Delphi Financial still sees 2007 earnings of $3.15-$3.25/shr

(Reuters) - Shares of the company were up more than 6 percent at $41.21
in late morning trade on the New York Stock Exchange.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Ryder CEO - truck rental prices reached bottom

(Reuters) - Ryder has responded to that decline by cutting its rental
fleet by 10 percent and moving more trucks to leasing contracts
where pricing is firmer.




Swienton also said the company's conservative outlook for
the second half of this year - the CEO said earlier in the day
during a conference call with analysts that he expected
continued weakness in the U.S. economy during the second half
of 2007 - was based on the "reality of what we've been hearing
from our customers."


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

DAX Index Falls, Led by Siemens; Fresenius Medical, DaimlerChrysler Rise

(Bloomberg) -- Germany's DAX Index dropped for a
second day, paced by Siemens AG after the engineering group
agreed to buy medical-scanners maker Dade Behring Holdings Inc.
for $7 billion ($9.6 billion) and sell its VDO automotive unit.

Fresenius Medical Care AG, Deutsche Lufthansa AG and
DaimlerChrysler AG paced rising shares.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

TREASURIES-Bonds retreat in face of strong stock outlook

(Reuters) - S&P 500 and other stock index futures pointed to a
strong opening on Wall Street, luring money away from
safe-haven bonds. Also, the government will auction two-year
notes later in the session, and the fresh supply could press
bond prices lower.




The main potential positive for Treasuries appeard to be
the existing home sales data that is due at 10 a.m. .
This has the potential to limit the bond market's losses if it
heightens worries about the troubled housing sector, which
punished stocks and lifted Treasuries on Tuesday.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-RESEARCH ALERT-Friedman downgrades 3 mortgage insurers

(Reuters) - The brokerage also lowered its earnings outlook for the
group to reflect expectations for a longer-than-expected
downturn in the credit cycle and more severe losses.




On MGIC, Friedman said the company is likely to suffer from
higher losses in the near term. However, it should be
benefiting from some catalysts over the next few months,
including its slated sale of portions of C-BASS and Sherman
following the closing of the RDN transaction.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 2-TXU recommends merger approval; CEO may leave

(Reuters) - TXU in proxy materials filed with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission defended the $69.25-per-share offer from a
group led by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co [KKR.UL] and Texas
Pacific Group [TPG.UL].




The company said the price was a "meaningful" premium to
its stock price and that it would probably not have done better
without the deal, the largest leveraged buyout in history.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Freddie Mac sells $1.0 bln in bills

(Reuters) - Settlement is July 26.




The sale was part of Freddie Mac's weekly bill auction. On
Monday Freddie Mac sold $1.5 billion of three-month reference
bills due Oct. 22, 2007, $1.5 billion of six-month reference
bills due Jan. 22, 2008 and $1.0 billion of 12-month bills due
July 21, 2008.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Ambac quarterly net income falls 25 pct

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 25 - Ambac Financial Group Inc. , a bond insurer, said on Wednesday that second-quarter earnings fell 25 percent, hurt by losses from credit derivatives backed by subprime mortgages. The New York-based company said net income dropped to $173 million, or $1.67 a share, from $238.6 million, or $2.22 a share, a year earlier.



The results were depressed by unrealized mark-to-market losses of $56.9 million, or 36 cents a share, resulting from unfavorable market pricing of collateralized debt obligations largely backed by loans to less credit-worthy home buyers,


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-ABX fall to record lows on weak subprime loan data

(Reuters) - NEW YORK, July 25 - Benchmark ABX indexes fell to
record lows on Wednesday as July performance data showed
further deterioration in loans underlying subprime mortgage
securities, traders and analysts said.




"The "BBB-" indexes are down by one to two points across
the board on the latest remittance reports," said one trader.
The indexes are a tool used to hedge subprime mortgage risks


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

UPDATE 1-Credit Suisse takes stake in U.S. liquidator

(Reuters) - Great American of Woodland Hills, California, is getting
money from the Swiss bank to expand its liquidation business.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed.




