UPDATE 1-Cadbury plans cost cuts, drinks sale likely

(Reuters) - The British group said on Tuesday its new confectionery
strategy would mean cuts in its 50,000 workforce and 60
factories to drive through efficiencies as it emerges as a pure
confectionery player similar to its U.S. rivals.




The London-based company, maker of Dairy Milk chocolate,
Trident gum and Trebor mints, was announcing its
confectionery-alone strategy as it decided on a likely sale of
its Dr Pepper and Snapple drinks business and a return of
capital to shareholders.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

U.S. Home Construction Probably Fell in May, Restraining Economic Growth

(Bloomberg) -- Housing starts in the U.S. probably
fell in May, signaling the slump in home construction will
continue to depress growth, economists said before a government
report today.

Builders broke ground on new houses at an annual rate of
1.473 million in May, down 3.6 percent from 1.528 million the
prior month, according to the median forecast of 68 economists
surveyed by Bloomberg News. Building permits probably rose to
1.47 million from a nine-year low 1.457 million in April.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Sweden's Central Bank May Raise Interest Rate to Keep Inflation in Check

(Bloomberg) -- Sweden's central bank probably will
raise its benchmark interest rate tomorrow for the eighth time as
rising employment and slowing productivity growth threaten to
stoke inflation, a survey of economists shows.

The Riksbank will raise the repurchase rate a quarter-point
to 3.5 percent, after keeping it unchanged for two consecutive
meetings, all 27 economists surveyed by Bloomberg said. The
decision will be announced at 9:30 a.m. in Stockholm.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Roche agrees to buy NimbleGen for $272.5 mln

(Reuters) - NimbleGen is active in high-density DNA microarrays, which
are a widely used discovery and research tool in pharma research
for the understanding of genetic causes of disease and
predisposition factors.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

European Government Bonds May Drop Before ZEW Report on German Confidence

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds may drop
for a second day before a report that's expected to show
improving investor confidence in the German economy, the region's
largest.

The fall in European debt has pushed 10-year bund yields to
the highest since August 2002 as traders increase wagers the
European Central Bank will lift interest rates twice more this
year. ECB council member Jose Manuel Gonzalez-Paramo said
yesterday monetary policy was accommodative, suggesting rates in
the $10.4 trillion euro-region economy have further to rise.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Newcastle Coal Exports Face Disruption as Third Storm Forecast This Month

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's Hunter region, the center
of the nation's thermal coal industry, is forecast to be hit by
storms for the third time this month, raising concerns about
renewed disruptions to exports of the fuel from Newcastle.

The Bureau of Meteorology today issued a severe weather
warning for New South Wales state, forecasting ``widespread
damaging and locally destructive winds, flash flooding and
damaging surf'' in areas including the Hunter coast, which
includes Newcastle, the world's biggest coal export harbor.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Bilfinger Berger, Linde, Royal Ahold, Sulzer: European Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may rise or
fall in European markets. Prices are from the last close.

The Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index lost 0.4 percent to 397.87.
The Dow Jones Stoxx 50 Index slid 0.4 percent to 3976.87. The
Euro Stoxx 50 Index, a benchmark for the 13 nations using the
euro, declined 0.5 percent to 4530.22.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

PRESS DIGEST - British business=2

(Reuters) - IRISH PUNTING ON CHRYSALIS RADIO ASSETS




The private equity firm Lydian Capital Partners, is in
exclusive talks to buy Chrysalis's radio business for between
170 million pounds and 180 million pounds. Chrysalis had
earlier this year appointed the investment bank Hawkpoint to
conduct a strategic review of its radio division, which includes
the stations Heart, LBC and Galaxy. Lydian capital Partners
declined to comment.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

China Life Premiums Rise 13 Percent in First Five Months to $13.4 Billion

(Bloomberg) -- China Life Insurance Co., the
nation's biggest insurer, said its premium rose 13 percent in the
first five months of 2007 to 102.3 billion yuan ($13.4 billion),
according to a statement today to the Shanghai Stock Exchange.

