(Adds Tribune Publishing Co, Euronext NV, Phoenix Group
Holdings, Anbang Insurance, Alphabet Inc, United Internet ,
Raízen Energia SA, Banco Popolare , Blackstone (NYSE:BX) Group LP, Peugeot
Automobile; Updates Air Products and Chemicals Inc (NYSE:APD), Peugeot
Nigeria)
March 17 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers,
acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1940 GMT on
Thursday:
** The U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit aimed at
blocking Tribune Publishing Co TPUB.N , which owns the Los
Angeles Times, from acquiring papers in Orange and Riverside
Counties, the department said. European stock exchange operator Euronext NV ENX.PA is
considering acquisitions to help it stay competitive after
Deutsche Boerse AG DB1Gn.DE and London Stock Exchange Group
Plc LSE.L agreed to merge in a $30 billion deal, according to
people familiar with the matter. Phoenix Group Holdings PHNX.L , Britain's largest
consolidator of closed life funds, is preparing to bid for
Deutsche Bank AG's DBKGn.DE British insurance unit, Sky News
reported. China's Anbang Insurance Group Co has hired a proxy
solicitation firm to advise it on how Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Inc HOT.N shareholders view its $12.8 billion acquisition
offer and prepare its next steps, said people familiar with the
matter. Alphabet Inc GOOGL.O has put Boston Dynamics, part of
its robotics division, up for sale for lack of revenue
potential, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the
plans. United Internet's UTDI.DE decision last month to raise
its stake in Tele Columbus TC1n.DE to 25 percent was a
defensive move aimed at blocking rivals from buying into the
German cable network operator, United's chief executive
said. Brazilian antitrust watchdog Cade approved a joint
venture formed by sugar and ethanol producer Raízen Energia SA
and trader Wilmar International Ltd WLIL.SI to export sugar,
according to the government's official gazette. Shares in Italian cooperative lenders Banco Popolare
BAPO.MI and Banca Popolare di Milano (BPM) PMII.MI fell on
Thursday as their long-expected merger, seen as a crucial step
to reforming the sector, appeared close to falling apart.
Blackstone Group LP BX.N is nearing a deal to acquire
HP Inc's HPQ.N controlling stake worth about $940 million in
Indian IT outsourcing services provider MphasiS Ltd MBFL.NS ,
according to three sources directly involved in the deal.
Industrial gas producer Air Products and Chemicals Inc
APD.N is in advanced talks to sell its performance materials
operations to Germany's Evonik Industries AG EVKn.DE , a source
familiar with the matter told Reuters. Aliko Dangote, Africa's richest man, has teamed up with
two Nigerian states to bid for a majority stake in Peugeot
Automobile Nigeria (PAN) Ltd, a local joint venture with the
French automaker, the governor of Kaduna State said.
Canon Inc 7751.T has agreed to buy Toshiba Corp's
6502.T medical equipment unit for 665.5 billion yen ($5.9
billion), the companies said on Thursday. Glencore Plc GLEN.L said on Thursday it had put its
coal trains in Australia up for sale, hoping to fetch as much as
A$1.5 billion ($1.1 billion) as it taps into a hot market for
infrastructure to cut debt. Laser tools and systems maker Coherent Inc COHR.O said
it would buy laser developer and manufacturer Rofin-Sinar
Technologies Inc RSTI.O in a deal valued at about $942
million. Egypt's EFG Hermes said on Thursday its board had
approved the sale of a 40 percent stake in Credit Libanais to
Arab and Lebanese investors at $33 per share, along with plans
to sell its remaining shares by May next year. Bharti Airtel Ltd BRTI.NS , India's biggest mobile phone
networks operator, has agreed to pay 44.28 billion rupees ($664
million) to Videocon Telecommunications for radio frequencies in
six service areas, trumping rival Idea Cellular's IDEA.NS
smaller deal for the same spectrum in two service areas.
The Finnish government said on Thursday it would sell
49.9 percent of shares in defense group Patria to Norway's
state-controlled Kongsberg Gruppen ASA KOG.OL for 272 million
euros ($308 million). South Korean automaker Hyundai Motor Co 005380.KS said
on Thursday that it had raised about 342.1 billion won ($290.7
million) from the sale of a 5 percent stake in fighter jet
manufacturer Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) Ltd 047810.KS .
Australia's Macquarie Group Ltd MQG.AX is seeking to
sell part of its stake in regional television and radio
broadcaster Southern Cross Media Group Ltd SXL.AX for about
A$130 million ($99 million), according to a term sheet given to
fund managers. A private equity arm of Standard Chartered Plc STAN.L
and Goldman Sachs Group Inc (NYSE:GS) GS.N have invested a combined $28
million in Vietnamese startup M_Service, the operator of mobile
e-wallet MoMo, the companies said. Royal Dutch Shell Plc RDSa.L and Saudi Aramco announced
plans on Wednesday to break up Motiva Enterprises LLC in a deal
that ends a partnership of nearly two decades and hands control
of the biggest U.S. refinery to the Saudi state oil giant.
Banco Santander (MC:SAN) Brasil SA SANB11.SA is eyeing a
potential bid for Citigroup (NYSE:C) Inc's C.N local subsidiary, as the
largest foreign lender in the country seeks to expand into
banking for wealthy clients, a senior executive said on
Wednesday. Billionaire investor William Ackman adjusted his battered
hedge fund portfolio on Wednesday when he sold 20 million shares
of snack maker Mondelez International Inc MDLZ.O , one day
after another key holding, Valeant Pharmaceuticals (NYSE:VRX) International
Inc VRX.TO , lost half of its value. Toshiba Corp 6502.T said it had agreed to sell the
majority of its white goods business to China's Midea Group Co
Ltd 000333.SZ . Russia's government is proposing to sell a 10.9 percent
stake in diamond producer Alrosa via the stock exchange, Vitaly
Sergeichuk, a department head at the Federal Agency for State
Property Management, told reporters on Thursday. Heineken NV HEIN.AS is likely to ask Vijay Mallya, who
owes creditor banks more than $1 billion, to step down from the
board of United Breweries Ltd UBBW.NS , India's largest brewer,
three people with direct knowledge of the plan told Reuters.
German utility Steag and its partner Macquarie Atlas
Roads Group MQA.AX have proposed a deal for Vattenfall's
VATN.UL German lignite assets, under which the Swedish utility
would have to pay a lump sum to offload the mines and power
plants, two people familiar with the matter said on Wednesday.
CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd 0001.HK , the
ports-to-telecoms arm of Asia's richest man Li Ka-shing, said it
might sell a stake in its UK phone carrier Three to help fund
its proposed $15 billion takeover of rival operator O2 UK.
Caixabank SA CABK.MC and Angolan investor Isabel dos
Santos are moving towards a deal for the Spanish bank to buy her
stake in Portugal's Banco BPI SA
wrangling, a source with knowledge of the talks said.
($1 = A$1.33)
($1 = 67.16 Indian rupees)
($1 = 112.14 yen)
($1 = 1,177 won)