"By partnering with a leading issuer of
non-investment-grade debt and a leading player in the
distressed debt market, we anticipate new opportunities to meet
the extensive appraisal needs of high-yield and leveraged loan
issuers, and the downsizing and liquidation needs of distressed
companies," Great American Chief Executive Andrew Gumaer said.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

RLPC-UPDATE 1-Chrysler Corp postpones $12 bln auto loan deal

(Reuters) - The automaker is raising cash to help fund Chrysler Group's
buyout from DaimlerChrysler AG by Cerberus Capital
Management.




The buyout is still expected to close because underwriters
remain committed to providing financing, market sources told
RLPC.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

CORRECTED - US STOCKS-Indexes fall on deal financing worry

(Reuters) - "It's the financials rolling over pretty hard after we had
the move up after the opening," said Bobby Harrington, head of
U.S. cash equities trading at UBS in Stamford, Connecticut.




The drop followed news that Chrysler Corp. had postponed a
$12 billion auto loan deal. For details, see [ID:nN25373257]


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Erosion may send Alaska oil wells into the ocean

(Reuters) - The disappearance of sea ice that shields against storm-waves, and of permafrost that holds shorelines together, is eating away at the coast of the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska, according to a U.S. Geological Survey study.




Erosion rates have risen steeply along the coastline of the reserve -- where the administration of President George W. Bush wants to increase oil drilling -- possibly due to warmer weather, the study showed.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

RPT-Argentine peso, stocks, bonds slide with region

(Reuters) - The Argentine peso fell for a third straight day, reaching
territory not seen since early 2003, as banks and funds
liquidated sovereign debt and stocks and converted gains into
dollars.




In informal trade between foreign exchange houses as
measured by Reuters, the peso fell to 3.200/3.205 per dollar
. The currency has lost almost 2 percent since Friday's
close.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

Gold Futures Drop From 11-Week High as U.S. Dollar Rallies; Silver Falls

(Bloomberg) -- Gold fell from an 11-week high in
New York as the dollar gained the most against the euro in almost
five months, eroding the metal's appeal as an alternative
investment. Silver also fell.

Gold often moves in the opposite direction of the U.S.
currency, which gained after U.S. stocks rebounded from a slump
yesterday. Before today, gold had gained 7.3 percent this year as
the dollar slumped 4.5 percent against the euro.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Zimbabwe imports 200,000 tonnes of Tanzania maize

(Reuters) - Zimbabwe is importing 200,000 tonnes of maize from Tanzania as it battles food shortages which critics largely blame on President Robert Mugabe's policies, state television said on Wednesday.

Critics say Mugabe plunged the southern African state into economic crisis by seizing productive white-owned commercial farms and giving them to inexperienced black farmers who have left the country needing to import food since 2000.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Egyptian indexes edge down, blue chips mixed

(Reuters) - Egyptian stock indexes inched down on Wednesday, as market leaders closed on a mixed note amid profit-taking on Commercial International Bank (CIB), traders said.

Market speculation on a possible CIB move to buy Arab-African International Bank had boosted the stock's price since last Thursday, despite CIB's refusal to comment on the rumour, traders said.


Read more at Reuters Africa

Zimbabwe hikes gold price 10-fold to stop smuggling

(Reuters) - Zimbabwe's central bank raised on Wednesday the local price of gold nearly 10-fold in a bid to curb smuggling and boost sagging deliveries.

The precious metal is the main source of hard currency for the struggling southern African nation, accounting for a third of its export earnings.


Read more at Reuters Africa

St.Jude's bypass-surgery clean-up device gets US okay

(Reuters) - The device was already approved in the European Union and Canada, the company said.






