UPDATE 2-Cemex quarterly profit rises despite US woes

(Reuters) - Net profit for Cemex , which operates in
more than 50 countries, was $579 million in the April-June
period of 2006. Six analysts polled by Reuters had predicted on
average a profit of $623 million.




Revenue rose 6 percent to $4.9 billion in the second
quarter, but earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and
amortization fell 1 percent to $1.1 billion versus the
year-ago period, the company said.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Australia's S&P/ASX 200 Index Rises, Led by BHP, Rio on Higher Metals, Oil

(Bloomberg) -- Australia's benchmark stock index,
the S&P/ASX 200 Index, rose 0.33 percent at 10:05 a.m.

The index of 201 companies traded on the Australian Stock
Exchange rose 20.90 to 6,405.10. Among the stocks in the index,
87 rose, 19 fell and 95 were unchanged.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Airvana IPO priced at $7/shr

(Reuters) - The Chelmsford, Massachusetts-based company had earlier in
the month filed for an IPO with U.S. regulators at an estimated
price of $8 to $10 a share.




Airvana said it has granted the underwriters a 30-day
option to purchase about 1.25 million more shares to cover any
over-allotments.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Ventana posts flat profit on Roche bid costs

(Reuters) - Second-quarter profit was $7 million or 20 cents per share,
compared with $7.2 million, or 20 cents per share, a year
earlier.




Excluding items, it earned 22 cents per share, surpassing
Wall Street analysts' average expectation of 18 cents per
share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

BHP, Woodside, Austereo, Kimberley, News Corp.: Australian Equity 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 yesterday. Prices are from
yesterday's close unless otherwise stated. Stock symbols are in
brackets after the company names.

The S&P/ASX 200 Index futures contract due in September added
0.3 percent to 6405 at 8:24 a.m. in Sydney. The Bank of New York
Australia ADR Index rose 2.3 percent in New York.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Focus of Brazil air crash shifts away from runway

(Reuters) - Soon after Tuesday's fiery accident at Sao Paulo's Congonhas airport, which killed all 186 people on board and more on the ground, many officials and aviation experts blamed the rain-soaked runway where the plane skidded before slamming into a gas station and cargo terminal.




But a video of the botched landing by the Airbus A320 released by the national airport authority Infraero suggested other factors were also at play in Brazil's second major aviation disaster in less than a year.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Cytec second-quarter earnings climb 13 pct

(Reuters) - Net earnings were $54.8 million, or $1.11 a share, compared
with a year-ago profit of $48.5 million, or $1.00 a share.




In the latest quarter, the company posted earnings of $56.6
million, or $1.15 a share, excluding items.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Emerging debt-Risk appetite returns, Bogota sells bonds

(Reuters) - Taking advantage of the market lull, the Colombian capital
of Bogota sold $300 million of peso-denominated bonds due in
2028. Peru is also expected to sell on Friday at least $1
billion of 30-year bonds denominated in its local currency, the
sol.




"All is rosy in emerging markets land once again as an
easing of subprime/CDO-related fears and strong earnings
announcements has prompted a partial unwind of flight to
quality," RBC Capital Markets analysts wrote in a research
note.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

First Solar files for 9.65 mln share offering

(Reuters) - It will use the proceeds from its portion of the offering
to increase its manufacturing capacity, fund production costs,
and for working capital and general corporate purposes.




Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

UPDATE 1-International Coal posts second-quarter loss

(Reuters) - The net loss was $10.2 million, or 7 cents per share,
compared with a net loss of $600,000, or nil per share, for the
same period in 2006, the Scott Depot, West Virginia-based
mining company said.




Revenue fell to $208.1 million from $225.1 million as the
company sold less coal at a lower price.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

TREASURIES-Bonds steady on Bernanke's balanced view

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - U.S. government debt prices
finished steady on Thursday, caught between warnings from
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke about inflation and
threats to growth from a weak housing market.




Sharp gains in stocks, driven by upbeat earnings news that
pushed the Dow Jones industrial average to an unofficial close
over 14,000 for the first time, also kept a lid on bond prices,
analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Gilead profit rises on sales of HIV fighters

(Reuters) - LOS ANGELES, July 19 - Biotechnology company Gilead Sciences Inc. said on Thursday its second-quarter profit rose 54 percent on strong demand for its drugs that combat HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.



