** MORNING WRAP **
** US MARKETS **
Dow 0,34%; Nasdaq 0,62%; S&P 0,27%; Soxx 0,89%; Russel2k 0,49%; DJAIG -0,36%;
10yr Bond 0,04%; 10yr Yield 4,55%
| Utilities 1,14%| Technology 0,83%| Telecom 0,71%| Industrials 0,66%| Materials
0,59%| ConsStaples 0,13%| Healthcare 0,09%| ConsDisc 0,07%| Financials -0,03%|
Energy -0,36%
- OPEC, the producer of 41 percent of the world’s oil, will probably refrain
from lowering output at a meeting this week as mounting tensions between the
U.S. and Iran bolster prices.
- Employers in the U.S. will slow the pace of hiring next quarter, led by
builders and makers of durable goods, according to a private survey released
today. Manpower Inc. said its so-called net employment outlook fell
to 18 percent from 19 percent in the first quarter, seasonally adjusted. The
gauge subtracts the proportion of employers planning to cut jobs from the
percentage who plan to add them.
- Texas Instruments Inc. fell 79 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $31.80 in extended
trading. The world’s biggest maker of semiconductors for mobile phones narrowed
its forecast for first-quarter sales and profit as demand for handsets
remained steady. Profit will be 29 cents to 33 cents a share, excluding some
costs, compared with an earlier forecast of 28 cents to 34 cents.
** ASIAN MARKETS **
Nikkei -0,66%; Kospi -0,37%; HSI -0,25%; Taiwan 0,72%; China 0,05%; India 0,41%;
Thailand 0,73%; Australia -0,41%
- Asian Stocks Snap Week-Long Rally; Sony Falls on Yen’s Gain, Qantas Slips
- Taiwan Central Bank Governor Says Interest Rate May Be Approaching a Peak
- Ranbaxy Laboratories Bids for Generic-Drugs Division of Germany’s Merck
- China’s Inflation Accelerated in February, Adding Interest-Rate Pressure
- Nikko Shares Surge on Expectations Citigroup May Raise $10.8 Billion Bid
- Qantas Shares Decline on Concern Investors May Block Macquarie-Led Buyout
- Yen Strengthens as Flight From Risk Prompts Traders to Reduce Carry Trades
- HSBC to Double Branch Network in China, Issue 1.2 Million Cards, Wong Says
- Tokyo’s Economy, Bigger Than Canada’s, to Keep Top City Ranking Until 2020
- Asian Real Estate Better Value Than `Vulnerable’ Stock Markets, Faber Says
** EUROPE: IN PLAY TODAY **
- Lagardere SCA: France’s largest publisher said profit from media assets
declined 34 percent last year as it recorded higher interest costs and had
expenses for an exchangeable bond.
- Pirelli & C. SpA, which indirectly controls Telecom Italia SpA, posted a loss
in 2006 after writing down the value of its investment in the country’s largest
phone company. The net loss was 1.17 billion euros ($1.54 billion) compared
with a profit of 327 million euros a year earlier, the Milan-based company said
in a stock exchange statement today. Sales rose 6.5 percent to 4.84 billion
euros.
- Swisscom AG, Switzerland’s largest telephone company, said profit declined for
a fifth consecutive quarter after sales at its traditional service unit
dropped. Fourth-quarter net income fell 8.1 percent to 342 million Swiss francs
($279 million), from 372 million francs a year earlier, the company said on its
Web site today. Sales rose to 2.46 billion francs from 2.43 billion francs.
- Gaz de France SA, the owner of Europe’s biggest natural-gas network, said
profit climbed 29 percent last year on better margins from sales to large
customers. The Paris-based company, which is planning to merge with
power and water utility Suez SA, said net income rose to 2.3 billion euros
($3.03 billion) from 1.78 billion euros a year earlier. That’s in line with the
median estimate from ten analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News of 2.31 billion
euros.
** UPS & DOWNS **
MAN AG RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `NEUTRAL’ AT UBS
OLD MUTUAL RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `NEUTRAL’ AT UBS
AGGREKO RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `NEUTRAL’ AT UBS
SANDISK RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `NEUTRAL’ AT UBS
VOPAK RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `NEUTRAL’ AT UBS
INTERSERVE RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `HOLD’ AT CITIGROUP
BOURBON RATED NEW `BUY’ AT CITIGROUP
ENAGAS RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `HOLD’ AT CITIGROUP
JD GROUP CUT TO `HOLD’ FROM `BUY’ AT CITIGROUP
AKZO NOBEL RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `HOLD’ AT CITIGROUP
NORSK HYDRO RAISED TO `BUY’ FROM `HOLD’ AT CITIGROUP