RBS H1 earnings to beat forecasts

(Reuters) - It said costs as a ratio of income should improve from the 2006 level of 42.1 percent.




RBS said last week it should beat analysts' forecasts for first-half underlying earnings. Profit before tax and exceptional items is expected to be 10.3 billion pounds in 2007, up 9 percent from 9.4 billion in 2006, according to a Reuters Estimates average forecast from 11 analysts.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Royal Bank of Scotland H1 earnings to beat f/casts

(Reuters) - RBS, Britain's second biggest bank, said in a trading update on Tuesday that its UK retail markets unit would show a "modest reduction" in impairment losses in the six months to the end of June, while its cost/income ratio should improve from the 2006 level.



RBS said last week it should beat analysts' forecasts for first-half underlying earnings. Profit before tax and exceptional items is expected to be 10.3 billion pounds in 2007, up 9 percent from 9.4 billion in 2006, according to a Reuters Estimates average forecast from 11 analysts.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

IRS probes Jackson Hewitt-filing

(Reuters) - Jackson Hewitt said it intends to promptly complete an
internal review and to enhance compliance and monitoring for the
2008 tax-filing season.




In April, the Department of Justice sued the operators of
125 Jackson Hewitt offices accusing them of cheating the U.S.
Treasury out of more than $70 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

New Zealand Dollar Trades 1985 High, Australia's Gains Versus Yen on Yield

(Bloomberg) -- The New Zealand dollar rose to the
highest since it was floated in 1985 and Australia's dollar
gained to a five-week high on speculation investors bought the
nations' higher-yielding assets with money from Japanese loans.

The currencies reached a more than 15-year high against the
yen as U.S. and Japanese stock markets gained, encouraging
investors to put on so-called carry trades. The Nikkei 225 Stock
Average advanced for a fourth day and equity markets in South
Korea and Taiwan also climbed, even as Chinese shares slumped.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Japan's Government Notes Decline as Stocks Advance; Yield at 10-Month High

(Bloomberg) -- Japan's government notes fell, pushing
five-year yields to the highest since August, on speculation a
gain in share prices will dent demand for debt.

``Rising share prices are negative for Japanese bonds,'' said
Satoshi Yamada, who helps oversee the equivalent of $6.7 billion
in assets at Japan Investment Trust Management Co. in Tokyo.
``There's a risk that Japan's yields will keep rising.''


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Avaya Agrees to Be Bought by Silver Lake Partners, TPG for $8.2 Billion

(Bloomberg) -- Avaya Inc. agreed to be acquired by
Silver Lake Partners and TPG Inc. for $8.2 billion in the
largest leveraged buyout of a computer-networking company.

Investors will receive $17.50 a share, Basking Ridge, New
Jersey-based Avaya said in a statement last night. That is 4.7
percent more than yesterday's closing price and 28 percent more
than the price before speculation about the purchase surfaced.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

JGBs inch up on Treasuries, futures off 9-month low

(Reuters) - JGBs had been sold off heavily over the past two weeks in
line with a steady rise in yields on euro zone government bonds
and Treasuries, and as solid Japanese jobs and production data
reinforced the view that the Bank of Japan may hike rates as
early as August.




The benchmark 10-year yield scaled the key 1.8 percent mark
on Monday, a seven-month high, while the five-year yield touched
a 10-month high of 1.4 percent.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Gold firms, TOCOM inches down on profit taking

(Reuters) - Analysts said the downside on the Tokyo Commodity Exchange seemed limited by a favorable technical chart, in which spot gold has found a solid support at $650 an ounce.




Firmer oil prices were also supportive after a Middle East Gulf cyclone stoked concerns about oil supply from Oman and sent crude oil above $70 a barrel in London.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Philippine Inflation Accelerated in May as Oil Costs Lifted Fuel Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Philippine inflation accelerated in
May as the price of crude oil approached a six-month high,
pushing up utility costs.

Consumer prices rose 2.4 percent from a year earlier, the
National Statistics Office said in Manila. The median estimate
of nine economists in a Bloomberg survey was 2.5 percent.
Inflation was 2.3 percent in April and 2.2 percent in March, a
seven-year low.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Hindustan Seeks 520,000 Tons of Low-Sulfur Gasoil for June, July Delivery

(Bloomberg) -- Hindustan Petroleum Corp., India's
second-largest state refiner, is seeking to import 520,000 tons
of low-sulfur gasoil for delivery in June and July, according to
a document obtained by Bloomberg News.

