Japan's Corporate Bond Risk Increases, According to Credit-Default Swaps

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese corporate bond risk rose,
credit-default swaps show.

Contracts based on 1 billion yen ($8.4 million) of debt
included in the iTraxx Japan Series 7 Index of 50 investment-
grade companies rose to 4.2 million yen in Tokyo from 3.6
million yen yesterday, according to JPMorgan Chase & Co. prices.
The cost of the contracts increases as perceptions of credit
quality worsen; a decline suggests improvement.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Wescast profit slips in second quarter

(Reuters) - The company said it had sales of C$101.3 million, down from
C$102.6 million in the same three-month period of 2006.




Brantford, Ontario-headquartered Wescast said that while
its sales in North America were down, those in Europe were
higher.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Australia's Macquarie funds face losses

(Reuters) - Local media estimated the losses at more than A$300 million
.




The Australian newspaper said the funds, which are invested
in senior secured loans, had combined assets of about A$220
million, but had borrowed borrowed six to seven times their
value, magnifying potential losses.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

LandAmerica posts lower 2nd-qtr earnings

(Reuters) - The company also raised its dividend by 36 percent.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-General Cable net up amid electric utility growth

(Reuters) - The company's shares fell 9.4 percent after General Cable gave
a profit forecast for the current quarter that fell short of
analysts' estimates.




Second-quarter net income climbed to $62.8 million, or $1.15
per share, from $41.4 million, or 80 cents per share, a year
earlier. Net sales rose to $1.17 billion from $987.1 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Argentina's Acindar first-half net sinks 38 percent

(Reuters) - In the first six months of 2006, the company's net totaled
377.9 million pesos, a figure boosted by profits related to
Acindar's sale of its tube business. This year, the company did
not record any one-off benefits.




In the first quarter, Acindar reported a net profit of
127.8 million pesos. If that figure were unchanged, the
company's second-quarter profit would have totaled 107.7
million pesos.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Brasil Telecom 2nd-quarter profit up 39 percent

(Reuters) - Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization , a measure of cash flow, rose to 972.7
million reais from 813.6 million reais.




Brasil Telecom Participacoes is the holding company that
runs Brasil Telecom SA , the country's No. 3
fixed-line operator. Its controlling shareholders include
Citigroup Inc and several Brazilian state-run pension
funds.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

News Corp. looks set to win Dow Jones

(Reuters) - Bancrofts holding more than 32 percent of voting shares in Dow Jones -- which publishes The Wall Street Journal, Barron's financial newsletter and Dow Jones Newswires -- are in favor of the $5 billion deal, a source familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.




That level of support represents more than half of the 64 percent voting shares held by the family. Outside shareholders own 29 percent of voting shares and are expected to overwhelmingly support the deal.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

H&R Block bank unit a key issue in proxy battle

(Reuters) - By shutting down its new banking business, which recently
launched a credit card and encourages tax filers to open
savings accounts, the company can avoid onerous capital rules
set by bank regulators, Breeden said.




"We will seek to put H&R Block in a position where it is
free to structure the mix of debt and equity on its balance
sheet without regard to capital rules relating to the banking
business," the letter said. "We believe this will allow more
cash to be returned to shareowners each year."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

General Cable net up amid electric utility growth

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, had forecast earnings per share
before certain items of $1.07 and revenue of $1.11 billion,
according to Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Cephalon posts loss on higher costs, generics

(Reuters) - Excluding items, Cephalon had adjusted income of $1.14 per
share, down from $1.51 for the year-ago quarter.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Canadian Energy Stocks Advance on Western Oil Takeover; Suncor Shares Rise

(Bloomberg) -- Canadian energy stocks rose after a
C$5.8 billion ($5.46 billion) deal to buy Western Oil Sands Inc.
underscored the appeal of oil reserves in the nation.

Suncor Energy Inc., Petro-Canada and other energy companies
also gained after crude oil closed at a record high. Nortel
Networks Corp. led the decline by technology shares after
Alcatel-Lucent posted a bigger loss than analysts estimated.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Leveraged Financing Rises 12 Percent in First Half, EHYA Says

(Bloomberg) -- Leveraged financing by European
companies, which rose more than 12 percent in the first half,
may slow in the second part of the year, the European High Yield
Association said.

