TOP STORIES
CIVIL ANTITRUST SUITS REINSTATED AGAINST BANKS IN LIBOR CASE
In a setback for some the world's largest financial
institutions, a U.S. appeals court reinstated private antitrust
lawsuits filed against 16 banks for allegedly rigging Libor
interest rates.
GERMANY'S BAYER OFFERS $62 BILLION IN CASH FOR MONSANTO
German pharmaceutical and chemicals giant Bayer said it made an
all-cash offer to acquire Monsanto for $62 billion, valuing the
U.S. company at a substantial premium in a deal that would create
the world's largest agrochemicals company.
U.S. STOCKS EDGE HIGHER
U.S. stocks edged higher in afternoon trading Monday as
investors waited for further clues on the timing of U.S. interest
rate rises.
BANK OF AMERICA PENALTY THROWN OUT IN 'HUSTLE' CASE
A federal appeals court reversed a lower court order that Bank
of America pay a $1.27 billion penalty in connection with mortgages
sold by its Countrywide unit. It was blow to the government, which
had won the high-profile financial crisis case at trial.
VIACOM CEO FILES SUIT TO BLOCK CHANGES TO REDSTONE TRUST
Viacom CEO Philippe Dauman and a board member have filed a
lawsuit challenging their dismissals from the trust overseeing
Sumner Redstone's $40 billion media empire.
TRIBUNE REJECTS GANNETT'S NEW OFFER
Tribune rejected a sweetened takeover offer from Gannett,
insisting its turnaround plan is better. It also said a billionaire
entrepreneur would take a $70 million stake.
FED'S WILLIAMS SEES RATE RISES, BUT DOESN'T TIP HAND ON JUNE MEETING
Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President John Williams
still expects the U.S. central bank will raise short-term interest
rates two to three times this year.
SPOTIFY REVENUE RISES IN 2015, BUT LOSSES GROW
Spotify AB nearly doubled its revenue in 2015, but losses grew
amid continued investment in international expansion.
FINRA CHIEF CALLS OUT CONFLICTS POSED BY BONUS-PAY SYSTEM
Some brokerage firms aren't adequately supervising how bonuses
and other incentives may skew the investment advice given by their
employees, a top U.S. securities regulator said Monday.
NEW U.S. TAX RULES SCUTTLE CF-OCI FERTILIZER MERGER
CF Industries and OCI called off their planned $8 billion
fertilizer merger, the latest multibillion-dollar transaction to
fall foul of changes to U.S. tax rules designed to restrict
so-called inversion deals.
ENERGY FUTURE CONTEMPLATES POSSIBLE COMPETING CHAPTER 11 PLAN
Energy Future Holdings Corp. is bracing to fend off a possible
rival chapter 11 plan from an unnamed suitor for its Oncor
electricity-transmissions business, a lawyer for the company, Marc
Kieselstein, told a bankruptcy judge Monday.
AMERICAN CAPITAL SELLING OPERATIONS FOR $4 BILLION
Business-development company American Capital Ltd. unveiled
plans to break itself up, selling its operations in two deals worth
a combined $4 billion.
SUPREME COURT UPHOLDS NEW CONGRESSIONAL MAP FOR VIRGINIA
The Supreme Court unanimously dismissed an appeal by three
Republican congressmen seeking to invalidate a Virginia voting map
that they claimed harmed their chance for re-election.
CEO OF FUTURES REGULATOR TO RETIRE
Dan Roth, the longtime head of the futures industry's front-line
regulator the National Futures Association, is preparing to
retire.
UNICREDIT CEO DISMISSES QUESTIONS ABOUT HIS FUTURE
UniCredit Chief Executive Federico Ghizzoni, facing pressure
from board members and shareholders over his leadership
performance, brushed aside questions about his future.
GE TO INVEST $1.4 BILLION IN SAUDI ARABIA
GE announced a raft of investments worth at least $1.4 billion
in Saudi Arabia as the Persian Gulf kingdom seeks to reduce its oil
dependence.
IMF ASSESSMENT OF GREEK DEBT SETS STAGE FOR BAILOUT TALKS
The IMF said Greece's European creditors must give the country
"upfront unconditional" debt relief to win additional financing
from the emergency lender.
IMF INCREASES 2016 AND 2017 GROWTH FORECASTS FOR ITALY
The International Monetary Fund raised slightly its 2016 and
2017 growth forecasts for Italy, but urged Rome to push ahead with
reforms to address its very low productivity and boost its meager
growth rates.
SHANDA GROUP ACCUMULATES 11.7% LENDINGCLUB STAKE
Private investment firm Shanda Group amassed an 11.7% stake in
LendingClub through a series of large trades, some of which took
place before the resignation of the online lender's CEO.
HARVARD ENDOWMENT CHIEF TAKES MEDICAL LEAVE
The head of Harvard University's $37.6 billion endowment is
taking a temporary medical leave of absence.
======= DOW JONES NEWSWIRES ANALYSIS AND COMMENTARIES =======
Capital Journal
HILLARY CLINTON'S COMPLICATED PATH TO THE CENTER
Hillary Clinton faces a dilemma in broadening her appeal to the
general-election crowd. There is a natural opening for her in the
ideological center but she has been pushed to the left by Bernie
Sanders, writes Gerald F. Seib.
Central Banks
A RARE LOOK INSIDE CHINA'S CENTRAL BANK SHOWS SLACKENING RESOLVE TO REVAMP YUAN
Minutes of closed-door meetings show how leaders lost interest
in making the yuan's value more market-based, ditching changes
announced in August.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 23, 2016 14:34 ET (18:34 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.