INVESTMENT

Phoenix Solar AG, one of Europe's largest solar power developers, is in talks to partner with a Chinese firm to push its business in China, said a company executive.

Bain Capital, which earlier this week announced a $1 billion acquisition of Bellsystem24 from Citigroup Inc, said it would look to list the Japanese telemarketer when it is ready to exit its investment.

Off-price retailer Ross Stores Inc posted an in-line quarterly profit, helped by better margins, but the company maintained its fourth-quarter earnings forecast which was below market expectations, sending its shares down 4 percent.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. is beefing up in Europe by buying the half of Cazenove it does not already own in a deal valuing the 190-year old UK stockbroker at 2 billion pounds ($3.4 billion).

JPMorgan Chase & Co. is beefing up in Europe by buying the half of Cazenove it does not already own in a deal valuing the 190-year old UK stockbroker at 2 billion pounds ($3.36 billion).

Belgian banking and insurance group KBC will divest its private equity unit as part of the restructuring plan required in return for receiving state aid, a spokeswoman for the group said on Thursday.

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a solidly lower open on Thursday, as a stronger dollar pressured commodities and investors awaited weekly jobless claims data.

U.S. stock index futures were down on Thursday, as a stronger dollar pressured commodities and ahead of the release of weekly jobless claims data.

The Japanese yen rises broadly in Asia today on risk aversion as Japanese Nikkei led Asian stocks lower in general. Nikkei dropped another -1.32% today to close at 9549 and is now farther away from previously mentioned head and shoulder top neckline.

Australia's resurgent economy has lured a string of offshore commercial property investors to its shores, many betting the rebound will underpin market competitiveness in the face of a soaring local currency.

News, details on corporate bond issues in the European markets on Thursday:

U.S. stock index futures pointed to a lower open on Wall Street on Thursday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.61 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.51 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.44 percent at 1030 GMT (5:30 a.m. EST).

Wells Fargo Investments LLC has agreed to repay about $1.3 billion to clients whose funds were frozen in the auction-rate securities market in the latest of a series of settlements with state securities regulators.

U.S. stocks broke three days of gains on Wednesday following worrisome outlooks from two major software makers and a surprising drop in home construction last month.

Private equity firms will need to become more like asset managers, offering buyouts as just part of their portfolio, or else focus tightly on specific sectors in order to prosper, industry participants said.

Billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson is launching a new gold fund, which will include $250 million of his own personal investment, the Wall Street Journal reported on Wednesday.

U.S. bank JPMorgan Chase & Co is likely to seal its purchase of the half of Cazenove it does not own for just under 1 billion pounds ($1.7 billion) on Thursday, people familiar with the matter said.

Shares of network security provider Fortinet Inc soared in their debut on the Nasdaq on Wednesday, in what is on track to be among the strongest debuts of any initial public offering in 2009, after pricing above the expected range.

Cossette shares rose on Wednesday after private equity firm Cosmos Capital raised its takeover bid for Canada's largest homegrown advertiser for the third time.

A popular tactic used by Indian brokerages to raise money for rich clients is likely to be banned by the central bank's move to curb unregulated lending, potentially crimping funding for a long pipeline of planned IPOs.

Private equity firm Terra Firma expects Citigroup to share in the pain of restructuring music business EMI, said Guy Hands, the buyout firm's founder and chairman.