Issuance of high-yield bonds, leveraged loans and mezzanine
financing rose to an estimated 151 billion euros ($206 billion)
in the first six months, the industry group said today in a
report on its Web site.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

FED FOCUS-Markets, Fed back at loggerheads on rates

(Reuters) - The Fed has held benchmark U.S. overnight lending rates at
5.25 percent since June 2006, when it closed out a 17-meeting
string of quarter-percentage-point rate hikes.




More than a year later, the subsequent interest rate
"pause" is at eight meetings and counting.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US STOCKS-U.S. stocks fall as credit worries return

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 31 - U.S. stock indexes fell on
Tuesday, giving up earlier earnings-driven gains as worries
about the deteriorating credit market resurfaced.




American Home Mortgage Investment Corp. was the
latest casualty of the housing slump. The mortgage lender said
it can't fund home loans and may have to liquidate.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Fresh Del Monte posts Q2 profit, shares rise

(Reuters) - By Vikram Subhedar



BANGALORE, July 31 - Fruit and vegetable producer Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. posted a quarterly profit, which more than doubled Wall Street expectations, helped by cost cuts and better results at its banana and other fresh produce businesses.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

U.S. Swaptions Interest Rate Volatility Falls as Perceived Bond Risk Eases

(Bloomberg) -- Volatility on options on interest-
rate swaps fell from a 17-month high for a second day as the
perceived risk of owning corporate bonds declined.

The risk of holding corporate debt dropped by the most in
at least three years after home lender GMAC LLC said subprime
mortgage losses narrowed and Citadel Investment Group LLC said
yesterday that it bought the assets of a failed hedge fund.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Dow Jones' Bancrofts with 32 pct stock ok deal-WSJ

(Reuters) - That represents about half of the family's 64 percent ownership of the company's voting shares, likely more than enough to seal the News Corp deal, the Journal reported, citing unnamed sources.



Dow Jones owns the Wall Street Journal.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Catalyst Paper profit hit by higher Canada dollar

(Reuters) - The Canadian papermaker said it earned C$200,000, or nil
per share, in the second quarter, compared with a profit of
C$42.4 million, or 20 Canadian cents a share, in the
year-before quarter.




Analysts were expecting, on average, a loss of 15 Canadian
cents a share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

TREASURIES-Bonds trim losses as stocks gain

(Reuters) - Treasuries were little moved by mixed economic data that
painted a picture of benign inflation pressures and slower
economic growth, but surprisingly upbeat consumer sentiment.
For details, see [ID:nN30403317], [ID:nN30443227]




Treasuries rose sharply last week, pushing yields to
two-month lows on Friday after the stock market suffered its
greatest loss nearly five years.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Fed will act on market slide if warranted--Poole

(Reuters) - "The Fed doesn't know, and market participants do not know
either, the full implications of last week's stock market
declines and increases in risk spreads," St Louis Federal
Reserve President William Poole said.




Poole said the Fed should not add to the uncertainty by
making its own policy less predictable. But if it was convinced
about the scale of the risks, it would not stand idle.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bre-X gold scam figure not guilty on all counts

(Reuters) - Shares of the company, which had soared to value the firm at C$6 billion, collapsed to nothing, costing thousands of investors their savings, and leaving ruined shareholders to sell their stock certificates off as bitter souvenirs to a public fascinated by the story.




Felderhof's lawyers had argued that Felderhof was not aware the results were false.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-Industrial Alliance profit dips without tax boost

(Reuters) - The Canadian life and health insurer earned C$62.1 million
, or 77 Canadian cents a share, in the three
months ended June 30. That compares with C$63.7 million, or 78
Canadian cents a share, in the year-before quarter.




Analysts had expected earnings before exceptional items of
74 Canadian cents, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Avon profit falls on costs

(Reuters) - Net income included pretax costs of about $82 million on initiatives including restructuring its operations and revamping its product offerings.




Excluding the charges, the company earned 38 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates, missing analysts' expectations of 42 cents.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

RLPC-Myers Industries postpones $950 mln LBO financing

(Reuters) - The financing, which was being arranged by Goldman Sachs,
consisted of a $685 million bank loan and $265 million in
senior subordinated notes.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Chile's Peso Gains on Higher Industrial Production, Copper Price Rebound

(Bloomberg) -- Chile's peso rose after industrial
production rose more than expected and copper, the country's
biggest export, gained because of threatened supply disruptions
caused by striking workers in Mexico.