The Beijing-based company's Hong Kong-listed shares rose 4.7
percent to HK$26.95 yesterday. The company's Shanghai traded
shares jumped 9 percent to 40.82 yuan yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Japan's Topix Slips on U.S. Housing Concerns; Matsushita, Exporters Fall

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's Topix index dropped for the
first time in four days after confidence among U.S. homebuilders
fell to a 16-year low, raising concern a slumping housing market
may curb growth in the world's biggest economy.

Exporters including Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. and
Advantest Corp. paced declines. Investors will also be looking
to data on new housing starts set to be released tonight, and
mortgage applications figures due tomorrow for clues on the U.S.
real estate market.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

JGBs inch up, supported by Treasury gains

(Reuters) - JGBs have been crawling back after a heavy sell-off in the
past few weeks due to a jump in global bond yields and
expectations of a coming rate rise, which pushed the benchmark
10-year yield to an 11-month high last week.




"Since the market has moved so quickly, it is trying to find
stable levels at the moment," said Tatsuo Ichikawa, a JGB
strategist at ABN AMRO Securities.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Boston Fed's Minehan makes no comment on policy

(Reuters) - She will be replaced by Eric Rosengren, a long-time Boston
Fed official who is currently executive vice president and head
of supervision, regulation and credit department at the bank.




He began working at the Boston Fed as an economist in 1985
and has a doctorate in economics from the University of
Wisconsin-Madison.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

China, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, South Korea: Asia Local Bond Preview

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

China: State-owned China Development Bank plans to sell 10
billion yuan ($1.3 billion) of five-year floating-rate bonds
today. The authorities are investigating causes of accelerating
home prices last month, China Business News reported yesterday,
citing unidentified people familiar with the situation. China's
average housing price in 70 major cities grew 6.4 percent from a
year earlier in May, the fastest in 18 months, a government
report showed last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Phoenix Footwear to sell Royal Robbins to Kellwood

(Reuters) - Royal Robbins designs and markets sportswear and travel
apparel for men and women.





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

US lawmakers seek 10-yr terror insurance extension

(Reuters) - Frank introduced the bill with Rep. Michael Capuano. Both
are Massachusetts Democrats. Nineteen co-sponsors are backing
the bill.




A hearing to consider the bill is scheduled Thursday in the
House insurance subcommittee.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-Chrysler, supplier invest $530 mln in Indiana plant

(Reuters) - By Kevin Krolicki



DETROIT, June 18 - Chrysler Group said on Monday it would build a transmission plant in Indiana in a $530 million joint venture with German transmission maker Getrag.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Ubuntu Linux founder says no deal with Microsoft

(Reuters) - "We have declined to discuss any agreement with Microsoft," Ubuntu founder Mark Shuttleworth wrote on his blog in comments posted on Saturday at http://www.markshuttleworth.com.



Shuttleworth said he wanted to refute media speculation that he might enter into such an deal after Microsoft signed agreements with three other Linux providers -- Novell Inc. , Linspire Inc. and Xandros Inc.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Trichet: hedge funds not irrationally exuberant

(Reuters) - Trichet said he supported a hands-off mechanism of
self-regulation for such funds, which would allow them to
determine benchmarks for the industry without the coercion
of regulators.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Trichet: Globalization not always drag on prices

(Reuters) - In a speech in Montreal that did not comment on specific
policy issues facing the ECB, Trichet said it would be wrong to
conclude that increased economic integration has caused lower
inflation, even though this has been the case since the
mid-1990s.




"Indeed, the sudden emergence of fast-growing economies in
the global economy is exerting upward pressure on prices for
mining products and fossil fuels. This phenomenon has been
particularly visible since 2003," he said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Petroleo Brasileiro Oil Workers May Strike, Disrupt Crude, Fuel Production

(Bloomberg) -- Petroleo Brasileiro SA, Brazil's
state-controlled oil company, may face a five-day strike as
union members who voted to back a walkout seek to gain leverage
by reducing crude and fuel output.

