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

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

GLOBAL MARKETS-US jobs data hit stocks, dollar, boost bonds

(Reuters) - LONDON, Aug 3 - Stocks and the dollar fell while
safe-haven government bonds rallied on Friday after
weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs data fanned concerns about a U.S.
economy already struggling with credit liquidity fears.




U.S. stock futures pointed to a weaker open on Wall Street
while European stocks moved deeper in negative territory
after data showed U.S. employers boosted payrolls in July at the
slowest pace since February, adding 92,000 jobs.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Fortis seen clearing shareholder hurdle over ABN

(Reuters) - If it does not garner enough support it could spell the end not only to Fortis's ambitions of expanding in the Benelux but also the joint 71 billion euro bid of its consortium partners Royal Bank of Scotland and Spain's Santander .




Fortis will ask shareholders, who have seen their stock drop by almost 18 percent since it confirmed its approach for ABN in April, to back the planned takeover in general and its financing through Europe's second largest rights issue.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Glaxo Avandia FDA Adversity Prompts Doubts of Revenue, Share Resurgence

(Bloomberg) -- GlaxoSmithKline Plc convinced a U.S.
regulatory panel this week to keep its best-selling diabetes
drug, Avandia, on the market. Now comes the hard part: persuading
doctors to use a medicine linked to heart attacks.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration committee of advisers
said this week that the diabetes pill should carry new warnings
about cardiovascular risks. Glaxo shares had their biggest gain
in two years yesterday after the advisory panel decided not to
recommend the withdrawal of Avandia, which brought in $3.3
billion in 2006 for the London-based company, Europe's largest
drugmaker.


Read more at Bloomberg Exclusive News

BA CEO expects fines provision to suffice

(Reuters) - BA set aside the provision in May and this week U.S. and UK authorities unveiled fines worth almost 270 million pounds.




Authorities in Europe, Canada, Australia, South Africa and New Zealand are also probing BA's fuel surcharges.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

SPX Corp to buy a Johnson Controls diagnostic unit

(Reuters) - BOSTON, July 31 - Diversified manufacturer SPX Corp. said on Tuesday it had reached a deal to buy the European automotive diagnostics division of Johnson Controls Inc. for 32 million euros .



Johnson's automotive diagnostics unit last year generated about $80 million in revenue. SPX said it expects the deal to close in the third quarter of 2007.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

European Carbon Emission Permits Rise for Sixth Day; Power Prices Advance

(Bloomberg) -- European Union carbon dioxide permits
rose for a sixth day, the longest consecutive gain in more than two
months. German and French next-day power prices advanced.

Permits for December 2008 advanced as much as 60 cents, or 2.9
percent, to 21.45 euros ($29.39) a metric ton on the European
Climate Exchange in Amsterdam. They traded at 21.05 euros a ton at
5:49 p.m. local time.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Treasury Two-Year Yields Rise From Near 4-Month Low on Less Safety Demand

(Bloomberg) -- Treasury two-year note yields rose
from near a four-month low as a rebound in corporate bonds and
stocks sapped demand for the safety of government debt.

A boost in demand for higher-risk assets combined with two-
year yields near the lowest since March provided investors with
few reasons to buy Treasuries. The risk of owning European
corporate bonds fell by a record amount today as home lender
GMAC LLC said subprime mortgage losses had narrowed.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

European Stocks Climb, Paced by Imperial Chemicals, Linde, BHP Billiton

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks rose for the first
time in five days, led by chemical makers and mining companies,
after Imperial Chemical Industries Plc rejected a sweetened bid
from Dutch rival Akzo Nobel NV and copper rose in London.

ICI jumped the most in more than a month. Linde AG, the
world's largest maker of industrial gases, also gained after
reporting earnings that topped analysts' estimates. BHP Billiton
Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group led mining shares higher.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Mining Stocks Advance, Led by BHP Billiton, Rio; IKB Tumbles

(Bloomberg) -- European mining stocks rose, led by
BHP Billiton Ltd. and Rio Tinto Group, as copper increased.

IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG tumbled 18 percent after the
German lender that invested in U.S. subprime mortgages said
profit will be ``significantly'' lower than forecast.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Bank Stocks May Decline, Led by ING, Credit Suisse, IKB Deutsche

(Bloomberg) -- European bank stocks may drop after
IKB Deutsche Industriebank AG, a German lender that invested in
U.S. subprime mortgages, said profit will be ``significantly''
lower than forecast.

