Shanghai Auto tie-up may create Chinese car champion

(Reuters) - Shanghai Automotive Co. said on Friday that parent groups of the two companies had signed a letter of intent to discuss ways of achieving a "complete union" between the firms through business cooperation and restructuring.




China's central government and local authorities are pushing the tie-up as a way to build Shanghai Auto into a comprehensive auto maker that can compete with European, Japanese and U.S. giants at home and eventually overseas, industry sources and analysts said.


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EMI buyer gets 85 pct of shares, extends deadline

(Reuters) - EMI shares had slipped further from the offer price over the last few days as investors worried the takeover might collapse because of the deterioration in credit markets.




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Commodity markets mostly hold their own vs stocks

(Reuters) - Commodities were mostly firm on Friday despite the risk aversion sweeping through stock and financial markets, with metals, energy and agricultural products trading largely on their own fundamentals.

Platinum fell sharply and gold prices wallowed on concerns about the U.S. subprime mortgage crisis and other credit market problems. But copper rose on the strength of second-quarter U.S. economic growth that was stronger than expected.


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ABN leans toward dropping support for Barclays-paper

(Reuters) - ABN AMRO declined comment.




The bank is expected to deliver a statement on the bids on
Monday morning alongside its quarterly results, based on
discussions at meetings of its supervisory and management boards
on Friday.


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Key Bancroft trust voting structure may change: WSJ

(Reuters) - Two of the four main beneficiaries of the trust are in favor of a sale, the paper said, citing unnamed sources. If Bancroft turned down the offer against their wishes, he might expose himself to litigation. Splitting up the trust would allow him to vote his shares against the deal, while his relatives' shares could go in its favor, it said.




The paper also reported that another branch of the Bancroft family will vote against the deal, putting pressure on Rupert Murdoch to raise his offer.


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UPDATE 1-Calpine mulls alternative reorganization moves

(Reuters) - SAN FRANCISCO, July 27 - Calpine Corp
put its bankruptcy reorganization plan on hold on Friday to
weigh alternative plans presented to the independent power
producer.




Calpine, in a filing at the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission, said "certain parties" have contacted the company
about an alternative reorganization that would guarantee a
payout to creditors.


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UPDATE 1-Mexico's Femsa posts 19 pct rise in 2nd-quarter net

(Reuters) - Femsa said April-June net was 2.238
billion pesos compared with 1.883 billion pesos
a year earlier.




Femsa, which makes Sol and Tecate beer and is the world's
No. 2 Coke bottler, said quarterly revenue rose 7.4 percent to
36.006 billion pesos.


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