** MORNING WRAP **
** US MARKETS **
Dow 0,23%; Nasdaq 0,14%; S&P 0,11%; Soxx 0,03%; Russel2k -0,19%; DJAIG -0,79%;
10yr Bond 0,03%; 10yr Yield 4,59%; Crude future 63,17; Gold 618
| Materials 0,86%| Industrials 0,67%| Telecom 0,42%| Financials 0,4%| Healthcare
0,38%| ConsStaples 0,22%| Technology 0,12%| Utilities -0,2%| ConsDisc -0,41%|
Energy -1,19%
- Express Scripts Offers $26 Billion for Caremark to Trump CVS Takeover Plan
- Harrah’s Considers $16.7 Billion Texas Pacific, Apollo Offer, People Say
- U.S. Current-Account Deficit Probably Reached Record in the Third Quarter
- Venezuela’s Chavez Leads Push by Oil Producers to Buy Euros, Sell Dollars
- Stock Strategists Alarm Contrarians With Unanimous Call for 2007 Rally
- China’s Restrictions on Foreign Investment May Hurt Growth, Risk Backlash
- Strategists at 12 of the biggest Wall Street firms agree that U.S. stocks will
rally next year. The last year that happened was for 2001, when the Standard &
Poor’s 500 Index dropped 13 percent. Merrill Lynch & Co.’s Richard Bernstein and
Bear Stearns & Co.’s Francois Trahan, two of the most bearish forecasters in the
current four-year rally, both estimate the S&P 500 will surge to a record next
year.
- Today: current account balance & NAHB housing market index.
** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 0,28%; Kospi 0,8%; HSI 0,13%; Taiwan 1,14%; China 1,42%; India -0,4%;
Thailand -0,35%; Australia 0,27%
- Asian Stocks Climb for Fifth Day on U.S. Rates Outlook; Sony, Samsung Gain
- Guangshen Rail Sells $1.3 Billion of Shares After Demand Overwhelms Supply
- Singapore’s Exports Rise More-Than-Expected 8.1 Percent on Drug Shipments
- Bank of Japan Set to Keep Rates Unchanged Tomorrow, Raise Them Next Month
- LG Electronics Names Nam Yong New Chief Executive, Replacing Kim Ssang Su
- Taiwan Stocks May Catch Up With Asia Gain on Playstation, Wii, PC Demand
- Japanese Bonds Lure JPMorgan, Deutsche Bank as Omi Plans to Reduce Sales
- China’s Restrictions on Foreign Investment May Hurt Growth, Risk Backlash
- Toshiba’s Shares Rise on Record $5.3 Billion China Nuclear Plant Contract
** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **
- Hardman Resources Shareholders Approve $1.1 Billion Takeover by Tullow Oil
- Ireland Faces Power Shortages in Winter If Older Plants Fail, ESRI Says
- Areva SA: The world’s biggest maker of nuclear reactors may decline after
China picked Toshiba Corp.’s Westinghouse Electric Co. for the biggest
international nuclear reactor contract in history, trumping Areva for a project
worth about $5.3 billion.
- Corus Group Plc: Tata Steel Ltd. is unlikely to raise its offer again for U.K.
steelmaker Corus Group Plc, clearing the way for a takeover by Brazil’s Cia.
Siderurgica Nacional SA, the Daily Mail reported Dec. 16, citing people close
to Tata that it didn’t identify.
- Fiat SpA: Italy’s largest carmaker will meet its profit targets by introducing
new models and adding markets, Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne was
quoted as saying in an interview with weekly Borsa&Finanza. The company will
report net income of 3.5 billion euros ($4.6 billion) in 2010 and will
meet targets to sell 1.9 million cars annually that year, Marchionne said in the
interview.
- Hypo Real Estate Holding AG: The commercial property lender said it will book
a tax gain of approximately 60 million euros this year because of changes in
German taxation rules.
- KBC Group NV: The Belgian financial services company acquired a majority stake
in leasing company Romstal Leasing for 70 million euros as it plans to take
advantage of economic growth in Romania.
- Nokia Oyj: The Enterprise Solutions division of the world’s largest mobile
phone maker will return to profit next year, the head of the unit said in an
interview with the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende on Dec. 17.
- Vallourec SA, the world’s second-largest maker of tubes used to drill for oil
and gas, may make acquisitions and is large enough to develop on a stand-alone
basis, Le Journal des Finances reported Dec. 16, citing an interview with
Chairman Pierre Verluca.
- Norsk Hydro ASA Monday said that the board of directors of Hydro and Statoil
ASA have agreed to recommend to their shareholders a merger of Hydro’s oil and
gas activities with Statoil, creating the worlds largest offshore operator with
a strengthened platform for future growth.