Global Investing Roundups

Home Prices Still Dropping; Chrysler Chases GM; Oil Slides Back; Lennar Loss Beats Estimates; Kullman to Helm DuPont; ImClone Plays Hard to Get; France and Britain Nuclear Match?

• Nationwide home prices fell a record 5.3% in July compared with a year ago, the Federal Housing Finance Agency said yesterday (Tuesday).  Prices were down 0.6% from June on a seasonally adjusted basis, and are now at October 2005 levels.

• Chrysler LLC yesterday (Tuesday) unveiled three prototype electric cars, including a Dodge sports car, a four-door Jeep Wrangler, and a Chrysler minivan, The Associated Press reported. The company hopes to put one of them on sale in the United States sometime in 2010 to compete with General Motors Corp.’s (GM) much-hyped Chevrolet Volt.

• Oil prices pulled back more than 2% yesterday (Tuesday) after Monday’s record setting rally. Light, sweet crude for November delivery fell $2.76 to settle at $106.61 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after as low as $104.05 earlier in the day. The contract jumped $6.62 to settle at $109.37 on Monday.

• Lennar Corp. (LEN) yesterday (Tuesday) reported a loss of $89 million, or 56 cents per share, compared with a loss of $513.9 million, or $3.25 per share, a year ago. The loss was less than the 63 cents per share expected, according to Reuters Estimates. Lennar’s revenue plunged 53% to $1.11 billion in the quarter, beating estimates of $1.07 billion.

• E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co. (DD), more commonly known as DuPont, yesterday (Tuesday) announced Ellen Kullman as its new president and chief executive officer. Kullman is the first woman to hold the chief post in DuPont’s 206-year history, Reuters reported.  Kullman, who has been with DuPont since 1988 was seen as the likely successor to the retiring Charles Holliday.

• ImClone Systems Inc. (IMCL) stock shot up almost 7% yesterday (Tuesday) after a late-night Monday bid boost from Bristol Myers Squibb Co. (BMY). The latest offer of $62 per share for ImClone is a $2 boost over Bristol’s prior offer. Bristol also went hostile with the offer, taking the new bid directly to ImClone shareholders, Forbes reported.

• The Wall Street Journal yesterday (Tuesday) reported that Electricite de France SA (PINK: EICFF) would pay $23 billion (12.4 billion pounds) for British Energy Group PLC. EDF refused to comment on the report, but has scheduled a press conference for today (Wednesday), BusinessWeek reported.