receive a leveraged buyout bid.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Martha Stewart model homes idea not ruled out-Macy's

(Reuters) - The Wall Street Journal on Monday reported that Macy's had
decided against building the mock-up homes, but a company
spokesman said that while Macy's would delay building the
units, it had not abandoned the plan.




"It is an idea we still think is interesting. We still
would like to pursue it, but we are not doing it this fall
because of the other logistics involved in the launch," a
company spokesman told Reuters.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Sugar Falls to 2-Year Low on Rising Output, Exports From Brazil and India

(Bloomberg) -- Sugar in New York fell to a two-year
low as rising supplies from Brazil and India, the world's
largest producers, expand a global surplus.

India, which historically exports refined, white sugar,
soon will ship raw sugar. Indian Sugar Exim Corp., an industry-
funded trading company, recently won a contract to ship 200,000
tons to Dubai, United Arab Emirates-based Al Khaleej Sugar,
Asia's largest refiner. Brazil's exports of raw and refined
sugar rose to 1.33 million metric tons in May from 608,900 tons
in the same month last year, the trade ministry said June 1.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 1-Algoma Steel shareholders give nod to Essar deal

(Reuters) - TORONTO, June 11 - Shareholders of Algoma Steel
approved the C$1.85 billion sale of
the company to Essar Steel Holdings Ltd. of India at
a special meeting on Monday.




The deal, which received more than 80 percent approval from
shareholders, clears the way for the subsidiary of Essar Global
to buy all Algoma's outstanding shares for C$56.00 each.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

U.S. Treasuries Fall as Pianalto Says Inflation Is `Uncomfortably High'

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasuries fell, extending five
weeks of losses, as Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland President
Sandra Pianalto said inflation is ``uncomfortably high.''

Fourteen of the 21 primary dealers that underwrite the
government's debt boosted their year-end estimate for the central
bank's target rate or the 10-year note's yield. This week the
government will release reports on consumer and wholesale prices.
Yields on 10-year notes exceed two-year securities by 13 basis
points, the most since May 2006.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Nymex Natural Gas Declines as Storage Gain, Mile Weather Ease Supply Worry

(Bloomberg) -- Natural gas in New York fell for a
third day as mild weather limited demand, allowing storage levels
of the furnace and power-plant fuel to rise and easing concern
over possible shortages later this year.

Gas for July delivery fell 6 cents, or 0.8 percent, to
$7.603 per million British thermal units at 9:52 a.m. in trading
on the New York Mercantile Exchange.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

EDF Trading Hires Rowe From BNP Paribas to Run Paris Power, Emissions Unit

(Bloomberg) -- EDF Trading Ltd., the wholesale-
energy trading unit of Electricite de France SA, hired Chris
Rowe from BNP Paribas SA.

Rowe will join the company's electricity and emissions
trading desk and will run its Paris office, where it trades day-
ahead and intra-day electricity, EDF Trading said today in an e-
mailed statement.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Canadian Stocks May Gain on Optimism for Profits, Rising Gold, Oil Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian stocks may rise for a second
day, extending their rebound after the benchmark index's biggest
two day loss in almost a year, as investors bet company profits can
withstand higher borrowing costs.

Gains today in the main Canadian stock index may be paced by
raw-materials and energy producers including Barrick Gold Corp. and
Suncor Energy Inc., as prices for gold and crude oil advance.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

US STOCKS-Futures indicate modest rise at open

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 11 - U.S. stock futures pointed to
a flat to modestly higher open on Monday, with support seen
from benchmark bond yields backing off recent highs and from
takeover news.




Upside momentum could be limited by higher oil prices,
however, after top exporter Saudi Arabia said it will keep
supplies steady. For details see [ID:nSP45929].


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. Stock-Index Futures Rise After Pimco's Gross Says Fed Is on Hold

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures rose after
Bill Gross, manager of the world's biggest bond fund, said the
housing market is too weak for the Federal Reserve to raise
interest rates.

Standard & Poor's 500 Index futures expiring in September
added 1.8 to 1524.3 as of 8:51 a.m. in New York after earlier
falling 3.5. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures rose 13 to
13,558. Nasdaq-100 Index futures gained 1 to 1935.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Measurement Specialties to incur settlement expense in Q4

(Reuters) - The company said it also settled another case with Dan
Samuel, a former director, for $0.2 million.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Malaysian Palm Oil Price Drops Six Percent on Declining Exports to China

(Bloomberg) -- Malaysian palm oil futures slumped
more than six percent, staging their biggest two-day decline in
at least five years after news the country's shipments of the
vegetable oil fell in the first 10 days of June.

Malaysia's palm oil exports dropped 23.5 percent to 345,849
metric tons for June 1-10 from 451,816 tons in the same period a
month earlier, Societe Generale de Surveillance, an independent
cargo surveyor, said. Shipments fell 27 percent to 339,117 tons
in the period, Intertek, another surveyor, said.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 1-CSG Systems to buy ComTec for about $23.5 million

(Reuters) - The deal also provides for contingent payments of up to
$2.5 million over the next 12 months upon the achievement of
certain predetermined operating criteria, CSG said.




Excluding the impact of the deal-related charges, CSG does
not expect the deal to have a material impact on its overall
results of operations for the full-year 2007.



Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Alcatel-Lucent shares up on outlook

(Reuters) - "We said we expected the second quarter will grow at about 10 percent and we expected to grow sequentially throughout the year," Russo said confirming the outlook given last month.




Russo said part of growth would come from large contracts and the backlog built up during the first quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

ShoreTel sees IPO of 7.9 mln shares at $8.50-$10.50 each

(Reuters) - In an amended filing with the U.S Securities and Exchange
Commission, the company, which provides Internet protocol
telecommunications systems, said Lehman Brothers and JP Morgan,
among others, were underwriting the IPO.




