- Finally, even the NYT gets it: Most Aid to Athens Circles Back to Europe (NYT [12])... compare to ZH from February [13]
- It took less than 2 weeks: Zuckerberg Drops Off Billionaires Index as Facebook Falls (Bloomberg [14])
- Morgan Stanley derivatives switch hits hold-up (FT [15])... MS prevented from having non-existant deposits backsto $52 trillion in derivatives
- Solyndra goes global: Spain Ejects Clean-Power Industry With Europe Precedent (Bloomberg [16])
- Investors may be stoking the volatility they fear (Reuters [17])... Zombie Catch 22
- Facebook shares plumb new depths, valuation questioned (Reuters [18]) shouldnt this have been questioned before?
- Italian auction reinforces eurozone woes (FT [19])
- Visa Beats JPMorgan as Cards Wage War on Cash (Bloomberg [20])
- Sweden Escapes Recession as Growth Returned in First Quarter (Bloomberg [21])
WSJ
* Mitt Romney on Tuesday said his win in the Texas primary gives him the requisite number of delegates to clinch the GOP presidential nomination.
* Research In Motion warned its business is deteriorating and will likely lose money for the second straight quarter.
* Facebook shares continued their downward slide and investors placed largely negative bets as options trading in the stock began.
* The Obama administration sent one of its top economic officials to Europe to press officials to calm a widening crisis threatening new trouble for the U.S. economy.
* European Central Bank (ECB) officials signaled they would oppose any attempt to fund the $23.8 billion recapitalization of Spain's Bankia via the central bank's lending facilities.
* Flush with cash, Japanese companies are in the midst of a boom in overseas acquisitions. A slow-growing home market is forcing them to look abroad for growth.
* Asian stocks fell Wednesday as hopes for a large Chinese stimulus package were dashed following an editorial in the state-run press and as concerns about Spanish banks resurfaced.
* Investors are sticking with Brazilian bonds, even as they spurn other emerging-market assets.
FT
BUSSON'S EIM GROUP IN MERGER TALKS
EIM, the $7 billion hedge fund group founded by Arpad "Arki" Busson, is in talks to merge itself with rival asset management firms.
ECB REJECTS MADRID PLAN TO BOOST BANKIA
A Spanish plan to recapitalise Bankia, the troubled lender, by indirectly tapping the European Central Bank for cash, was bluntly rejected as unacceptable by the ECB, European officials said.
WPP CHIEF FACES INVESTOR REVOLT OVER PAY
Sir Martin Sorrell, chief executive of WPP, faces a shareholder revolt over his pay after an influential advisory firm recommended investors in the advertising group vote against its board remuneration policies.
MORGAN STANLEY DERIVATIVES SWITCH HITS HOLD-UP
Morgan Stanley's plan to blunt the impact of a potential credit downgrade by shifting a large chunk of its $52 trillion derivatives portfolio is facing regulatory obstacles, according to people familiar with the situation.
CODELCO AND ANGLO MOVE TO END LEGAL BATTLE
Codelco is preparing for fresh talks with Anglo American to try to end their legal battle as the Chilean company adapts to the departure of its chief executive last week after a boardroom tug-of-war.
ROCKEFELLERS AND ROTHSCHILDS UNITE
Two of the best-known business dynasties in Europe and the U.S. will come together after Lord Jacob Rothschild's listed investment trust and Rockefeller Financial Services agreed to form a strategic partnership.
KLEINWORT PARENT PRESSURED TO SPIN OFF ASSETS
The parent company of Kleinwort Benson, one of the oldest names in British banking, is facing pressure from activist shareholders to break itself up and spin off all its assets.
NYT
* Investors and analysts have questioned whether the BYD Company has the technology or the manufacturing quality to be an enduring competitor in the Chinese auto market.
* Much of the money provided by international lenders to the Greek government is flowing directly back to those lenders.
* Jose Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, said that investor confidence would rise if concrete steps were laid out for further integration of the euro zone.
* Miguel Angel Fernandez Ordonez said that he would quit his job just days after watching Spain's banking sector sink deeper into crisis.
Canada
THE GLOBE AND MAIL
- The flame virus is perhaps the most sophisticated piece of malicious software ever designed - a digital surveillance device so complex it ran on sensitive government computer networks for years, undetected.
Reports in the business section:
- Research In Motion warns it will post an operating loss and says it is has hired strategic advisers.
- A federally appointed arbitrator will have the power to craft a compromise at Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd and impose a contract settlement.
NATIONAL POST
- A wall of rain collapsed onto Montreal in one torrential instant that flooded city streets, closed subway stations and caused power failures.
FINANCIAL POST
- Bombardier head Pierre Beaudoin says he is seriously considering a U.S. listing once some of the company's current projects, including its new CSeries, gain traction.
HONG KONG
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
- Telecom tycoon Richard Li, chairman of PCCW Ltd has launched a bid for ING Group NV's Asia insurance and asset management businesses, according to sources. The Dutch financial giant last month announced plans to sell the two units together or separately and has invited companies to submit bids. People familiar with the situation said Li was looking at both.
- United Energy Group Ltd, a Hong Kong-listed oil and gas company, plans to invest up to $3 billion in wind and solar power projects in Pakistan in the long term, Chairman Zhang Hongwei said.
- Yihaodian, the mainland e-commerce service controlled by the American retail giant Wal-Mart Stores Inc, plans to uncork growing domestic demand for imported wine by bringing brands from the world's top wine producers to its online shopping platform.
HONG KONG ECONOMIC JOURNAL
- Jewellery retailer Chow Sang Sang Holdings International Ltd may lower its target for new retail outlets this year due to slower industry growth and rising rents, said group General Manager Vincent Chow.
THE STANDARD
- Footwear maker Belle International Holdings Ltd said sales rebounded in April and May from the first three months of the year but still lagged behind last year's 15 percent growth, said Chief Executive Sheng Baijiao.