The maker of Truvada and Atripla, which combine anti-HIV drugs into a single pill, posted net income of $407.9 million, or 42 cents per share, compared to a profit of $265.2 million, or 28 cents per share, a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Broadcom second-quarter profit and revenue fall

(Reuters) - The maker of chips for everything from digital music players and television set-top boxes to mobile phones, said its profit fell to $34.3 million, or 6 cents per share, from $106.1 million, or 18 cents a share in the year-ago quarter.



Revenue fell to $897.9 million from $941.1 million a year ago. Broadcom had forecast second-quarter revenue in a range of $890 million to $905 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

S&P Lowers Ratings on Synthetic CDOs, Second Mortgages as Downgrades Widen

(Bloomberg) -- Standard & Poor's lowered credit
ratings on securities from 75 collateralized debt obligations
made up of derivatives linked to subprime mortgage bonds, as it
steps up the pace of downgrades sparked by rising home-loan
delinquencies.

The cuts on so-called synthetic CDOs follows S&P's reduction
of ratings on $6.4 billion of subprime mortgage bonds on July 12
and the lowering today of second-mortgage securities with $3.8
billion in initial balances, including some AAA bonds. The
downgrades were announced the downgrades today in separate
statements.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 2-Ex-press baron Black faces battle to retain freedom

(Reuters) - CHICAGO, July 19 - U.S. prosecutors urged a judge
on Thursday to revoke Conrad Black's $21 million bond and take
the former media baron into custody immediately as a "four-time
convicted felon" who could flee to his native Canada and who no
longer has the assets to cover the bond.




The statements came in a motion filed prior to a hearing on
whether the 62-year-old member of Britain's House of Lords
should remain free until he is sentenced on November 30
following his conviction on fraud and obstruction charges.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Clearwire, ImmuCell, IMS, Midland, Western Refining: U.S. Equity Movers

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares are having unusual price changes in U.S. exchanges
today. Stock symbols are in parentheses after company names.
Share prices are as of 1:10 p.m. in New York.

Avici Systems Inc. (AVCI US) rose $3.31, or 39 percent, to
$11.73. The maker of equipment that directs Internet traffic said
in a statement sent by Business Wire that second-quarter net
income rose to 82 cents a share from 58 cents a year earlier.
Revenue increased to $29.6 million from $25.3 million.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Fed's Moskow:one number won't determine inflation trend

(Reuters) - Moskow is a voting member of the Federal Open Market
Committee in 2007 but is scheduled to retire by the end of
August. A successor has not been named.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

TREASURIES-Bonds flat on Bernanke's balanced economic view

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - U.S. government debt prices
were flat on Thursday, caught between warnings from Federal
Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke about inflation and threats to
growth from a weak housing market.




Sharp gains in stocks, driven by upbeat earnings news, also
kept a lid on bond prices, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Safeway estimates for rest of yr "reasonable"-CEO

(Reuters) - Chief Executive Steve Burd made the comments on a
conference call with analysts. Earlier in the day, the grocery
chain reported second-quarter earnings results.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Crude Oil Rises 11-Month in New York as Total Curbs Shipments From Angola

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose to an 11-month high
in New York after Total SA said it would curb exports from the
Dalia field in Angola because of a mechanical failure.

Total declared force majeure, a legal clause meaning
deliveries are suspended because of conditions beyond the
company's control, after production at the 240,000-barrel-a-day
field was cut by 50 percent. Prices also rose because a
government report yesterday showed that U.S. gasoline supplies
declined last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

TREASURIES-Bond stable as Bernanke balanced

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - U.S. Treasuries coasted
sideways on Thursday as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke
balanced concerns on housing with warnings on inflation.




Bonds recovered losses after the central bank chief argued
there would be substantial financial losses associated with
risky home loans, known as subprime.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

REFILE-S&P cuts 75 ABS CDOs after subprime review

(Reuters) - The rating cuts affected 93 tranches of the CDOS with
exposure to U.S. residential mortgage-backed securities backed
by subprime first-lien collateral, whose ratings were lowered
on July 12, S&P said.




Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Roche to keep cash pile for maximum flexibility

(Reuters) - He added it was not as easy for Roche to raise money in the
capital markets as for some rivals, given its share structure.




Boosted by strong revenues from its portfolio of cancer
treatments, Roche had net cash of 15.6 billion Swiss francs at the end of June.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

EU calls for tougher warnings on Sanofi's Acomplia

(Reuters) - But the European Medicines Agency stopped short of suspending the medicine and said the benefits of Acomplia continued to outweigh its risks, except in patients with ongoing major depression or taking antidepressants.



The drug should be contra-indicated for this group of patients, it said.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Strong earnings power US stocks rebound; IBM gains

(Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose sharply on Thursday as large-cap companies such as IBM and Honeywell International Inc. reported earnings that beat forecasts, shifting investors' focus back to corporate profits and away from subprime credit worries.

International Business Machines Corp., the world's largest technology services company, also raised its 2007 earnings forecast late on Wednesday. For details, see ID:nN18415715. Manufacturer Honeywell posted a 17 percent rise in profit. ID:nN19374753.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Chilean Peso Rises to 18-Month High on Surge in Chinese Economic Growth

(Bloomberg) -- Chile's peso rose to an 18-month
high against the dollar as an acceleration in Chinese economic
growth fueled speculation that demand for copper, the South
American country's biggest export, will keep rising.

The peso strengthened 0.7 percent to 513.1 pesos per U.S.
dollar at 12:34 p.m. in New York. It's the peso's biggest gain
since Jan. 11. The peso has advanced almost 4 percent this year.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

McClatchy profit falls but beats forecasts

(Reuters) - By Robert MacMillan



NEW YORK, July 19 - McClatchy Co. said on Thursday quarterly profit fell 9.3 percent because of weaker newspaper advertising sales, but expense-cutting helped the company beat Wall Street's expectations.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Investor Confidence in High-Yield Loans Deteriorates, LevX Index Shows

(Bloomberg) -- Investor confidence in high-risk,
high-yield loans deteriorated for the third straight day,
according to traders of credit-default swaps on European debt.

The iTraxx LevX Index of contracts on loans to 35 companies
today fell 0.1 to 97.90, reversing earlier gains, according to
Deutsche Bank AG. The index fell to 97.50 last week, the lowest
since it started trading in October.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 2-UAE lender prices Islamic asset-backed securities

(Reuters) - The bonds, like traditional Islamic bonds known as sukuk,
are asset-backed. But unlike sukuk, they allow buyers direct
access to the underlying asset. These are kept separate from the
borrower, arranger Morgan Stanley said.




The assets used to back Tamweel's bonds were
lease-to-purchase contracts on residential properties -- a
method of buying homes that complies with Islamic law.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Bank of America profit up 5 pct, tops views

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income for the Charlotte, North Carolina-based company increased to $5.76 billion, or $1.28 per share, from $5.48 billion, or $1.19 a share, a year earlier.




Excluding items, profit was $1.30 per share, 10 cents above the average analyst forecast, according to Reuters Estimates. Revenue rose 7 percent to $19.56 billion, topping the average $18.49 billion forecast. Fee income rose 17 percent while lending income fell 3 percent. Expenses rose 4 percent to $9.09 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Oil buoys Canadian dollar, bonds slide

(Reuters) - At 9:20 a.m. , the Canadian dollar was at
C$1.0424 to the U.S. dollar, or 95.93 U.S. cents, up from
C$1.0446 to the U.S. dollar, or 95.73 U.S. cents, at
Wednesday's close.




"One thing that's offsetting any weakness on the data side
is that oil prices are very, very firm," said David Watt,
senior currency strategist at RBC Capital Markets.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

No changes to U.S. 30-year mortgages this week

(Reuters) - "In a week marked by stock indexes reaching new highs on
Wall Street, mortgage rates lingered near the previous week's
level as the latest economic indicators did not affect
inflation expectations significantly," said Frank Nothaft,
Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist.