Industrial production rose 6.7 percent in June from a year
earlier, higher than the 5 percent median forecast from nine
analysts in a Bloomberg survey.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Agco quarterly earnings rise

(Reuters) - Net income in the second quarter rose to $63.8 million, or 67 cents a share, from $40.9 million, or 45 cents share, a year earlier. Net sales grew about 18 percent to $1.71 billion from $1.45 billion in the year-ago period.



Analysts on average expected the Duluth, Georgia-based company to report a profit of 53 cents a share, before items, on revenue of $1.6 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Valero earnings gain on strong margins

(Reuters) - Wall Street analysts had forecast earnings per share of
$3.74 before special items, according to Reuters Estimates.




Revenues were $24.2 billion compared to $25.6 billion a
year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Pilgrim's Pride Q3 profit shatters estimates

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 31 - Top U.S. chicken producer Pilgrim's Pride Corp. on Tuesday reported a much larger-than-expected quarterly profit due to higher chicken prices and strong demand, sending its shares higher.



The company also raised its estimate of cost savings from its purchase in December of smaller rival Gold Kist Inc. to about $150 million by January 2008 from its previous forecast of $100 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Waste Management profit beats forecasts, shares up

(Reuters) - Excluding one-time items, the Houston-based company posted
a second-quarter profit of 56 cents per share, up from 45 cents
a year earlier. Analysts on average had expected 52 cents per
share, according to Reuters Estimates.




"The dynamics within this performance were familiar, with a
lower base of revenues more than compensated by much better
margin trends," Deutsche Bank analyst Nigel Coe wrote in a note
to clients.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Apen Technology settles SEC charges

(Reuters) - As part of the settlement, the SEC did not announce any
monetary penalty against the company, which is required to
retain an independent consultant to review its financial and
accounting policies and procedures.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

OPEC gets cash windfall in 2006 on oil boom

(Reuters) - OPEC's oil and gas export revenue surged 22 percent to a record $649 billion in 2006 as crude prices hit an all-time high and the exporter group pumped close to full tilt, an OPEC report showed on Tuesday.

In the world's biggest oil exporter Saudi Arabia income from petroleum exports, including crude oil, condensates and natural gas liquids, hit $194 billion last year, a rise of 20 percent, OPEC said in its Annual Statistical Bulletin.


Read more at Reuters Africa

NAPM-Milwaukee says purchasing index down in July

(Reuters) - New orders were down 15 points to 60 while production
slumped 18 points to 54. Supplier lead times rose 12 points to
50 and order backlogs dropped 18 points, also to 50.




Capital equipment spending held steady at 67.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-UST to acquire Stag's Leap wine in joint venture

(Reuters) - Ste. Michelle will own 85 percent of the joint venture with
privately held Marchesi Antinori, a UST spokesman said. UST
already distributes Antinori wine in the United States.




The acquisition, while small, adds to UST's commitment to
its wine business, which represented about 16 percent of UST's
sales through the first half of 2007. Only four years ago, the
company was deciding whether to keep its wine business.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Gold Futures Head for Monthly Gain as U.S. Dollar Weakens; Silver Rises

(Bloomberg) -- Gold rose in New York, heading for
the first monthly gain since April, as the dollar's decline
against the euro boosted the appeal of the precious metal as an
alternative investment. Silver also gained.

Gold generally moves in the opposite direction of the U.S.
currency. The metal is up 4.2 percent this month as the dollar
has fallen 1.2 percent against the euro.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

France's Michelin buys Cooper retread subsidiary

(Reuters) - The terms of the transaction include a cash purchase price
of $69 million. The deal is subject to final due diligence, and
Federal Trade Commission and U.S. Department of Justice
approval.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

It'll be a cold day before debt markets reopen:James Saft

(Reuters) - The riskier parts of the debt markets, especially leveraged loans, have all but shut up shop. Hedge funds generally can't get credit from their bank lenders and structured finance isn't buying either.




And it's not just that investors could have a long wait before the debt-powered private equity pipeline starts flowing again, it's also possible that a liquidity crisis prompts defaults and wider economic fallout.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

News Corp., Dow Jones deal expected Tues: report

(Reuters) - Dow Jones also is currently discussing a plan to have News Corp. cover legal fees incurred by the Bancroft family amounting to at least $30 million, the paper reported on Monday.




