9:30AM London edges higher at mid-day Wednesday on miners, Royal & Sun Alliance.

At mid-day, the FTSE 100 canceled out early morning losses and was trading up 0.07% at 6,527, a gain of 6 points.

Advancers

Royal & Sun Alliance led the gainers, advancing 3.8%, on speculation that American Insurance Group could be mulling a bid for the insurer. Miners supported the index otherwise under pressure as the global bond sell-off accelerated. Antofagasta gained 3.3 % after the Chilean copper producer announced the price of copper had proven stable in the light of recent economic declines and would remain high well into next year.

Rio Tinto, Xstrata, and BHP Billiton, three of the large-caps in the sector, all advanced after they stepped up action on some Australian coal sales tracking a severe storm in southeastern Australian that flooded coal mines and disrupted ports. Rio Tinto rose 2.7%, Xstrata gained 2%, and BHP Billiton rose 1.2%.

Decliners

Three large-cap companies traded without further rights to their latest dividend payments. Johnson Matthey fell 2.54 %. Cable & Wireless fell 1.7% lower,. Kelda lost 2.4%. Wolseley, the world biggest distributor of building supplies, lost 1.9% after data showed a 2.5% drop overnight in the US homebuilders index.


9:00AM U.S. stock futures indicated a lower market opening. Retail sales jumped 1.4% in May.

U.S. stock futures traded lower on Wednesday, following several weak sessions in a row and news that U.S. retail sales advanced 1.4% in May. This is the biggest gain in 16 months, coming in well above analyst expectations of a 0.7% increase. Consequently, the dollar continued its recent upward move, rising 0.7% vs. the yen.

In another economic report, the Labor Department reported that prices of imported goods rose 0.9% in May, as imported petroleum prices climbed 2.7%. In addition, bond yields on 10-year Treasurys jumped 5.315%, up from 5.25% on Tuesday.

In deal news, investors led by The Blackstone Group, Goldman Sachs, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and TPG revealed their bid offer of $46 a share, or $11.4 billion, for medical devices maker Biomet. Walt Disney (DIS: chart) completed the sale of ABC Radio to Citadel (CDL: chart) for $1.35 billion. S&P 500 futures fell a half point at 1,507.00 and Nasdaq 100 futures fell 1.5 points at 1,916.50. Dow industrial futures were up 8 points.


8:30AM Asian markets finish lower Wednesday with Japan, HK leading decliners.

Asian markets finished lower on Wednesday. The Nikkei 225 Average finished the day 0.2% lower at 17,733. Real-estate issues were hurt the most, like Mitsubishi Estate which dropped 1.7%. Real-estate companies are sensitive to interest rates. Hong Kong Hang Seng Index fell 0.3% to close at 20,579. Property stocks led the decline in Hong Kong. Wharf Holdings fell 1.4%, Sino Land shed 0.9% and Hang Lung Properties lost 0.8%. Swire Pacific slipped 0.5%, and New World Development fell 0.5%.

South Korean Kospi Index lost 0.5% to 1,722. Advances in brokerage sector bucked a general downward trend, as rising concerns over inflation and likely interest rate hikes in global economies sparked profit-taking. Seoul Securities closed 12% higher, while NH Investment & Securities advanced 9.6%. Brokerage firms could not helped the market to end higher, though. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering ended 3% lower. GS Engineering & Construction fell 4.2%, Samsung Electronics slipped 0.9% while Hyundai Motor lost 1%.

Shanghai Composite Index rallied 2.6% to end at 4,176, bucking the overall downtrend on a strong local currency which boosted property developers and financial companies. China Vanke rose 5.5% and China Merchants Property rallied 8%. Among financial firms, China Life gained 2.2% and China Merchants Bank ended 4.7% higher. Australian S&P/ASX 200 dipped 1% to 6,181. BHP Billiton declined 1.7% after copper on LME lost 2.5% and nickel fell 5.8%. Interest rate sensitive stocks also declined - ANZ Bank fell 1.2%.


8:15AM Investor group offered $11.4 billion for Biomet.

Investors led by The Blackstone Group, Goldman Sachs, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts and TPG revealed their bid offer of $46 a share, or $11.4 billion, for medical devices maker Biomet (BMET: chart).