Concerns about the U.S. economy prompted investor caution on Tuesday, cutting into what had been a recovery in stocks and boosting the yen.
Home Depot Inc said on Tuesday it agreed to cut the price of its supply division sale to buyout firms by $1.8 billion, as a housing market drop and a credit crunch forced all sides to renegotiate. As part of the new agreement, Bain Capital Partners, The Carlyle Group and Clayton, Dubilier & Rice will pay $8.5 billion for the division.
NYSE Euronext and Australia's ASX Ltd may be interested in buying part of Nasdaq Stock Market Inc's 31 percent stake in London Stock Exchange Plc, a person familiar with the matter said.
Stock index futures fell on Tuesday due to renewed global credit concerns and caution ahead of reports on home prices and consumer confidence. Banking stocks took an early beating after MarketWatch reported that Merrill Lynch had downgraded to neutral from buy investment banks Bear Stearns Cos., Lehman Brothers and Citigroup.
Citigroup Inc is combining two groups of traders focused on global credit markets, which have been in turmoil this month.
U.S. stocks fell on Monday after data showed the number of unsold homes reached its highest level in more than 15 years in July, adding to concerns about the housing market and consumer spending. Bank shares fell on nagging credit worries after Goldman Sachs slashed its earnings forcast on Lehman Brothers, Bear Stearns and Morgan Stanley.
Investor confidence in the economy deteriorated in August to its lowest level in a year, as the growing housing turmoil compounded worries over high energy prices, a survey showed on Monday.
Home Depot Inc agreed to cut the price in its supply division sale to buyout firms by $1.8 billion, sources said on Sunday, as a housing market drop and a credit crunch forced all sides to renegotiate.
Private equity firm Francisco Partners has pulled out of the bidding for Sanyo Electric Co. Ltd.'s chip unit as the auction draws to a close, sources familiar with the situation said.
Goldman Sachs is to buy upscale jeweler Tiffany & Co's flagship store in Tokyo for about 37 billion yen ($318 million), a sign that Japan's hot property market is shrugging off global credit concerns.
European shares recovered further on Monday, but Wall Street looked set to open lower after news that for the first time since the leveraged buyout boom began the price on a major private equity deal had been lowered.
Gold was steady on Monday, staying within sight of last week's high, while the benchmark Tokyo futures contract rose 2 percent to its highest in more than a week due to a weaker yen and a strong New York close.
An end to Wall Street's streak of rising profits in the third quarter is built into investor expectations, but the top brokerages' results will still face scrutiny next month to see just how they value assets bloodied by the summer market meltdown.
Profit at Merrill Lynch & Co. Inc. could take a big hit if the U.S. brokerage heavyweight cuts the value on nearly $1 billion in subprime lender assets it bought just eight months ago.
Shares in Bank of China and its subsidiary BOC Hong Kong slid on Friday amid worries that higher-than-expected exposure to sub-prime mortgages would eat into their earnings.
Home Depot is close to accepting about $1.2 billion less for the sale of its wholesale distribution business to three private equity firms, the Wall Street Journal reported on Thursday.
A worsening credit crunch and its broad impact on financial markets has some dealmakers predicting that leveraged buyouts are on hold for the rest of the year and perhaps well into 2008.
A private equity-led buyout of home-improvement retailer Home Depot Inc's wholesale supply division, due to close on Thursday, could be in trouble because investment banks involved are reluctant to fund the transaction even at a lower price, the Financial Times reported in its online edition, citing people familiar with the negotiations.
Countrywide Financial Corp was expected to lead financial shares higher on Thursday after receiving a $2 billion injection from Bank of America Corp, easing fears the largest U.S. mortgage lender could go bankrupt and boosting optimism the sector will weather a credit shortage.
Countrywide Financial Corp on Wednesday received a $2 billion injection from Bank of America Corp, helping the largest U.S. mortgage lender shore up its finances as it struggles with a liquidity crunch.
Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Ltd, the world's biggest bank by market capitalisation, beat forecasts with a 61.6 percent jump in first-half profit, helped by widening interest margins and fee income growth.
China's main stock index climbed for the first time above the 5,000-point level on Thursday, passing another milestone in a spectacular bull run that has more than quadrupled the index since the start of last year.
