Barclays gets nod to buy stake in China trust firm

(Reuters) - London-based Barclays Bank Plc will be allowed to buy a nearly 20 percent stake in New China Trust & Investment Co., one of the country's oldest trust firms, after negotiations for more than one year between the two companies, the sources said.




The purchase will make Barclays the first foreign bank with a stake in a Chinese trust firm, while others, including Morgan Stanley and UBS , are still in talks with potential Chinese partners.


Read more at Reuters.com Business News

EnBW's Philippsburg-2 Nuclear Reactor Returns to Service After Repair Work

(Bloomberg) -- Energie Baden-Wuerttemberg AG,
Germany's third-biggest utility, said it began power generation
at its Philippsburg-2 nuclear reactor which had been halted for
annual maintenance.

The unit, which has a capacity of 1,458-megawatts, was
stopped at the beginning of the month, the company said in a
statement. It was restarted over the weekend.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Crude Oil Falls a Second Day After Reuters Reports OPEC May Raise Output

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil fell after Reuters reported
the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries was concerned
about high oil prices and their impact on the world economy.

The group may pump more oil to increase supplies, though it's
unclear whether extra production will be needed this year, OPEC
President Mohamed al-Hamli said, according to Reuters. Reports that
Chevron Corp. started its refinery in El Segundo, California, last
week helped pull oil prices lower.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

U.K. Natural Gas Declines as on Forecast That Supplies May Outstrip Demand

(Bloomberg) -- U.K. natural gas costs fell as
forecasts indicated supplies may outstrip expected consumption of
the fuel today.

Gas for same-day delivery declined as much as 2 pence, or
5.9 percent, to 32 pence a therm, according to prices on
Bloomberg from the broker ICAP Plc. It traded at 32.50 pence at
8:31 a.m. London time. That's equivalent to $6.70 a million
British thermal units. A therm is 100,000 Btus.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

European Stocks Erase Earlier Gains; Credit Suisse, Nestle Shares Drop

(Bloomberg) -- European stocks pared earlier gains,
paced by Credit Suisse Group and Nestle SA.

Europe's Dow Jones Stoxx 600 Index fell 0.1 percent to
392.18 at 8:51 a.m. in London. The Stoxx 50 slid 0.1 percent,
while the Euro Stoxx 50, a measure for the euro region, declined
0.2 percent.


Read more at Bloomberg Stocks News

Corn, Soybean Futures Fall in Chicago on Improved Weather; Wheat Rises

(Bloomberg) -- Corn and soybean futures in Chicago
fell on speculation that wetter and cooler weather in crop
growing areas in the U.S. will boost yields. Wheat futures gained.

Weather forecasts showed the corn belt is expected to
receive up to 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) of rain with 20 percent
coverage on July 23-24. The 6-10 day forecast indicated normal
precipitation in the far western and eastern corn belt, with
below-normal falls in the central corn belt, Dan Cekander, senior
grain analyst for Fimat USA, wrote in a report on July 20.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

Singapore's Temasek says to buy stake in Barclays

(Reuters) - "We are pleased to have this opportunity to invest in
Barclays," said Frank Tang, senior managing director at
Temasek.




"We look forward to supporting them in their strategy to
create opportunities for a higher level of sustainable
growth."


Read more at Reuters.com Mergers News