UPDATE 1-RBS sells $2.2bln UK Marriott hotels to consortium

(Reuters) - The portfolio of four- and five-star luxury hotels, with the majority located in England and five each in Wales and Scotland, is operated by Marriott International under the Marriott Hotels & Resorts brand, with 30 year management agreements which started in 2006.

Quinlan said in a statement on Monday that it is the single largest investor in the consortium and is investing on behalf of a group including Electra, First International Bank of Israel and Delek Real Estate.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 2-ABN gives early Q1 figures as bid talks intensify

(Reuters) - AMSTERDAM, April 16 - ABN AMRO , which has received a break-up proposal from a three-bank consortium as it nears the end of exclusive merger talks with Barclays Plc , reported double-digit earnings gains on Monday.

Shares in the Netherlands' biggest bank rose more than 5 percent to a record 35.5 euros, valuing it at 67.5 billion euros , on the increased chance of a bidding war between Britain's Barclays and the consortium of Santander , Royal Bank of Scotland and Fortis .


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 3-Dutch Philips beats Q1 profit forecast, sales slow

(Reuters) - AMSTERDAM, April 16 - Dutch Philips Electronics beat analysts' forecasts on Monday with first-quarter operating profit, but sales were below expectations due to slower TV and monitor sales as well as Latin American weakness.

Philips's earnings before interest and taxes came in at 292 million euros compared with an average forecast of 267 million euros by 15 analysts polled by Reuters. EBIT in the year-earlier period was 335 million euros.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

French Stocks Climb, Led by BNP Paribas, Cap Gemini, STMicroelectronics

(Bloomberg) -- French stocks rose, paced by BNP Paribas SA, Cap Gemini SA and STMicroelectronics NV.

The CAC 40 Index advanced 20.04, or 0.4 percent, to 5809.38 at 9:07 a.m. in Paris. The SBF 120 Index increased 0.3 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Greenspan Says Global Growth to Cushion U.S., Downplays Risk of Recession

(Bloomberg) -- Former Federal Reserve chairman Alan Greenspan played down his earlier concern about a possible U.S. recession, saying the world economy would provide a cushion, according to people attending a forum in Tokyo today.

Greenspan said growth in the rest of the world is creating demand for services from companies such as Microsoft Corp., according to Vaseehar Hassan Abdul Razack, chairman of Kuala Lumpur-based RHB Islamic Bank Bhd, who attended the meeting, hosted by Nomura Research Institute Ltd. Greenspan was speaking via satellite from Washington.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Guinea withdraws oil, bauxite deals for review

(Reuters) - Guinea, the world's No. 1 bauxite exporter, said on Sunday it was withdrawing agreements made with a U.S. oil company and a Russian-managed bauxite producer as part of a planned review of minerals contracts.

The withdrawals were announced in a government statement read on state television. They referred to a production-sharing contract with American oil company Hyperdynamics and an annexe of an accord with Compagnie de Bauxite de Kindia (CBK), a local bauxite company run by Russian aluminium giant RUSAL.


Read more at Reuters Africa

China Construction Bank H2 profit up 23 pct

(Reuters) - HONG KONG, April 16 - China Construction Bank , the mainland's third-largest lender, posted a 27 percent rise in second-half profit, in line with expectations, after last year's bottom line got fattened by a one-off tax gain.

Construction Bank, in which Bank of America owns about 8 percent, said it earned 23.1 billion yuan , compared with 18.2 billion yuan in the year-earlier period.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News