FTSE up as M&A boosts; BoE eyed but jitters stick

(Reuters) - The FTSE 100 index of Britain's leading shares edged up 0.2 percent on Monday after a flurry of M&A activity boosted the upside but interest rate concerns and credit uncertainty continued to worry investors.

Fears that a rise in defaults on U.S. subprime mortgage loans could spiral into a broader financial crunch have surrounded global markets since mid-June.


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Real estate helps FTSE rally, but worries linger

(Reuters) - Britain's top share index rose on Friday in volatile trade as gains in real estate stocks and banks helped lift the FTSE 100 from four-month lows hit earlier on worries of a potential U.S. credit crunch.

The FTSE 100 index is on course for its biggest weekly fall since January 2003 but by mid-morning investors decided the sell-off had gone far enough for the time being.


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FTSE outperforms European markets on GSK, telecoms

(Reuters) - Britain's top share index crawled higher in choppy trade on Wednesday as GlaxoSmithKline and telecoms shares provided support, but worries about the U.S. supbrime market limited gains ahead of key housing data.

At 1150 GMT, Britain's FTSE was up 0.3 percent at 6,518.O after sliding 1.9 percent to a near one-month low in the previous session. The index outperformed benchmarks in Germany and France, which were down sharply.


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Reckitt results shine as profits rise by a third

(Reuters) - By David Jones



LONDON, July 25 - Britain's Reckitt Benckiser , the world's biggest household cleaning products maker, beat forecasts with a 33 percent rise in second-quarter net profits thanks to cost cuts and sales of new products.


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UPDATE 1-Stanley Works Q2 earnings rise, narrows 2007 EPS range

(Reuters) - The supplier of tools, hardware and security systems
lowered the upper end of its 2007 earnings forecast range and
stood by its sales growth projection based on anticipation of
continued weak conditions in housing-related markets.




The New Britain, Connecticut-based company posted
second-quarter earnings of $85 million, or $1.01 a share,
compared with $75 million, or 90 cents a share, in the
year-earlier quarter. Net sales rose 10 percent to $1.1
billion.


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Terna, InterGen, Sparebanken, Groupama to Sell Debt: European Bond Alert

(Bloomberg) -- Network Rail Ltd., the government-
backed owner of Britain's railways, is among borrowers seeking to
raise the equivalent of at least 3.5 billion euros ($4.8 billion)
from sales of bonds in euros and pounds, according to data
compiled by Bloomberg.

Companies sold the equivalent of $1.04 trillion of bonds
denominated in euros and pounds so far this year, up from $844
billion in the same period in 2006.


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UPDATE 1-Multiplex formally recommends Brookfield bid

(Reuters) - An independent expert's report on Multiplex valued the
company, the builder of Britain's much delayed Wembley Stadium,
at A$4.62 to A$5.26 a share, it said in a target statement to
shareholders.




Shares in Multiplex were steady at A$4.97 at 0223 GMT.


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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.


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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."


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Dutch court poised to rule on ABN's LaSalle sale

(Reuters) - The court is considering whether to unfreeze the suspended sale of ABN's LaSalle Bank to Bank of America for $21 billion.




If the court tells ABN it can sell LaSalle, that would strengthen a bid by Britain's Barclays to buy ABN for nearly 63 billion euros , since its offer is contingent on the sale of LaSalle.


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TREASURIES-Bonds fall on stronger services, ADP jobs data

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 5 - U.S. Treasury debt prices fell
on Thursday after stronger-than-expected data on jobs and the
services sector suggested to investors the Federal Reserve will
not move to cut official interest rates any time soon.




Bonds got off to a rocky start, following euro zone debt
down before the European Central Bank left rates on hold at 4
percent, as expected, but also signaled a September increase is
likely. In Britain, the Bank of England raised rates by 25
basis points to a six-year high of 5.75 percent.


