European Government Bonds May Fall Before German Factory Production Report

(Bloomberg) -- European government bonds may fall
before a report economists forecast will show German industrial
production rebounded in May, reinforcing speculation the European
Central Bank will keep raising interest rates to curb growth.

Government debt fell last week, sending yields near to near
a five-year high, after President Jean-Claude Trichet signaled
borrowing costs will rise further, and a report showed
manufacturing orders in Europe's largest economy gained more than
expected. Investors added to bets the ECB will lift its key rate
a half percentage point to 4.5 percent by the year-end.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

Apollo raises offer for Huntsman to $28/shr: WSJ

(Reuters) - None of the companies was immediately available to comment.




Dutch-based Basell , controlled by U.S. industrial group Access Industries, last month agreed to buy Huntsman for $5.6 billion, excluding debt, or $25.25 per share.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

EADS, EDF, Suez, Gaz de France, Total and Alstom: 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 July 6
close.

The CAC 40 Index advanced 43.16, or 0.7 percent, to 6102.69,
and rose 0.8 percent for the week of July 2 to July 6. The SBF
120 index gained 0.7 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Australian Banks' Ratings Benefit From Low Risk on Mortgages, Moody's Says

(Bloomberg) -- Ratings on Australian banks are
benefiting from low risks on residential mortgages and the
fastest economic growth in three years, according to Moody's
Investors Service.

The outlook for the country's banking system is stable, the
company said in a report today. Still, deteriorating asset
quality and increased competition may threaten that forecast.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

South Korea Won Weakens on Speculation Central Bank May Sell the Currency

(Bloomberg) -- The South Korean won fell on
speculation traders were betting the central bank will sell the
currency to keep the price of exports from rising. Government
bonds declined.

The won has strengthened 1.5 percent over the past month
while the yen has weakened by the same magnitude, putting Korean
export companies at a disadvantage versus their Japanese rivals.
The finance ministry and the Bank of Korea last week warned they
will take action in the market to stem excessive gains after the
currency reached the highest in a decade against the yen.


Read more at Bloomberg Emerging Markets News

South Korea's Kospi Index Advances; Chipmakers Rise, LG Household Falls

(Bloomberg) -- South Korean stocks advanced for a
sixth day. Samsung Electronics Co. and Hynix Semiconductor Inc.
rose after chipmakers raised prices of computer memory.

LG Household & Health Care Ltd. fell after the company said
it's in exclusive talks to buy Coca-Cola Amatil Ltd.'s bottling
unit in Korea for as much as A$545 million ($467 million).


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Toshiba Shares Rise After Talks on Selling Part of Its Westinghouse Stake

(Bloomberg) -- Shares of Toshiba Corp., Japan's
biggest maker of nuclear reactors by capacity, rose after the
company said it is in talks to sell part of its stake in
Westinghouse Electric Co. to a Kazakhstan state-run company.

The stock climbed 3.1 percent to 1,086 yen as of 9:08 a.m.
on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, outperforming the 0.6 percent
advance in the benchmark Nikkei 225 Stock Average. Keisuke Ohmori,
a spokesman for Tokyo-based Toshiba, said on July 7 the company
is in talks with Kazatomprom, a uranium importer and exporter,
about selling part of its Westinghouse stake.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Exporters, Daewoo Shipbuilding, Samsung, Posco: South Korea Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following shares may rise or fall
in South Korea. Prices refer to the July 6 close. This preview
includes news announced after markets shut. Stock symbols are in
brackets after the company names.

The Kospi index gained 0.7 percent to a record 1861.01. The
Kosdaq index climbed 1 percent to 811.06. Kospi 200 futures rose
0.6 percent to 238.25, while the underlying index gained 0.8
percent to 236.52.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

US May machine tool demand down 6.5 pct from yr ago

(Reuters) - May demand rose 6.5 percent from $294.46 million in April,
the report showed.




In the January-to-May period, U.S. machine tool demand
stood at $1.606 billion, up 7.5 percent from $1.494 billion in
the first five months of 2006. Growth was strongest in the
Central and Northeast regions.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Boeing set to unveil 787 amid order flurry

(Reuters) - European, Middle Eastern and Australian carriers trumpeted
new orders at various Boeing events in Seattle, as the U.S.
plane maker got ready to host 15,000 or so employees, customers
and suppliers at its nearby Everett, Washington, plant.




All are waiting for the first glimpse of the mid-sized,
long-range jetliner, which is the company's first all-new plane
in 12 years.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

M&S designer Davies set to stand down

(Reuters) - The man behind Marks & Spencer's

Per Una womenswear range, George Davies, is set to stand down from the clothes-to-food retailer later this year, The Sunday Telegraph reported.


Read more at Reuters Africa