Kuwait Strengthens Dinar Against Dollar by 0.4 Percent, EFG-Hermes Says

(Bloomberg) -- Kuwait strengthened its currency
0.4 percent against the dollar, EFG-Hermes Holding said, citing
Kuwait central bank data.

The Central Bank of Kuwait is buying dollars at 0.28695
and selling at 0.28685, 0.4 percent higher than its previous
reference rate, Monica Malik, economist at EFG-Hermes, said in
a telephone interview.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

DP World of Dubai to Buy, Expand Ports in China, India as Trade Increases

(Bloomberg) -- DP World, thwarted in an attempt to
expand in the U.S., is seeking to buy or expand port facilities
in China and India as trade booms in the world's two-fastest
growing major economies.

The company, the third-biggest container terminal operator,
needs to expand in India and China to meet its target of doubling
capacity by 2016, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem said today in an
interview in Singapore. Owned by the government of Dubai in the
United Arab Emirates, DP World is in talks to acquire Chinese
port assets, he said.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Shaw Group to raise Q1 loss view

(Reuters) - The construction and engineering company said it expects a second quarter net loss of $74 million, or 93 cents per diluted share, and revenue of about $1.2 billion.




In the third quarter, Shaw sees net income of between 30 and 35 cents per diluted share, and revenue of $1.6 billion. Backlog for the fiscal third quarter ended May 31 was about $13.3 billion, it said.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Alstom, Gemalto, L'Oreal, Sanofi-Aventis, Radiall: French Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of the following companies may
rise or fall on the Paris stock exchange. Symbols are in
parentheses after company names, and prices are from the previous
close.

The CAC 40 lost 18.13, or 0.3 percent, to 6001.09 points.
The SBF 120 index also fell 0.3 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Rises, Led by BHP, Rio on Metals Rally; Banks Drop

(Bloomberg) -- Australian stocks rose, rebounding
from two-days of losses. BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group led
mining shares higher after metals such as copper and zinc gained,
and on a report Rio is poised to bid for Alcan Inc.

``I would bet both BHP and Rio are running the numbers over
Alcan, and maybe other companies, with a view to making a bid,''
said Richard Wallace, who helps manage $138 million at Wallace
Funds Management in Sydney. ``As an investor you don't want to
stand in the way of a train, so you'll see plenty of buying of the
shares ahead of a potential announcement.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Whole Foods CEO panned Wild Oats in Web postings

(Reuters) - Company CEO John Mackey posted messages on a Yahoo! financial forum under the user name "rahodeb," according to a court document filed by the U.S. Federal Trade Commission and postings on Yahoo!




Mackey's messages painted a bright future for Whole Foods, the largest U.S. natural and organic grocer, and downplayed the threat posed by competitors.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Head of UBS Latin America settles investigation

(Reuters) - The CVM had investigated accusations that Banco Pactual and
foreign investor Romanche Investment Corporation engaged in
illicit currency and interest rate transactions on Brazil's
BM&F futures exchange between 2002 and 2004.




The operations had been carried out under market conditions
but the coincidence of losses for Banco Pactual and gains for
Romanche had suggested that the orders had been placed after
their execution, CVM said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Australian Shares Advance, Led by BHP Billiton on Higher Metals Prices

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's benchmark stock index,
the S&P/ASX 200 Index, rose 0.35 percent at 10:05 a.m.

The index of 201 companies traded on the Australian Stock
Exchange rose 22.10 to 6,347.20. Among the stocks in the index,
96 rose, 22 fell and 83 were unchanged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

New Web site encourages firms to report corruption

(Reuters) - BRIBEline.org, launched by TRACE, a Maryland-based non-profit group, lets anyone volunteer information about incidents of corruption or bribery in the United States or abroad.




The information compiled from BRIBEline will help companies determine where corruption is most prevalent and will help governments strengthen their ability to tackle corruption.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Mexican Pipeline Blast Prompts Shutdowns at Nissan, Vitro, Kellogg Plants

(Bloomberg) -- More than 100 companies in Mexico
including automaker Nissan Motor Co. and cereal maker Kellogg
Co. reduced or suspended production after a pipeline explosion
yesterday interrupted natural gas supplies.