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RBS group says on track for ABN offer this month

(Reuters) - RBS and its partners -- Spain's Santander and Belgian-Dutch Fortis -- has offered to buy Dutch rival ABN for about 71 billion euros , trumping an all-share offer from Britain's Barclays worth about 62 billion euros.



RBS said in a statement it expects to file with a prospectus the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the consortium will issue its tender offer on schedule this month.


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FTSE down on US sentiment; BoE rate verdict eyed

(Reuters) - The FTSE 100 of Britain's leading shares edged down 0.2 percent on Monday after U.S. stocks fell on Friday on concerns about the impact of tightening credit on takeovers and the subprime mortgage industry.

At 0730 GMT the FTSE 100 was down 13.5 points at 6,594.4, with many investors looking to euro-zone and UK manufacturing PMI data from 0800 GMT for further market direction.


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Seven&I to spend Y300 bln on U.S. expansion-paper

(Reuters) - Under the expansion plan, the Japanese retailer aims to lift
product sales, including gasoline, by at least 15 percent from
the level in 2006 to 1.2 trillion yen, the report said.




Seven & I is trying to boost its presence in the world's
biggest consumer market where competition is expected to further
intensify with the entry of new players such as Britain's Tesco
Plc into the convenience store sector, the Nikkei said.


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Total still in talks on Venezuela, hopes deal on Tues

(Reuters) - On Monday, a government official told Reuters that Total,
Chevron Corp. , Norway's Statoil and Britain's
BP Plc planned to sign a nationalisation accord that
would keep them in the massive Orinoco oil reserve projects.




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European Stocks Decline, Paced by Barclays, BNP Paribas, BAE Systems

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks dropped for a fourth
day as U.S. equities retreated. Barclays Plc, Britain's third-
largest bank, and BNP Paribas SA, France's biggest, paced the
decline after their U.S.-traded securities fell.

BAE Systems Plc tumbled after Europe's largest weapons maker
said the U.S. Justice Department started a probe of the company's
compliance with anti-corruption laws. Arcelor Mittal declined
after Merrill Lynch & Co. downgraded the steelmaker's shares.
Iberdrola SA dropped after the Spanish power company agreed to
buy U.S.-based Energy East Corp. for $4.5 billion.


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RWE gets nod from another US state for water sale

(Reuters) - He reiterated RWE plans to sell shares in American Water
this year, adding the company is not in a hurry to do so and
wants to sell at a maximum profit.




RWE is focusing on selling power and natural gas in Britain
amd central and eastern Europe, and is shedding its water units
outside continental Europe. It has already sold its UK water
unit, Thames Water.


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UPDATE 3-Speedy Hire to buy Hewden tools for 115 mln stg

(Reuters) - LONDON, June 14 - Speedy Hire Plc agreed
to buy its nearest competitor, the tool hire division of Hewden
Stuart, for 115 million pounds in cash to bolster
its position as Britain's biggest tool hire company.




The deal, announced on Thursday, comes a day after Archie
Norman, former chief executive of supermarkets group Asda,
teamed up with Och-Ziff Capital to buy tool hire company HSS
from private equity firm 3i for 310 million pounds.


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REFILE-UPDATE 5-Rexam to buy Owens-Illinois Plastics for$1.8 bln

(Reuters) - By Miyoung Kim and Euan Rocha



LONDON/NEW YORK, June 11 - Britain's Rexam Plc agreed to buy the plastic packaging business of Owens-Illinois Inc. for $1.83 billion in cash as it targets the fast-growing market for packaging medicines.


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Global stocks slide knocks FTSE, metals hit miners

(Reuters) - Britain's top share index slipped for a fifth day in a row on Friday, as European equities joined a global stock market sell-off triggered by a surge in U.S. Treasury bond yields, and as precious metals knocked miners.

Miners bore the brunt of the sell-off, hit by lower gold and copper prices. Anglo American dropped 1.2 percent, Xstrata lost 0.8 percent and Kazakhmys went down 0.9 percent.


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