"The definitive agreement has not been signed, but people familiar with the situation tell me it will be this evening," a CNBC newscaster reported on Tuesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

RPT-US home prices fell in May - S&P/Case-Shiller

(Reuters) - The composite month-over-month Standard &
Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index of 10 metropolitan areas
declined 0.3 percent to 218.37, bringing the year-over-year
change to 3.4 percent, S&P said in a press release.




The composite month-over-month Standard &
Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index of 20 metro areas also
showed a 0.2 percent drop, to a 200.04 reading, or a 2.8
percent year-over-year loss.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Apria Healthcare posts rise in profit

(Reuters) - Analysts on average had forecast earnings of 45 cents per
share, according to Reuters Estimates.




Management repeated a prior forecast for 2007 revenue
growth of 4 percent to 5 percent, and net income of $1.78 to
$1.82 per share



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Futures rise before inflation, other data

(Reuters) - Shares of fast-food chain Wendy's International Inc. will likely be in the spotlight after billionaire Nelson Peltz said his Triarc Cos. Inc. could offer up to $41 a share for the company.




The core personal consumption expenditure index, the Federal Reserve's favorite inflation indicator, is forecast to have risen 0.2 percent in June, according to economists polled by Reuters.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Cameron second-quarter profit soars

(Reuters) - The company, which helps energy companies drill for oil and
gas, said the latest results include a tax-related gain of 6
cents a share.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Avon 2nd-qtr profit down on restructuring, ad costs

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 31 - Avon Products Inc. on Tuesday reported lower second-quarter profit, hurt by restructuring and advertising costs.



Avon, the world's largest direct seller of cosmetics, said net income fell 25 percent to $113 million, or 26 cents a share, from $151 million, or 33 cents a share, in the year-ago period.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Perot Systems <PER.N Q2 earnings fall, revenue up

(Reuters) - PEROT SYSTEMS CORP.
Latest Yr ago qtr
EPS 0.18 0.21
Net income 23 26
Revenue 635 572
Reuters Estimates: EPS $0.19, revenue $628.9 million




--The computer services company said it expects
third-quarter earnings of 20 cents to 23 cents a share on
revenue of $650 million to $665 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Yen Slides as Global Stocks Rebound, Bond Risk Drops, Carry Trades Resume

(Bloomberg) -- The yen fell against the dollar and
euro as a rebound in global stocks and a decline in corporate
bond risk prompted traders to resume purchases of higher yielding
assets with funds borrowed in Japan.

``The credit market's on a firmer footing,'' said Steven
Barrow, chief currency strategist at Bear Stearns International
Ltd. in London. ``The yen has weakened. Currencies are in the lap
of the credit-market gods.''


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Partner Communications Q2 profit up on 3G growth

(Reuters) - JERUSALEM, July 31 - Partner Communications , Israel's second-largest mobile phone operator, on Tuesday reported a 30.9 percent rise in second-quarter profit, helped by higher revenues from third generation services.



Net profit rose to 228.1 million shekels , or 1.45 shekels per diluted share, from 174.2 million shekels, or 1.13 shekels per share, a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Coach fourth-quarter profit rises

(Reuters) - Net income for the fourth quarter that ended on June 30
increased to $160.6 million, or 42 cents per share, from $117.6
million, or 31 cents per share, a year earlier.




Analysts on average were expecting 41 cents per share,
according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Kenya says GDP growth accelerates to 6.3% in Q1

(Reuters) - Kenya's economy grew 6.3 percent in the first quarter of 2007, up from 4.1 percent in the same period a year ago, the country's statistics office said on Tuesday.

"Real gross domestic product is ... estimated to have increased by 6.3 percent in the first quarter of 2007, compared to 4.1 percent in the first quarter of 2006," the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics said in a quarterly report.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Shinhan Bank Receives $300 Million Loan as South Korea Economy Expands

(Bloomberg) -- Shinhan Bank, a unit of South Korea's
second-largest financial services company, got a $300 million
loan from 14 banks, according to a document obtained by Bloomberg
News.

The banking unit of Shinhan Financial Group Ltd. got the
loan from banks including ABN Amro Holding NV, Barclays Plc, BNP
Paribas SA and Calyon, according to the document.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Suzuki Q1 up as sales advance, Mazda lifted by yen

(Reuters) - Both automakers left their full-year profit forecasts
unchanged citing volatile exchange rates and unpredictable raw
materials prices.




Suzuki has been struggling to keep up with demand as high
fuel prices steer more consumers towards small, fuel-sipping cars
such as its Swift hatchback, particularly in Europe and South
Asia.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News