** MORNING WRAP **
March 17th, 2006** US MARKETS **
Dow 0.39%; Nasdaq -0.53%; S&P 0.18%; Soxx -3.23%; Russel2k 0.11%; DJAIG 0.25%;
10yr Bond -0.07%; 10yr Yield 4.66%; Crude future 63.54; Gold 553.55
| Energy 1.45%| Utilities 0.65%| ConsDisc 0.33%| Financials 0.33%| Materials
0.21%| Telecom 0.2%| Industrials 0.19%| ConsStaples 0.09%| Healthcare 0%|
Technology -0.85%
- General Motors 2005 Loss Widens by $2 Billion on Expenses; Filing Delayed
- Industrial Production in U.S. Probably Rose in February, Economists Say
- Dollar Heads for Weekly Loss as Traders Reduce Bets on Fed Rate Increases
- American International Group (-2.44% after hours) reported Q4 (Dec) earnings
of $0.17 per share, $0.14 worse than the Reuters Estimates consensus of $0.31.
Revenues rose 59.4% year/year to $27.4 bln vs the $22.9 bln consensus.
** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 1.51%; Kospi 0.38%; HSI 0.41%; Taiwan 0.36%; China -0.26%; India 0.51%;
Thailand -0.22%; Australia -0.08%
- China’s Grace Semiconductor Seeks Debt Repayment Delay After Posting Loss
- Indonesia’s Bumi Sells Coal Mines for $3.2 Billion to Fund Oil Production
- Sanyo, Quanta Plan to Form Flat-Panel Television Venture to Reduce Costs
- Asian Stocks Set for First Weekly Rise in Three; Japan’s Nomura Advances
- China Air Plans to Simplify Fleet as 2005 Profit Slumps to Seven-Year Low
- Korea Exchange Debt Rating Outlook Raised by S&P as Asset Quality Improves
- Daewoo Securities, Korea Brokers’ Shares May Gain as Services Sales Rise
** EUROPEAN MARKETS **
S&P future -0.05%; Bund future 0.03%; Crude future 63.54; €/$ 1.2156; Gold
553.55
- L’Oreal Agrees to Buy Body Shop for $1.14 Billion to Add Natural Cosmetics
- Legal & General Full-Year Net Doubles on Sales of Pensions, Investments
- Crude Oil Is Near Two-Week High as U.S., Iraqi Forces Start Air Assault
- Tchenguiz May Plan Sale of 10 Hilton Hotels for $878 Million, FT Reports
- Minara Says Nickel Demand Will Grow by 5 Percent on Consumption in Asia
- Arcelor said most European shareholders aren’t backing a hostile $23.2 billion
takeover bid by Mittal Steel Co.
- Corus Group Plc wants to team up with a company in a developing country to
lower production costs, Handelsblatt said, citing an interview with
Chief Executive Officer Philippe Varin.
- Schering was granted FDA approval for its YAZ drug, which will be available in
the US in April.
- Vodafone Group is close to reaching an agreement over the 9bln sale of its
Japanese unit to Softbank (FT).
- Body Shop will be acquired by L’Oreal for about GBP 652m or 300p per share.
- Legal & General Group Plc, the worst performing U.K. life insurance stock in
the past year, said profit more than doubled in 2005 on increased sales of
pensions and investment products. Net income climbed to 944 million pounds
($1.66 billion), or 13.95 pence a share, from 463 million pounds, or 6.87 pence
a share, a year earlier.