Oil workers want Petrobras, as the producer is known, to
give employees more automatic promotions instead of basing
raises only on merit, said Alessandra Muteira, spokeswoman for a
federation of unions that represent the company's employees. The
strike would begin on or after July 5, she said.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Visteon to close Indiana plant, cut 685 jobs

(Reuters) - The company expects to begin negotiations with union
representatives soon over the terms of severance packages.




The planned closure is part of a Visteon plan to fix, close
or sell 30 plants through 2009 as the company narrows its focus
to auto interiors, climate controls and electronics, Visteon
spokesman Jim Fisher said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Legacy Hotels says it has received takeover offers

(Reuters) - Legacy, owner of famed hotels such as the Fairmont Royal
York in Toronto and the Fairmont Empress in Victoria, British
Columbia, is Canada's biggest lodging real-estate investment
trust.




It said the takeover offers have been "in the range" of
C$12.60 per unit -- a premium of about 14 percent over its
trading price immediately before it first announced a strategic
review of its future on March 1.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Nigeria Unions to Begin Protest Strike June 20; Oil Output May Be Affected

(Bloomberg) -- A coalition of Nigerian labor unions is
planning to begin an indefinite strike in Africa's biggest oil-
producing nation on June 20 to protest increases in taxes and
domestic fuel prices, a labor leader said.

Oil production is likely to be affected during the strike as
Nigeria's two main oil unions plan to participate, said Lumumba
Okugbawa, deputy general secretary of the Petrouleum & Natural Gas
Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, or Pengassan.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

US STOCKS-Indexes barely budge, subprime worry creeps back

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 18 - U.S. stock indexes hardly
budged on Monday as the reemergence of turmoil in the subprime
mortgage market kept investors cautious despite a fresh round
of corporate takeovers.




Investors appeared increasingly concerned about the
condition of credit markets after a Wall Street Journal report
that Merrill Lynch & Co. had taken control of $400
million of loan assets underlying a troubled hedge fund at Bear
Stearns Cos. Inc. that was heavily invested in subprime loans.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Home builder index lowest since 1991: NAHB

(Reuters) - The NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Market index fell two points to 28 in June, the lowest since it hit 27 in February of 1991, the group said.




Economists had predicted the index would be unchanged from May's 30 reading, based on a Reuters survey. Readings below 50 mean more builders view market conditions as poor rather than favorable.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

U.S. Stocks Drop as Bond Yields Rebound; Exelon, Wendy's Shares Decline

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks fell for the first time in
four days after bond yields rebounded from their lows of the day,
raising concern that higher borrowing costs will crimp corporate
profits and make takeovers more expensive.

Exelon Corp. and Dominion Resources Inc. led shares of
utilities lower as higher returns on bonds make their dividends
less appealing. Wendy's International Inc., the third-biggest
hamburger chain, declined after the company reduced its profit
forecast.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Soybeans Rise to Three-Year High on Dry Weather in Midwest; Corn Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Soybean futures rose to the highest
in three years as dry weather in the U.S. Midwest stresses
crops. Corn prices fell.

Less than a quarter inch of rain fell in Midwest growing
areas east of the Mississippi River during the weekend. Parts of
Illinois, the second-largest producer, and Indiana, the fourth-
biggest, received only about 10 percent of normal rainfall in
the past month, National Weather Service data show.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Crude Oil Rises to Nine-Month High on Threat of Strike by Nigerian Unions

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to a nine-month high
after a coalition of labor unions in Nigeria, Africa's biggest
oil producer, threatened to strike this week.

Oil production is also likely to be affected during the
strike as Nigeria's two main oil unions plan to participate, said
Lumumba Okugbawa, deputy general secretary of the Petroleum &
Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, or Pengassan.
Nigeria produces low-sulfur, or sweet, crude oil, prized by U.S.
refiners because of the high proportion of gasoline it yields.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

REFILE-Merrill delays selling Bear Stearns assets-CNBC

(Reuters) - Merrill is delaying selling the assets until it hears the
troubled hedge fund's plan to recapitalize, the network
reported. Merrill and Bear are expected to discuss the plan on
Monday or Tuesday, CNBC said.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bank of America private bank to keep U.S. Trust name

(Reuters) - It may help the bank retain customers amid analyst speculation that U.S. Trust's ultra-rich clients fear they won't get the same level of service at a big retail bank. The combined unit will serve clients with more than $3 million to invest.




