Tue, Jun 22, 2010 page10

• World Business Quick Take

  • AGENCIES
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  ■FINANCE

  JPMorgan eyes Brazil firm

  JPMorgan Chase & Co is in talks to buy a large Brazilian asset management company, the Financial Times reported yesterday. Citing people close to the situation, the paper said the New York-based bank was in advanced discussions to buy Gavea Investimentos, which manages about US$5.3 billion in assets. No agreement has been reached between JPMorgan and Gavea, founded by Arminio Fraga, a former president of Brazil’s central bank, but a purchase could be announced as soon as next month if talks are successful, the paper said. Meanwhile, company analysts cut their earnings per share estimates for global investment banks this year and next year by 6 percent and 3 percent respectively, citing the effect of Europe’s sovereign debt crisis. An increase in volatility and risk aversion has affected the equities business revenue more than fixed income and currency operations, Kian Abouhossein wrote in a report yesterday.

  ■CHEMICALS

  BASF to buy Cognis: report

  German chemical giant BASF is set to buy German specialty chemicals maker Cognis for 3.2 billion euros (US$4 billion), the Financial Times Deutschland reported yesterday. A final examination of Cognis’ accounts has been completed and an agreement should be signed today, according to the paper, which cited people close to the matter. Cognis’ owners, US investment bank Goldman Sachs and an investment fund, have been holding exclusive talks with BASF, although several companies initially showed interest. Cognis manufactures chemical additives used in a wide range of products from adhesives to cosmetics and lubricants.

  ■FINANCE

  Jupiter rises on return

  British fund manager Jupiter returned to the London stock exchange yesterday, riding buoyant markets to debut 15 percent over the price set in an initial public offering (IPO) last week. Jupiter raised £220 million (US$326.3 million) to pay off debt and secured a £33.5 million windfall for selling shareholders in its IPO, priced at £1.65. The shares were changing hands at around £1.90 in early trades yesterday morning, after already soaring above that level in gray market trading last week. Jupiter’s flotation marks its second outing on the London market, after it first listed in 1991 before being taken private in 1995, when it was bought by Commerzbank. Ownership passed to staff in a management buyout backed by private equity firm TA Associates in 2007, and a motive behind last week’s initial offering was to refinance the debt issued as part of the transaction.

  ■FINANCE

  Gulf Investment clears debt

  An investment company owned by six Gulf Arab nations said it had fully paid back US$500 million in debt that was due this week. Yesterday’s announcement by the Gulf Investment Corp comes amid intense scrutiny over the region’s ability to pay back lenders. Companies still able to cover their debts are eager to distinguish themselves from less healthy borrowers in the wake of credit problems in Dubai and elsewhere in the oil-rich region. Kuwait-based Gulf Investment said it paid off the loans using cash it had saved up to manage its debt pile. The financial services company is owned by the six member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
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