Details of the company's requirement are as follows:


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

JGBs recover on Treasuries, futures off 9-month low

(Reuters) - JGBs had been sold off heavily over the past two weeks in
moves prompted by a steady rise in yields on euro zone government
bonds and Treasuries, and as solid Japanese jobs and production
data reinforced views that a Bank of Japan rate hike is likely as
early as August.




The benchmark 10-year yield scaled the key 1.8 percent mark
on Monday, a seven-month high, while the five-year yield touched
a 10-month high of 1.4 percent.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

REFILE-Cemex increases stake in Australia's Rinker

(Reuters) - Cemex, the world's No. 3 cement maker, said its holding in
Rinker rose to 29.89 percent from 29.19 percent in its previous
update.




Shares held under an institutional acceptance facility,
which allows institutions to withdraw their acceptances, rose
to 13.26 percent from 12.38 percent, giving a total interest of
43.15 percent from 41.57 percent previously.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Court rejects FCC broadcast decency limit

(Reuters) - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in New
York, in a divided decision, said that the U.S. Federal
Communications Commission was "arbitrary and capricious" in
setting a new standard for defining indecency.




The court sent the matter back to the commission for
further proceedings to clarify its indecency policy. The FCC,
which said it was still studying the opinion, could decide to
ask the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the appeals court.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-Red Robin ex-CEO settles SEC fraud charges over pay

(Reuters) - The SEC said Snyder's misrepresentations caused the
restaurant chain to fail to report material amounts of his
compensation in regulatory filings from 2002 through 2004.




During those three years, Snyder incurred costs of $1.2
million for charter jet travel, hotel and dinner expenses for
which he submitted misrepresentative expense reports and
invoices, the SEC said.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Treasury aide says U.S. might hit debt limit in '07

(Reuters) - "It's going to happen in the fall," Matthew Abbott, deputy assistant secretary for Federal finance at Treasury, told Reuters after a speech to a meeting of Illinois pension fund managers.




The fiscal year ends on September 30, so the possible need to ask Congress to raise the debt limit from the current $8.965 billion "will be right on the cusp," Abbott said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-U.S. awards Bavarian Nordic smallpox contract

(Reuters) - "To protect ourselves from the remote but extremely grave
threat of a deliberate release of smallpox virus, we need
vaccines that can be safely given to all Americans, including
individuals with weakened immune systems," Health and Human
Services Secretary Mike Leavitt said in a statement.




"Acquiring a stockpile of this new smallpox vaccine is a
key step toward protecting even more members of the American
public against a smallpox release."


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Bavarian wins $1.6 bln U.S. smallpox drug deal

(Reuters) - In addition to the delivery of the doses, the base contract
will support additional research and development of the vaccine
to fulfill the requirements for the potential use of Imvamune
during an emergency, Bavarian said.




Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Red Robin ex-CEO settles SEC fraud charges over pay

(Reuters) - During those three years, Snyder incurred $1.2 million for
charter jet travel, hotel and dinner expenses, for which he
submitted misrepresentative expense reports and invoices, the SEC
said.




Snyder agreed to the settlement without admitting or denying
the charges.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Loews bets on natural gas in $4 billion Dominion deal

(Reuters) - "It vindicates Loews' strategy of holding cash at the holding company level," said Matt Nellans, a Morningstar Inc. analyst. "It got a reasonable price and Dominion's exploration and production management team. Absent a complete bottoming out of natural gas prices, the deal should work out well."




The two companies announced the deal on Monday. Loews shares rose to a record.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US CREDIT-Wal-Mart steady, debt may weaken on new issues

(Reuters) - The world's biggest retailer said on Friday it will buy
back $15 billion of its own stock and it will also cut the
number of supercenters it plans to open this year by as much as
30 percent as it tries to boost U.S. sales. For details, see
[ID:nN01324918].




