Oil extends decline, falls 1 pct on poor U.S. data

(Reuters) - U.S. crude, which slid as much as 91 cents, or 1.2 percent in early trade, reversed some losses and was down 59 cents at $74.89 a barrel by 1:58 a.m. EDT.




U.S. oil settled $1.38 lower at $75.48 a barrel on Friday, after hitting a record $78.77 on Wednesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

European Stocks May Decline; UBS, ING, Philips, BHP Billiton Might Drop

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks may fall, following
declines in Asia and the U.S., as concern mounts that losses in
the U.S. mortgage market will erode economic growth and raise
financing costs for companies.

UBS AG and ING Groep NV may lead financial stocks lower.
U.S.-traded shares of Royal Philips Electronics NV and Nokia Oyj
dropped as the dollar traded near a record low against the euro.
BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group declined in Australian
trading after copper fell in Shanghai.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Arrow Energy Signs Agreements to Develop Coal Seam Gas Ventures in China

(Bloomberg) -- Arrow Energy NL, an Australian
producer of gas from coal seams, signed two venture agreements
with companies in China's Liaoning province as it seeks to start
production of the fuel in the Asian nation.

The accords with Shenyang Gas Co. and Liaohe Petroleum
Development Co., a unit of China National Petroleum Corp., follow
similar agreements signed over the past weeks, Brisbane-based
Arrow said today in a statement to the Australian Stock Exchange.
Arrow now has seven projects in three geographic regions in the
Asian nation, it said.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - Aug 6

(Reuters) - * Bear Stearns Cos. co-president quit, becoming
Wall Street's highest-profile casualty in the subprime-lending
fiasco.




* ICI reached a tentative deal to be taken over by
Akzo Nobel and Henkel for $16 billion.
The chemical and paint maker had rejected Akzo's earlier
offers.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Dollar, kiwi fall vs yen on credit worries

(Reuters) - The dollar tumbled to a four-month low against the yen while the New Zealand dollar fell sharply versus the Japanese currency on Monday as worries about a credit crunch prompted an unwinding of risky carry trades.

The dollar fell to 117.19 yen on electronic trading platform EBS, its lowest level since late March, due partly to stop-loss position unwinding by Japanese retail investors.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Pound May Fall as Traders Trim Bets Bank of England Will Raise Rates Again

(Bloomberg) -- The U.K. pound may fall as investors
lower expectations the Bank of England will raise interest rates
again this year.

Interest-rate futures trading shows investors have scaled
back their forecasts for how high the U.K. central bank will lift
rates on concern borrowing costs at a six-year high of 5.75
percent will begin to slow economic expansion. A report today may
show industrial production growth slowed in June.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Oil Falls, Heading for Biggest 2-Day Decline Since June, on OPEC, Economy

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell in New York, heading
for its biggest two-day decline since June, after OPEC increased
output and on signs U.S. economic growth will slow, reducing fuel
demand.

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries,
excluding Angola, raised production last month by the most since
September 2004, a Bloomberg News survey showed. Asian stocks
dropped on renewed concern losses in the U.S. mortgage market
will trim growth in the world's biggest economy.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Barclays launches $89 bln ABN takeover offer

(Reuters) - The offer period will run from August 7 until October 4,
Barclays said in an offer memorandum published in Dutch
newspapers on Monday.




At current share prices and foreign exchange rates, the
Barclays offer is worth about 34.54 euros per share of ABN.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Suzano Petroquimica, Telmex, Tenaris, Bancolombia: Latin Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following stocks may make
significant gains or losses in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia
and Mexico today. Symbols are in parentheses after the company
name, and stock prices are from the last session.

In Brazil, preferred shares are the most commonly traded
class of stock.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

TREASURIES-Extend gains in Asia, market eyes Fed

(Reuters) - "Yields of Treasuries have fallen sharply, but investors
don't seem to be cautious about prices going too high amid
safe-haven rallies," said Ryuji Shimazu, a market analyst at
Shinko Securities.




"Market players seem to be building positions for possible
Fed rate cuts in the future."


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Fortis, Impreglio, Munich Re, SES Global, Thomson: 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 fell 1.3 percent to 372.03. The Dow
Jones Stoxx 50 Index fell 1.4 percent to 3718.31. The Euro Stoxx
50 Index, a benchmark for the 13 nations using the euro, declined
1.4 percent to 4229.19.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Asian stocks hit by U.S. economic worries

(Reuters) - Oil prices slid briefly below $74.50 a barrel amid heightened concerns for economic growth, but flight to safety helped gold stay near one-week highs and kept the benchmark U.S. 10-year Treasury yield pinned near 2-½ month lows.




Data last Friday showing U.S. employers added jobs at the slowest rate in five months and weaker growth in the U.S. service sector all added to concerns about the world's biggest economy, Asia's top export destination.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Bank of Ningbo First-Half Audited Profit Jumps 41 Percent on Rising Loans

(Bloomberg) -- Bank of Ningbo Co. Ltd., a Chinese
bank that raised 4.14 billion yuan ($547 million) in an initial
public offering last month, said audited first-half profit surged
41 percent on increased loans to domestic companies.

