COMPANIES

Companies from Home Depot to Johnson & Johnson are borrowing a page from the private equity playbook by accumulating debt to boost returns - and Wall Street is lending a helping hand.

Former media mogul Conrad Black is guilty of criminal fraud and obstruction of justice but innocent of racketeering, a U.S. jury found on Friday.

Baker Hughes Inc. warned on Friday a significant deterioration of activity and profitability in Canada would hurt its second-quarter profit, knocking down stocks in several oil service peers.

U.S. retail sales posted their biggest monthly decline in nearly two years during June, according to government data issued on Friday, indicating the housing market slump and soaring gasoline prices are depressing consumer spending.

Rio Tinto Ltd.'s $38.1 billion takeover of Alcan Inc. is set to reap benefits from not just China's appetite for aluminum, but also the bauxite and alumina needed to make it, analysts said on Friday.

General Electric Co. has decided to sell its WMC Mortgage subprime lending business, the lender told employees in a memo on Thursday.

Dutch bank ABN AMRO can proceed with its sale of U.S. unit LaSalle, the Dutch Supreme Court said, boosting the prospect Barclays will succeed in its near $90 billion takeover bid for ABN.

Partners of private equity firm Blackstone Group may have devised a way to avoid paying tax on $3.7 billion raised largely in the firm's initial public offering last month, the New York Times reported on Friday.

General Electric Co. posted a 9.6 percent rise in quarterly profit Friday on good results in its commercial finance business and strong demand for products ranging from jet engines to gas turbines. The company also said it had decided to exit the subprime lending business, where it recorded a loss in the quarter.

Battery and razor maker Energizer Holdings Inc. said on Thursday it would buy Playtex Products Inc. in an all-cash deal worth about $1.16 billion, plus the assumption of debt.

Indian billionaire Anil Ambani's Reliance Energy Ltd. is set to invest Rs. 60,000 crore (US$15 billion) in the next five years to add 15,000 megawatts (MW) to its capacity.

Newmonth Mining Corp. (NYSE: NEM) said Wednesday that it still expects to sell between 5.2 and 5.6 million equity ounces of gold for prices between $375 and $400 per ounce.

Australian engineering services firm United Group Ltd. said Wednesday it had acquired US-based UNICCO Service Company (UNICCO) for $477 million (US$411 million) in a cash and stock deal.

Timber products company Auspine Ltd rejected Gunns Ltd’s offer of $6.15 (US$5.32)per share on Thursday, which valued the company at $332 million (US$287 million).

U.S. Steel Corp.'s chief executive on Thursday called for China to rein-in its steel industry to calm simmering trade tensions.

An experimental cancer drug from Britain's Antisoma Plc and Swiss-based Novartis AG has failed in a mid-stage clinical trial for ovarian cancer, lopping 15 percent off Antisoma's market value.

Marriott International Inc., the top U.S. hotel operator, said on Thursday that second-quarter profit rose a better-than-expected 11 percent, but concerns about slowing growth in North America led to a decline in its shares.

Nuts and bolts distributor Fastenal Co. on Thursday reported a quarterly profit that beat market expectations by a penny, on a rebound in daily sales growth.

As Macy's Inc. struggles with disappointing sales, analysts and other experts are not ruling out the possibility of the retailer being bought out.

M&T Bank Corp., the first large U.S. bank to report quarterly results, on Thursday said easing mortgage pressure contributed to higher-than-expected profit.

Retailers reported modest June sales results on Thursday as industry leader Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and teen favorite Abercrombie & Fitch Co. topped Wall Street's conservative expectations while a number of department stores and women's specialty retailers foundered.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. on Thursday reported a higher-than-expected 2.4 percent June rise in sales at its U.S. stores open at least a year, and the world's largest retailer said its second-quarter earnings forecast is attainable.

Anglo-Australian miner Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc has agreed to buy Canada's Alcan Inc. for $38.1 billion to create the world's biggest aluminum producer, the two firms said on Thursday.

Two black shoppers have sued Toys R Us saying they were subjected to racial discrimination and unjustified scrutiny at a store in New York.

Billionaire Carl Icahn's sweetened $3 billion buyout offer for auto parts maker Lear Corp. has gained little traction among top advisory firms or shareholders ahead of a scheduled vote next week.

U.S. apparel company Liz Claiborne Inc. said on Wednesday that it will cut up to 800 jobs and consider its options for 16 apparel brands under a plan to cut costs.

Dow Jones & Co. , in talks for a takeover by News Corp., met with supermarket magnate Ron Burkle and Internet entrepreneur Brad Greenspan on Tuesday in an effort to find an alternative offer, a source familiar with the situation said.

Private equity corporate raiders who have so far sidestepped the mining sector despite widespread consolidation, could soon reset their sights, global accounting and consulting firm Ernst & Young said on Wednesday.

Citigroup plans to boost the number of its branch locations in Japan by 40 percent to about 200, including those of recently acquired brokerage Nikko Cordial Corp., as the financial firm looks to move beyond a niche role in the world's second-largest economy.