"We believe the currently proposed strategic shift will
have only a minor impact on Wal-Mart's credit quality," said
Bank of America analyst Christopher Brown.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

U.S. Stocks Little Changed on Oil Surge; Chevron Shares Rise, P&G Declines

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock indexes were little changed
as investors weighed the divergent effects of a surge in oil
prices. Energy producers led gains, while consumer-products
companies declined.

Chevron Corp., the largest refiner in the western U.S., led
oil-related shares in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index to a
record, buoyed by higher crude prices and the $6.5 billion sale
of Dominion Resources Inc.'s onshore oil and gas properties.
Procter & Gamble Co. and Avon Products Inc. dropped and a measure
of consumer-products shares had the steepest retreat among 24
industries in the S&P 500.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

CORRECTED - Massachusetts bans foreclosure rescue schemes

(Reuters) - The emergency measure takes effect immediately and will be
in force for 90 days, said Martha Coakley, the state's attorney
general, calling it the best way to protect homeowners at a
time when foreclosure rates are surging across the state.




The state legislature does not have to approve the ban for
it to become permanent.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Merrill now sees Fed not paring U.S. rates in 2007

(Reuters) - The Fed has held the target rate on overnight loans between
banks at 5.25 percent since June 2006.




The other U.S. primary dealers predicting an August rate
cut in Reuters' poll of 21 U.S. primary dealers were BNP
Paribas, Cantor Fitzgerald and UBS Securities.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Dundee REIT sells assets, stake to GE Real Estate

(Reuters) - The Toronto-based REIT also said GE Real Estate will buy an
18 percent equity interest in Dundee REIT, or C$165 million of
the outstanding units, following completion of the deal.




GE Real Estate plans to buy 32 million units at a purchase
price of C$47.50 per unit for a total return, including the GE
investment, of about C$1.7 billion, the REIT said. That
represents a 19 percent premium over the closing price of the
REIT's units on the Toronto Stock Exchange on June 1.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Anadarko shares at new high after asset sale

(Reuters) - Shares of Anadarko climbed 4 percent, or $1.99, to $51.64 on the New York Stock Exchange.




Under the terms of the deal announced on Sunday, Atlas will acquire control of Anadarko's interests in the Chaney Dell and Midkiff/Benedum natural gas gathering systems and associated processing plants located in Oklahoma and Kansas.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Johnson Controls outlook positive, was stable-Moody's

(Reuters) - "The action follows significant reductions in the company's
leverage and expansion in its revenues, earnings and cash flows
subsequent to its late-2005 acquistion of York International
Corporation," Moody's said in a statement.




The bonds didn't trade on Monday, according to MarketAxess
data.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Laureate accepts sweetened takeover bid

(Reuters) - The higher bid represents a 3 percent premium to Laureate's Friday closing price of $60.11 on the Nasdaq. The shares rose to $61.48 in Monday morning trade.




The investor group, led by Laureate Chief Executive Douglas Becker, includes Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co., Citi Private Equity, S.A.C. Capital Management and others.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Syria Becomes Second Middle East Country to Dump Dollar Peg in Two Weeks

(Bloomberg) -- Syria became the second Middle
Eastern nation in two weeks to say it will dump its currency's
peg to the dollar to curb rising import costs and inflation.

The country will link the Syrian pound to International
Monetary Fund special drawing rights instead from mid-July,
central bank Governor Adib Mayaleh said. The value of the
drawing rights is determined against a basket of currencies
including the dollar, euro, yen and U.K. pound.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

AT&T's Stephenson Sees `Tall Order' in Extending Gains for Telephone, TV

(Bloomberg) -- AT&T Inc.'s Randall Stephenson, who
spent three years as the top lieutenant during Chief Executive
Officer Edward Whitacre's $100 billion acquisition spree, now
must make his old boss's strategy work.

The 47-year-old Stephenson became CEO of the largest U.S.
telephone company yesterday. Investors say they're eager to see
how he will use Whitacre's purchases of the former AT&T Corp. and
BellSouth Corp. to improve profit margins and keep the stock
price rising.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

SXR Uranium to acquire Energy Metals Corp

(Reuters) - Uranium company sxr Uranium One Inc. said it would acquire Toronto-listed Energy Metals Corporation in an all-share deal that would enhance its asset portfolio in the United States.

