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RPT-UPDATE 1-Brazil court seizes some of builder OAS's Invepar shares

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 31 Januari 2015 | 16.48

Fri Jan 30, 2015 5:55pm EST

(Repeats to additional subscribers) (Adds OAS statement)

SAO PAULO Jan 30 (Reuters) - A Brazilian state court on Friday seized an 8.9 percent stake in Investimentos e Participações em Infraestrutura SA owned by construction group OAS SA, alleging the debt-ridden builder is in imminent risk of insolvency.

Judge Roberto Corcioli Filho of the Justice Court of São Paulo state said in a telephone interview that the seizure had been requested by Pentágono SA DTVM, a trustee representing the holders of 160 million reais ($60 million) of OAS local debt notes.

OAS holds a 25 percent stake in Invepar through its wholly controlled OAS Infraestrutura SA subsidiary.

Corcioli's order followed OAS's decision to move some of the 105 million common and preferred shares it owns in the infrastructure company, also known as Invepar.

The trustee suspects OAS transferred the shares to protect them from the note holders and other creditors, according to court documents.

OAS plans to appeal the ruling, which it said was made on incomplete information from the plaintiffs.

"At no moment did OAS attempt to give preferential treatment to any creditor or transfer assets in order to deplete its equity," it said in a statement.

OAS reiterated it will soon present a restructuring plan to creditors that could include asset sales to raise cash and lower its debt.

Corcioli said the asset seizure was pre-emptive and could be reversed if OAS proved the securities transfer was legal.

The seizure comes as OAS struggles with the impact from a graft and money-laundering scandal at key client Petrobras , which has undercut the state-run oil company's own access to financing and revenue.

OAS failed to pay interest on $400 million of global bonds and on 100 million reais of debt earlier this year, and bankers are speculating a sale of its Invepar stake could help raise cash to honor some obligations.

Some of Brazil's largest construction companies are facing more scrutiny and limited access to bond and loan markets after federal prosecutors found that executives at Petrobras took bribes in exchange for building, leasing and other contracts.

The price of OAS's 8.25 percent bond due in October 2019 was little changed on Friday at 13.60 cents on the dollar from 12.50 cents on Thursday. At those levels, the yield on the bond is around 85 percent. (Reporting by Guillermo Parra-Bernal. Editing by Matthew Lewis)

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Brazil OAS says to appeal court decision seizing its assets

SAO PAULO Fri Jan 30, 2015 3:45pm EST

SAO PAULO Jan 30 (Reuters) - Brazilian construction group OAS SA, struggling with rampant debt and the impact of a corruption probe on a key client, said on Friday that it plans to appeal a court decision seizing some of the shares it owns in infrastructure firm Invepar SA.

In a statement to Reuters, OAS said it has yet to be notified of the decision by a Sao Paulo Justice Court judge to seize 8.9 percent of the shares it owns in Invepar.

"We understand that the ruling was made based on incomplete information provided by the plaintiffs and that in no way reflect our ongoing efforts," the statement said. "At no moment did OAS attempt to give preferential treatment to any creditor, nor transfer assets in order to deplete its equity." (Reporting by Guillermo Parra-Bernal; Editing by Alan Crosby)

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CORRECTED-Brazil court seizes some of builder OAS's shares in Invepar

Fri Jan 30, 2015 5:58pm EST

(Corrects last paragraph to show the OAS bond was at 12.50 cents on Thursday, not at 13.55 cents on Friday, and that the yield was around 85 percent, not 81 percent.)

SAO PAULO Jan 30 (Reuters) - A court in Brazil's São Paulo state seized on Friday 8.9 percent of the shares that construction group OAS SA has in infrastructure company Investimentos e Participações em Infraestrutura SA, alleging that the debt-ridden group is in imminent risk of insolvency.

Judge Roberto Corcioli Filho of the state of São Paulo Justice Court told Reuters that he ordered the seizure at the behest of Pentágono SA DTVM, which as a trustee represents the interests of holders of 160 million reais ($60 million) in OAS local debt notes.

Corcioli's order followed OAS's decision to move around some of the 105 million common and preferred shares it owns in the infrastructure firm, known as Invepar. The plaintiffs suspect OAS transferred the shares to protect them from their clients, the note holders, and other creditors, according to court documents.

Corcioli said in a phone interview that the decision was a temporary, pre-emptive measure which could also be appealed. It could be reversed should OAS prove the transfer of the securities was legal, he added. OAS did not have an immediate comment.

The seizure comes as OAS struggles with the impact from a graft and money-laundering scandal afflicting key client Petrobras, which has undercut its own access to financing and revenue flow.

OAS failed to pay interest on $400 million of global bonds and on 100 million reais of debt earlier this year, and bankers are speculating that a sale of the stake in Invepar could help OAS raise cash to honor some obligations. OAS controls a 25 percent stake in Invepar through its wholly controlled OAS Infraestrutura SA subsidiary.

Some of Brazil's largest civil construction companies are facing increased scrutiny and limited access to bond and loan markets after federal prosecutors found that executives at state-controlled Petrobras negotiated bribes in exchange for building, leasing and other contracts.

The price on OAS's 8.25 percent bond due in October 2019 was little changed on Friday at 13.60 cents on the dollar, from 12.50 cents on Thusday. At those levels, the yield on the bond is around 85 percent. (Reporting by Guillermo Parra-Bernal; editing by Matthew Lewis)

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Japan fund says no need for others to help finance Skymark Airlines rescue

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 30 Januari 2015 | 16.47

TOKYO Fri Jan 30, 2015 2:32am EST

TOKYO Jan 30 (Reuters) - The head of Japanese private equity firm Integral Corp said it won't need additional external financing help as it works on plans to rescue Skymark Airlines Inc, the budget carrier which sought court protection from creditors this week.

The comment by Integral's Nobuo Sayama came as larger Japanese airline ANA Holdings Inc told reporters in Tokyo that it was waiting for more information before deciding whether to seek to sponsor Skymark's revival.

In a telephone interview, Sayama told Reuters Integral welcomed the prospect of cooperation but additional financing would not be necessary for now. He said the fund was in talks to provide financing for Skymark and that more money from third parties would not be needed "for months or a year".

Japan's leading independent budget airline, Skymark sought protection from creditors blaming a weak yen, pushing up its costs, and a dispute with jet maker Airbus Group for its financial straits. It said in a statement on Wednesday its liabilities were 71.09 billion yen as of its filing with the Tokyo District Court. (Reporting by Antoni Slodkowski and Tim Kelly; Editing by Kenneth Maxwell)

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BRIEF-Japan fund eyes 10 bln yen in financing for Skymark -source

Thomson Reuters is the world's largest international multimedia news agency, providing investing news, world news, business news, technology news, headline news, small business news, news alerts, personal finance, stock market, and mutual funds information available on Reuters.com, video, mobile, and interactive television platforms. Thomson Reuters journalists are subject to an Editorial Handbook which requires fair presentation and disclosure of relevant interests.