Bank of America said it had based its branding decision on industry research and client feedback. Keeping the U.S. Trust name alive bucks the second-largest U.S. bank's usual practice of dropping names of acquired companies, such as FleetBoston Financial Corp. and MBNA Corp., in favor of its own.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

First glimpse of Pearson FT sale seen in Dow deal

(Reuters) - The world's largest educational publisher, London-based Pearson has long been under pressure from investors and analysts to dispose of the high-profile newspaper, a notion that has firmly been rejected by Chief Executive Marjorie Scardino.




The two business newspapers reported on Monday that Pearson was working with General Electric Co. to make a bid for Dow Jones & Co. Inc. in a deal that would place GE's CNBC business television channel, the FT and Dow's Wall Street Journal in one privately held joint venture.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

US Treasury's Paulson applauds IMF forex changes

(Reuters) - The IMF earlier announcd the first revision to its legal
framework on currency surveillance since 1977 to reflect the
sweeping changes in the global economy over the past 30 years,
including the fast rise of China and India. The changes
stipulate that in addition to avoiding currency manipulation
and intervention, member countries should avoid policies that
result in external instability.




Paulson, who has been trying to persuade China to allow
more flexibility in setting the value of its yuan currency,
added: "The revised decision also demonstrates that the IMF is
serious about reforming itself and enhancing its legitimacy and
relevance in today's global economic and financial system."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Nymex Gas Falls on Forecasts for Cooler Weather in U.S. Northeast, Midwest

(Bloomberg) -- Natural gas fell in New York for the
first time in three trading sessions on forecasts that lower
temperatures in the Northeast and Midwest would reduce demand for
electricity from gas-fired generators.

Temperatures will push into the 90s along the Eastern
Seaboard today and tomorrow, including New York, the most
populous U.S. city, then return to normal levels later this week,
according to AccuWeather.com of State College, Pennsylvania.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

IMF strengthens monitoring of FX policies: Rato

(Reuters) - "The new decision reflects current best practice in our
work of monitoring members' exchange rate policies and domestic
economic policies," Rato said in remarks prepared for delivery
at an economic conference in Montreal.




"It reaffirms that surveillance should be focused on our
core mandate, namely promoting countries' external stability,"
he added.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Community Banks restates to lower Q1 results

(Reuters) - The restatement would lower the first-quarter net income to
$6.6 million, or 28 cents a share, from the $9.6 million, or 41
cents a share, it reported in April, the company said in a
statement.




The bank holding company said it would reclassify a $3.1
million charge, related to an investment portfolio
restructuring, as a charge to its first-quarter earnings.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

CyberSource to buy Authorize.Net for $565 mln

(Reuters) - Authorize.Net provides Internet-based payment technology to
over 175,000 customers in the small business sector.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

European Stocks Fall, Led by Rio Tinto, Telefonica, Merck KGaA; ICI Climbs

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks fell on speculation
gains last week were overdone given prospects for earnings growth.

Rio Tinto Group and Telefonica SA led declines by mining and
telephone stocks, which have outperformed the region so far this
quarter. Merck KGaA dropped the most in two months before
GlaxoSmithKline Plc releases details on a lung-cancer vaccine.
Imperial Chemical Industries Plc surged 16 percent, sending the
Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Chemicals Index to a record, after Akzo Nobel
NV made an offer for the company.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Power Prices May Jump Because of Warm Rivers, Merrill Lynch Says

(Bloomberg) -- European power prices may jump this
summer because of limits on how much hot water utilities can
return to rivers and seas when the weather is warm, Merrill Lynch
& Co. said.

