| BHP ups takeover bid for Rio Tinto to $147bn
BHP Billiton increased its bid for Rio Tinto last night but failed to offer more than what Chinalco, China's state-owned aluminum giant, paid in a dramatic share swoop on the company last week. Marius Kloppers, head of BHP, yesterday formalised what would be one of the world's largest ever takeovers by offering 3.4 BHP shares for each Rio share, or about $147bn (£75bn) – up from the three-to-one ratio that it first offered for its smaller rival in November. The bid is conditional on receiving approval from 50 per cent plus one of Rio's investors. Mr Kloppers said that the fate of his bid to forge the world's first mining super-major was now in the hands of Rio's shareholders after he was repeatedly spurned by the Rio board. "The way we look at it, we were proactive in unlocking value for Rio shareholders, and they will now be asking why the Rio board is not allowing them to realise this substantial uplift." Rio noted the offer, but chairman Paul Skinner urged shareholders to "take no action".
Petrominerales Tests Oil From Lower Zones in Corcel-3 and Cases Ojo De ...
Such factors include, but are not limited to: general economic, market and business conditions; fluctuations in oil prices; the results of exploration and development drilling, recompletions and related activities; timing and rig availability, outcome of exploration contract negotiations; fluctuation in foreign currency exchange rates; the uncertainty of reserve estimates; changes in environmental and other regulations; risks associated with oil and gas operations; and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. There is no representation by Petrominerales that actual results achieved during the forecast period will be the same in whole or in part as those forecast. Except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Petrominerales assumes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements made herein or otherwise, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.
Financial Taxidermy - Lessons in Being Stuffed
This article was originally published on December 5th for the benefit of subscribers. Taxidermy refers to the job of taking the skins of dead animals and mounting them onto a plate of some form that depicts them in a naturally occurring state. With the era of photography and cartoons, this is not required for today's article. Instead, pictures are strategically placed onto the S&P 500 Index chart to "capture" what the general populous was thinking at a particular point in time. One of the main reasons for this article taking a long time to publish was finding the appropriate pictures. A picture is said to be worth 1000 words, so each picture is supposed to be representative of the thoughts of each individual at a certain point in the stock market cycle. The stock market is a barometer of how the economy is doing and the footprint left by the "tape" directly captures the summation of all participants.
Teen's accident raises Wisconsin's snowmobiling death toll to 20 this ...
It was probably one of his favorite things in the whole wide world," his uncle said.
Ochocki, an only child, enjoyed spending time with his cousins, who lived in Glenview and Niles, his uncle said.
At Notre Dame, Ochocki's 6-foot-2-inch stature made him a good offensive and defensive lineman on the school's freshman football team, said Mike Hennessey, the school's athletic director. Ochocki, who enjoyed playing video games, also was a member of the school's Games Club. Hennessey said the teenager told friends he wanted to join the Marines after graduation.
"In a lot of ways, Joe was a typical 16-year-old kid," Hennessey said. "Here at Notre Dame, he was quiet and unassuming, but had a lot of friends."
The teenager is the 20th person killed in a snowmobiling crash in Wisconsin this winter, according to the state's Department of Natural Resources.
European Stocks Recover as Bid Talk Picks Up
Barclays Wealth Research said in a monthly investment strategy report the chances of this happening had risen to close to 50:50. But it added: "However, it is looking increasingly as if any slowdown will be short-lived." "Europe cannot escape the effects of a U.S. recession, if there is one. Consequently, we expect pressure on the ECB to cut interest rates to build," it said. While Barclays said it was still too early for the European Central Bank to cut rates at its meeting on Thursday -- in-line with a Reuters poll of 83 economists -- Barclays said the ECB may well cut rates in spring. The Reuters poll showed the ECB would likely cut rates in the second quarter as inflation fears ease and follow up with another cut by year-end as an economic slowdown threatens to grip the region.
Do Markets Make News or Does News Make Markets?
Last week I went out of town to the Cambridge House Resource Investment Conference in Phoenix, Arizona. They had about 1,500 attendees, which is about half of the number they get in Toronto and Vancouver. There were about half of the booths there too. The tone of the conference was decidedly negative when it came to the US stock market and even to metals stocks too. Most investors I talked too were nervously holding their mining stocks. I listened to the two main speakers panels on the first day of the conference and just about all of them appeared to expect some additional selling in gold stocks to take place. The moderator of the panel asked all of the speakers if they still thought mining stocks were worth owning with the stock market in a bear market. One person responded by saying that he buys mining stocks that he expects will make good discoveries that will eventually cause their stock price to go up.
Murder trial witnesses fail to appear
The crimes were committed, according to the charge sheet, from late 2005 through 2006. The two men are linked to the Mahdi Army militia of radical Shi'ite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, whose political movement at the time had been put in charge of the health ministry. .
A progress report card on the ten World Cup stadiums
Progress on the R8,4-billion construction and upgrade of the ten stadiums selected to host the 2010 FIFA World Cup has emerged, rightly or wrongly, as the touchstone for South Africa's readiness to host a world-class event. The developments are also proving to be catalyst for a host of other infrastructure investments, such as the R19-billion for the expansion of airports, as well as the R5,5-billion investment for rail and road network improvements, directly associated with an event that is expected to attract a cumulative television viewership of over 40-billion in more than 200 countries. There is no question that the South African government is alive to the threats and oppor- tunities associated with the spectacle, which will kick off on June 11, 2010, not only for this country, but for the entire continent.
College counselors hurtful, Gunn grads say
Their college counselors were unhelpful and discouraging, two former Gunn High School students told the school board and Superintendent Kevin Skelly Tuesday night. One student said he was told he should join the military. Another said she left the counselor's office in tears. "I was told I shouldn't go to college. I wouldn't make it. The military was the best option for me," 2003-graduate Paul Esber said. Esber ignored the advice and attended Washington and Jefferson College in Pennsylvania, completing a triple major and going on to work for the intellectual-property firm Rambus, he said. Esber and 2001 graduate Jenny Blake were the only students who turned out to tell the school board and Skelly what they thought of Gunn at the school district's invitation, delivered via a parents' e-mail news list, Skelly said.
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