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UPDATE 2-Sunac China to buy 49.3 percent stake in troubled developer Kaisa - Caixin

Fri Jan 30, 2015 3:36am EST

(Adds Overseas Chinese Town report, shares)

By James Pomfret and Umesh Desai

HONG KONG Jan 30 (Reuters) - Sunac China Holdings Ltd has agreed to buy a 49.3 percent stake in troubled Chinese property developer Kaisa Group, a report in financial news magazine Caixin said on Friday, citing an unidentified senior company executive.

The report came as Sunac announced a share trading suspension pending the release of an "announcement containing inside information in relation to the company."

The Caixin report said the firm would buy the stake from the founding Kwok family and that the two sides had recently signed an agreement. It did not give a dollar value for the deal.

The potential sale comes as Kaisa, a homebuilder based in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen, is struggling to meet its debt obligations following the abrupt departure of a string of its senior executives and a local government block on its property sales.

Chinese financial news website Yicai.com also reported on Friday that Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Town is likely to buy parts of Kaisa's assets involved in urban renewal projects.

If confirmed, the deals are likely to be seen as a sign of the Chinese government's resolve to prevent a large property developer from collapsing whilst making clear it will not pay for any bail out.

Officials from the Shenzhen government are believed to have been involved in the negotiations over what would happen to Kaisa, a source told Reuters earlier this week.

"The Chinese government has made it absolutely clear that it no longer is interested to be the last resort for struggling companies going forward," said Steve Wang, head of China Research for the REORIENT Group.

"Resolving the sudden collapse of Kaisa through the introduction of another private company allows market mechanism to play a key role, while balancing costs and benefits of picking up a distressed business."

However analysts said the relative good quality of Kaisa's assets in land scarce Shenzhen made the Sunac deal possible, and other property developers would struggle to reach a resolution so smoothly if they were to hit similar difficulties.

"It is a very isolated case due to the political nature and scarcity of Shenzhen land bank," said David Ng, Hong Kong-based research head at Macquarie Group.

A Sunac spokesman in Hong Kong declined to comment on the report and calls to the offices of Kaisa and Shenzhen Overseas Chinese Town went unanswered.

Kaisa missed an interest payment on one of its bonds earlier this month, leaving it facing the prospect of becoming the first Chinese homebuilder to default on its foreign debt.

Since its troubles began last year, Kaisa's bonds have lost as much as two-thirds of their value. In recent sessions there has been a recovery though, following reports there could be a buyer of the company's assets.

Kaisa bonds that are due to mature in 2020 and on which the coupon deadline was missed, leapt to an indicated quote of 76/79 cents on the dollar on Friday, a 16-point gain

Kaisa's shares have been suspended since December. (Additional reporting by Donny Kwok and Yi-Mou Lee; Editing by Kim Coghill and Rachel Armstrong)

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PRESS DIGEST- New York Times business news - Jan 29

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 29 Januari 2015 | 16.47

Thu Jan 29, 2015 12:54am EST

Jan 29 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* Switzerland's move to untie its currency from the euro has caused the franc to soar, along with hundreds of thousands of mortgage payments in Poland. (nyti.ms/1JKM96t)

* Investors made clear on Wednesday the depth of their concerns about Greece's new leftist-led government, driving up its borrowing costs, pushing down stock prices and highlighting the risks in the country's banking system. (nyti.ms/1wCLdIm)

* Yahoo Inc will be judged by its core Internet businesses after spinning off its $39 billion stake in the Alibaba Group Holdings Ltd, the Chinese e-commerce behemoth - accounting for about 85 percent of the market value of Yahoo. (nyti.ms/1Erejn9)

* The Chinese government has adopted new regulations requiring companies that sell computer equipment to Chinese banks to turn over secret source code, submit to invasive audits and build so-called back doors into hardware and software, according to a copy of the rules obtained by foreign technology companies that do billions of dollars' worth of business in China. (nyti.ms/1wCMhfj)

* The Basel Committee for Banking Supervision made public last Friday its list of priorities for the coming year, a document that is essential reading for banks and anyone else trying to determine what direction bank regulation around the world may take. The committee includes representatives of 28 countries, including the United States, who will use the committee's guidelines to write up their own standards. (nyti.ms/1DbAfOM)

* A federal bankruptcy judge in Delaware said on Wednesday that Caesars Entertainment Co, the troubled casino operator, could proceed with a Chapter 11 bankruptcy of its largest unit in its preferred jurisdiction of Chicago, handing an incremental but important victory to the company and its private equity backers. (nyti.ms/1z5ntCL)

* The Federal Reserve kept its options open on Wednesday, signaling that it would not raise short-term interest rates any earlier than June, while leaving unresolved how much longer it might be willing to wait before lifting its benchmark rate from near zero, where the central bank has held it for more than six years. (nyti.ms/1K8nOpN) (Compiled by Luke Koshi in Bengaluru)

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BRIEF-Skymark Airlines pres says flights can continue with Integral financing

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UPDATE 1-Japan's Skymark to stop flying Airbus A330 in favour of Boeing-only fleet

Thu Jan 29, 2015 1:29am EST

(Adds details on fleet changes)

Jan 29 (Reuters) - Japan's Skymark Airlines said it will stop flying Airbus A330 jets in favor of a single-model fleet of Boeing Co 737 aircraft to cut costs after the discount carrier filed for protection from creditors late on Wednesday.

"We will stop using the A330s from February," Skymark's chairman, Takashi Ide, told reporters at a news conference in Tokyo on Thursday.

Japan's leading independent budget airline, Skymark sought protection from creditors blaming a weak yen and a dispute with Airbus for its financial straits. It said in a statement on Wednesday its liabilities were 71.09 billion yen ($605 million) as of its filing with the Tokyo District Court.

Skymark, which had planned to introduce ten leased A330s into its fleet, currently operates five of the European jets. In July the carrier canceled an order for six Airbus A380 superjumbos.

In addition to the weaker yen, pushing up leasing costs and other expenses, Skymark is blaming Airbus's demand for a $710 million dollar cancellation fee for its financial troubles.

Skymark's new president, Masakazu Arimori, in Tokyo declined to say how the carrier's filing will affect negotiations with Airbus over the cancellation fee. Skymark, which has a fleet of 28 Boeing 737s, said on Wednesday that Tokyo-based private equity firm Integral Corp has agreed to provide financing to help the airline restructure, pending court approval.

An Airbus spokeswoman said on Wednesday that the European plane maker was aware of the Skymark filing. "This is now a matter for the courts," she said.

Skymark said using one type of aircraft will help cut monthly operating expenses, a strategy the airline adopted when it began flying in 1998 in an effort to undercut its bigger rivals, ANA Holdings and Japan Airlines (JAL).

The loss of Skymark as an operator of its jets marks a partial reversal of recent gains by Airbus in Japan, a market long dominated by Boeing. The U.S. firm has deep ties to local aerospace firms in one of Asia's biggest aircraft markets.