Utilities in Germany, including E.ON AG and Vattenfall AB,
have been forced to reduce capacity in at least one nuclear plant
in Europe's biggest power market because of environmental
restrictions on the water used to cool facilities.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Thailand's TMB Bank Won't Pay Interest on Hybrid Debt in July After Loss

(Bloomberg) -- TMB Bank Pcl., partly owned by
Singapore's DBS Group Holdings Ltd., said it won't pay holders
of its hybrid debt interest that's due next month after
reporting a loss last year.

Thailand's fifth-largest lender is scheduled to pay
interest of 270 million baht ($8.3 million) on $200 million of
securities, it said in a statement filed to the Singapore stock
exchange today.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Rival bidders for CBOT mull higher offers: report

(Reuters) - Atlanta-based energy exchange IntercontinentalExchange Inc. , which has been pursuing a hostile bid for CBOT since March, is also considering whether to raise its offer a third time, Bloomberg said.




Each bidder has already raised its offer twice for the parent of the Chicago Board of Trade.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Alitalia shares slide amid worries about sale

(Reuters) - Aeroflot denied a report by Russian news agency Interfax that it had pulled out of the bidding for the government's 49.9 percent stake but said a purchase would depend on price.




"Everything depends on the conditions," Irina Dannenberg, spokeswoman for Aeroflot, said. "We are not happy with the conditions and do not intend to buy Alitalia at any price."


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Qatar orders worth $17 bln boost Airbus book

(Reuters) - The deals include confirmation of a previously announced order for 80 new Airbus A350 XWB models due from 2013, worth $16 billion at list prices, and three additional A380s worth almost $1 billion in total.




Qatar had already ordered 3 of the A380 superjumbo aircraft with options for another two.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

U.K. Next Working Day Power Rises, Maintaining Premium Over French Price

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. power for delivery on the next
working day rose, maintaining a premium over corresponding prices
in France, suggesting Britain will continue to import electricity
to meet demand.

Working-day-ahead baseload electricity for delivery in
Britain climbed 9.8 percent to 27 pounds ($53.54) a megawatt-
hour, compared with a last trade of 24.60 pounds a megawatt-hour
on June 15 for today, according to prices from the energy broker
Spectron Group Plc. Baseload power is supplied around the clock.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

German Utilities Say Cooling Limits Will Cut Power Production Tomorrow

(Bloomberg) -- German utilities said power plant
availability in Germany will be reduced tomorrow because of
cooling-water restrictions.

Capacity at plants in Europe's largest energy market will be
cut by 515 megawatts, operators said today in a joint statement
on the Web site of the European Energy Exchange. They didn't say
which plants are affected.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

British Energy Restarts Unit at Heysham 2 Nuclear After Plant Refueling

(Bloomberg) -- British Energy Group Plc, whose
nuclear reactors can produce about a fifth of the U.K.'s
electricity, started production at Unit 7 of its Heysham 2 plant.

The unit, which has a capacity of about 580 megawatts,
started June 16 at 7 p.m. London time, according to a National
Grid Plc Web site. British Energy halted the unit June 10 for
planned refueling.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Germany's DAX Index Increases; Henkel, Metro, Linde Lead Advance

(Bloomberg) -- German stocks rose, led by Henkel
KGaA, Metro AG and Linde AG gained.

The benchmark DAX Index added 17.60, or 0.2 percent, to
8048.24 as of 9:11 a.m. in Frankfurt. The HDAX Index of the
country's 110 biggest companies increased 0.2 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

U.K. Pound May Gain on Views Minutes, M4 to Back Higher Interest Rates

(Bloomberg) -- The pound may advance on speculation
the minutes of the Bank of England's June meeting and economic
reports this week will reinforce the case for higher interest
rates to slow the economy.

Since the June 7 meeting Governor Mervyn King and Paul
Tucker again expressed concern about inflation, underpinning
expectations for an increase in borrowing costs. The bank will
probably say June 20 that M4 money supply, closely watched by
rate setters for signs of inflation, rose for a third week.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News