PRESS DIGEST- New York Times business news - Jan 16

Fri Jan 16, 2015 1:05am EST

Jan 16 (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.

* The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries issued a report on Thursday that downgraded demand for its crude for 2015, while also predicting slower oil-production growth in the United States. (nyti.ms/1yq52qv)

* UBS AG has agreed to pay $14.5 million to settle accusations by the Securities and Exchange Commission that a subsidiary violated federal securities laws in its operation of a private stock trading system known as a dark pool. (nyti.ms/1y468JB)

* The casino operator Caesars Entertainment Corp was locked in a bitter standoff with some creditors on Thursday after it put its largest unit into bankruptcy. (nyti.ms/1wfqutZ)

* Foreign currency traders around the world are coming under pressure following the Switzerland central bank's surprise decision on Thursday to remove the cap on its currency. (nyti.ms/1u81Zoz)

* The months-long race for Family Dollar Stores Inc appeared near an end on Thursday, as Dollar General Corp pleaded for more time to complete its $9.1 billion hostile takeover bid amid steep regulatory hurdles. (nyti.ms/1CtYsA2)

* Less than two years after opening in Canada, Target Corp conceded defeat on Thursday and said it would shutter its 133 stores, bringing an infamously ill-managed northward foray by the American retail giant to an abrupt end. (nyti.ms/1y2iim6)

* A federal judge will hold BP Plc responsible for spilling 3.19 million barrels of oil into the Gulf of Mexico in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster - a finding that could lead to a penalty of nearly $14 billion. (nyti.ms/15aHnA3)

* Bombardier Inc, the Canadian aerospace and railway equipment maker, said on Thursday that it would lay off about 1,000 employees and post a $1.4 billion write-down as a result of its decision to suspend development of the Learjet 85 business aircraft. (nyti.ms/1AWMFdy)

(Compiled by Rama Venkat Raman in Bengaluru)

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BRIEF-MIFA Mitteldeutsche Fahhradwerke says delisting application submitted

Fri Jan 16, 2015 2:52am EST

* Said on Thursday had submitted application to withdraw shares from trading in rime Standard and General Standard of Frankfurt Stock Exchange

* Said full delisting of MIFA's shares is expected to become effective on July 29, 2015 Source text for Eikon:

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BRIEF-MIFA Mitteldeutsche Fahhradwerke says inclusion of MIFA bond in Entry Standard cancelled

Fri Jan 16, 2015 2:52am EST

* Said on Thursday insolvency administrator of assets of MIFA had cancelled inclusion of MIFA bond in Entry Standard of the Open Market of Frankfurt Stock Exchange with effect as of Feb. 26, 2015

* Said it is planned that bonds will be included for trading in Quotation Board of the Open Market of Frankfurt Stock Exchange from Feb. 27, 2015 Source text for Eikon:

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PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - Jan 15

Thu Jan 15, 2015 1:53am EST

Jan 15 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* More than three months of U.S. airstrikes in Syria have failed to prevent Islamic State militants from expanding their control in that country, according to U.S. and independent assessments, raising new concerns about President Barack Obama's military strategy in the Middle East. (on.wsj.com/155mtlG)

* The moribund mortgage market suddenly sprang back to life last week after a drop in interest rates to levels not seen in almost two years sent borrowers rushing to lock in cheaper loans. (on.wsj.com/1wcYQOr)

* French Jews who fled discrimination in North Africa over a half-century ago are now finding violence and discrimination in what was supposed to be their safe haven. (on.wsj.com/1B4lSi3)

* RadioShack Corp is preparing to file for bankruptcy protection as soon as next month, according to people familiar with the matter, following a sputtering turnaround effort that left the electronics chain short on cash. (on.wsj.com/1yjEqcf)

* Harold Hamm, chairman of Continental Resources Inc , has pledged 18 percent of his company's shares outstanding as collateral for a personal loan. (on.wsj.com/1u5MiOw)

* The Reserve Bank of India surprised the market with an early-morning rate cut in a move to help boost growth in Asia's third-largest economy as the country's stubborn inflation has cooled. (on.wsj.com/1BtPSTt)