Airbus made its big breakthrough in Japan in October 2013, in a landmark deal for JAL to buy 31 wide-body A350 jets with a combined $9.5 billion list price. ($1 = 117.6000 yen)

(Reporting by Maki Shiraki and Tim Kelly)

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Detroit may offer city workers half off on vacant homes

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 28 Januari 2015 | 16.47

By Serena Maria Daniels

DETROIT Tue Jan 27, 2015 4:09pm EST

DETROIT Jan 27 (Reuters) - Detroit may offer city employees a 50 percent discount on homes sold through the city's auction program as part of its efforts to rebound after exiting its historic bankruptcy in December.

The proposal introduced to the City Council on Tuesday is for current city employees, their families and retired city workers. The idea is to encourage families to repopulate devastated neighborhoods that have seen a decades-long exodus by residents.

"Our employees are the city's biggest champions," Mayor Mike Duggan said in a statement. "Whether they are renters looking to buy, homeowners who want to restore and move into a bigger house, or employees living in the suburbs who might like to return to the City, we wanted to make it easier."

The issue will be discussed on Thursday by members of the planning and economic development committee, who will decide whether to recommend it to the full council. If approved, the program could take effect by mid-February.

This latest effort comes as Detroit's eight-month-old Land Bank Authority struggles to shed ownership of 24,500 city-owned properties, mostly acquired over the years when owners failed to pay their property taxes. Buyers had closed on only 154 of the 394 properties auctioned off by the end of 2014, said Craig Fahle, the Land Bank spokesman.

The city had fewer than 700,000 people in 2013, compared to close to 1.9 million in 1950.

Those interested in getting the discount must register as bidders on the Land Bank website and qualify to bid.

"If an employee wins the house with a $10,000 bid, they will pay the Land Bank $5,000," said Erica Ward Gerson, chair of the Land Bank Board.

Buyers will be required to own the property for at least three years. If they resell before then, they will have to share any profit with the Land Bank - 75 percent in the first year, 50 percent in the second, and 25 percent in the third. (Editing by Mary Wisniewski and Eric Walsh)

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PRESS DIGEST- British Business - Jan 28

Tue Jan 27, 2015 7:55pm EST

Jan 28 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the business pages of British newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

The Times

Mike Ashley has strengthened his grasp on the money streams entering Rangers after the cash-strapped Scottish Championship club's board agreed a 10 million pounds ($15.19 million) emergency loan with Sports Direct, the Newcastle United owner's retail business. (thetim.es/1yYazq1)

Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras named a radical libertarian as his finance minister. Yanis Varoufakis was sworn in along with the other 39 members of Greece's new coalition cabinet. (thetim.es/1y3BTix)

The Guardian

Britain's economic recovery slowed in the fourth quarter of 2014, but annual growth was the fastest since the financial crisis of 2007. Official figures showed that in the final three months of 2014, GDP growth slowed to a quarterly rate of 0.5 percent. (bit.ly/1DeuNLp)

Sales commission at the estate agents Foxtons slid by more than a quarter at the end of last year in the latest sign that the capital's runaway housing market is rapidly cooling. (bit.ly/1v0aFO8)

The Telegraph

A High Court ruling has found Companies House liable for the demise of Taylor & Sons Ltd, after they erroneously recorded that the Cardiff engineering firm had been wound up. In fact it was another entirely unconnected company Taylor & Son Ltd which had actually gone bust. (bit.ly/1BlbOMI)

Venture capitalist reveals he informed Vince Cable's Department of Business of likely collapse a week before Christmas. Jon Moulton, chairman of Better Capital, said his business had suffered a serious financial and reputational hit as a result of the collapse over Christmas 2014. (bit.ly/1y3C5OJ)

Sky News

The chairman of Pearson Plc, Glen Moreno, is to step down after a decade at the helm. Sources said that Pearson's nominations committee had enlisted JCA Group, a City headhunting firm, to oversee the process of recruiting Moreno's successor. (bit.ly/1yLtfJb)

Up to two million holders of a credit card insurance product could secure compensation. The Financial Conduct Authority said it had reached agreement on a compensation scheme after card customers were sold security products costing up to 25 pounds annually to cover fraudulent use in the event of a card being lost or stolen. (bit.ly/1v0kiMT)

The Independent

EDF Energy today announced it will cut its gas prices by 1.3 percent making it the last of the Big Six energy suppliers to reduce tariffs in reaction to falling wholesale costs. The French-owned firm said the cut will take effect from Feb. 11 and will benefit around one million customers. (ind.pn/1z884jy)

Developer Almacantar announced yesterday that it has started work converting Centre Point, which was developed by property tycoon Harry Hyams in 1966, into 82 luxury apartments. According to The Telegraph, the apartments will consist of 16 one-bedroom, 37 two-bedroom, 26 three-bedroom, two four-bedroom and one five-bedroom flats. (ind.pn/1BjRs6I)

($1 = 0.6582 pounds) (Compiled by zara Mascarenhas in Bengaluru. Editing by Andre Grenon)

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Brazil tycoon Batista resigns as chairman of oil company OG Par

RIO DE JANEIRO Tue Jan 27, 2015 8:53pm EST

RIO DE JANEIRO Jan 27 (Reuters) - Brazilian tycoon Eike Batista resigned as chairman of the board of directors of Oleo E Gas Participações SA winding up his direct involvement in the company whose problems prompted the collapse of his EBX energy, mining and port empire.

Batista steps down as the company, formerly known as OGX Petróleo e Gás Participações SA, emerges from Latin America's largest ever bankruptcy and restructuring. (Reporting by Jeb Blount; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)

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UPDATE 3-AT&T to buy NII Holdings' wireless business in Mexico

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 27 Januari 2015 | 16.47

Mon Jan 26, 2015 5:11pm EST

(Adds Rothschild as adviser)

By Supantha Mukherjee and Liana B. Baker

Jan 26 (Reuters) - AT&T Inc said on Monday it would buy bankrupt NII Holdings Inc's wireless business in Mexico for $1.875 billion in a move to create a larger Mexican wireless player that will have a better chance of competing with No. 1 America Movil.

NII Holdings, the parent of Nextel operators in Latin America, filed for bankruptcy protection in the United States in September after struggling with $5.8 billion in debt and fierce competition in Brazil and Mexico. It is still exploring options for its larger Brazilian operations.

AT&T plans to combine Nextel Mexico with Iusacell, which the company acquired in November for $1.7 billion. While Nextel Mexico has about 3 million subscribers, Iusacell, Mexico's third-largest wireless operator, has over 8 million subscribers.

Mexico's telecom market is dominated by billionaire Carlos Slim's America Movil, which has a 70 percent share of the market, followed by Telefonica, with nearly 20 percent.

"While there are logical roaming savings (AT&T) will see by having a presence in Mexico, we believe the bigger driver is the longer runway it sees for Mexico to follow the U.S. in terms of smartphone penetration and mobile data growth," said Wells Fargo Securities analyst Jennifer Fritzsche.

AT&T's shares closed down 19 cents or 0.6 percent at $33.18.

Some of America Movil's assets are up for sale and AT&T had been tipped as a buyer, but the U.S. telecom company had downplayed any interest.