Net income rose to 382.8 million yuan, or 0.19 yuan a share,
in the six months ended June 30 from 271.6 million yuan, or 0.15
yuan a share, a year earlier, the Ningbo, Zhejiang province-based
bank said in a statement to Shenzhen's stock exchange, confirming
an earlier statement citing unaudited figures. Interest income
rose 39 percent to 1.38 billion yuan, Bank of Ningbo said.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

Japan's Shares Drop on U.S. Concern, Strong Yen; Toyota Advances on Profit

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks declined, paced by
exporters, on concern losses in the U.S. mortgage market may slow
the world's biggest economy and after the yen strengthened to a
four-month high against the dollar.

Sony Corp., the word's biggest video-game maker, fell the
most in almost five months and Canon Inc. dropped 3.2 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 3-Bear president resigns; casualty of credit crisis

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, Aug 5 - Bear Stearns Cos
co-President and co-Chief Operating Officer Warren Spector
resigned on Sunday, a casualty of the credit risk crisis at the
investment bank.




Bear Stearns said effective immediately, Alan Schwartz was
the company's sole president.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bear Stearns president resigns

(Reuters) - Bear Stearns said that, effective immediately, Alan Schwartz has been named the company's sole president.




Spector's departure follows Bear Stearns' assertion on Friday that it is weathering the worst storm in financial markets in more than 20 years after a major rating company warned mortgage credit problems could hurt the investment bank's profits.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Intel, Cisco, J&J Lure Value Funds as Price Ratios Converge Most in Decade

(Bloomberg) -- Intel Corp., Cisco Systems Inc. and
Johnson & Johnson, perennial favorites of money managers seeking
U.S. stocks with the fastest profit growth, are becoming staples
for so-called value investors.

Shares of growth companies in the Standard & Poor's 500
Index trade at an average 16.3 times estimated earnings, while
value stocks, those priced at a discount to the market or their
historical average, trade at 14 times profits. The gap between
them, now 2.3 points, has narrowed from 25.5 at the beginning of
the decade, data compiled by Bloomberg show.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Shanghai Copper Futures Fall Near Limit on Concern U.S. Demand May Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Copper futures on the Shanghai
Futures Exchange fell by almost the maximum daily limit allowed
by the exchange on concern an economic slowdown in the U.S., the
second-largest consumer of the metal, will reduce demand. Zinc
futures also slumped.

Copper for October delivery fell as much as 2,790 yuan, or
4.1 percent, to 65,160 yuan ($8,611) a metric ton from the
previous close. The contract fell near the 4 percent limit
compared with the previous settlement price, and traded at 65,770
yuan a ton, down 3.2 percent, at 9:28 a.m. local time.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Bank of Queensland Completes Its Biggest Sale of Debt Backed by Auto Loans

(Bloomberg) -- Bank of Queensland Ltd., a regional
Australian lender, raised A$1 billion ($855 million) in its
biggest sale of bonds backed by automobile and equipment loans.

The bonds were sold to domestic and offshore investors in
nine parts, sale manager Macquarie Bank Ltd. said in an e-mailed
statement. The largest portion was A$717.5 million of AAA-rated,
August 2013 securities yielding 23 basis points more than the
benchmark swap rate.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

South Korea's Shares Fall, Led by Posco, Kookmin, Samsung; Hynix Advances

(Bloomberg) -- South Korean stocks fell, led by
Posco, and Kookmin Bank, on concern losses in the U.S. mortgage
market may slow the world's biggest economy.

Samsung Electronics Co. also declined after a power outage
at some production lines of the world's second-largest chipmaker.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Bernanke May Alter Rhetoric, Not Interest Rates, After Market Turbulence

(Bloomberg) -- Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S.
Bernanke may respond to the latest squall in financial markets
the same way he did when turbulence hit four months ago: with a
change in words rather than policy.

Bernanke and his colleagues may suggest after their
meeting tomorrow that the risks to economic growth have
increased following the rout in stock and credit markets -- just
as they did after their March meeting.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Australian Stocks Extend Declines; Macquarie Bank, BHP Billiton Lead Slide

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's benchmark stock index, the
S&P/ASX 200 Index, fell 0.84 percent at 10:05 a.m.

The index of 201 companies traded on the Australian Stock
Exchange fell 50.60 to 5,970.40. Among the stocks in the index,
34 rose, 159 fell and 8 were unchanged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Japan's Government Bonds May Gain on Speculation Investors Will Shun Risk

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese bonds may gain on
speculation investors will add to their purchases of government
securities after a U.S. labor report showed the economy cooling
as the housing market slows.

