PetroSA eyes exploration after Algeria setback

(Reuters) - South Africa's national oil group PetroSA said on Tuesday it was looking for exploration opportunities after a bid for a gas-to-liquid (GTL) project in Algeria was cancelled in May.

PetroSA had previously expressed confidence in securing the deal to establish a GTL project in Algeria as part of its plans to spread across Africa, but this took a dent when the Algeria plant was dropped because of rising costs.


Read more at Reuters Africa

CORRECTED - CORRECTED-Synovus Financial quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - Synovus reported second-quarter earnings of $162.8 million,
or 50 cents a share, compared with $152.8 million, or 47 cents
a share, in the year-ago quarter.




The Columbus, Georgia-based financial services company owns
81 percent stake in TSYS, an electronic payment processing
company.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

RPT-UPDATE 1-JetBlue reports stronger profit, will slow growth

(Reuters) - JetBlue reported net income of $21 million, or 11 cents per
share, compared with $14 million, or 8 cents, a year ago.




Wall Street analysts expected earnings of 11 cents per
share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Millicom CEO says competition not hurting margin

(Reuters) - The company, in its report, noted increased competitive
pressures.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

EMC qtr profit up but outlook disappoints

(Reuters) - By Jim Finkle



BOSTON, July 24 - EMC Corp. posted a 20 percent rise in quarterly profit on Tuesday on higher sales of data storage equipment, but shares fell as its full-year forecast disappointed investors hoping for a more bullish outlook.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

WRAPUP 1-Smith 2nd-qtr profit up, BJ Services profit off

(Reuters) - All oilfield service companies with operations in Canada
have seen results hit after a tumble in gas prices and
unfavorable weather sparked a sharp decline in drilling.
Oilfield service companies help energy firms drill for oil and
gas.




So far, market leaders like Halliburton Co. and
Schlumberger Ltd. topped Wall Street expectations due
to strength in international markets.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Mexico's Televisa says gaming tax too high

(Reuters) - Mexico's president, Felipe Calderon, last month presented a
long-awaited fiscal reform plan, part of which would close off
corporate tax loopholes.




The government wants to slap a 20 percent tax on gaming as
part of the bill, which is expected to get the go-ahead before
Congress starts discussing next year's budget in September.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Verizon Wireless: No impact from Broadcom deal

(Reuters) - It said it will pay Broadcom $6 for each handset it sells with these chips, or up to $40 million per calendar quarter and up to a maximum of $200 million.




"Given the limits of the payments under the agreement, Verizon does not expect that there will be a material effect on Verizon Wireless's annual results," the company said in a filing.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Inter Parfums H1 sales up 9 pct, confirms FY target

(Reuters) - Higher sales of Lanvin fragrances and good performance for
its main perfume brand Burberry helped make up for
lacklustre trends in the UK market for its Paul Smith scents,
said Inter Parfums, which is controlled through Nasdaq-listed
Inter Parfums Inc. .




Interim earnings are due for publication on Sept. 10.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

US STOCKS-Wall Street drops at open on profit woes

(Reuters) - The Dow Jones industrial average was down 77.71
points, or 0.56 percent, at 13,865.71. The Standard & Poor's
500 Index was down 10.37 points, or 0.67 percent, at
1,531.20. The Nasdaq Composite Index was down 17.77
points, or 0.66 percent, at 2,672.81.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

DuPont's CEO sees housing slump well into 2008

(Reuters) - The company on Tuesday cited the housing downturn as one of
the drags on quarterly earnings, which fell short of Wall
Street expectations. The stock fell more than 5 percent to
$50.46 in morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange.





Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

GLOBAL MARKETS-U.S. stocks, dollar fall, bonds up

(Reuters) - The sell-off in U.S. shares followed a retreat in European
stocks.




Chemical company DuPont Co. reported disappointing
earnings and building materials company USG Corp.
reported sharply lower earnings and said the housing downturn
could continue for some time.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

FED FOCUS-Slower productivity may be risk to growth

(Reuters) - Lower productivity growth, if permanent, is worrisome for
policy-makers as it could fan inflation through higher wage
costs, potentially prompting a tightening of credit and making
it harder to foster growth.




Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke told Congress last week that the
slowdown in productivity growth in recent quarters is likely
temporary, but that the underlying pace of productivity gains
may also have "slowed somewhat."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Coffee Rises as Cold Winter Weather Increases Threat of Frost in Brazil

(Bloomberg) -- Coffee rose in New York as forecasts
for colder-than-normal temperatures spurred concern that a crop-
damaging frost may develop in Brazil, the world's largest
producer.