The Nextel Mexico transaction is subject to a bankruptcy auction and approvals by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York, AT&T said in a statement. AT&T's offer is viewed as the "stalking horse" bid, but any other player that tries to buy the asset would have to cover AT&T's breakup fee, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Rothschild served as NII's financial adviser while Jones Day was its legal adviser on the deal. (Reporting by Liana B. Baker in New York, Supantha Mukherjee and Kshitiz Goliya in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila and Lisa Shumaker)

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Kaisa's talks with Shenzhen govt to unblock sales at deadlock-company source

HONG KONG Mon Jan 26, 2015 11:30pm EST

HONG KONG Jan 27 (Reuters) - Troubled Chinese property developer Kaisa Group failed to remove a local government block on sales at its Shenzhen projects after a meeting with local officials on Monday ended without progress, a company source familiar with the talks said.

Kaisa's top executives held a high-level meeting with senior Shenzhen government officials on Monday afternoon in the Longgang district in northern Shenzhen, where two of Kaisa's new projects are blocked, according to the source.

"There was no progress at all in the meeting," the Kaisa executive said. "It's a Central Government order to keep the blockage so even the Shenzhen government has no means to resolve this on its own."

The source said he wasn't at the meeting in person but was briefed on the discussions by those who were.

A Kaisa spokeswoman said she wasn't aware of the talks.

Kaisa is struggling after a string of senior executives left unexpectedly and authorities blocked sales at some of its projects in Shenzhen late last year.

The company failed earlier this month to make a $26 million interest payment on its bonds due to mature in 2020. (Reporting by James Pomfret; Editing by Rachel Armstrong)

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UPDATE 2-Kaisa failed to unblock sales during talks with Shenzhen govt-company source

Tue Jan 27, 2015 2:58am EST

(Recasts with bond reaction)

By James Pomfret

HONG KONG Jan 27 (Reuters) - Troubled Chinese property developer Kaisa Group failed to remove a local government block on sales at its Shenzhen projects during talks with public officials on Monday, a company source familiar with the discussions said.

"There was no progress at all in the meeting," the Kaisa executive said.

A Shenzhen official told homeowners that the government "needs some time to resolve this incident" as the Kaisa case was linked to China's crackdown on corruption, according to the pro-Beijing Wen Wei Po newspaper on Monday, citing a deputy director of a government bureau that deals with public complaints.

The Kaisa source told Reuters he wasn't at the meeting in person but was briefed on the discussions by those who were. Negotiations are continuing.

A Kaisa spokeswoman said she wasn't aware of the talks. Shenzhen's Urban Planning, Land and Resources Commission was not available for comment.

Kaisa is struggling after a string of senior executives left unexpectedly and authorities blocked sales at some of its projects in Shenzhen late last year.

The company failed earlier this month to make a $26 million interest payment on its bonds due to mature in 2020, and now has until Feb 9 to pay that coupon or else become the first Chinese real estate firm to default on its offshore debt.

The source dismissed a report in the Apple Daily newspaper on Tuesday that Shenzhen authorities would end the moratorium on unsold units at several Kaisa projects within two weeks, a prospect that has buoyed investor sentiment in the troubled firm.

"I haven't heard anything about that," the source said.

Kaisa's bond prices came off their day's highs after Reuters reported the company had failed to remove the sales block, traders said.

Kaisa bonds that are due to mature in 2017 < XS082836675=TE> were trading at 62/66 cents on the dollar, off the morning levels of 66/69. It had gained 7 points on the Apple Daily report.

PROTESTS

Kaisa's problems have left buyers of apartments in their upcoming developments unsure as to whether they will get their flats or suffer hefty financial losses if the firm goes bust.

On Saturday, some 2000 Kaisa home buyers wearing white T-shirts with the slogan "I want my home", staged a protest to demand authorities protect their rights.

Police set up barricades preventing protesters from getting close to Shenzhen's government headquarters, as some demonstrators called on authorities to protect their rights amid president Xi Jinping's pledge to fight "tigers and flies" in China's high-profile crackdown on graft.

The source, however, suggested a deeper political dimension that couldn't be easily resolved. "It's a Central Government order to keep the blockage so even the Shenzhen government has no means to resolve this on its own."

Kaisa is also said to be in talks about a possible large equity investment into the company or selling off some of its assets.

Last week, a source told Reuters a number of developers have approached the company about possibly buying some of its holdings.

The chatter resumed on Monday after financial news website Tencent Finance reported that Sunac China Holdings, which last month terminated a deal to acquire a majority stake in developer Greentown China Holdings, is in talks to buy part of Kaisa.

The report said that Sunac carried out due diligence on Kaisa over the weekend. (Additional reporting by Clare Jim and Umesh Desai; Editing by Rachel Armstrong)

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UPDATE 2-Moody's slashes Atlantic City rating on bankruptcy potential

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 25 Januari 2015 | 16.47

Fri Jan 23, 2015 3:32pm EST

(Adds further downgrade of municipal utilities; details)

By Hilary Russ

Jan 23 (Reuters) - Moody's Investors Service slashed Atlantic City's credit rating six notches deeper into junk territory on Friday, a day after New Jersey Governor Chris Christie appointed an emergency manager with a mandate to consider a debt restructuring.

Atlantic City has about $344 million of long-term debt outstanding. Moody's dropped the city's general obligation rating to Caa1, down from Ba1, indicating that the credit rating agency thinks there is a substantial risk of default over the next five years.

The appointment could spell trouble for bondholders, as the emergency management team has ties to Detroit's historic bankruptcy.

The order from Christie to consider a restructuring also marks a "rapid, dramatic" change from the usually strong oversight New Jersey provides its local governments, including the requirement that they pay their bond debts, Moody's said.

"That's why you see such a steep downgrade here," said Moody's analyst Josellyn Yousef.

"This action, this executive order, really pivots that thinking," she said. "It indicates to us that perhaps in this situation (New Jersey) may not be as willing to provide the local support they have in the past."

Moody's spokesman David Jacobson said they could not talk about whether the rating agency had discussed the likelihood of bankruptcy with the state or new management team because any such conversations are confidential.

"I've only been in office a short time. I continue to do what is necessary to make Atlantic City economically vibrant, and that goal hasn't changed," Mayor Don Guardian said in an email from his chief of staff Chris Filiciello. "Our better days are still to come."

Moody's did not discuss the emergency management team with the city before today's downgrade, Filiciello said.

Moody's also gave Atlantic City's GO debt a negative outlook, citing the possibility of a material impairment to bondholders from a debt restructuring.

Christie's office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

Moody's also cut the water revenue debt of Atlantic City's Municipal Utilities Authority four notches to B2 on Friday, affecting about $18.4 million of debt. The downgrade reflects the authority's rapidly declining customer base as the casino industry contracts, with four of the city's 12 casinos closed in 2014. (Reporting by Abinaya Vijayaraghavan in Bengaluru and Hilary Russ in New York; Editing by Joyjeet Das, Alan Crosby and Meredith Mazzilli)

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SkyMall, known for in-flight catalogs, lands in bankruptcy

By Jonathan Stempel

Fri Jan 23, 2015 11:52am EST

Jan 23 (Reuters) - SkyMall, whose in-flight shopping catalogs have long been a staple of airline travel, has filed for bankruptcy protection, blaming changing consumer habits and the loss of contracts from two major carriers, Delta and Southwest.