The blast in the central state of Queretaro damaged a 36-
inch pipeline operated by state-owned oil monopoly Petroleos
Mexicanos, cutting supplies to the cities of Guadalajara,
Queretaro, Aguascalientes and Leon. A guerilla group that calls
itself the Popular Revolutionary Army claimed responsibility.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

GLOBAL MARKETS-U.S. stocks turn up, bonds slide

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 11 - U.S. stocks regained their
footing on Wednesday, as a scarcity of profit warnings sparked
hopes corporations would turn in solid quarterly reports, but
the upswing hurt bonds.




The first drop in U.S. crude oil supplies in six weeks and
a decision by Lehman Brothers to boost its share price target
for Exxon Mobile Corp. helped lift the oil giant's
shares 0.9 percent to $87.29.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

CORRECTED - Ariel Capital exits DeVry, cuts Career Education stake

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 10 - Chicago-based Ariel Capital
Management LLC said on Tuesday it sold its shares in for-profit
education company DeVry Inc. and sharply reduced its
stake in Career Education Corp. , another for-profit
education company.




Ariel hasn't yet reported its exit from DeVry in a
regulatory filing and won't comment further on the sale of its
stake, Ariel analyst Bob Goldsborough said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Yum 2nd-qtr profit up 12 percent

(Reuters) - In the same period last year, Yum earned $192 million, or 34 cents per share.




Revenue rose 9 percent to $2.37 billion, compared with an average analyst estimate of $2.29 billion, according to Reuters Estimates. Same-store sales across all of Yum's restaurants rose 2 percent during the quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

CN Rail criticized by Canadian derailment probe

(Reuters) - The Transportation Safety Board said Canada's largest
railway failed to retain adequate "local knowledge" when it
reorganized operations to increase productivity on British
Columbia's BC Rail, which it purchased in 2004.




"This is an extreme mountain environment with curves that
are twice as sharp and grades more than twice as steep as on
other CN main lines. There is no room for error," said Wendy
Tadros, chairwoman of the safety board said in a statement.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-American Eagle same-store sales up 8 percent

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, had expected the teen clothing
retailer to post an increase of 4.3 percent, according to a
Reuters survey.




The retailer also now expects second-quarter earnings to be
35 cents to 36 cents a share, compared with its previous
forecast of 34 cents to 36 cents.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

US STOCKS-Indexes up with oil sector, but Sallie Mae drags

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 11 - U.S. stocks advanced on
Wednesday, helped by gains in energy shares as oil prices
traded near $73 a barrel.




But the three major stock indexes pared gains after
student loan firm SLM Corp. , commonly known as Sallie
Mae, said the buyers in its proposed $25 billion takeover told
it that current legislative proposals could threaten the deal.
For details, see [ID:nN11401528] Sallie Mae's shares tumbled
10.6 percent after the company's announcement.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Verizon Wireless exec opposes open access idea

(Reuters) - Verizon Wireless's general counsel said at a congressional hearing that consumers ultimately would suffer if the government forced the winner of the auction to make some of the airwaves accessible using any device or software application.




"Consumer choice would be the casualty of policies that mandate that all companies do the same thing the same way," the company's general counsel, Steve Zipperstein, said in a statement at the hearing.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-Fire breaks out at unused Miami airport tower

(Reuters) - Greg Chin, a spokesman for the airport, said the unused
building was a "gate assignment tower." The tower is at the
massive new North Terminal, part of a $6.2 billion expansion
project under way for over a decade and bedeviled by cost
overruns, scandals and delays.




"There was a tar kettle on fire," a spokeswoman for
Miami-Dade county fire and rescue said. "But apparently
everything seems to be under control now."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-US lawmaker sees bill requiring hedge fund records

(Reuters) - WASHINGTON, July 11 - The House Financial
Services Committee will draft legislation requiring U.S. hedge
funds to keep copies of trading data and will take a closer
look at the role of credit rating agencies in the collapse of
some funds linked to subprime mortgages, the panel chairman
said on Wednesday.