Cold air in northern Argentina is expected to move across
the south of Brazil's Parana coffee-growing region July 26,
bringing the lowest temperatures since winter began in June,
according to Meteorlogix LLC in Woburn, Massachusetts. Brazil's
harvest runs through October.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

ETF Plans to Introduce Six Crude-Oil Exchange-Traded Securities in London

(Bloomberg) -- ETF Securities Ltd., a London-based
money manager, plans to introduce six securities that allow
investors to bet on changes in crude-oil prices further in the
future.

The securities, called exchange-traded commodities, will
track West Texas Intermediate and Brent futures contracts, the
benchmarks for the crude-oil markets, based on delivery dates
between one and three years ahead, ETF Securities said in an e-
mailed statement today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

NYSE fines Citigroup's Smith Barney $50 mln

(Reuters) - The Citigroup unit, which is an NYSE member firm, also
violated rules by failing to supervise trading of mutual funds
and maintain adequate records, the exchange said.





Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

S.Africa tells AngloGold to shut mine shaft

(Reuters) - South Africa has instructed gold producer AngloGold Ashanti to shut the shaft at its Moab Khutsong mine after two miners were killed in a rock fall at the weekend, the government said on Tuesday.

The Department of Minerals and Energy said senior officials would visit the mine on Wednesday to check if the company was meeting safety standards. It did not say how long the shaft would remain shut.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Theft sparks Nigeria kerosene shortage, tanker jam

(Reuters) - Constant theft of kerosene from a pipeline near Nigeria's largest city Lagos has caused a shortage across the country and long tanker queues offshore, the head of the national oil company said on Tuesday.

Thieves regularly bore into the fuel pipeline near the country's main import terminal at Atlas Cove, siphoning fuel into jerry cans for sale on a thriving black market.


Read more at Reuters Africa

S.African stocks slide on global jitters

(Reuters) - South African blue-chip stocks fell by more than 1.5 percent on Tuesday as a grim outlook for the U.S. housing market hit global equities and investors booked profits in local financial stocks.

The Johannesburg Top-40 index of blue-chip stocks slid as much as 1.55 percent but recovered slightly to trade 1.34 percent lower at 26,738.73 points by 1422 GMT. The All-share index dropped 1.22 percent to 29,521.29 points.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Apple falls on initial iPhone activation numbers

(Reuters) - Pacific Crest analyst Andy Hargreaves said that while iPhone sales figures for coming months would be more telling than the first few days, AT&T's number had disappointed investors as some analysts estimated sales "north of 500,000."




Hargreaves had himself estimated 400,000 iPhone sales for the first two days, he said.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Ceradyne profit rises on stronger sales

(Reuters) - Ceradyne, which makes ceramic plates for body armor worn by
U.S. troops in Iraq, said quarterly net profit rose to $38.3
million, or $1.38 per share, from $29.1 million, or $1.07, a
year ago.




Earnings per share were boosted by a lower-than-expected
share count, tacking on 4 cents per share, Citigroup analyst
Ferat Ongoren said in a note.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

McDonald's posts loss after Latin America charge

(Reuters) - Excluding the Latin America charge, McDonald's earned 71
cents a share, in line with a better-than-expected forecast the
fast-food chain gave last week.




In April, McDonald's said it would sell about 1,600
restaurants in Latin America and the Caribbean to a franchisee
so it could focus resources on markets where it sees the
biggest opportunities for growth, such as China.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

CORRECTED - LaBranche posts wider quarterly loss

(Reuters) - Its net loss for the second quarter was $368.9 million, or
$6 a share, compared with a loss of $22.4 million, or 37 cents
per share, a year earlier.




Excluding one-time items, the company earned 11 cents per
share.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Paccar net falls on new clean-air rules

(Reuters) - Analysts, on average, expected earnings of $1.11 a share, according to Reuters Estimates.






Read more at Reuters.com Market News

TCF Financial second-quarter profit falls

(Reuters) - Analysts on average were expecting the company to record a
quarterly profit of 47 cents a share, before items, according
to Reuters Estimates.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-AK Steel second-quarter profit soars

(Reuters) - Net earnings were $109.9 million, or 98 cents per share,
compared with $29.1 million, or 26 cents, a year earlier.




Analysts on average were expecting earnings of 68 cents per
share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Wyeth says confident in Pristiq depression filing

(Reuters) - Gary Stiles, chief medical officer of Wyeth, told reporters
in a conference call the FDA has requested a new safety trial
of Pristiq for hot flashes due to elevated liver enzymes seen
in three women among 2,000 tested in Wyeth-sponsored trials of
the drug for a common symptom of menopause.