He also said the mortgage giant does not believe the
tumbling housing market has yet reached a "trough," with the
Commerce Department reporting this week that building permits
fell by 7.5 percent in June to the lowest level in 10 years.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1- Core Molding buys back 3.6 mln shares

(Reuters) - The molder of fiberglass also adopted a stockholder rights
plan that will make it difficult for hostile acquisitions of
more than a 15 percent stake in the company.




International Truck holds about 9.8 percent of Core
Molding's outstanding shares after the buyback.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Turkey's Cukurova to sell media stake-sources

(Reuters) - ANKARA, July 19 - Turkish conglomerate Cukurova
plans to sell up to 50 percent of its print media and television
assets and has hired JP Morgan for the sale, sources familiar
with the deal said.




Cukurova is offering a minority stake in its print media
assets, which include newspaper Aksam, television companies
including entertainment channel Show TV, and pay-TV Digiturk,
the sources said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Bank of America CEO says buying all of LaSalle

(Reuters) - "We expect to have the entire company, and are looking forward to having it," Lewis said on a conference call discussing second-quarter results. "We like it as it is. We think it has a great , and some upside potential as well."




The transaction would give Bank of America control of about 10 percent of U.S. deposits, the maximum allowed under federal limits.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

UPDATE 1-SunPower earnings drop, targets output growth

(Reuters) - However, it posted a net loss of $5.3 million, or 7 cents
per share, for the quarter from a profit of $1.2 million, or 8
cents per share, a year ago including writedowns of assets and
costs of stock-based compensation.




Revenue for the quarter rose to $174 million from $55
million a year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Genuine Parts posts higher quarterly profit

(Reuters) - Analysts were expecting the company to earn 76 cents a
share.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Copper Gains on Speculation Global Economic Growth to Boost Metal Demand

(Bloomberg) -- Copper in New York gained the most
in more than two weeks on speculation that global economic
growth will increase demand for the metal used in homes, cars
and appliances.

China's economy in the second quarter expanded at the
fastest pace in 12 years, the statistics bureau said in Beijing
today. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said yesterday
U.S. growth will pick up ``a bit'' next year. The price of
copper has gained more than fourfold in the past four years as
worldwide demand outpaced production.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

UPDATE 1-Danaher second-quarter net profit declines

(Reuters) - Net income slipped to $311.2 million, or 96 cents a share,
from $314.5 million, or 98 cents per share, a year earlier.




Excluding one-time items, the Washington-based company
earned 94 cents a share, a penny above what analysts' forecasts
compiled by Reuters Estimates and up from 80 cents a year
earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Cott second-quarter profit falls 38 pct

(Reuters) - The company, which makes beverages for major retailers
including Wal-Mart , reported a profit of $4.7 million,
or 7 cents a share, in the period ended June 30, down from $7.6
million, or 11 cents a share, in the same period a year
earlier.




Analysts expected earnings before exceptions of 19 cents a
share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 2-Entergy expects rise in second-quarter earnings

(Reuters) - Excluding items, it expects to report operational earnings
of about $1.31 per share for the quarter, up from $1.22 per
share in the year-ago quarter, said the nation's second largest
nuclear operator.




Analyst on average have expected the company to post
earnings of $1.44 per share for the second quarter, according
to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Huntington Bancshares profit falls

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 19 - Huntington Bancshares Inc., a large U.S. Midwest bank, said on Thursday second-quarter net fell 28 percent, blaming soured loans to homebuilders in eastern Michigan.



Huntington , which warned earlier this month that profits would fall, said it expects its business to be hurt by a continued downturn in the eastern Michigan housing market and by weakness in the auto industry.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Delphi rejects Highland investment plan

(Reuters) - Highland had proposed to invest up to $2.4 billion in new Delphi shares, $450 million in Series A convertible preferred stock and $450 million in preferred stock, according to the filing.




On Wednesday, Delphi accepted a revised proposal from a group led by Appaloosa Management to invest up to $2.55 billion in Delphi equity.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Alcan, Husky, International Forest and Maple Leaf: Canadian Equity Preview

(Bloomberg) -- The following is a list of companies
whose shares may have unusual price changes in Canadian markets.
This preview includes news that broke after markets closed. Symbols
are in parentheses after company names and prices are from the last
close.