Rep. Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat, said his
planned bill would help protect investors in the lightly
regulated hedge fund industry by giving federal agencies the
ability to examine funds' records of trades, e-mail exchanges
and other documents.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

GLOBAL MARKETS-U.S. stocks bounce up, dollar and bonds slip

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 11 - U.S. stocks rose on
Wednesday, helped by gains in energy shares, while the dollar
dropped on continued U.S. subprime mortgage fears and bonds
fell out of favor.




Data showing falling supplies of crude in the United States
boosted shares of Exxon Mobil Corp. 0.3 percent to
$86.77.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Roche ups pressure on Ventana

(Reuters) - "Such action may include the nomination of new directors to Ventana's Board and/or proposals to amend Ventana's bylaws," Roche said in a statement.




Ventana's board earlier unanimously rebuffed the offer, saying the hostile bid undervalues the diagnostics company and its prospects in the fast-growing cancer-testing market.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Circuit City names chief financial officer

(Reuters) - Circuit City announced in February that then-finance chief Michael Foss was leaving to become chief financial officer at Petco Animal Supplies Inc. Foss had worked at Circuit City for 3-1/2 years.




This year, Circuit City has announced store closures, job cuts and a plan to replace 3,400 workers with lower-paid staff in a bid to turn around its business and win market share amid heavy competition from Best Buy and discounters such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Brazil's Real Reverses Early Declines Following Benign Inflation Report

(Bloomberg) -- Brazil's real strengthened as a
local inflation report was slightly better than analyst
estimates.

The real rose 0.1 percent to 1.8892 per dollar at 12:39
p.m. New York time after weakening as much as 0.7 percent to
1.9057 in morning trading on concerns about an economic slowdown
arising from losses in the U.S. subprime mortgage market.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

French Stock Index Drops; Alstom, PPR, Lafarge Shares Fall on the CAC 40

(Bloomberg) -- French stocks fell for a second day,
paced by Alstom SA, PPR and Lafarge SA.

The CAC 40 Index slipped 18.13, or 0.3 percent, to 6001.09
after earlier dropping as much as 1.4 percent. The SBF 120 Index
also retreated 0.3 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Fannie Mae sells $1 bln 10-year notes in reopen

(Reuters) - The 5.375 percent notes were sold at 98.815 for a 5.531
percent stop-out rate. The bid-to-cover-ratio was 3.5-to-1.




The total size of the 10-year note issue after the
reopening is $4.0 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Lehman to buy leveraged loan fund LightPoint

(Reuters) - LightPoint Chief Executive Thomas Kramer will join Lehman Brothers Asset Management as a managing director. He will serve as co-head of leveraged asset management at Lehman together with Ann Benjamin, who had led Lehman's high yield team since 1997.




Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Rand, bonds weaker on continued risk aversion

(Reuters) - South Africa's rand weakened versus the dollar on Wednesday, while bonds also took a beating as nagging concerns about the U.S. subprime mortgage industry kept risk aversion among investors high.

At 1515 GMT, the rand stood at 7.0350 to the dollar, down 0.2 percent from Tuesday's close of 7.0240 in New York. It fell to 7.0635 earlier in the session.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Oil Falls After Report Shows U.S. Gasoline Supplies Rose for a Second Week

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell after an Energy
Department report showed that U.S. gasoline inventories rose for
a second week.

Gasoline stockpiles climbed 1.14 million barrels to 205.6
million in the week ended July 6, the report showed. Eighteen
analysts in a Bloomberg News survey expected an increase of
825,000 barrels, based on the median of estimates.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

OPEC says crude supply not to blame for oil price

(Reuters) - The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is ready to pump more, but for now sees no need and has rebuffed calls from consumer countries for extra oil to lower prices from $76 a barrel.




Oil has been on an upward march since January when it sank


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Platinum Futures Gain in New York as Dollar Falls to Record Versus Euro

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum rose in New York after the
dollar fell to a record against the euro, boosting the precious
metal's appeal as an alternative investment. Palladium also
gained.

