U.K. Pub Companies May Shun Tax Breaks, Keep Asset-Backed Bonds, RBS Says

(Bloomberg) -- Bondholders betting U.K. pub companies Marston's Plc, Greene King Plc and Punch Taverns Plc will repay debt early to take advantage of new tax rules may be disappointed, according to Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc.

Bonds secured by pub real estate have gained in the past six months on speculation the companies will buy back the securities as they convert to more tax-efficient real estate investment trusts. Pub companies reporting results during the next month are unlikely to announce plans to convert to REITs because of concerns the structure would restrict their business, said Michael Cox, a securitization analyst at RBS in London.


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Pakistan State Oil 9-mth net profit falls 53.5 pct

(Reuters) - This compared with a net profit of 4.62 billion rupees for the corresponding year-ago period.

The result was in line with a range of between 1.95 billion and 2.73 billion rupees, forecast by five analysts surveyed by Reuters.


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Zloty Advances to Highest in 14 Months on Outlook for Poland's Expansion

(Bloomberg) -- Poland's zloty rose to the highest level since March 2006 against the euro on expectations the country's pace of economic growth will accelerate.

The zloty gained for a second day after central banker Dariusz Filar said in an interview for private Radio PiN today that the biggest central European economy may expand by more than 7 percent in the first quarter of this year and top 6 percent growth in all of 2007.


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Siemens CEO says VDO IPO preparations on track

(Reuters) - Potential buyers who have declared interest in VDO, valued at up to 9 billion euros , include German tyre and car parts maker Continental .




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UPDATE 2-Bayer Q1 profits beat expectations

(Reuters) - Earnings before interest, taxes and special items rose 17 percent to 1.4 billion euros in the quarter, from 1.2 billion euros in the same period a year earlier, leading the company's shares to rise in early trading.

A poll of 16 analysts by Reuters showed they expected Bayer, which plans to release more detailed results on May 8, to report earnings of 1.22 billion euros in the quarter on average.


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French Stocks Gain, Led by Cap Gemini, France Telecom and PPR on Revenue

(Bloomberg) -- French stocks gained, paced by Cap Gemini SA, France Telecom SA and PPR SA after the companies reported sales which beat analysts' estimates.

The CAC 40 Index advanced 28.76, or 0.5 percent, to 5976.09 at 9:14 a.m. in Paris. The SBF 120 Index also rose 0.5 percent.


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European shares rally early on Wall St, results

(Reuters) - "It's probably going to be another perky market today, despite some dollar weakness, and the earnings results coming from both out of the States and Europe are pretty good," said Exane BNP Paribas European strategist Bert Jansen, in Paris.

"M&A ... issues are one of the main drivers, if not the main driver today," he said.


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