Global Investing Roundups

By , Money Morning • September 8, 2008

St. George Agrees to Takeover; Chile's Pension Funds go Global; Lights Out at LSE; KDB Warned Over Lehman; United Air's Costly Misprint; Consumer Spending Cutback; Oil Traders Eye Ike; P&G Sells Noxzema

• St. George Bank Ltd., Australia's fifth-largest bank, yesterday (Monday) agreed to a revised $14.4 billion takeover offer from larger rival Westpac Banking Corp. (ADR: WPK). St. George shareholders will receive a special dividend of 23 cents per share, worth $133 million in total. Westpac is offered 1.31 of its shares for every share of St. George.

• Chile is doubling the amount private pension funds can invest abroad, The Associated Press said yesterday (Monday). The percentage pension funds are allowed to invest internationally will increase from 30% to 45% as of Oct. 1. The ratio will then be moved up to 50% on Dec. 1, 55% on April 1, 2009, and 60% on Aug. 3, of that year. The measure should help the funds' to become more profitable and keep Chile's peso from rising too much against the U.S. dollar.

• Trading on the London Stock Exchange was suspended for about seven hours yesterday (Monday), as the world's third largest share market struggled with a systems failure. The LSE plans a series of system upgrades and is migrating Italian equities to its trading platform TradElect this month, according to Reuters. 

• South Korea's financial regulator yesterday (Monday) urged Korea Development Bank to be cautious in making any investment in Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. (LEH) Korea Development Bank "should be very prudent in its approach to acquiring Lehman given the condition of financial markets at home and abroad and that it has not yet been privatized," Jun Kwang-woo, told The Associated Press.  Lehman could post losses of up to $4 billion for the third quarter, and may be looking to raise fresh capital to help offset the losses.

• A 2002 Chicago Tribune story, mistakenly reprinted on a Florida news website, sent shares of United Air Lines Inc. parent company UAL Corp. (UAUA) plunging to a new low of just one cent before trading was halted. The story detailed the airline's Dec. 9, 2002 bankruptcy claim. "United has demanded a retraction from the Sun-Sentinel and is launching an investigation," the Chicago-based carrier said in a statement, Bloomberg News reported.

• Consumer credit increased $4.6 billion in July to $2.59 trillion the Federal Reserve announced yesterday (Monday). The increase was about half of what was expected and a decline from June's increase of $11 billion. Banks remain risk-adverse with tight credit-lending standards, while consumers are paring back on spending as the job market and economic outlook remain uncertain, Bloomberg News reported.

• Crude oil for October delivery increased yesterday (Monday) on the threat of Hurricane Ike in the Gulf of Mexico. Futures traded on NYMEX edged up 11 cents to settle at $106.34 a barrel after earlier trading between $104.70 and $109.89, Reuters reported. Gains were moderated by a strong greenback.

• Alberto-Culver Co. (ACV) announced yesterday (Monday) that it would purchase global rights to the Noxzema skin care brand from The Proctor & Gamble Co. (PG). Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but include Noxzema's existing business in the United States, Canada and parts of Latin America, Reuters reported.