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| Egypt's regulator approves Qatari bank's bid for NSGB Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 11:57 PM PST CAIRO (Reuters) - Egypt's financial regulator has approved an offer by Qatar National Bank (QNB) for National Societe Generale Bank, after requiring QNB to buy the whole company rather than the originally planned 77 percent stake. QNB said in December it planned to buy the 77 percent stake in NSGB held by French bank Societe Generale. Ashraf El Sharkawy, head of the Egyptian Financial Supervisory Authority, told Reuters by telephone that the regulator had approved the offer. "Yes. We obliged Qatar National Bank to present an offer for 100 percent," he said. QNB has offered 38. ... Full Story | Top |
| Warner Bros. takes home Oscar gold, sales boost for "Argo" Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 11:45 PM PST  LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Time Warner Inc's Warner Bros. basked in the golden glow of coveted Best Picture Oscar for its Iran hostage drama "Argo" on Sunday, giving the Ben Affleck film a likely boost for its ticket and home entertainment sales. Hollywood's big night often proves a boon to studios that take home Oscars, and this year the haul was spread among several major film companies. Among the Best Picture competitors, shipwreck drama "Life of Pi" from News Corp's 20th Century Fox studio earned the most awards - four - including Best Director for Ang Lee. ... Full Story | Top |
| Zambia's Copperbelt JV to pay $164 mln for Nigeria stake Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 11:42 PM PST  LUSAKA (Reuters) - Zambia's Copperbelt Energy Corporation said on Monday its Kann Utility joint venture would pay $164 million for a 60 percent stake in Nigeria's Abuja Electricity Distribution Company. Kann is half owned by the Zambian power company and half owned by XerXes Global Investments. Full Story | Top |
| S.Africa's rand weak but within range, GDP, budget loom Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 11:23 PM PST  JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The rand weakened early on Monday and looked likely to come under more pressure this week if domestic economic data comes in weaker than market expectations. By 0648 GMT, the rand was at 8.8850 to the dollar, off an 8.86 close in New York on Friday. South Africa's currency has traded in a 20 cent range of 8.80-9.0 for most of the last month, but this week may give it new direction. Fourth quarter GDP data is due on Tuesday, which will give a full picture of economic growth for 2012 and also show whether the government's growth projection of 2. ... Full Story | Top |
| S.Africa's PIC to back Absa-Barclays deal: report Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 10:36 PM PST  JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - South Africa's government pension fund will vote in favour of Absa Group's plan to buy the African operations of its British parent Barclays, Business Day newspaper reported on Monday. Absa's minority shareholders, including the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) pension fund, are due to vote Monday on the bank's plan to issue $2 billion in stock to Barclays, in exchange for the British lender's African businesses. While the deal is dilutive, it also offers Absa exposure, the PIC told Business Day. ... Full Story | Top |
| S.Africa's Nedbank FY profit up 19 pct, misses consensus Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 10:35 PM PST JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Nedbank Group, South Africa's fourth-largest lender, undershot market expectations with a 19 percent rise in full-year earnings on Monday, as growth in profit from loans was thin. The bank majority owned by insurer Old Mutual said diluted headline earnings per share totalled 1,595 cents in the year to end-December, from 1,340 cents a year earlier. A Thomson Reuters SmartEstimate had forecast earnings rising to 1,619 cents. Headline earnings, the main measure of profit in South Africa, exclude certain one-time items. ... Full Story | Top |
| Canada's housing affordability improves in fourth quarter: RBC Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 09:45 PM PST TORONTO (Reuters) - Small declines in home prices and mortgage rates made Canadian home ownership slightly more affordable in the fourth quarter of 2012, the second straight improvement, and soft home buyer demand may help continue the trend in 2013, according to a report by RBC Economics released on Monday. RBC, Canada's largest bank and a huge mortgage lender, measures affordability as the percentage of monthly pre-tax income for a household needed to cover the typical costs of owning a home, including mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes. ... Full Story | Top |