Read more at Reuters.com Government Filings News

Existing home sales fell in June

(Reuters) - Economists polled by Reuters were expecting home resales to fall to a 5.88 million-unit pace from the 5.99 million-unit rate initially reported for May. Sales were revised in May to 5.98 million units.




The inventory of homes for sale fell 4.2 percent to 4.196 million units at the end of June, which represents an 8.8 months' supply.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Apple May Have Sold 450,000 IPhones in First Two Days, RBC Says in Report

(Bloomberg) -- Apple Inc. may have sold as many as
450,000 iPhones in their first two days on sale, according to RBC
Capital Markets, which said AT&T Inc.'s activation figures may
not reflect shipments.

AT&T said yesterday that it activated 146,000 of the phones
in the first two days of the sales agreement. Apple introduced
the iPhone, which combines the iPod music player with an e-mail
phone, on June 29.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

U.S. Stocks Advance on Better-Than-Expected Earnings; Amazon, Boeing Gain

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stocks rebounded from the
worst drop in four months after profits topped analysts'
estimates at Amazon.com Inc. and Boeing Co.

Amazon.com, the world's biggest online retailer, rallied
to a seven-year high on rising sales of electronics and
jewelry. Boeing, the second-largest commercial-jet maker,
climbed to a record after it said aircraft deliveries gained.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Meredith posts higher quarterly profit

(Reuters) - The publisher of Better Homes and Gardens and Family Circle magazines reported net earnings for its fiscal fourth quarter of $51.5 million, or $1.05 per share, up from $48.6 million, or 97 cents a share, a year before.



Revenue rose 2.1 percent to $428.5 million.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Ryder sales up but profit down, cites '06 benefit

(Reuters) - Ryder also lowered its full-year earnings forecast.




The Miami-based company reported second-quarter net income
of $65.1 million, or $1.07 a share, compared with $70.3 million
or $1.13 a share a year earlier.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Parametric profit rises with tax benefits

(Reuters) - It reported fiscal third-quarter net income of $87.2
million, or 74 cents a share, compared with $16.9 million, or
15 cents a share, a year earlier.




The 2007 quarter results included tax-related benefits. On
an operating basis, profit was $19.8 million for the third
quarter compared with $13.5 million a year ago.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Convergys posts lower quarterly profit

(Reuters) - Revenue rose 2 percent to $707 million.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-FLIR Systems Q2 profit rises, raises 2007 view

(Reuters) - The company said its latest second-quarter results were
helped by a strong demand in its Government Systems and
Commercial Vision Systems divisions, based on which it raised
its 2007 view.




Backlog in the Government System's division was $245
million during the quarter, up $29 million from March 31, 2007.
In the Commercial Vision System's division, backlog was $54
million for the period.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Genzyme 2nd-qtr profit rises; raises 2007 outlook

(Reuters) - BOSTON, July 25 - Genzyme Corp. said on Wednesday that second-quarter earnings rose on higher sales of its drugs for rare and chronic diseases, prompting the biotechnology company to increase its 2007 forecast for the second time this year.



Genzyme's shares rose more than 3 percent in early trading.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

CORRECTED - UPDATE 1-Stelco reports loss in second quarter on charges

(Reuters) - The Canadian steelmaker, which is on the auction block,
said it lost C$41 million in the second quarter, compared with
a loss of C$39 million in the first quarter. The company did
not provide a per-share figure.




Excluding the charges, and also factoring out a C$30
million foreign exchange gain on long-term debt, Stelco turned
a profit before income taxes of C$5 million, it said.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-TradeStation Q2 earnings rise; trims '07 view range

(Reuters) - The company lowered the upper end of its 2007 earnings
outlook range to between 74 cents and 77 cents a share.




TradeStation had earlier forecast earnings of 74 cents to
84 cents a share for the full year. Analysts on average were
looking for earnings of 75 cents a share, before special items,
according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Kuwait Revalues Dinar, Fuels Speculation Other Gulf Nations to Follow Suit

(Bloomberg) -- Kuwait revalued the dinar against
the dollar for a second time this month to curb inflation,
fueling speculation other Gulf countries will follow suit.