Xhibit Corp, SkyMall's parent, on Friday said it hoped to sell its main assets, including the SkyMall online retail business, in April through a court-supervised auction, and then complete an "orderly wind-down" of its affairs.

It also said it suspended its retail catalog operations on Jan. 16, laying off 47 of its 150 employees.

Xhibit and SkyMall filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors on Thursday night in the U.S. bankruptcy court in Phoenix, their hometown. The debtors, including several affiliates, face $12 million of creditor claims.

Founded in 1989, SkyMall said it sold more than 30,000 products it calls "cool stuff," including novelty items ranging from personalized socks to dog beds to a $2,499 football helmet signed by Notre Dame players and coaches. It says it reaches 650 million air travelers a year.

But in a court filing, Chief Financial Officer Scott Wiley said financial strains grew as travelers spent less time in the air browsing catalogs and more time on their smartphones and laptops, and amid increased competition from online rivals such as Amazon.com Inc and eBay Inc.

Wiley also said Delta Air Lines Inc ended its contract with SkyMall on Nov. 30, and Southwest Airlines Co planned to stop carrying the catalog on April 1.

SkyMall revenue totaled $33.7 million in 2013, but only about $15.8 million in the first nine months of 2014, a court filing shows.

The case is In re: SkyMall LLC, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Arizona, No, 15-bk-00679. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York)

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Canada's Mobilicity out of one airwaves auction, needs cash for another

TORONTO Fri Jan 23, 2015 5:36pm EST

TORONTO Jan 23 (Reuters) - Struggling Canadian wireless operator Mobilicity will not bid for more airwaves in one upcoming government auction and is trying to secure funding to participate in another, its court-appointed monitor said in a filing on the company's website.

Mobilicity, which is under court protection from its creditors, has decided to forgo participation in an auction of 2500 MHz airwaves to be held in April, the report from Ernst & Young said on Friday.

The filing also said the company has not yet secured the C$62 million ($50 million) refundable deposit it would need by Jan. 30 to bid in an auction of AWS-3 spectrum in the regions where the company operates.

As a recent entrant to Canada's wireless industry, Mobilicity has preferential access to those airwaves and acquiring them in the auction due to start in March could make the company more attractive to a potential buyer.

If it does not participate, fellow recent industry entrant Wind Mobile could scoop up the airwaves for the reserve price.

Mobilicity had 158,600 active subscribers at the end of 2014 and customer churn - the number of subscribers who dropped the service - was 4.9 percent in December, it said.

The report said that Mobilicity has discussed selling itself with several parties, including one of its noteholders, and that talks are continuing.

Mobilicity is asking the court to extend its protection from creditors to May 8. The current stay on proceedings expires Jan. 30.

($1=$1.24 Canadian) (Reporting by Alastair Sharp; Editing by Peter Galloway)

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SkyMall, known for in-flight catalogs, lands in bankruptcy

Written By Unknown on Sabtu, 24 Januari 2015 | 16.47

By Jonathan Stempel

Fri Jan 23, 2015 11:52am EST

It also said it suspended its retail catalog operations on Jan. 16, laying off 47 of its 150 employees.

Wiley also said Delta Air Lines Inc ended its contract with SkyMall on Nov. 30, and Southwest Airlines Co planned to stop carrying the catalog on April 1.

SkyMall revenue totaled $33.7 million in 2013, but only about $15.8 million in the first nine months of 2014, a court filing shows.

The case is In re: SkyMall LLC, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, District of Arizona, No, 15-bk-00679. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York)

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UPDATE 2-Moody's slashes Atlantic City rating on bankruptcy potential

Fri Jan 23, 2015 3:32pm EST

(Adds further downgrade of municipal utilities; details)

By Hilary Russ

The appointment could spell trouble for bondholders, as the emergency management team has ties to Detroit's historic bankruptcy.

"That's why you see such a steep downgrade here," said Moody's analyst Josellyn Yousef.

Moody's did not discuss the emergency management team with the city before today's downgrade, Filiciello said.

Moody's also gave Atlantic City's GO debt a negative outlook, citing the possibility of a material impairment to bondholders from a debt restructuring.

Christie's office did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

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Canada's Mobilicity out of one airwaves auction, needs cash for another

TORONTO Fri Jan 23, 2015 5:36pm EST

If it does not participate, fellow recent industry entrant Wind Mobile could scoop up the airwaves for the reserve price.

Mobilicity had 158,600 active subscribers at the end of 2014 and customer churn - the number of subscribers who dropped the service - was 4.9 percent in December, it said.

The report said that Mobilicity has discussed selling itself with several parties, including one of its noteholders, and that talks are continuing.

Mobilicity is asking the court to extend its protection from creditors to May 8. The current stay on proceedings expires Jan. 30.

($1=$1.24 Canadian) (Reporting by Alastair Sharp; Editing by Peter Galloway)

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BRIEF-Promtraktor receives bankruptcy claim

Written By Unknown on Jumat, 23 Januari 2015 | 16.47

NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

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BRIEF-Agrogeneration announces accelerated financial safeguard proceedings

Thu Jan 22, 2015 12:49pm EST

* Announced the accelerated financial safeguard proceedings by the commercial court in Paris following the conciliation procedure opened Dec. 30

* Safeguard proceedings see the issuance of "OSRANE" for a maximum of 65 million euros ($74.2 million)

* The "OSRANE" issuance is planned on march 31 at the latest Source text for Eikon: Further company coverage: ($1 = 0.8764 euros) (Gdynia Newsroom)

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Cache Inc may file for bankruptcy as soon as next week - Bloomberg

Thu Jan 22, 2015 5:10pm EST

Jan 22 (Reuters) - Cache Inc is poised to become the latest U.S. apparel retailer to file for bankruptcy, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The bankruptcy filing could come as early as next week, the Bloomberg report said. (bloom.bg/1yTSifa)

The mall-based retailer said in December that it was evaluating strategic alternatives and had received an inquiry regarding a potential sale.

Several U.S. apparel retailers have been struggling to come to terms with stiff competition from fast-fashion brands such as H&M, Forever 21 and Inditex's Zara and online retailers such as Amazon.com Inc, who offer deep discounts.

Last week, Wet Seal Inc became the fourth U.S. apparel retailer to file for bankruptcy in the past two months, joining Deb Shops, Delia*s Inc and Body Central Corp.

Cache was not immediately available for comment.

The company's shares closed down 48 percent at 9 cents on the Nasdaq on Thursday. (Reporting by Devika Krishna Kumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Simon Jennings)

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Brazil's Oleo e Gas to cut 40 pct of workforce

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 22 Januari 2015 | 16.47

RIO DE JANEIRO Wed Jan 21, 2015 5:58pm EST

RIO DE JANEIRO Jan 21 (Reuters) - Brazilian oil and natural gas company Oleo e Gas Participacoes SA said on Wednesday it will cut its workforce by 40 percent, or more than 40 workers, to bring costs in line with revenues.

