10:00AM NY – After thirty minutes of trading NY awaits earnings results for the second quarter.
In the first thirty minutes of trading in New York, market averages moved higher on second quarter earnings expectations and traditional summer rally. The first week of heavy earnings season weighed heavily on investors with a number of banks expected to release earnings. Weakness in dollar against euro and yen continued with euro reaching intra-day high near $1.38.
Applebee’s International, activist investor focus, has agreed to be acquired by IHOP, for $2.1 billion or $25.50 per share, according to a report by WSJ.com. The company has struggled in the last several years with same store sales declining and losing sales in core demographics.
McDonald’s reported June same store sales rise of 8.4% and said that one-time charge related to licensing in Latin America and Caribbean will result in a second quarter loss of 60 cents.
Royal Bank of Scotland has raised its cash portion of its $98 billion offer for ABN Amro Bank. Vodafone, UK based telecom operator, denied reports that it is considering to buy the mobile service operator Verizon.
Ford is mulling the idea of selling its Volvo division to raise funds to pay for losses in its domestic division.
Korean steelmaker, POSCO (
PKX: chart), reported better than expected earnings and revised it earnings outlook for the year.
9:30AM London is lower at mid-day as Lonmin leads mining stocks lower.
In
London, the benchmark
FTSE 100 Index lost 19.10, or 0.3%, to 6,697.60 at mid-day.
Advancers of the Day
Barclays gained 1.2% after Royal Bank sweetened its offer for ABN Amro, in an attempt to outbid Barclays in the world biggest banking takeover.
In broker news, GlaxoSmithKline, the second-largest drugmaker in the world, increased 1.5% after JPMorgan raised its recommendation for the stock to neutral from underweight.
BT Group also climbed 1.2% after Merrill Lynch upped its recommendation for the largest phone company in the U.K. to buy from sell.
Building supplies group Wolseley gained 1.2% as it announced underlying profit for the 11 months to 30 June 2007 dipped around 5% than the comparable period in the prior year.
Decliners of the Day
Lonmin, the world third-biggest platinum maker, dropped 6.6% as the mining company said it will delay the sale of the metal until its next financial year because of a breakdown at one of its plants. Full-year sales will range between 820,000 ounces and 840,000 ounces and costs will increase. Citigroup reduced its recommendation for the stock to hold from buy.
BHP Billiton, the largest mining company in the world, dropped 1.2% and Xstrata, the fourth-largest copper producer in the world, slid 1.3%.
Royal Dutch Shell declined 1.2%, after HSBC cut its recommendation for the largest oil company by market value in Europe to underweight from neutral.
Engineer Metalrax tumbled 12.3%, having issued a warning that profits will miss targets this year as sorting out its problem businesses is taking longer than expected.