The central bank, which manages the dinar against a basket
of currencies, lifted its currency 1.7 percent. The dinar has
been dragged lower by a slump in the dollar, increasing the cost
of imports to Kuwait and accelerating gains in consumer prices.
The United Arab Emirates' dirham strengthened the most in almost
four months today and the Saudi riyal also advanced.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

Corporate Bond Risk Decreases as Investors Reduce Bets on Subprime Rout

(Bloomberg) -- The risk of owning corporate bonds
fell in Europe and the U.S. as investors pared bets that credit
quality will deteriorate further because of the subprime
mortgage rout, according to traders of credit-default swaps.

Contracts on 10 million euros ($13 million) of debt
included in the iTraxx Crossover Series 7 Index of 50 European
companies dropped 13,000 euros to 354,000 euros in London,
according to Deutsche Bank AG. The index was at 180,000 euros at
the start of June. The CDX North America Investment Grade Index
dropped $1,250 to $53,750 in New York, Deutsche Bank said.


Read more at Bloomberg Bonds News

UPDATE 1-New York Community profit falls 29 pct on charge

(Reuters) - Net income for the Westbury, New York-based thrift fell to
$36 million, or 12 cents per share, from $50.6 million, or 18
cents, a year earlier.




Results included a $57 million pre-tax loss from selling
the securities, which the thrift said resulted from changes in
interest rates, not credit quality. Operating profit totaled
$71.8 million, or 23 cents per share, New York Community said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Siemens new CEO starts with disposal, poor Q3

(Reuters) - The price was less than the 12 or even 13 billion euros that some media had reported Continental and rival suitor TRW were prepared to pay.




Siemens also announced it would acquire U.S. clinical diagnostics company Dade Behring for about $7 billion to bolster its medical equipment division.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

Continental CDS drop after VDO buy -traders

(Reuters) - "People now believe an LBO is far less likely," a trader
said.




Meanwhile, CDS on Siemens were 2 basis points tighter at 15
basis points, a second trader said.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Siemens new CEO starts with disposal, poor Q3

(Reuters) - The German industrial conglomerate said it would sell its
automotive unit, VDO, which it had originally planned to list on
the stock market, to car-parts supplier Continental
for 11.4 billion euros .




The price was less than the 12 or even 13 billion euros that
some media had reported Continental and rival suitor TRW
were prepared to pay.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

GLOBAL MARKETS-Stocks, dollar stabilise after battering

(Reuters) - Credit spreads narrowed after blowing out earlier this week
on troubles at the U.S. high-risk subprime mortgage sector. U.S.
stock futures pointed to a firmer open on Wall Street a day
after posting their worst one-day performance since March.




The FTSEurofirst 300 index turned slightly into
positive territory after hitting a one-month low. U.S. stock
futures also rose after Web retailer Amazon.com
reported strong profit and raised its outlook.


Read more at Reuters.com Economic News

Glaxo CEO: new data underscores Avandia safety

(Reuters) - "This is important new information," he said, after
reporting second-quarter results. "Clearly, we stand firmly
behind the safe profile of Avandia. We look forward to this
meeting on Monday and to the ultimate resolution of this
controversy."




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Corning says quarterly profit slips 5 pct

(Reuters) - Second-quarter net income fell to $489 million, or 30 cents
a share, from $514 million, or 32 cents per share a year
earlier. Excluding special charges, Corning, the largest maker
of glass for liquid crystal display televisions, reported
earnings of 34 cents a share.




Analysts on average had forecast Corning to earn 32 cents a
share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Freeport-McMoRan's second-quarter profit trebles

(Reuters) - It said revenue quadrupled to $5.81 billion from $1.42
billion as a result of acquiring Phelps Dodge's mines.




Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Sealed Air 2nd-quarter profit rises

(Reuters) - Net income rose to $73.9 million, or 40 cents a share,
compared with a year-ago profit of $57.8 million, or 31 cents
per share.




Excluding items, the company's quarterly earnings rose to
41 cents a share, from 35 cents a share, in the year-ago
period.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

UPDATE 1-Hess 2nd-qtr earnings fall on higher expenses

(Reuters) - Net income fell to $557 million, or $1.75 a share, from
$566 million, or $1.79, a year earlier.




The company's corporate and interest expenses rose more
than 20 percent to $70 million in the quarter.


Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Temple-Inland 2nd-quarter profit tumbles

(Reuters) - Excluding one-time items, earnings were 59 cents a share,
down from 97 cents a year earlier.





Read more at Reuters.com Market News

Colgate quarterly profit rises, forecast unchanged

(Reuters) - Second-quarter Profit was $415.8 million, or 76 cents per share, compared with $283.6 million, or 51 cents per share, a year earlier.




Excluding special items, earnings were 84 cents per share. On that basis, analysts, on average, expected 83 cents per share, according to Reuters Estimates.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

Buyout volumes up despite credit blowout

(Reuters) - Buyout volume has nearly doubled year-over-year since credit fears started to emerge, reaching $184 billion globally from June 18 through July 24 from $98 billion in the same period in 2006, according to research firm Dealogic.




Meanwhile, European high-yield credit spreads as measured by the iTraxx Crossover index have nearly doubled and over 25 loan and bond financings have been put on ice.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

U.S. Stock-Index Futures Advance on Earnings; Amazon, Boeing Shares Gain

(Bloomberg) -- U.S. stock-index futures rose after
profits that topped analysts' estimates at Boeing Co. and
Amazon.com helped assuage concerns that sent equities to their
worst drop in four months.

Amazon, the world's biggest online retailer, rallied on
earnings that nearly tripled due to curbed technology spending.
Boeing, the second-largest commercial-jet maker, gained after
it said it delivered on more airliners.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Dollar Gains Against Euro, Yen as U.S. Stock Futures Rebound on Profits

(Bloomberg) -- The dollar gained the most against
the euro in almost five months after futures on U.S. benchmark
stock indexes rebounded from a slump yesterday.

The U.S. currency also advanced after European companies
including Volvo AB reported weaker-than-anticipated earnings.
Average profit growth among U.S. firms in the Standard & Poor's
500 Index has so far exceeded analysts' forecasts. A technical
chart some investors use to gauge currency movements indicated
the euro's gain to a record this week was too rapid.


Read more at Bloomberg Currencies News

UPDATE 1-TXU recommends merger approval; CEO to leave

(Reuters) - TXU in proxy materials filed with the U.S. Securities and
Exchange Commission set Sept. 7 as the date for shareholders to
vote on the planned takeover, which was announced in February.




TXU agreed to be acquired by a group led by Kohlberg Kravis
Roberts & Co [KKR.UL] and Texas Pacific Group [TPG.UL] for
$69.25 per share in the largest leveraged buyout in history.


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News

UPDATE 1-Eagle Bulk buying 26 Supramax vessels for $1.1 billion

(Reuters) - The company plans to fund the deal from a new proposed $1.6
billion revolving credit facility led by Royal Bank of Scotland
Plc.




Eagle Bulk said 21 of the vessels being acquired are under
long-term charters up to 2018. Minimum contracted revenue on
the chartered vessels is about $1 billion.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News

US STOCKS-Futures extend gains on Boeing profit

(Reuters) - Boeing's announcement was an additional boost to optimism
spawned earlier by Web retailer Amazon.com Inc.'s
solid profit and outlook.




S&P 500 futures were up 6.2 points, above fair
value, a mathematical formula that evaluates pricing by taking
into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration
on the contract.


Read more at Reuters.com Bonds News