- No change in Greek debt talks after another day of spin (Reuters [20])
- G-7 Weighs In on Greece as Government Told to Be Serious (BBG [21])
- FIFA Faces Mounting Pressure From Sponsors as Visa Threatens to End Deal (WSJ [22])
- U.S. hopes Chinese island-building will spur Asian response (Reuters [23])
- Japan Inc.’s $104 Billion Investor Payout Set to Surge (BBG [24])
- Russia masses heavy firepower on border with Ukraine (Reuters [25])
- China Says Its Most-Wanted Fugitive Is in U.S. Custody (BBG [26])
- Amazon expands same-day delivery, offers free shipping on orders over $35 (Reuters [27])
- Broadcasters Shop at Home for Shows (WSJ [28])
- Star managers battered by rocky ride in yields, currencies (Reuters [29])
- Chocolate Printer, Mood Shoes Among Lenovo’s Connected Devices (BBG [30])
- Traders Pile In at the Close (WSJ [31])
- Swatch Group to launch smartwatch in August (Reuters [32])
- Google and Apple Adjust Strategies on Mobile Payments (NYT [33])
Overnight Media Digest
WSJ
* Chip maker Broadcom Corp is in advanced talks to be bought by rival Avago Technologies Ltd in a deal worth more than $35 billion, the latest in a recent string of mergers in the semiconductor industry.(http://on.wsj.com/1KAcYxm [34])
* Prosecutors alleged that senior officials of FIFA got more than $150 million in bribes and kickbacks as part of a sprawling scheme that functioned like a criminal enterprise. (http://on.wsj.com/1exFS3Q [35])
* ABC and Twenty First Century Fox Inc have sharply increased the number of shows they own for next fall's TV season to better wring dollars from reruns, VOD, and streaming. Networks no longer want to rely on just revenue from ads. (http://on.wsj.com/1Av8Ifh [28])
* Several private-equity firms such as KKR & Co, Apollo Global Management LLC and Ares Management LP are vying to buy General Electric Co's unit that funds leveraged buyouts, in a sale process that could fetch more than $17 billion for GE. (http://on.wsj.com/1PNCbrs [36])
* Samsung Electronics Co Ltd's maneuvers to increase heir apparent Jay Y. Lee's stake in Samsung Electronics illustrate issues that critics say continue to plague South Korea. (http://on.wsj.com/1BqaGZp [37])
FT
Jeff Williams, Apple's senior vice president of operations, while replying to an audience question at the Code conference said, "The car is the ultimate mobile device, isn't it?" This was the strongest hint yet of the Cupertino, California-based company's plans of disrupting the automotive industry.
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has ordered JPMorgan Chase & Co to hand over any correspondence with high-ranking Chinese official Wang Qishan, as it probes the connection between the company hiring relatives of Chinese officials and winning big business in the country.
U.S. chipmaker Avago Technologies is close to buying rival Broadcom, in a deal that would create an entity worth $70 billion.
Norway's massive $916 billion oil fund will divest its investments in companies whose business relies more than 30 percent on coal, either in terms of revenue or in terms of percentage of power generated from it. The move could be a big jerk to European utility companies that rely on coal to generate power.
NYT
* Google is set to unveil a payments initiative for merchants and a refashioned consumer app, while its rival Apple Inc reportedly plans a rewards program for Apple Pay.(http://nyti.ms/1HN8sYE [38])
* The chip maker Avago Technologies is in advanced talks to buy Broadcom Corp, a rival whose semiconductors are used in the iPhone and other popular devices, people briefed on the matter said on Wednesday. (http://nyti.ms/1SDiLVm [39])
* The Federal Bureau of Investigation has begun looking into whether medical device makers, doctors and hospitals broke the law by failing to report problems linked to a power tool used during gynecologic surgery, according to two people who said they were interviewed by investigators. (http://nyti.ms/1Rpjecd [40])
* Jawbone sued Fitbit Inc in California State Court, accusing its rival of "systematically plundering" confidential information by hiring Jawbone employees who improperly downloaded sensitive materials shortly before leaving. The legal action is an unusual twist as Fitbit prepares to make its stock market debut to take advantage of huge demand for wearable devices. (http://nyti.ms/1KqsPv4 [41])
* United States President Obama announced a sweeping new clean water regulation meant to restore the federal government's authority to limit pollution in the nation's rivers, lakes, streams and wetlands. (http://nyti.ms/1FEpveG [42])
Canada
Hong Kong
SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
-- Hong Kong was on Wednesday night named as one of the focuses of "complex" money laundering schemes involving tens of millions of U.S. dollars that is at the heart of a corruption scandal rocking soccer, the paper said citing U.S. and Swiss authorities. (http://bit.ly/1HLWDVx [43])
-- The Hong Kong government has requested that Beijing allow the city to enjoy for a while the status as the only financial centre with mutual recognition of cross-border funds with the mainland, before the central government seals similar deals with other markets, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Chan Ka-keung said in an interview. (http://bit.ly/1JVpAOf [44])
THE STANDARD
-- Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd flight attendants have won a minor victory after management agreed to reinstate a legal protection clause that relates to dealing with unruly passengers. (http://bit.ly/1FbEwBu [45])
Britain
The Times
The United States has intervened in Europe's game of brinkmanship with Greece by warning that a "blow-up" of Greek debt would cause a crisis with financial reverberations around the world. (http://thetim.es/1KpDJRJ [46])
Snapchat co-founder and CEO Evan Spiegel, while speaking at the Code Conference in California, said the messaging app plans to do an initial public offering. The latest funding round values the company at $15 billion. (http://thetim.es/1FPiuct [47])
The Guardian
Tesco PLC has slumped out of the world's brand premier league and been overtaken by the German discounter Aldi in the latest sign of the damage caused by a £263m accounting scandal and errors on pricing, quality and customer service. (http://bit.ly/1FPiBoc [48])
The international development secretary Justine Greening is urging the EU to match Britain's commitment to higher aid spending, warning that the flow of migrants will only be stemmed once poverty is tackled at source. (http://bit.ly/1FPiWHr [49])
The Telegraph
Harriet Green, the former boss of troubled tour operator Thomas Cook, has pledged to donate a third of her bonus to charity following a public backlash against the company over its handling of the deaths of two children on one of its holidays. (http://bit.ly/1FPj61y [50])
Facebook -owned Oculus VR has bought an eight-month old British startup Surreal Vision. Founders of the company Richard Newcombe, Renato Salas-Moreno and Steven Lovegrove will join Oculus in Redmond, Washington. (http://bit.ly/1FPkhOL [51])
Sky News
Quitting the EU would be "bad for business," Lloyd's of London Chief Executive Officer Inga Beale has warned as the government confirmed plans for an in/out referendum. (http://bit.ly/1FPj8GR [52])
New evidence has surfaced against Tom Hayes, former trader at UBS and Citigroup, who is accused of rigging a key interest rate in foreign exchange trade. Hayes asked his stepbrother to buy a "few drinks" for his colleague at HSBC so that he could rig the Libor rates for yen. (http://bit.ly/1FPjUDz [53])
The Independent
Generations of top-ranking Fifa officials have engaged in "rampant, systemic and deep-rooted" corruption which has poisoned world football for decades, it was claimed, as two separate criminal investigations sparked the biggest crisis in the history of football. (http://ind.pn/1FPjXiL [54])
Stewart Ford, the founder of the insolvent investment firm Keydata who was slapped with a record-breaking 75 million pounds ($115.10 million) fine, has hit back with a 700 million pound High Court claim against the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the accountants PwC. (http://ind.pn/1FPk9OZ [55])