Uranium One said on Monday EMC shareholders would receive 1.15 common of its shares for each issued share of EMC, representing a value of C$19.12 per share. The offer values EMC at C$1.59 billion.


Read more at Reuters Africa

US STOCKS-Indexes flat as China tumble offsets M&A

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 4 - U.S. stocks were flat on
Monday after another sharp fall in the Chinese market took some
of the shine off another string of corporate acquisitions.




Airline shares were among decliners on worries about weak
revenues heading into the summer traveling season.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Valero Texas City Refinery Emits Chemicals in Air, Texas Agency Says

(Bloomberg) -- Valero Energy Corp., the largest U.S.
refiner, burned chemicals in the air on June 1, including sulfur
dioxide, nitrogen oxide and nitric oxide, at its refinery in
Texas City, Texas, according to a report on a state-administered
environmental Web site.

The cause of the emissions was a compressor, the report
said. The chemicals were burned through flare towers, safety
equipment. In Texas, sulfur dioxide can only be released in an
emergency.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

UPDATE 1-SXR Uranium to acquire Energy Metals Corp.

(Reuters) - Uranium One said on Monday EMC shareholders would
receive 1.15 common of its shares for each issued share of EMC,
representing a value of C$19.12 per share. The offer values EMC
at C$1.59 billion .




"With our solid position in Kazakhstan and South Africa, the
acquisition of EMC fits in perfectly with our stated strategy of
value-accretive external growth and our focus on growth in the
United States," Uranium One President and Chief Executive
Officer Neal Froneman said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Gold Falls on Speculation Demand Will Slow as Dollar Steadies Versus Euro

(Bloomberg) -- Gold fell in New York on speculation
demand for the metal will slow as the dollar remains steady
against the euro. Silver climbed.

Gold generally moves in the opposite direction of the
dollar, which has gained 1.3 percent against the euro since
falling to a record in late April. Gold gained 2.3 percent last
week after dropping 4.1 percent in the previous three weeks.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Treasuries Rise as High Yields, Declines in China's Stocks Attract Bids

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries gained as investors were
attracted by interest rates near their high for the year and the
safety of government debt after China's benchmark stock index
fell 7.7 percent and as U.S. equity futures declined.

The benchmark 10-year Treasury yield reached a nine-month
high June 1 of 4.96 percent. U.S. stock futures for companies
including Boeing Co., the world's second-biggest maker of
commercial aircraft, and JPMorgan Chase & Co., the third-largest
U.S. bank, declined.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Publicis eyes more digital acquisitions, keeps goals

(Reuters) - "I consider them as partners. Will this change in coming
months? For it to change they would need to plunge very deeply
into the consumers' universe," Maurice Ley told the group's
annual shareholder meeting.




"I met with all these people. I do not think they are
enemies."


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

US STOCKS-Futures fall; focus on China, drug shares

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, June 4 - U.S. stock futures fell on
Monday after another sharp fall in Chinese stocks raised
concern, but the resilience of other global equities and a
steady stream of deal-making may limit losses.




Despite the weaker futures, the most active stocks in
electronic trading before the open were gainers.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Platinum Advances in London, Erasing an Earlier Decline; Palladium Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum rose in London, erasing an
earlier decline, on speculation demand from automobile companies
will more than make up for any drop in jewelry usage.

Platinum use in jewelry has fallen every year since 2002 as
increased demand from automakers drove prices higher, according
to London-based researcher GFMS Ltd. Automobile demand for
catalysts that use platinum has climbed because of tightening
emissions regulations in North America, Europe and Asia.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Lone Star to acquire Accredited Home

(Reuters) - The proposed sale comes two months after Accredited Home said it was exploring strategic options, including a merger. It recently obtained a $230 million term loan from hedge fund Farallon Capital Management LLC.




Accredited is one of many providers of home loans to people with poor credit histories that have struggled with rising losses and mounting defaults.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Avaya, Belo, Palm, Hertz, Navteq, Vonage, Wellman: U.S. Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares may have unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
today. This preview includes news that broke after exchanges
closed June 1. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company
names. Share prices are as of 7:30 a.m. New York time.

