UPDATE 1-China's Xinhua Media eyes stake in online bookstore

(Reuters) - SHANGHAI, July 16 - Shanghai Xinhua Media Co.
is in early talks to buy into Dangdang.com, a Chinese
online bookstore that media have said is planning a Nasdaq
listing, two sources close to the situation said on Monday.




Dangdang.com, partly held by a group of global investors,
including Doll Capital, Walden International and IDG Ventures,
has entered talks with Xinhua Media, which approached the online
bookstore about a month ago, the sources told Reuters.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Wolseley 11-mth pretax profit down, warns on US

(Reuters) - Wolseley said the lower profit was due to higher interest
costs and expected that 12-month group trading profit would be
affected by further one-off restructuring costs of around 9
million pounds.




"There are no signs of any upturn in the U.S. housing market
and the timing of any recovery remains uncertain," the world's
largest distributor of plumbing and heating products and
building materials said in a trading update.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Treasuries Rise Before Reports on Consumer Price Inflation, Housing Starts

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. Treasuries rose before
government reports this week that economists said will show
consumer prices slowed in June and home building declined.

Notes have risen in the past week as losses tied to subprime
mortgages fed speculation that a cooling in the U.S. housing
market will hurt the world's biggest economy. Federal Reserve
Chairman Ben S. Bernanke may speak about housing during
congressional testimony July 18 and 19.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Bancroft member moves to block sale of Dow Jones-source

(Reuters) - Bancroft is trying to buy more "supervoting" shares from
other Bancroft heirs who may be ready to sell their stakes but
share his distaste for handing the family legacy to Murdoch, the
Journal said.




News Corp., owner of Fox News, the New York Post and a
sprawling global media empire, has offered $5 billion, or $60 a
share, for Dow Jones, the publisher of the Wall Street Journal.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

India's Bonds Gain on Speculation Surplus Cash to Boost Demand for Debt

(Bloomberg) -- India's 10-year bonds rose on
speculation an increase in spare cash in the banking system will
boost demand for debt.

Yields, which move inversely to prices, dropped to near the
lowest in more than four months after a drop in interbank
lending rates and an increase in banks' bids to lend to the
central bank suggested there's more surplus cash. Bonds may also
gain on optimism slowing inflation and loan growth will allow
the central bank to refrain from raising interest rates.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Gold steady near 5-week high, Tokyo market shut

(Reuters) - Gold held steady on Monday and was within sight of a five-week high hit last week but overall trading was sluggish in the absence of Japanese investors.

Other precious metals were mostly higher, with silver hovering near Friday's three-week highs. Tokyo's precious metals futures were closed for the Marine Day holiday.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Pakistan Airline Seeks $437 Million in Biggest Bond Sale to Refinance Debt

(Bloomberg) -- Pakistan International Airlines Corp.
plans to raise 26.5 billion rupees ($437 million) in its biggest
bond sale to cut borrowing costs and upgrade its maintenance and
training facilities.

``We have a very unhealthy balance sheet, which is in a
serious state of disrepair,'' Chairman Zaffar A. Khan said in a
July 12 interview at his office in Karachi. ``We have a lot of
debt on our books and restructuring it will give us a little
more breathing space,'' he added.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News