NEWS IN BRIEF; P/$ rate closes at P51.16 to $1.
The peso rate closed lower at P51.16 to the US dollar yesterday at the Philippine Dealing System of the Bankers Association of the Philippines from P51.12 the previous day. The weighted average rate appreciated to P51.154 from P51.163. Total volume amounted to $363.5 million. RP sovereign bonds...

NEWS IN BRIEF; P/$ rate closes at P51.785 to $1.
The peso rate closed lower at P51.785 to the US dollar yesterday at the Philippine Dealing System of the Bankers Association of the Philippines from P51.73 the previous day. The weighted average rate appreciated to P51.777 from P51.84. Total volume amounted to $383.05 million. Money supply expands...

Mittal launches bid to take over Arcelor.
Byline: PHILIP BLENKINSOP BRUSSELS, May 18 (Reuters) -- Mittal Steel launched its hostile takeover offer for rival Arcelor on Thursday, giving Arcelor shareholders the chance to determine its future after a months-long war of words between the steelmakers. Mittal, the world's largest steel group by...

NEWS IN BRIEF; P/$ rate closed at P56.045 to $1.
The peso rate closed at P56.045 to the US dollar last Friday at the Philippine Dealing System of the Bankers Association of the Philippines. The weighted average rate stands at P56.007. ADFIAP granted euro grant The finance sector has now entered the road to sustainable...

Phelps Dodge forges blockbuster 3-way $ 40-B mining takeover deal.
NEW YORK, June 26 (AFP) -- US mining giant Phelps Dodge announced Monday a mega-takeover deal to buy Canadian rivals Inco and Falconbridge for about $ 40 billion, forging the world's largest nickel company and the largest listed copper producer. The cash-and-stock deal comes as red-hot commodities...

Phelps Dodge forges blockbuster 3-way $ 40-B mining takeover deal.
NEW YORK, June 26 (AFP) -- US mining giant Phelps Dodge announced Monday a mega-takeover deal to buy Canadian rivals Inco and Falconbridge for about $ 40 billion, forging the world's largest nickel company and the largest listed copper producer. The cash-and-stock deal comes as red-hot commodities...

NEWS IN BRIEF; Peso closes at P53.44.
The peso closed lower at P53.44 to the US dollar yesterday at the Philippine Dealing System of the Bankers Association of the Philippines from P53.35 the previous day. The weighted average rate depreciated to P53.402 from P53.369. Total volume amounted to $116.3 million. S&P rates new RP...

Currency Helps Pump Up IBM's First Quarter.
By Timothy Prickett Morgan IBM Corp reported its financial results for the first quarter yesterday, and like many vendors based in the United States that do a lot of business overseas, the crashing of the dollar is helping Big Blue report decent revenue growth and reasonable profits...

KPN Returns to Profit After mmO2 Takeover Bid Fails.
Royal KPN NV, the largest Dutch telephone company, has bounced back into the black in 2003 with its sixth straight quarterly profit. However, the results were overshadowed by the news that its bid for mmO2 Plc, the fourth-placed British mobile operator, have been rebuffed. KPN reported a...

mmO2 Posts First Ever Profit.
Mobile operator mmO2 Plc has reported its first ever full-year profit, after 2.5 million new customers helped reverse a huge year-ago net loss. mmO2 has not previously reported a profit since it was spun out of British Telecom in 2001. For the year ending March 31, it...