Abbott Laboratories (ABT US): Shares of the drugmaker may
fall to $48 each as questions about the safety of its TriCor
cholesterol drug rise, Barron's said, without citing anyone.
Abbott stock fell 5 cents to $56.30. ``There is absolutely no
data to substantiate any change to the safety and efficacy of
TriCor,'' Laureen Cassidy, a spokeswoman for Abbott, told
Bloomberg News. Shares fell 5 cents to $56.30 in regular trading
yesterday.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Miners and pharmas weigh on FTSE amid China worries

(Reuters) - The FTSE 100 of Britain's leading shares fell on Monday as pharmaceuticals and miners weighed and stock markets geared for interest rate decisions throughout Europe later this week.

Stocks also took their cue from an 8-percent slump in Chinese shares as investors continued to fret about last week's hike in stock-trading tax -- the latest move by authorities to cool a market that had nearly tripled in value in the past year.


Read more at Reuters Africa

HDG Mansure to Sell Shares in Islamic Property Fund in Dubai and London

(Bloomberg) -- HDG Mansur Capital Group LLC, an
investment company managing about $2.4 billion of property assets,
plans to sell shares in an Islamic real-estate fund in Dubai and
London to raise at least $400 million.

HDG Mansur, which has offices in the U.K. and U.S., will
list its Al-Umran Global Property Fund Ltd. as a company on the
Dubai International Financial Exchange, it said in a statement on
its Web site today. The fund's shares will also trade through
global depositary receipts on the London Stock Exchange.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Amex to sell private bank unit within weeks: source

(Reuters) - "The sale of American Express Private Bank is likely to happen in the next few weeks," said the financial source, who asked not to be identified. "It will be sold, most likely, to a global institution."




"It's a significant one because it's one brand that disappears from the wealth management scene. The brand can't be sold."


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

European Stocks Drop, Led by Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas on Downgrade

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks dropped on speculation
gains that have sent the Dow Stoxx 600 Index to within 7 points
of a record don't reflect the outlook for earnings growth.

Deutsche Bank AG and BNP Paribas SA paced the decline after
JPMorgan, Chase & Co. cut its recommendation on the investment
banking industry.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Philippine Peso Rises to Strongest Since 2000; Thai Baht Gains on Growth.

(Bloomberg) -- The Philippine peso had the biggest
gain in two weeks, extending a rally to the strongest since
September 2000, on optimism the pace of economic growth will
attract international investors.

The currency climbed as the benchmark Philippine stock index
advanced to a second straight record. The gains came after the
government last week said the expansion in gross domestic product
quickened in the first three months of the year, fueled by
consumer spending and exports.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

UK body backs "money-back" deal on J&J cancer drug

(Reuters) - The National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence



said on Monday it was now recommending the 25,000 pounds-a-year drug, known generically as bortezomib, for the treatment of multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

SNS to buy AXA Dutch operations for $2.35 bln

(Reuters) - SNS said it will partly fund the acquisition by selling 350 million euros in equity and that its majority shareholding foundation would concurrently sell up to 200 million of existing shares, with an over-allotment of 50 million euros worth of shares.




SNS is paying cash plus accrued interest of 4 percent from January 1 of this year, which will be the effective date of the acquisition. The deal is expected to close in the second half of 2007, SNS said.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Hindalco Shares Advance on Speculation Alcan May Make a Takeover Offer

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of Hindalco Industries Ltd.,
India's biggest aluminum producer, rose, poised for the biggest
gain in almost seven years, amid speculation the company may
become a takeover target.

Alcan Inc. may partner Sterlite Industries Ltd. to make a
bid for Hindalco in an attempt to fend off a hostile takeover
attempt by New York-based Alcoa Inc., the Times of India said
today in a column. ``We do not comment on such wild rumors,''
said Pragnya Ram, Hindalco's spokeswoman in Mumbai.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Palm to sell stake to Elevation Partners: report

(Reuters) - Neither Palm nor Elevation immediately returned calls seeking comment.




Palm will pay $940 million in cash, or about $9 a share, to existing shareholders whose ownership of the company will drop to 75 percent under the deal's terms, the Journal reported, adding that the deal needs shareholder approval.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News