``The subprime crisis has reached Germany,'' said Klaus
Stabel, head of research at ICF Kursmakler AG in Frankfurt.
``It's bad for sentiment. We haven't seen the bottom yet.''


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Platinum Falls Most in Eight Months on Stronger Dollar; Palladium Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum fell the most in eight
months in New York as the dollar strengthened, reducing the
metal's appeal as an alternative investment. Palladium also
dropped.

Platinum is traded mostly in dollars, which rose to a two-
week high against the euro, making the metal more expensive for
holders of the European currency. U.S. stocks extended
yesterday's drop, the biggest in five months, as investors
shunned riskier investments in favor of bonds.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

European Bonds Have Longest Weekly Rally for Five Months on Subprime, Risk

(Bloomberg) -- European bonds gained for a third
week, their longest winning run in almost five months, as traders
switched to the safety of government debt after stocks plunged
around the world.

The rally in German bunds pushed 10-year yields to the
lowest since May today as the risk of owning company debt surged
to a record. A gauge of corporate borrowing costs reached the
highest since October 2001 after hedge funds and banks reported
losses on investments backed by U.S. subprime mortgages.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

European Bonds Head for Longest Run of Weekly Gains in Five Months on Risk

(Bloomberg) -- European bonds headed for a third
week of gains, the longest run in almost five months, as traders
switched to the safety of government debt after stocks plunged
around the world.

The rally in bonds pushed 10-year yields to near the lowest
since May as the risk of owning company debt surged to a record.
A gauge of corporate borrowing costs reached the highest since
October 2001 after hedge funds and banks reported losses on
investments backed by U.S. subprime mortgages.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

US economy, exports driven by global growth-Paulson

(Reuters) - "Now I believe what we're seeing is a strong global
economy. This is the strongest global economy I've seen in 32
years. The growth rate in Europe has doubled. We've got growth
throughout Asia. Japan is now growing, so I think this is being
driven by strong growth outside of the U.S."




The Commerce Department said earlier that U.S. economic
growth rebounded to 3.4 percent during the second quarter, its
strongest pace since the beginning of last year on a surge in
business investment, increased government spending and improved
trade performance. The data marked a big turnaround from anemic
0.6 percent growth in the first quarter, a figure previously
reported as 0.7 percent.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Hungary's Forint Posts Weekly Drop Versus Euro as Investors Avoid Risk

(Bloomberg) -- The Hungarian forint posted its
biggest weekly drop against the euro in 10 months as tumbling
global stocks and concern about U.S. subprime mortgage losses
prompted investors to shun emerging markets.

The forint was the worst performer against the euro over the
past five days, sliding more than 2 percent, as the NTX Index of
stocks in central Europe's 30 largest companies declined the most
in a week since March. Investors reversed trades where they'd
bought the forint to take advantage of Hungary's 7.75 percent
interest rate, also sending the currency tumbling.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

European Bond Yields Hold Near Lowest in Two Months as Stocks Decline

(Bloomberg) -- European bond yields held near the
lowest in two months as stock markets across the region fell and
corporate-debt risk surged to a record

Bunds reversed earlier losses on speculation investors
switched to the safety of government securities. Benchmark 10-
year yields rose earlier after data showing consumer-price
inflation accelerated in Germany in July, adding to the case for
the European Central Bank to keep raising interest rates.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Global Stocks Drop; Investors Shun Risk as Credit Market Turmoil Worsens

(Bloomberg) -- Stocks tumbled around the world and
U.S. Treasuries rallied on concern higher borrowing costs will
slow takeovers, spur debt defaults and curb earnings, prompting
investors to flee riskier assets.

The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell to its lowest in almost
three months, while the FTSE 100's biggest drop in four years led
declines across Europe. Benchmark stock indexes in Argentina,
Brazil, Mexico, Turkey and Sweden sank more than 3 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

European Bonds Rally, Pushing Benchmark Yield to Its Lowest in Two Months

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds rallied,
pushing 10-year yields to the lowest in more than two months, as
stocks slumped and the risk of holding corporate debt soared.

Benchmark bunds rose for a third day on rising concern about
loan defaults and as investors balked at funding takeovers.
Traders also scaled back bets that the European Central Bank will
push interest rates higher as a report showed business confidence
in Germany weakened for a second month.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News