The Standard & Poor's/TSX Composite Index rose 201.65, or 1.4
percent, to 14,583.66.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

UPDATE 1-Vitran Corp. results stalled by weak economy

(Reuters) - Earnings fell to $5.5 million, or 41 cents a share, from
$5.8 million, or 45 cents a share, a year earlier.




Revenue for the quarter was $170.1 million, up 37.6
percent, from $123.6 million for the same time last year.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Harley-Davidson net rises on international sales

(Reuters) - Sales rose 17.7 percent to $1.62 billion.




Analysts, on average, had expected the Milwaukee-based company to earn $1.13 a share on sales of $1.64 billion, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Bank of NY Mellon posts higher operating profits

(Reuters) - At the former Mellon, income from continuing operations rose 26 percent to $281 million, or 67 cents per share, from $223 million, or 54 cents, a year earlier. Net income rose 19 percent to $275 million, or 66 cents, from $232 million, or 56 cents.




Excluding items, profit per share from continuing operations was 63 cents at the former Bank of New York and 69 cents at Mellon, the combined company said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Gold Drops in London as Weaker Dollar Fails to Spur Buying; Silver Gains

(Bloomberg) -- Gold rose in London, erasing an
earlier decline. Silver also advanced.

Gold for immediate delivery added $1, or 0.2 percent, to
$674 an ounce at 10:03 a.m. local time, after earlier falling as
much as $1.51. Prices this year peaked at $694.25 an ounce on
April 23.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Gold hits new 6-week high, platinum sets new peak

(Reuters) - Gold hit a new six-week high on Thursday, boosted by firm oil prices and a weaker dollar that traded just above a record low against the euro.

A breach of $675 would set the ground for gold's move towards $700 an ounce, but the metal remained vulnerable to profit-taking, analysts said.


Read more at Reuters Africa

UPDATE 1-Midas says exec chairman not detained in China

(Reuters) - The company's statement came after a Wednesday report in
China's influential Caijing magazine that Midas executive
chairman Chen Wei Ping, who has been ranked as one of China's
wealthiest by Forbes magazine, was being detained by
authorities in China's Jilin province.




Caijing said he was involved in bribery investigations.


Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Aquarius contractor fires 3,000 striking workers

(Reuters) - More than 3,000 striking workers at two South African mines owned by platinum miner Aquarius Platinum have been dismissed, the firm said on Thursday.

The strike stemmed from demands for a bonus made by employees and followed the dismissal of 108 load-haul dumper operators in May. The rest of the contractor workforce went on a sympathy strike.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Vodafone posts solid Q1 as India, Turkey shine

(Reuters) - By Kirstin Ridley, European Telecoms Correspondent



LONDON, July 18 - Mobile phone giant Vodafone Group Plc posted robust first-quarter revenue and customer growth on Thursday as booming business in India and Turkey helped offset tough German and Italian markets.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Total Declares Force Majeure at Dalia Field in Angola on Generator Fault

(Bloomberg) -- Total SA, Europe's largest oil
refiner, declared ``force majeure'' on exports from its 240,000-
barrel-a-day Dalia field in Angola after a generator fault cut
production by 50 percent.

Force majeure, a clause exempting producers from making
deliveries because of circumstances beyond their control, was
issued yesterday after a problem with two turbo-generators,
Patricia Marie, a company spokeswoman, said by telephone from
Total's Paris headquarters today.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

U.K.'s FTSE 100 Climbs; Vodafone, BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto Pace the Advance

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. stocks rose for the first time
in four days, paced by Vodafone Group Plc after the world's
largest mobile-phone company said the number of subscribers
increased by 4.1 percent in the fiscal first quarter.

BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto Group led shares of mining
companies higher. Segro Plc jumped after UBS AG recommended
buying the stock.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

SAP provisions for Oracle case not material-BBG TV

(Reuters) - Kagermann added he expected investments in developing and
marketing a new software product aimed at smaller companies
would be higher in the second half of the year than the 50
million euros SAP invested in the first half.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Barclays says may include cash in ABN offer

(Reuters) - "Barclays is considering possible alternative offer structures, including introduction of a partial cash consideration element into the offer," Britain's third-biggest bank said in a statement.




"No decision has yet been taken but Barclays will make further announcements as, if and when due under applicable rules and regulations."


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News