Gold, silver and platinum often move in the opposite
direction of the dollar. The euro climbed to $1.3784 today, the
highest since the currency's debut in 1999. Before today,
platinum had climbed 15 percent this year and reached a record
$1,353.80 on May 7.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Pemco says to sell commercial services unit for $43 mln

(Reuters) - Following the transaction, expected to close in the fall of
2007, Pemco said it will continue to provide aircraft
maintenance and modification services for its governemnt and
military customers under the name DefensePemco Inc. or another
name which does not contain "Pemco."





Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Aeropostale June same-store sales rise 0.2 pct

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 11 - Aeropostale Inc said
on Wednesday that its sales at stores open at least a year rose
0.2 percent in June as the teen clothing retailer said it tried
to limit its clearance sales to protect its margins.




The company also announced a 3-for-2 stock split.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

US STOCKS-Futures signal flat open after sell-off

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 11 - U.S. stocks headed for a flat
to slightly higher open on Wednesday as investors scoured the
market for beaten-down shares after Tuesday's sell-off on
rising concern about the impact from the U.S. housing slump.




A drop in oil prices, broker upgrades and news of large
takeover in the steel industry could help cushion the market,
analysts said. Trading in stock index futures was choppy.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Naspers braces for pay-TV price war in S.Africa

(Reuters) - South African pay-TV monopoly Multichoice expects the onset of competition next year to spark a profit-eroding price war and says fixed-line phone operator Telkom will be its toughest rival.

Multichoice, which is owned by media firm Naspers and runs Africa's DStv pay-TV network, says it may have to cut its prices when South Africa's regulator licences competitors next year and is braced for higher content costs.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Gold Futures May Gain on Speculation Dollar to Slump; Silver Increases

(Bloomberg) -- Gold, little changed in New York,
may gain on speculation the dollar will decline against the
euro, boosting the appeal of the precious metal as an
alternative investment. Silver rose.

Gold generally moves in the opposite direction of the
dollar, which was little changed after earlier falling to a
record against the euro. Before today, gold had gained 4.1
percent this year, while the euro climbed 4.2 percent against
the dollar.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Treasuries Little Changed as Subprime-Related Demand for Safety May Ease

(Bloomberg) -- Treasuries were little changed as
U.S. stock futures rebounded, suggesting demand for the safest
debt may ease.

``If we're done having the benefit of continued weakness,
it's not a bad area to sell or stop buying,'' said David Ader,
head of U.S. government bond strategy in Greenwich, Connecticut,
at RBS Greenwich Capital.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Credit Suisse Cuts South African Stocks Recommendation to `Underweight'

(Bloomberg) -- Investors should reduce holdings of
South African stocks because share prices have risen too high and
mining companies may suffer in an economic slowdown, according to
Credit Suisse Group.

South African shares were cut to an ``underweight''
recommendation, meaning investors should hold fewer of the stocks
than are represented in emerging-market indexes, Alexander Redman
wrote in a strategy note distributed today. The previous stance
was ``market weight.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Banks seen pulling back lending to loan buyers

(Reuters) - Rising corporate debt levels of almost 10 times profits,
compared with 6.5 times three years ago, according to Standard
& Poor's data, will also make some companies struggle to
refinance during times of trouble, they said at a Corporate
Restructuring Conference in London on Wednesday.




"We're seeing a withdrawal of liquidity by prime brokers,
mainly the big investment banks lending to hedge funds, and by
lenders to parties willing to buy leveraged loans," said Robin
Doumar, managing partner at Park Square Capital, a London-based
fund with 2.25 billion euros under management.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Children's Place June sales up 2 pct

(Reuters) - On Monday, the apparel retailer reported a 4 percent drop
in its June sales at its stores open at least a year and
lowered its second-quarter outlook, dropping its shares to
their lowest point in more than a year.




Children's Place said it expects a net loss of 94 to 98
cents per share, including $2 million in costs related to a
stock option investigation, for the second quarter ending Aug.
4.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Burundi tea earnings down 13 pct on quality - board

(Reuters) - Burundi tea export earnings were down 13 percent in the first half of this year compared with the same period last year, mostly due to poor quality, an official said on Wednesday.

