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Reuters - Saturday, July 4

Medici lawyer says Kohn didn't get Madoff payments

NEW YORK/VIENNA - Austrian fund manager Sonja Kohn did not receive any kickbacks from Bernard Madoff to steer Bank Medici customer funds to the swindler's investment business, a Medici lawyer said on Friday. "There were no Madoff payments to Kohn. There were no kickbacks," lawyer Andreas Theiss told Reuters.

Teck to sell 17 percent stake to China for C$1.74 billion

TORONTO - Teck Resources <TCKb.TO> said on Friday it will sell a 17.2 percent equity stake to state-owned China Investment Corp in a deal that will help the Canadian miner pay down its debt while expanding China's portfolio of commodity investments. China, the No.1 importer of iron ore, copper and other commodities, has been steadily buying stakes in overseas producers in a broad strategy aimed at securing supply for its burgeoning economy.

Earnings to set tone for stocks in week ahead

NEW YORK - With Wall Street stuck in a range since May, the start of second-quarter earnings season next week could prove to be a decisive factor for determining how much faith investors should have in an economic recovery. After a rally of as much as 40 percent for the S&P 500 on expectations the economy will begin to turn around by year end, analysts will hone in on companies' projections to see if their hopes are corroborated.

Stanford clients sue insurance broker Willis Group

NEW YORK - Several Mexican clients of Stanford Financial Group have sued insurance broker Willis Group Holdings Ltd <WSH.N>, contending it was a willing participant in a $7 billion fraud at the Texas-based investment company. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Dallas, said Willis "crossed the line from being mere insurance brokers" to essentially acting as sales agents for Stanford.

Dollar status unlikely to be in G8 communique: G8 source

- The dollar's status as the top global reserve currency is unlikely to be mentioned explicitly in the final communique at next week's Group of Eight summit, a European G8 source involved in preparations for the meeting said on Friday. "It is expected to be mentioned and discussed remotely. But the discussions have not yet reached the level of putting it in writing in the communiques," the source, who asked not to be identified, told Reuters.

About 10 firms submit bids for AIG Taiwan unit: reports

TAIPEI - About 10 global and Taiwan financial firms have submitted bids to buy troubled AIG's <AIG.N> Taiwanese insurance unit, newspapers said on Saturday, in a deal that could fetch up to over $2 billion. Global private equity firms Kohlberg Kravis Roberts <KKR.UL>, MBK Partners and Affinity Partners are among the bidders for AIG unit Nan Shan Life, the Chinese-language Economic Daily News said, quoting identified sources.

Oil brokerage PVM names rogue trader behind oil spike

LONDON - PVM Oil Futures Limited said on Friday Steve Perkins, a senior broker based at the firm's London office, was responsible for unauthorized trades earlier this week which landed the firm with a loss of nearly $10 million. The London-based brokerage said Perkins had taken the positions in Brent crude futures early on Tuesday.

China moves on Opel with BAIC bid

FRANKFURT/MUNICH has submitted an indicative, non-binding offer for Germany's Opel, sources familiar with the situation told Reuters, and would make a binding offer by mid-July.

Oil falls below $66 after bleak U.S. jobs data

LONDON - Oil dropped a dollar to below $66 a barrel on Friday after unemployment data hardened views economic weakness would sap energy demand and that last month's rally was overdone. In the latest sign the economy of the world's top consumer was still struggling, data on Thursday showed U.S. employers cut 467,000 jobs in June and the jobless rate rose to a 26-year high. Euro zone unemployment climbed to a 10-year high.

Shanghai plans own "Wall Street bull": report

BEIJING - Wall Street may be down on its luck, but China's growing business hub, Shanghai, plans to install its own version of the Street's famed charging bull statue, casting in metal its hopes to eventually rival New York. The China Daily reported on Saturday that Shanghai's bull will sit on the city's famous Bund riverfront, across from the Pudong financial district, weighing 6 metric tonnes, compared with Wall Street's 3.2 tonne beast.

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