** MORNING WRAP **
** US MARKETS **
Dow 0,24%; Nasdaq -0,25%; S&P 0,22%; Soxx -1,41%; Russel2k 0,01%; DJAIG 0,57%;
10yr Bond 0,04%; 10yr Yield 4,59%; Crude future 63,24; Gold 623,05
| Energy 1,54%| Materials 0,69%| Healthcare 0,55%| Utilities 0,55%| Industrials
0,21%| ConsStaples 0,16%| ConsDisc 0,1%| Financials -0,09%| Technology -0,3%|
Telecom -0,65%
- U.S. Producer Prices Jump Most Since 1974; Housing Starts Exceed Forecasts
- Palm Inc.: The maker of Treo e-mail phones said that excluding some items,
second-quarter earnings were 17 cents a share. That beat the average estimate of
15 cents in a Bloomberg survey of analysts.
- Redback Networks Inc. rose $3.63, or 17 percent, to $24.80 in extended trading
yesterday. Ericsson AB, the world’s largest maker of wireless-network
equipment, agreed to buy Redback for $2.1 billion, or $25 a share.
** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei 1,4%; Kospi 1,02%; HSI 1,43%; Taiwan 0,65%; China 0,04%; India 0,28%;
Thailand 11,69%; Australia 0,82%
- Thai Stocks Rally After Government Scraps Day-Old Investment Restrictions
- Australia Slashes Economic Growth Outlook as Drought Sparks Wheat Shortage
- Abe’s First Budget Shows Japan May Eliminate Deficit Earlier Than Planned
- Paulson China Strategy Attacked as Treasury Declares No Yuan Manipulation
- Yen Slides to Record Low Against Euro as Widening Yield Gap Fuels Outflow
- Asian Stocks Gain After Thailand Scraps Investment Penalties; Toyota Rises
- Total May Spend $8 Billion to Develop Remaining Indonesian Energy Reserves
- Goldman Sells 100 Billion Yen of Bonds in Japan, Biggest Samurai in 2006
- Thai Baht Leads Asian Currencies Higher After Stock Controls Are Reversed
** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **
- ABB Ltd.: The world’s largest builder of electrical networks had its credit
rating raised by Moody’s Investors Service to Baa1 from Baa3.
- ASM International NV: Fursa Alternative Strategies LLC, formerly known as
Mellon HBV, raised its stake in Europe’s second-largest semiconductor-equipment
maker to 8.3 percent and will keep buying shares, Chief Executive Officer Mickey
Harley said in a phone interview.
- Heineken NV: The Dutch brewer that owns brands including Amstel will open a
brewery in Tunisia as part of a joint venture in the country. Heineken will buy
a 49.99 percent stake in Societe de Production et de Distribution des Boissons
- RWE AG: Germany’s second-largest utility has been told by the German cartel
authority to lower its prices for industrial customers, German newspaper
Sueddeutsche Zeitung said, citing a letter from the regulator to RWE.
- Ericsson AB, the world’s largest maker of wireless-network equipment, agreed
to buy Redback Networks Inc. for $2.1 billion, taking on Cisco Systems Inc. in
the market for Internet routers. The cash offer of $25 a share represents an 18
percent premium to Redback’s closing share price of $21.17 yesterday.
Redback, based in San Jose, California, said in a statement yesterday it will
retain its management team and operate as a unit of Stockholm-based Ericsson.
The purchase allows Ericsson to offer routers that telephone carriers can use in
broadband networks handling everything from voice to video. Redback sales are
growing faster than larger rivals Cisco and Juniper Networks Inc.
- Euronext NV shareholders approved a takeover by NYSE Group Inc., clearing the
way for the first trans-Atlantic stock market. About 98.2 percent of Euronext
shareholders who voted electronically approved the acquisition, which is now
valued at 10.9 billion euros ($14.4 billion). NYSE Group investors are
scheduled to vote today in New York. The transaction will be completed in about
three months, Chief Executive Offer Jean- Francois Theodore said.