The state-run Burundi Tea Board (OTB) says the tiny central African country made $5 million in the first six months of 2007 from the sale of 3,686 tonnes of tea. It earned $5.73 million in the first half of last year by selling just 3,387 tonnes.


Read more at Reuters Africa

U.K. FTSE 100 Benchmark Index Declines, Led by HSBC, HBOS; Shell, BP Drop

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks fell for a second day,
led by HSBC Holdings Plc and HBOS Plc on concern losses in
subprime mortgages in the U.S. will erode economic and earnings
growth.

Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc dropped after Goldman,
Sachs & Co. downgraded the shares and crude oil retreated.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 2-Vietindebank sets Q1 2008 share debut, eyes overseas

(Reuters) - By Ho Binh Minh




HANOI, July 11 - Vietnam's second largest bank by
assets, state-run Bank for Investment and Development, said it
plans to list its shares in Vietnam in the first quarter of
next year to tap into one of Asia's hottest stock markets.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Saudi Basic to borrow up to $9 bln, mostly in U.S.

(Reuters) - "We will start in the next month," Mutlaq al-Morished,
SABIC's chief financial officer, told Reuters on Wednesday.




"We will raise it through a mix of bonds, bank loans, and
institutional loans, mostly in the United States, because that
is the deepest market," he said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Abu Dhabi Hires Citigroup, Deutsche Bank for First International Bond Sale

(Bloomberg) -- Abu Dhabi, the largest sheikhdom in
the United Arab Emirates and owner of the world's fifth-biggest
oil reserves, hired Citigroup Inc. and Deutsche Bank AG to help
it sell its first international bonds.

The emirate's government plans to issue bonds in dollars and
will start meetings with potential investors in the week
beginning July 15, Citigroup said in an e-mailed statement today.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Lead Price Advances to a Record $3,000 a Ton on London Metal Exchange

(Bloomberg) -- Lead gained to $3,000 a metric ton,
the highest ever, on the London Metal Exchange.

The contract for delivery in three months on the LME gained
$55, or 1.9 percent, to $2,990 a ton as of 9:58 a.m. local time.
Earlier, it gained as much as 2.2 percent to $3,000.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Gold Rises on Demand for Alternative to Slumping Dollar; Silver Advances

(Bloomberg) -- Gold rose to a one-month high in
London on speculation investors will seek an alternative to the
slumping dollar. Silver gained.

Bullion, priced in the U.S. currency, has gained 1.8 percent
in the past month, while the dollar has declined 2.8 percent to a
record low against the euro. Gold traded in euros has actually
dropped 1.6 percent over the same period.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

U.K. Natural Gas Rises on Higher Fuel Demand After Offshore Supply Boost

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. natural gas for same-day
delivery rose on higher forecasts of demand for the fuel,
following yesterday's increase in supplies from offshore fields.

Gas for delivery today rose 2 percent from yesterday's last
day-ahead price to 28.5 pence a therm, according to prices on
Bloomberg from the broker ICAP Plc. That's equivalent to $5.78 a
million British thermal units. A therm is 100,000 Btus.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Platinum Rises on Strike Threat as Wage Talks in South Africa Unresolved

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum climbed to its highest in
more than a month in Asian trading on concern that output could
be disrupted by a possible strike at Impala Platinum Ltd., the
world's second-biggest producer.

The National Union of Mineworkers today said talks with
Impala failed and it will take a legal step toward striking.
Salary negotiations at South African miners, including Anglo
Platinum Holdings Ltd., the world's biggest producer, started in
May and have yet to conclude.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Housing weakness woes drive US stock indexes down

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks slid on Tuesday as the subprime mortgage crisis escalated, undermining banking shares, while Home Depot Inc. and other housing-related companies lowered their outlooks.

Standard & Poor's roiled financial markets when it said it may cut ratings on $12 billion of subprime-related debt on forecasts of more delinquent and defaulted U.S. home loans.


Read more at Reuters Africa