The company also said two of its executives, Production Director Reinaldo Belotti Vargas and Exploration Director Gilberto Carvalho Lima, will be leaving but gave no reason for the departure. The company's representatives were not immediately available.

Brazil's steadfast labor market had been until recently the only silver lining to the troubled economy that is struggling with slowing growth, worryingly high inflation and rising interest rates.

But after a considerable lag and continued weakness in the economy, the pace and depth of companies' layoffs are intensifying.

The board of the company, which is currently in court supervised debt restructuring, approved the departure of the executives. At the time of declaring bankruptcy, the company held debts of $5.1 billion.

Oleo e Gas, previously known as OGX, was founded by Brazilian tycoon Eike Batista, who was under investigation regarding alleged insider trading in the company's stock.

(Reporting by Juliana Schincariol; Writing by Reese Ewing; Editing by Diane Craft)

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China developer Kaisa's bonds rebound, stoked by rescue hopes

HONG KONG Thu Jan 22, 2015 2:05am EST

HONG KONG Jan 22 (Reuters) - Bonds of struggling Chinese property firm Kaisa Group rallied sharply on Thursday on hopes it could be rescued by a capital injection from rival companies, after it had missed payment deadlines on a bank loan and bond coupon.

Traders say there was speculation the Shenzhen government is holding talks with several property developers which could make a bid for Kaisa.

Bloomberg reported on Thursday that officials in Shenzhen were speaking to a number of developers about making an investment in Kaisa.

Kaisa and Shenzhen local government officials were not available for comment.

Kaisa offshore dollar bonds were trading in the 44/48 cents on the dollar range in thin trade at 0700 GMT, up from the morning's 36/39.

Trading in Kaisa shares is suspended.

Earlier this month Kaisa missed an interest payment on the 2020 bonds, and now has a 30-day grace period to pay up or else become the first Chinese property company to default on its foreign debt.

The company is struggling after a string of senior executives left unexpectedly and government officials blocked sales at some of its projects in the Southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

The Shenzhen-based company has since received a waiver from banking group HSBC on a loan it failed to repay late last month. The HK$400 million ($51.59 million) loan and its interest became compulsory on Dec. 31, after its chairman resigned. ($1 = 7.7531 Hong Kong dollars) (Reporting by Umesh Desai; Additional reporting by Clare Jim; Editing by Rachel Armstrong)

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BRIEF-Promtraktor receives bankruptcy claim

NYSE and AMEX quotes delayed by at least 20 minutes. Nasdaq delayed by at least 15 minutes. For a complete list of exchanges and delays, please click here.

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Unsealed U.S. lawsuits tell of alleged fraud by asbestos law firms

Written By Unknown on Rabu, 21 Januari 2015 | 16.47

By Tom Hals

Tue Jan 20, 2015 7:20pm EST

Jan 20 (Reuters) - U.S. personal injury lawyers allegedly concealed evidence and induced clients to commit perjury to drive up asbestos-related settlements and garner bigger fees, according to lawsuits unsealed on Tuesday in the bankruptcy of a gasket maker.

The unsealed racketeering complaints alleged that four law firms sued Garlock Sealing Technologies, which made asbestos-lined gaskets, while hiding evidence that their clients were exposed to asbestos products made by other companies.

The evidence was allegedly hidden because the other companies were bankrupt, making Garlock a much more attractive target for an asbestos lawsuit, according to the complaints.

Garlock, a unit of EnPro Industries, filed for bankruptcy in 2010 in Charlotte, North Carolina, in the face of the mounting cost of asbestos lawsuits.

The unsealed complaints cite many examples of alleged fraud, including the Shein Law Center's handling of a lawsuit by Vincent Golini, who was diagnosed with deadly mesothelioma in 2009.

Golini allegedly told Philadelphia-based Shein he was exposed to 14 asbestos products made by bankrupt companies including Owens Corning and Armstrong World Industries. But when Golini sued Garlock he denied exposure to any products made by a bankrupt manufacturer, according to the complaint.

After Garlock settled with Golini, Shein had Golini file claims with the asbestos trusts that were set up by Owens Corning and other bankrupt makers of asbestos products. Those trusts often pay only a small fraction of a claim.

Shein's lawyer, Daniel Brier of Myers Brier & Kelly, said the racketeering lawsuit is completely without merit and Shein represented its clients "ethically and properly".

Garlock's Chapter 11 case has drawn national attention due to the company's allegations that personal injury lawyers fraudulently inflated judgments and settlements.

The racketeering lawsuits were originally filed in early 2014. They were ordered unsealed last summer but only became available to the public on Tuesday.

The allegations in the unsealed documents appeared to have already been discussed publicly in an opinion in 2014 by Judge George Hodges. That opinion set Garlock's liability for asbestos at $125 million and said the company's past settlements were tainted by fraud.

The others were Belluck & Fox of New York; and Waters Kraus & Paul and Simon Greenstone Panatier Bartlett of Dallas. Mark Iola, a partner at Iola Galerston, also in Dallas, was also sued.

Attorneys for the law firms said Garlock was trying to relitigate settled cases and blame others for the consequences of its own conduct. (Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Additional reporting by Jessica Dye in New York)

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Stockton, California, bankruptcy judge denies motion to stall plan

By Robin Respaut and Jim Christie

Tue Jan 20, 2015 4:02pm EST

Jan 20 (Reuters) - The judge overseeing the bankrupt city of Stockton, California, has denied a motion by a holdout creditor to stall the city's plan to begin paying its debts.

U.S. Federal Bankruptcy Court Judge Christopher Klein said on Tuesday the potential harm to other creditors, such as the city's 1,100 retirees, and to the city's ability to attract new business, along with the low likelihood of an appeal's success, convinced him to deny a pending stay on the confirmed plan.

The holdout creditor, two funds managed by Franklin Templeton Investments, has said it would appeal Stockton's exit plan, a rare move among municipal bankruptcies.

Franklin argued at a hearing last week that it was harmed by the city's plan, which pays over $4 million to Franklin on a $36 million debt.

The city warned that the impact of a stay would hurt city retirees, along with the moral of current employees, make hiring more difficult.

On Tuesday, Judge Klein agreed.

"Since we're dealing with retirees that are presumably in the later stages of their lives, longer delays are very much to their detriment," said Klein, who estimated that an appeal could take five years to resolve.

Klein repeatedly pointed out that Franklin had admitted "only money" motivated the appeal.

"I do not criticize them for that. That's the name of the game," Klein said.

However, the judge added that municipal insolvency is an issue of great public interest. The state, the municipality and the capital markets are served by a definitive resolution in bankruptcy cases, "so people understand what they are facing."

"Capital markets have figured out there is more risk to municipal bonds than they once thought," he said.

Stockton, a city of nearly 300,000 people located in Northern California, got the green light for its exit plan last October, over two years after the city filed for Chapter 9 protection.

