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** US MARKETS **
Dow 1,07%; Nasdaq 1,93%; S&P 1,22%; Soxx 3,04%; Russel2k 2,09%; DJAIG 0,39%;
10yr Bond -0,01%; 10yr Yield 4,99%; Crude future 73,16; Gold 638,2

| Technology 2,06%| Financials 1,84%| Materials 1,67%| ConsDisc 1,26%|
Industrials 1,2%| Telecom 1,02%| ConsStaples 0,91%| Healthcare 0,61%| Utilities
0,51%| Energy -0,03%

** US HEADLINES **
- U.S. Hiring Is Tepid, Manufacturing Moderates, Economic Reports May Show
- Dollar Bear Market Resumes as Outlook for Higher Interest Rates Fades
- Treasuries May Gain as Futures Hint at Federal Reserve Rate Cuts Next Year
- Pfizer’s Stock Decline, Angry Investors Led to McKinnell’s Premature Exit
- U.S. House Adopts Higher Minimum Wage and $310 Billion in Tax Reductions
- Wal-Mart’s U.S. July Same-Store Sales Rise 2.4 Percent, Within Forecast
- U.S.’s Schwab, Brazil’s Amorim Say Doha Trade Talks Still May Be Salvaged
- Wal-Mart Takes Road Out of German Retail Market Well-Traveled by Others
- U.S. Stocks Post Their Biggest Weekly Gain Since 2004; GM, AT&T, HCA Rise
- Credit Agricole, Societe Generale May Merge U.S. Futures Units, People Say

** US IN PLAY TODAY **
- Chicago Purchasing Manager Index hits the wires at 16:00 CET
- Earnings of note: Metlife Inc, Juniper Networks and Freddie Mac.

** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 0,97%; Kospi 0,32%; HSI 0,42%; Taiwan -0,39%; China -2,44%; India 1,47%;
Thailand 0,44%; Australia 0,54%

** ASIAN HEADLINES **
- Japan’s Industrial Production Rises to Record on Autos, Machinery Output
- Asian Stocks Rise on U.S. Rates Outlook, Led by Sony, Samsung Electronic
- Stringer, Reviving Sony’s Earnings, Seeks to Avoid PlayStation 3 Failure
- Singapore Second Quarter Jobless Rate Rises as More Workers Seek Positions
- China Officials Join the U.S. in Calling for Faster Gains in the Currency
- KT Freetel Has Biggest Profit Drop in Eight Quarters on Handset Subsidies
- Japan Equity Funds Add More Money on Net Basis for First Time in 11 Weeks
- Indonesia Inflation Probably Slowed in July, Raising Rate-Cut Prospects
- Shell, Exxon May Drill for Gas Off New Zealand in World’s Highest Waves
- China’s Command Economy Can’t Be Commanded, Risking `Treacherous Endgame’

** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **
- Earnings of note: Statoil, Erste Bank, Deutsche Post, Abn Amro, TNT, HSBC &
Ryanair.

- BASF Chief Executive Officer Juergen
Hambrecht said the economic outlook for the remainder of the year
is “very positive” and business in its markets around the world
is “good,” Spiegel reported, citing an interview.

- HBOS Plc: Britain’s biggest mortgage bank plans
to increase its share buyback program to 1 billion pounds ($1.9
billion) as the country’s top five banks report a record 18
billion-pound first-half profit, the Sunday Telegraph said.

- Xstrata Plc: The Switzerland-based miner plans to
sell 2.75 billion pounds ($5.1 billion) of shares to existing
investors to help fund the purchase of Falconbridge Ltd., the
Sunday Telegraph reported, without saying where it got the
information.

-ABN Amro Holding NV Monday said it sold its
property development and financing unit Bouwfonds to domestic rivals SNS Reaal
and Rabobank for a total sum of EUR1.69 billion, as it
also reported a 23% increase in second-quarter net profit.
Net profit at the Amsterdam-based bank rose to EUR1.22 billion from EUR987
million a year earlier, as higher provisions were offset by a lower tax rate.
That exceeded analysts’ forecast of around EUR1.13 billion.

-Dutch semiconductor equipment maker ASM International NV Monday reported a
sharp jump in second quarter net profit driven by higher sales and lower costs,
and said it made progress on its plan to bring its troubled front-end business
to profitability. ASMI’s second quarter net profit came in at EUR17.4 million
from EUR0.5 million a year ago, while sales were up 28% to EUR234.8 million from
EUR183.3 million. These results were well above estimates of analysts, who had
seen ASMI’s second quarter net profit at EUR9.6 million on sales of EUR212.2
million.

-Erste Bank der Oesterreichischen Sparkassen AG, Monday said second-quarter net
profit increased 19%, driven by a strong performance in Central and Eastern
Europe, but held back by a drop in the securities and derivatives business.
Austria’s second-largest savings banking group said net profit rose to
EUR209.1 million in the quarter from EUR175.4 million a year earlier, exceeding
the EUR208.4 million average forecast of six analysts.
For the full year, Erste Bank forecasts net profit growth of 20%, which is a
reiteration of its previous forecast from April 28.

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This entry was posted on Monday, July 31st, 2006 at 7:04 and is filed under Morning Wrap.