A late afternoon look at the markets from Anthony Grech, Research Analyst, IG Index.
Spread Betting News - 2 Mar 2010
4.15pm update:
The FTSE managed to overcome its early morning jitters while US equity markets opened in positive territory this afternoon following fresh M&A news.
Terra Industries Inc, a producer and marketer of nitrogen products, was in the limelight today after rival CF Industries Holdings made a fresh offer to acquire the group for around $4.73 billion. This trumped the $4.1 billion offer put forth by Yara International last month.
The offer effectively values Terra Industries at $47.40 per share, based on CF's closing price on Monday. Shares of Terra Industries rallied 12.33% to $46.28 this afternoon while CF Industries lost 3.5% to $103.81.
'It is clear that CF Industries is the best acquirer for Terra given the compelling strategic benefits of the combination, including the substantial synergies only we can achieve together,' said Stephen R. Wilson, chairman, president and chief executive officer of CF Industries in a regulatory statement.
'We withdrew our prior offer because we believed that Terra was unwilling to agree to a sale. Now that Terra is for sale, we have made an offer that is superior to Yara's substantially lower, highly conditional offer.'
Dow Chemical was also in the spotlight after announcing that it has signed a definitive agreement to sell its Styron basic plastics unit to private equity firm Bain Capital Partners for $1.63 billion.
This transaction will provide Dow Chemical with the opportunity to substantially reduce its debts. Dow Chemical's shares traded 1% higher at $28.98.
The auto sector continued to take centre stage today, with General Motors joining the list of carmakers making recalls. Like Honda and Toyota, GM said it will recall 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac compact cars to repair faulty powering steering motors.
GM also unveiled an 11.5% rise in US February auto sales today. This failed to excite the market, however, as analysts were anticipating a higher figure. According to the automaker, poor weather conditions were to blame.
Meanwhile separate figures released in Germany have indicated that new car registrations slumped 30% in February from the same month last year. The German Association of International Motor Vehicle Manufacturers said registrations for the first two months of the year were down 20% compared to the same period in 2009.
The weaker registration figures were attributable to the expiration of Germany's car-scrapping incentive programme.
In technology, Qualcomm rallied 5% to $37.35 this afternoon after announcing a new $3 billion share buyback plan and a 12% hike in its quarterly dividend.
Bucking the positive trend was Staples, however, which slumped over 7.5% to $23.90, after unveiling an 18% drop in fourth-quarter net income of $233.91 million.
The company blamed the weaker bottom line results on restructuring and integration expenses as well as weak sales of big-ticket items. Revenue, meanwhile, rose by 3.7% to $6.41 billion.
By 3.45pm (London time), the Dow Jones Industrial Average was trading 36.88 points (+0.35%) higher at 10440.67, while the broader S&P 500 was 5.96 points (+0.53%) above its previous close at 1121.67.
IG Index
- Live Prices, Charts, Indices, Equities, Commodities, Forex and more >> read the
IG Index Review.
Remember that financial spread betting is a leveraged product and can result in losses that exceed your initial deposit. Spread betting may not be suitable for everyone, so please ensure that you fully understand the risks involved.
The above content does not constitute investment advice. Neither Online-Spread-Betting.com nor IG Index accepts any responsibility for any use that may be made of the above.
Note - Spread Betting carries a high level of risk to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment, it may not be suitable for all investors. Ensure you only speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.
'Spread Betting News 2 Mar 2010', Article by IG Index, last update: 2-Mar-10
Related articles:
Spread Betting Daily, 9-Feb-12,
The daily afternoon spread betting update featuring the key stock market indices, forex, shares and commodities markets. Daily updates focus on the spread betting markets as the UK closes and the US continues to...see: Spread Betting Daily
Spread Betting News Daily, 8-Feb-12,
The afternoon spread betting update from IG Index - a look at the spread betting markets with the UK closing and the US markets just...see: Spread Betting News Daily
Looking to improve your trading results? Get free trading tips and trading analysis as well as the latest trading offers »
Trading News.
Risk Warning:
Spread Betting carries a high level of risk
to your capital and you can lose more than your initial investment,
it may not be suitable for all investors. Ensure you only
speculate with money that you can afford to lose and that you fully
understand the risks involved and seek independent financial advice where necessary.
Disclaimer:
Online-Spread-Betting.com does not endorse the information and
analysis available on this site. It is provided purely for information
purposes and is delivered as a personal view of the writer. Under no circumstances
is the information hereon to be used or considered as, an offer to sell, or a
solicitation of any offer to buy. The website content does not constitute investment
advice and neither the individual contributor nor Online-Spread-Betting.com accepts any
responsibility for any use that may be made of the content.
* Tax Free Trading:
Tax law is subject to change. It may also differ if you pay tax in a jurisdiction outside the UK.