" liver enzymes are not an uncommon phenomenon"
in drug trials, Stiles said. He said elevated levels of the
enzymes -- which are considered a marker of potential damage to
the liver -- returned to normal levels when patients stopped
taking Pristiq.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Ecolab quarterly profit rises 18 percent

(Reuters) - Net income increased to $110.3 million, or 44 cents per
share, from $93.2 million, or 36 cents per share, a year
earlier.




Excluding a benefit from the settlements of tax audits,
earnings were 42 cents a share, 1 cent above the average
analyst estimate compiled by Reuters Estimates,


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Peabody Energy second-quarter earnings fall

(Reuters) - Profit fell to $107.7 million, or 40 cents a share, from a
year-ago profit of $153.4 million, or 57 cents.




Analysts on average were expecting earnings of 48 cents per
share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Chile Peso Falls Most in 2 Months; Lower U.S. Earnings Lift Risk Aversion

(Bloomberg) -- Chile's peso fell the most in two
months as lower-than-expected earnings at U.S. companies reduced
investors' appetite for riskier emerging-market assets.

The currency extended a drop from a 14-month high as U.S.
stock benchmarks declined, signaling investors were pulling away
from riskier bets. Countrywide Financial Corp. and DuPont Co.
said the U.S. housing slump lowered profits. Shares of Texas
Instruments Inc., the world's biggest maker of chips that run
mobile phones, fell the most in almost two years after sales
missed analysts' estimates.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Northrop Grumman profit rises on tech sales

(Reuters) - Northrop, behind only Lockheed Martin Corp. and Boeing Co. in U.S. defense sales, reported quarterly profit of $460 million, or $1.31 per share, compared with $430 million, or $1.23 per share, in the year-ago quarter.




Revenue rose 4 percent to $7.9 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

BSkyB, Virgin Media case not in court until 2008

(Reuters) - Virgin Media, which was created earlier this year after the
merger of NTL, Telewest and Virgin's mobile phone division, said
on July 2 it had received a bid approach from an unnamed group.




On Monday, Virgin Media asked suitors to submit expressions
of interest by the first week of August to kick off an auction
of the company, people familiar with the situation said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Avery Dennison posts lower profit, cuts outlook

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 24 - Office supplies maker Avery Dennison Corp. on Tuesday posted a weaker-than-expected quarterly profit and cut its outlook for the year.



Net income in the second quarter fell about 23 percent to $85.8 million, or 87 cents a share, compared with $112 million, or $1.12, a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Apple IPhone Demand Has Slowed, Boosting Research In Motion, Says CIBC

(Bloomberg) -- Demand for Apple Inc.'s new iPhone
has had a ``significant decline'' in the past 10 days, according
to CIBC World Markets, which said the company and AT&T Inc., its
wireless provider, may increase marketing efforts.

``We have noticed decent inventories at stores, and thin
demand at best,'' analyst Ittai Kidron wrote in a note. ``Among
the stores we visited, most visitors were not looking at the
device, and only a very small subset bought it.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

U.S. Stocks Retreat on Earnings; DuPont, Countrywide Financial, Apple Drop

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks slid after Countrywide
Financial Corp. and DuPont Co. said the housing slump reduced
profits and an analyst said demand for Apple Inc.'s iPhone is
diminishing.

Countrywide, the largest U.S. mortgage lender, fell the
most in almost a year on its third straight decline in profit.
DuPont, the third-biggest U.S. chemical maker, posted its
steepest drop since 2005 after reporting weakening demand for
paint and kitchen countertops. Apple Inc. shares retreated after
a Piper Jaffray Cos. analyst said AT&T Inc.'s activations of the
iPhone are a ``disappointment.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Canadian Dollar Rises to 30-Year High as Retail Sales Suggest Rate Boost

(Bloomberg) --The Canadian dollar rose to a 30-year
high after a report showed May retail sales rose at the fastest
pace in almost a decade, bolstering speculation the central bank
will increase interest rates.

The currency was the best performer today against the U.S.
dollar among the 16 mostly actively traded currencies. It rose
to 96.39 U.S. cents at 9:10 a.m. in Toronto from 95.52 U.S.
cents yesterday, reaching the highest since February 1977. The
currency eclipsed the previous 30-year high of 96.14 U.S. cents,
reached on July 18. One U.S. dollar buys C$1.0375. The currency
has gained 12 percent this year on a strengthening economy and
surging commodity prices.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

AT&T profit gains on wireless, Internet

(Reuters) - On an adjusted basis, which excludes costs and accounting effects related to acquisitions, profit rose to 70 cents per share from 58 cents.