Five-year notes had their longest series of weekly advances
since May 2005 as losses linked to U.S. mortgages for people
with poor credit caused riskier assets such as corporate bonds
and stocks to extend declines. Emerging-market bonds fell in New
York on Aug. 3 after the U.S. Labor Department said job growth
slowed to 92,000 in July from 126,000 previously.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

FEATURE-Takeovers spell end of soccer's Premiership Plc

(Reuters) - But if fans, politicians and newspapers take moral umbrage
at the foreign-led takeovers, few are mourning the end of the
publicly listed club.




Going public became something of a craze for Premier League
clubs in the mid-1990s. At its peak, fans and investors could
buy shares in 10 of the 20 current Premier League clubs.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Japanese Stocks May Drop, Led by Exporters on U.S. Economy Concern, Yen

(Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks may decline, led by
exporters such as Sony Corp., on concern losses in the U.S.
mortgage market may slow the world's biggest economy.

Exporters may also decline after the yen strengthened to a
four-month high against the dollar, eroding the value of their
dollar-denominated sales.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Banks, BHP, Lipa, Oxiana, Woodside Petroleum: Australian Stock Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares may rise or fall in Australia. This preview includes
news announced after markets closed on Aug. 3. Prices are from the
Aug. 3 close unless otherwise stated. Stock symbols are in
parentheses after the company names.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index futures contract due in September fell
2.1 percent to 5,853 at 6.59 a.m. in Sydney. The Bank of
New York Australia ADR Index lost 3.5 percent in New York.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Crude Oil Falls a Second Day on Concern Over Weaker U.S. Equities, Growth

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell a second day in New
York after declining equity markets and weak U.S. economic data
weighed on investor confidence.

Oil dropped 2 percent last week as U.S. stock prices fell
for a third week and a report showed the nation's unemployment
rate reached a six-month high in July. Oil slipped from the
record $78.77 a barrel reached on Aug. 1 after a U.S. government
report that day showed fuel stockpiles rose as refineries ran at
the highest rates since August, 2005.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Bear Stearns says president Spector has resigned

(Reuters) - In a statement, Bear Stearns said that, effective
immediately, Alan Schwartz has been named the company's sole
president, and Samuel Molinaro will become chief operating
officer in addition to chief financial officer.




Bear also said that Jeffrey Mayer, co-head of the fixed
income division, has been named to the Bear Stearns executive
committee.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Gold May Extend Rally on More Demand for Dollar Alternative, Survey Shows

(Bloomberg) -- Gold may rise for a second straight
week on speculation that a weaker dollar will boost demand for
the precious metal as an alternative investment.

Seventeen of 27 traders, investors and analysts surveyed by
Bloomberg from Sydney to Chicago on Aug. 2 and Aug. 3 advised
buying gold, which rose 1.8 percent last week to $684.40 an ounce
on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. One
respondent said to sell, and nine were neutral.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Netflix shares poised to rally - Barron's

(Reuters) - "At some point, Blockbuster will cry uncle and raise
prices, and Netflix shares will almost certainly rally," said
Barron's in its technology column.




Netflix might also be an acquisition target, notably by
Amazon.com , said Barron's.



Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Fed to weigh hit of credit crunch

(Reuters) - The Fed is widely expected to hold overnight interest rates steady at 5.25 percent, where they have been for more than a year. The policy-setting Federal Open Market Committee is expected to release a statement outlining its views on the economy at around 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday.




Markets will watch keenly for any sign the U.S. central bank, which has persistently identified the risk of inflation as its main concern, is beginning to worry a bit more about the potential for an undesirable weakening in the economy.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

PREVIEW-Fed to weigh hit of credit crunch, market slide

(Reuters) - *Fed expected to hold benchmark overnight borrowing costs
steady at 5.25 percent




By Mark Felsenthal


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Congress recesses amid Democratic achievements

(Reuters) - Their top priority -- ending the Iraq war -- remains frustratingly unfulfilled. But the Democrats who took over in January were able to go home early on Sunday for a monthlong break having won more support in the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives for bringing combat troops home by early next year, marking a significant turnaround from last year.




Democrats also will be able to batter President George W. Bush and congressional Republicans for sticking with a war policy that droves of Americans increasingly oppose.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Edison to invest "well above" 4.5 bln euros by 2013

(Reuters) - "We forecast that investments over 2008-2013 will be well above the 4.5 billion euros of our previous business plan."




Quadrino said the investments would help Edison reduce its dependence from gas imports.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-Dubai matches Fast Retailing's $900 mln Barneys bid

(Reuters) - DUBAI, Aug 5 - Dubai-based private equity firm
Istithmar raised its offer to acquire Barneys New York Inc.
from Jones Apparel Group Inc. to $900 million on
Sunday, matching a bid by Japan's Fast Retailing Co. Ltd.
.




Istithmar, owned by the government of Dubai, had agreed to
buy the luxury retailer for $825 million before Fast Retailing
entered the fray with a $900 million offer.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Exxon, Chevron, Conoco may bid in India auction: paper

(Reuters) - Sibal told Reuters on Friday that the auction, earlier scheduled for August, has been deferred to November due to a shortage of rigs and a dispute over gas pricing.




He said the blocks would be awarded by June 2008.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News