| GM switches to AT&T from Verizon for OnStar wireless service Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 09:39 PM PST  NEW YORK (Reuters) - General Motors Co has chosen AT&T Inc to provide high-speed wireless service for its 2015 car models, dropping its long-term provider Verizon Wireless. OnStar - best known for connecting drivers to live operators who provide directions or summon emergency help after an accident - will start using AT&T in its 2015 models, which go on sale in mid-2014. The companies will discuss their partnership on Monday at the Mobile World Congress show in Barcelona. ... Full Story | Top |
| Japan opposition Democrats say Kuroda suitable as Bank of Japan chief: media Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 09:24 PM PST TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's main opposition Democratic Party said Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda meets its requirements to head Japan's central bank, so it would be difficult to oppose his nomination, Jiji news reported, citing a party official. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will nominate Kuroda to be the next Bank of Japan governor, sources told Reuters. Abe needs cooperation from opposition parties to approve nominees due to a divided parliament. (Reporting by Stanley White, editing by Dean Yates) Full Story | Top |
| Japan likely to nominate ADB's Kuroda as Bank of Japan head: sources Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 09:24 PM PST  TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's prime minister is likely to nominate an advocate of aggressive monetary policy easing - Asian Development Bank President Haruhiko Kuroda - as the next central bank governor to step up his fight to finally rid the country of deflation. Shinzo Abe won a big election victory in December promising to revive the fortunes of an economy stuck in the doldrums for most of the past two decades. He has repeatedly called for a more aggressive central bank willing to take radical steps. ... Full Story | Top |
| Nissan to sell Datsun cars in South Africa from next year Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 08:58 PM PST  TOKYO (Reuters) - Nissan Motor Co will start selling its Datsun brand passenger vehicles in South Africa next year, the Japanese automaker said on Monday, as it aims to grab more first-time buyers in emerging markets with entry-level cars. South Africa will be among four countries in which Nissan plans to revive the Datsun, a well known brand in several markets that the company dropped in 1981. Nissan also plans to sell Datsun vehicles in Indonesia, India and Russia from 2014. ... Full Story | Top |
| Brent slips below $114 as China factory output retreats from 2-yr high Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 08:55 PM PST  SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Brent futures slipped below $114 a barrel on Monday, reversing some of the gains made in the previous session on worry about China's demand growth as manufacturing output in the world's second biggest oil consumer pulled back from two-year highs. The HSBC flash purchasing managers' index (PMI) for February slipped to 50.4, down from the previous month's final reading of 52.3, the best since January 2011. Further losses on Brent were stemmed as investor waited to see if Italy's elections will produce a stable government. Front-month Brent slipped 18 cents to $113. ... Full Story | Top |
| Asian shares edge higher, yen falls on Bank of Japan report Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 07:29 PM PST  TOKYO (Reuters) - Asian shares edged higher on Monday but prices were capped by uncertainty facing the global economy after a private survey showed Chinese manufacturing activity retreated from two-year highs this month. China's HSBC flash purchasing managers' index (PMI) for February slipped to a four-month low of 50.4 and down from January's final reading of 52.3, which had been the best performance since January 2011. But the PMI on Monday showed a fourth consecutive month of expansion, confirming that the world's No. 2 economy is recovering, albeit slowly. ... Full Story | Top |
| Grounding, budget woes cloud F-35 warplane sales push in Australia Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 07:11 PM PST  WASHINGTON/MELBOURNE (Reuters) - This year's second grounding of Lockheed Martin Corp's F-35 warplane, plus looming U.S. defense cuts, will complicate a push this week by Lockheed and U.S. officials to convince Australian lawmakers and generals to stick to a plan to buy 100 of the jets. Australia, a close American ally, is considering doubling its fleet of 24 Boeing Co F/A-18 Super Hornets amid delays and setbacks in Lockheed's $396 billion F-35 project. ... Full Story | Top |
| Yum says to step up check on suppliers after China scare Sunday, Feb 24, 2013 06:09 PM PST  BEIJING (Reuters) - Yum Brands Inc will tighten its monitoring of suppliers and improve testing of poultry as it aims to reverse a steep drop in business at its KFC restaurants in China after a chicken safety scare. In a statement ahead of a media briefing in Beijing on Monday, the company also said it would look to improve its communications with the Chinese government and people in the wake of the scare. ... Full Story | Top |
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