Stockton's case, along with other high-profile municipal bankruptcies in Detroit, Michigan, and San Bernardino, California, have been closely followed by the $3.6 trillion municipal bond market to see how bondholders are treated compared with other creditors, such as pensioners.

Stockton elected not to harm employee pensions, but it did call for the elimination of future healthcare benefits for retirees, a haircut on bondholders' debts, and the renegotiation of collective bargaining agreements.

If Franklin wins an appeal, Klein said the city could carve out more money without impacting its existing plan. (Reporting By Robin Respaut. Editing by Andre Grenon)

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Dubai's Limitless gets 85 pct creditor assent for debt extension -chairman

DUBAI Wed Jan 21, 2015 4:05am EST

DUBAI Jan 21 (Reuters) - Dubai real estate developer Limitless has secured the agreement of 85 percent of its creditors for a three-month extension to a debt repayment due at the end of 2014 and for its proposed restructuring plan, its chairman said on Wednesday.

However, Limitless is looking to obtain the support of 100 percent of creditors, Ali Rashid Lootah told a news conference.

Limitless asked for the extension after failing to agree a new debt deal before a payment on its $1.2 billion existing restructuring scheme fell due on Dec. 31. (Reporting by Matt Smith; Writing by David French; Editing by Andrew Torchia)

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BRIEF-Court declares bankruptcy of Solombalsk LDK

Written By Unknown on Selasa, 20 Januari 2015 | 16.47

Tue Jan 20, 2015 1:52am EST

Jan 20 (Reuters) - Solombal'skiy Lesopil'no-derevoobrabatyvayushchiy Kombinat (Solombalsk LDK) :

* Says on Jan. 13 Arbitration Court of Arkhangelsk region declared bankruptcy of company and opened bankruptcy proceedings for six months Source text: bit.ly/1xs9Ys3 Further company coverage: (Gdynia Newsroom)

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S&P cuts China developer Glorious's credit rating on refinancing worries

HONG KONG Tue Jan 20, 2015 2:39am EST

HONG KONG Jan 20 (Reuters) - China's Glorious Property had its credit rating cut by Standard & Poor's on Tuesday, the latest red flag to be raised about Chinese developers' ability to service their debt.

S&P cut the rating by a notch to CCC, saying it was concerned about the company's ability to refinance $300 million of bonds that are due to mature in October. The agency warned there could be a further downgrade for the troubled borrower closer to the bond's redemption date.

The bonds were down 3.5 cents at 67/71 cents on the dollar after the S&P move. The shares were flat at HK$0.77, just off the all-time low of HK$0.70 that they hit last week.

The move comes as investors grow increasingly concerned about whether Chinese property developers can meet all their credit obligations.

Earlier this month developer Kaisa Group Ltd failed to make an interest payment on one of its bonds, leaving it facing the prospect of becoming the first Chinese property firm to default on its offshore bonds.

S&P said Glorious's downgrade reflected elevated refinancing risks on its bond as the company was reporting weak sales and added there was lack of clarity about how the bond's redemption would be funded.

"At the moment there is no visibility and the company has not indicated to us how they propose to go ahead," Christopher Yip, the S&P analyst said.

The company also has a $400 million bond due in 2018 which was trading 1.5 cents down at 48/52 cents on the dollar. (Reporting by Umesh Desai; Editing by Rachel Armstrong)

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REFILE-UPDATE 2-Administrators say some interest in Alpari from potential buyers

Tue Jan 20, 2015 3:36am EST

(Changes name of company to IG Group from IG Index, para 6)

LONDON Jan 20 (Reuters) - Administrators for currency trading firm Alpari (UK) Ltd said they had received a number of inquiries from potential buyers of the business hit by heavy losses from last week's surge in the value of the Swiss franc.

Alpari lost millions of dollars after the Swiss National Bank removed its currency cap on Thursday and administrators appointed on Monday said that efforts to find a buyer for Alpari (UK) over the weekend failed and they would hold talks with interested suitors in the coming days.

U.S. retail FX broker FXCM was a potential buyer for Alpari UK, according to industry news site Forex Magnates, citing unnamed sources.

However, it is "not true" that FXCM is buying or is interested in Alpari, an FXCM spokeswoman said.

FXCM's own customers lost more than $200 million from the Swiss franc's move and it got a $300 million loan from Leucadia National Corp to keep operating.

IG Group could be interested in some Alpari assets, but not the whole firm, the Wall Street Journal reported. IG would be interested in suitable assets at the right price, a person familiar with the matter said.

Other potential bidders for all or some of Alpari's business included Australian online currency trader Pepperstone Financial Services, ETX Capital and SpreadCo, according to media reports.

Richard Heis, Samantha Bewick and Mark Firmin of KPMG were appointed special administrators to Alpari (UK) Ltd.

Heis said Alpari (UK) holds $98.5 million of retail client money which has been segregated and the administrators would return this to clients or make other suitable arrangements in accordance with statute and the regulatory framework.

The business, which sponsors Premiership football club West Ham United, has 170 employees in its London offices.

Alpari said it was working with the Financial Conduct Authority over its options.

Retail brokerages and some large banks were hit hard by the SNB's sudden move Thursday to scrap its three-year-old cap on the value of the Swiss franc against the euro. Client losses left some brokerages with too little capital. (Reporting by Ian Chua and Steve Slater; Additional reporting by Matt Scuffham and Gertrude Chavez; Editing by Jane Merriman and Gopakumar Warrier)

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Thin crowds during CEO's visit helped seal Target Canada's demise

Written By Unknown on Senin, 19 Januari 2015 | 16.47

By Nathan Layne and Solarina Ho

NEW YORK/TORONTO Fri Jan 16, 2015 6:22pm EST

NEW YORK/TORONTO Jan 16 (Reuters) - Target Corp was scrambling for ways to fix its failing Canadian expansion and considering closing just the weakest locations, but a pre-holiday visit to several stores by CEO Brian Cornell helped seal the decision for a full retreat.

Cornell spent the weekend before Christmas making solo visits to stores in Ontario and Quebec, Canada's most populous provinces, according to a Target source familiar with the U.S. discount retailer's decision to pull out of Canada.

Though the recently appointed chief executive could see signs of operational improvements - notably, better stocked shelves - a key ingredient was missing.

"There just weren't enough people in the stores," the source said. "The weekend before Christmas our stores are usually packed. He wasn't seeing enough people. The stores he visited had never looked better, they were in stock, but there weren't enough people there."

Target said on Thursday it will exit the Canadian market after less than two years, closing 133 stores, throwing more than 17,000 employees out of work, and leaving billions in losses.

A former Target employee in touch with vendors and existing staff at the Canadian headquarters said everyone was blind-sided by the decision, especially by the timing.

Target, which entered Canada hoping it would be profitable after the first year, had invested more than C$7 billion ($5.84 billion) in its Canadian expansion since the start of 2011, according to its Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act (CCAA) filing.

But it wildly overestimated how readily Canadians would embrace its arrival. A laundry list of missteps at all levels of the operation left shoppers disenchanted.