The Sunnyvale, California-based company said it applied for
a Nasdaq listing under the symbol "SHOR."



Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Yen Gains as New Zealand Intervenes to Stem Rally Spurred by Carry Trade

(Bloomberg) -- The Japanese yen gained after the
Reserve Bank of New Zealand sold its currency to stem a rally
that's been fueled by investors borrowing cheaply in Japan.

The yen advanced against 15 of the 16 most actively traded
currencies and climbed 1.8 percent versus the New Zealand dollar
after the central bank's intervention. Reserve Bank Governor
Alan Bollard said exchange-rate levels were ``exceptional and
unjustified.'' The New Zealand dollar has rallied 26 percent
against the yen in a year, more than any other major currency.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Telkom up over 4 pct on expectations for Vodacom

(Reuters) - Shares in South African fixed-line operator Telkom rose over 4 percent to touch a record high on Monday as investors expected good results from mobile operator Vodacom, in which the group owns a 50 percent stake.

Telkom releases its annual earnings on Wednesday, which is also when the mobile operator said it would provide details of its annual performance.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Kenya shilling falls vs dollar on explosion in capital

(Reuters) - The Kenya shilling fell against the dollar in early Monday trade after an explosion in central Nairobi killed at least one person, but then recouped some of its losses on profit taking, traders said.

At 0630 GMT, commercial banks posted the local unit at 66.50/60 from Friday's 66.40/50 close. It had earlier fallen to 67.00/10.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Fed's Pianalto: Inflation trend too high in long term

(Reuters) - "Expectations can become unglued under some circumstances, even if the current inflation measures appear contained," she said, according to a speech text released in advance.




Rising oil and commodity prices in particular brought a risk of eroding the public's trust and that inflation expectations would move higher, she said, although the Fed thought energy price impacts would dissipate over time.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Carbon-Dioxide Emission Permits Decline as German Power Prices Are Steady

(Bloomberg) -- European Union carbon-dioxide emission
permits fell for their fourth time in five sessions as German
power was little changed.

Emission permits for delivery in December 2008 fell 28 cents,
or 1.2 percent, to 22.75 euros ($30.38) a metric ton, according to
the European Climate Exchange in Amsterdam at 9:38 a.m. local
time. They've fallen 7.6 percent the latest five sessions
including today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

What Are China Stocks Really Worth? CSI 300 May Need to Drop by 65 Percent

(Bloomberg) -- What's a Chinese meat producer
really worth?

On the mainland, investors pay 146 times earnings to own
Fortune Ng Fung Food (Hebei) Co. Hong Kong-listed China Yurun
Food Group Ltd. trades at 26 times profit. And in Singapore,
People's Food Holdings Ltd. is valued at 11.4 times earnings.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Nikkei up as exporters and insurers gain, BOJ eyed

(Reuters) - But investors held back ahead of a Bank of Japan policy meeting on Thursday and Friday. The 10-year government bond yield was near a 10-month high and bond futures were near an 11-month low on lingering worries over a BOJ interest rate hike in coming months.




"Bond yields are rising and the global economy is picking up, which should be a good thing for the stock market," said Masaki Iso, head of Japanese equities at Yasuda Asset Management Co. Ltd.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

China Life, Ping An Pay $1.42 Billion for Shares of China's Minsheng Bank

(Bloomberg) -- China Life Insurance Co. and Ping An
Insurance (Group) Co., the nation's two largest insurers, got
regulatory approval to pay a combined 10.9 billion yuan ($1.42
billion) for shares in China Minsheng Banking Corp.

China Life and Ping An were approved by China's banking
regulator to buy 5.45 billion yuan of Minsheng Bank shares each,
according to a statement by the Beijing-based bank to the
Shanghai Stock Exchange today. The companies each will own 4.93
percent of the bank, the statement said.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Global Bond Sales Drop for First Time in 5 Years in 1st Quarter, BIS Says

(Bloomberg) -- Global net bond sales fell 2 percent
in the first quarter to $866 billion, the first time they've
declined for five years, the Bank for International Settlements
said.

Early repayments contributed to the decline as issuers
worldwide redeemed $682 billion of bonds in the first three
months of the year, a 12 percent increase compared with 7 percent
growth scheduled, the BIS said in its quarterly review of the
financial markets, published today.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Malaysia's Petronas eyes Malacca refinery expansion

(Reuters) - The capacity at the refinery on the west coast of
peninsular Malaysia currently stands at 100,000 barrels per day
.




"We are looking at the possibility of expanding the present
capacity but it is still under study between ourselves and
ConocoPhillips," Hassan Marican told reporters at Asia' biggest
annual energy conference, the Asia Oil and Gas Conference, in
the Malaysian capital.
"We have not confirmed the expansion capacity yet but we are
looking at several options," he said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Avis Europe sees possible Portugal irregularities

(Reuters) - Avis added that pretax profit for the current year could be impacted by approximately 3 million euros plus legal costs.




Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Russian investment bank RenCap ups Africa action

(Reuters) - Russian investment bank Renaissance is expanding fast in Africa to grab a slice of the potentially lucrative M&A and capital-raising deals that are expected on the newly-resurgent continent, a top executive said.

A 12-year old firm with brokering, private equity and a $4.5 billion asset management business, Renaissance plans to double its $500 million investment into Africa by next year and increase Africa-dedicated staff threefold to 100 by the end of 2007, Renaissance Capital Deputy CEO Neil Harvey told Reuters.


Read more at Reuters Africa