Revenue rose to $29.5 billion from $15.8 billion. Adjusted revenue, which combines sales from AT&T, BellSouth and Cingular Wireless in all periods, rose 2 percent to $29.8 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

McDonald's posts loss on Latin America charge

(Reuters) - Excluding the Latin America charge, McDonald's earned 71 cents a share, in line with the better-than-expected forecast the fast-food chain gave last week.




In April, McDonald's said it would sell about 1,600 restaurants in Latin America and the Caribbean to a franchisee so it could focus resources on markets where it sees the biggest opportunities for growth, such as China.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Kimberly-Clark 2nd-quarter profit up, view raised

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 24 - Kimberly-Clark Corp. said on Tuesday that quarterly profit jumped 22 percent as savings from its restructuring plan helped offset increased fiber costs, and the company raised its full-year earnings forecast.



Kimberly-Clark, known for Kleenex tissues and Huggies diapers, also entered into a $2 billion accelerated share repurchase agreement, and its board approved more buybacks. Second-quarter profit rose to $461.8 million, or $1 per share, from $377.6 million, or 82 cents per share, a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Ryerson to go private for $34.50 per share

(Reuters) - The purchase price is a 15 percent premium to the $30.01 at which shares traded on February 13, the day before the company said it as considering strategic options, Ryerson said.




The company said the deal was worth $2 billion. The equity value of the deal is $1.06 billion based on the company's most recently reported shares outstanding.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Fed's Mishkin speaks at closed event in Frankfurt

(Reuters) - A Fed spokesperson in Washington said no text of Mishkin's
remarks will be made public.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Unisys 2nd-quarter net loss narrows

(Reuters) - The company reported a net loss of $65.5 million, or 19 cents a share, compared with a net loss of $194.6 million, or 57 cents a share, a year earlier.



It had revenue of $1.38 billion, compared with $1.41 billion a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

AT&T quarterly profit gains on wireless, Internet

(Reuters) - On an adjusted basis, which excludes costs and accounting effects related to acquisitions, profit rose to 70 cents per share from 58 cents.




Revenue rose to $29.5 billion from $15.8 billion. Adjusted revenue, which combines sales from AT&T, BellSouth and Cingular Wireless in all periods, rose 2 percent to $29.8 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

LabCorp quarterly profit rises

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net earnings rose to $128.7 million, or $1.05 per share, compared with $116.4 million, or 87 cents per share, a year earlier.



Excluding special items, earnings were $1.09 per share.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Domino's second-quarter profit drops on expenses

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income for the pizza delivery chain dropped to $2.3 million, or 4 cents per share, from $24.5 million, or 39 cents per share, a year earlier.



Excluding items, the company earned 28 cents per share.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Zarlink reports first-quarter loss

(Reuters) - Zarlink, which is buying semiconductor firm Legerity
Holdings Inc. for $134.5 million in cash, said it lost $5
million, or 5 cents per share, in the three months ended June
29. That compares with a profit of $4.2 million, or 3 cents per
share, in the same period a year earlier.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Watsco second-quarter profit falls

(Reuters) - For the latest quarter, income from continuing operations
was 88 cents a share, it added.




Analysts expected the company to report profit of 87 cents
a share, before items, on revenue of $482.9 million, according
to Reuters Estimates.



Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Neurochem's tramiprosate gets FDA fast-track

(Reuters) - TORONTO, July 24 - Neurochem Inc. said on Tuesday the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has designated its tramiprosate treatment as a fast-track product for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.



The biotechnology company said it planned to meet with the FDA in August to discuss its Phase 3 program and provide an update on North American Phase 3 clinical trials.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Oil falls below $76, OPEC reassures on supply

(Reuters) - Oil fell more than $1 to below $76 a barrel on Tuesday after further assurance from OPEC it would pump more crude if needed and expectations of higher U.S. fuel stockpiles.

London Brent crude, now more representative of world prices than U.S. oil, declined for a third day -- slipping $1.11 to $75.75 a barrel by 1120 GMT.


Read more at Reuters Africa

CME profit rises as historic merger completed

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income for CME Holdings was $126 million or $3.57 per share against $109.5 million or $3.12 a year ago.




Excluding expenses related to the merger, second-quarter earnings was $3.69 per share, up 18 percent. Analysts on average had expected net income of $3.66 per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News