The filing showed the company's struggle to lure shoppers resulted in losses of between $169 million and $329 million every quarter since it opened. Target is projecting a cumulative operating loss of more than C$2.5 billion pretax, more than triple what they originally expected.

Target blamed its colossal failure on four key factors: its large-scale opening, supply chain problems, pricing and product assortment issues, and a lack of online presence.

In the filing, Target said pace and large size of the expansion severely hampered its ability to respond quickly and effectively to problems.

The company had invested heavily in its supply chain operations, but a combination of data-entry and ordering errors, poor training, and confusion over differences between U.S. and Canadian systems resulted in empty shelves for key merchandise and over-stocking of other products.

The Minneapolis-based retailer considered all options as it struggled to right the floundering Canadian rollout, adding resources and consulting extensively since last spring.

It considered selling assets and consolidating distribution operations, but "even under the most optimistic scenarios," Target said in the filing that it could not see a way to break-even in the next five years.

On Wednesday, the Target board gathered for a regularly scheduled meeting, according the unnamed source. Members knew that they would be evaluating Canada's holiday performance, and that modeling was under way to determine what it would take to make the operation profitable.

The source said executives had weighed several scenarios, including shutting dozens of poorly performing stores and trying to save the profitable ones.

Instead, a full pullout was announced, and Target Canada filed for bankruptcy protection.

On Friday, as retail analysts and the Canadian media tore into Target for mishandling the expansion, Cornell called an all-staff meeting at Target's Minneapolis headquarters to explain what had gone wrong.

Taking to the podium in a massive meeting room emptied of furniture to accommodate hundreds of staffers, Cornell spoke for 15 minutes.

Exiting Canada "was the hardest business decision I've ever made," Cornell told the team, according to the source. He said the focus would now be on digital and U.S. operations.

($1=$1.19 Canadian dollars) (With additional reporting by Euan Rocha in Toronto; additional writing by Andrea Hopkins; Editing by Jeffrey Hodgson; and Peter Galloway)

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UPDATE 2-Minnesota Catholic archdiocese files for bankruptcy protection

Fri Jan 16, 2015 2:57pm EST

(Adds details from lawyer representing sex abuse claimants, details from archdiocese)

By David Bailey

MINNEAPOLIS Jan 16 (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday, saying the move will allow its finite resources to be distributed among victims and survivors of child sex abuse by clergy.

The archdiocese, which has been criticized for its past handling of clergy abuse cases, is the 12th Catholic diocese in the United States to seek bankruptcy protection over sex abuse claims. Most of the Minnesota cases date from the 1950s to the 1980s.

"I make this decision because I believe it is the fairest and most helpful recourse for those victims/survivors who have made claims against us," Archbishop John Nienstedt said in a statement on the archdiocese's website.

The filing does not include parishes or schools and will allow the archdiocese to provide essential services, he said.

About 825,000 Catholics live in the archdiocese, which has 187 parishes and 90 schools in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.

The archdiocese has faced numerous lawsuits raising claims of child sex abuse by clergy. Minnesota in 2013 approved a law that gave plaintiffs until May 2016 to file old claims that would otherwise be barred by the statute of limitations.

The archdiocese raised bankruptcy as an option in October when it announced the settlement of a civil lawsuit that had forced officials to release decades of files on clergy accused of child sex abuse. It cut its budget by 20 percent in November.

Sex abuse claimants are the top 20 unsecured creditors listed in the Chapter 11 filing. It provided no dollar figures.

The archdiocese has disclosed the identities of 62 priests and two religious brothers who it says have sufficient evidence against them to believe that sexual abuse of minors occurred. None of the 64 are currently in ministry.

Attorney Jeff Anderson, who has brought dozens of cases against the archdiocese, said the filing halts trials set for later in January, but will not stop disclosure of clergy accused of sex abuse.

"It is our belief that this action taken today is actually necessary, and comes as no surprise," Anderson told a news conference.

He said the archdiocese is unable to satisfy the claims against it, but has insurance from the 1950s onward that he believes will play an important role in the case.

The archdiocese and Anderson tried unsuccessfully to bring the insurance companies to the table before Friday's filing, he said. (Additional reporting by Brendan O'Brien in Milwaukee; editing by Chris Reese and Matthew Lewis)

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Broker Alpari says exploring all options including sale after Swiss shock

Sun Jan 18, 2015 11:32pm EST

Jan 19 (Reuters) - Retail currency broker Alpari UK, which last week said it had entered into insolvency after suffering losses stemming from the scrapping of the Swiss franc's cap, announced it was considering all options including a sale.

"For the avoidance of any doubt and notwithstanding previous announcements by the company, Alpari (UK) Limited has not entered a formal insolvency process," the company said on its website.

"The board of directors are urgently considering all options including a sale and are liaising closely with the FCA. We hope to make a further announcement shortly," it said.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which regulates the financial services industry in the UK, had said on Friday it was working closely with Alpari.

The sponsor of English Premier League soccer club West Ham, is just one of many retail currency brokers reeling from the Swiss National Bank's (SNB) sudden move last week to ditch its three-year capping of the franc at 1.20 per euro.

The decision had resulted in a surge in the Swiss franc, exceptional volatility and an extreme lack of liquidity, which in turn saw many clients sustain huge losses that brokerages ultimately had to bear.

New York-listed FXCM Inc was forced to turn to Leucadia National Corp to secure a $300 million loan to cover losses of $225 million suffered by its clients.

Industry news site Forex Magnates, citing unnamed sources close to the matter, said that FXCM has emerged as a potential buyer for the business of Alpari UK.

Alpari and FXCM could not be immediately reached for comment. (Reporting by Ian Chua; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman)

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UPDATE 2-Minnesota Catholic archdiocese files for bankruptcy protection

Written By Unknown on Minggu, 18 Januari 2015 | 16.47

Fri Jan 16, 2015 2:57pm EST

(Adds details from lawyer representing sex abuse claimants, details from archdiocese)

By David Bailey

The filing does not include parishes or schools and will allow the archdiocese to provide essential services, he said.

About 825,000 Catholics live in the archdiocese, which has 187 parishes and 90 schools in the Minneapolis-St. Paul area.

Sex abuse claimants are the top 20 unsecured creditors listed in the Chapter 11 filing. It provided no dollar figures.

Attorney Jeff Anderson, who has brought dozens of cases against the archdiocese, said the filing halts trials set for later in January, but will not stop disclosure of clergy accused of sex abuse.

"It is our belief that this action taken today is actually necessary, and comes as no surprise," Anderson told a news conference.

He said the archdiocese is unable to satisfy the claims against it, but has insurance from the 1950s onward that he believes will play an important role in the case.

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Minnesota Catholic archdiocese files for bankruptcy protection

MINNEAPOLIS Fri Jan 16, 2015 11:23am EST

MINNEAPOLIS Jan 16 (Reuters) - The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis filed for bankruptcy protection on Friday, saying that will allow its finite resources to be distributed among victims and survivors of child sex abuse by clergy.

The filing does not includes parishes or schools, he said. (Reporting by David Bailey in Minneapolis)