* Shanghai Jin Jiang International Hotels Group Co plans to buy France's Louvre Hotels Group, the second-largest European hotel group, for up to $1.43 billion. (on.wsj.com/1CoGtuE)

* Federal agents on Wednesday raided Med-Care Diabetic & Medical Supplies, a Boca Raton, Florida, medical-equipment supplier with an executive who inspired a "Wolf of Wall Street" character. (on.wsj.com/1u8ARA9)

* Apache Corp is laying off as many as 250 employees this week in one of the first major workforce cuts at an American oil producer since crude prices began to plunge last summer. (on.wsj.com/1FZqZ6p)

(Compiled by Rama Venkat Raman in Bengaluru)

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Caesars Entertainment's operating unit files for bankruptcy

Thu Jan 15, 2015 1:52am EST

Jan 15 (Reuters) - The operating unit of Caesars Entertainment Corp, the largest U.S. casino company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Thursday to implement its plan to cut $10 billion of debt.

The company said it has the support of its senior noteholders to implement the plan, which will reduce the operating unit's debt to $8.6 billion from $18.4 billion. (Reporting by Supriya Kurane in Bengaluru; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

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UPDATE 2-Caesars Entertainment's operating unit files for bankruptcy

Thu Jan 15, 2015 2:47am EST

(Adds details from statement)

Jan 15 (Reuters) - The operating unit of Caesars Entertainment Corp, the largest U.S. casino company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Thursday to implement its plan to cut $10 billion of debt.

The company said it has the support of its senior noteholders to implement the plan, which will reduce the operating unit's debt to $8.6 billion from $18.4 billion.

The bankruptcy protection was filed by Caesars Entertainment Operating Company Inc (CEOC) and several affiliates in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois.

They listed assets and liabilities of over $1 billion, according to the filing.

Much of the debt is a legacy of the $30 billion leveraged buyout of Harrah's Entertainment that was led by Apollo Global Management and TPG Capital in 2008.

Under the plan, the operating unit will be split into a casino company and a publicly traded real estate investment trust.

Caesars Entertainment, Caesars Entertainment Resort Properties and Caesars Growth Partners, which are separate entities with independent capital structures, have not filed for bankruptcy relief, the casino company said in a statement.

Properties across the entire Caesars network are open and will operate without interruption throughout the reorganization process, the company said.

Caesars named Randall Eisenberg, a managing director at AlixPartners, as the Chief Restructuring Officer of CEOC.

The bankruptcy plan is opposed by junior noteholders as they will get less than 10 percent of the $5 billion they are owed.

The junior noteholders filed an involuntary bankruptcy against the operating unit in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware on Monday. They are expected to ask to move the Chicago case to the Delaware court.

The case is in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern District of Illinois; Case no: 15-01143. (Reporting by Supriya Kurane in Bengaluru and Tom Hals in in Wilmington, Delaware; Editing by Gopakumar Warrier)

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Shippers pay into US court to prevent ship detention after OW Bunker collapse

By Keith Wallis

SINGAPORE Tue Jan 13, 2015 10:50pm EST

SINGAPORE Jan 14 (Reuters) - Shipping firms have paid millions of dollars into U.S. accounts to prevent their vessels from being detained due to non-payment of bills for fuel supplied by the bankrupt OW Bunker, indicating the impact from the collapse of the Danish firm was spreading.

OW Bunker filed for bankruptcy in November after losing almost $300 million in alleged fraudulent trading in Singapore, leading to claims by distributors who sold shipping fuel on behalf of OW Bunker but had not been paid.

Some 13 cases involving bunker bills totalling about $12 million have been filed at New York's southern district court, a maritime lawyer said.

U.S. court documents seen by Reuters show 11 firms, including Germany's Hapag Lloyd and European gas carrier Exmar, have agreed to pay about $10.3 million into court and a law firm's trust account since November.

A bond for about $180,000 has been paid into court on behalf of Hapag Lloyd to cover unpaid bunker bills, said Peter Gutowski, a partner in Freehill Hogan & Mahar. Law firms acting on behalf of other companies declined or were unable to comment.

A New Jersey judge agreed last week that $938,607 be paid into a law firm's trust account to cover unpaid bunker bills and prevent the detention of the 49,997 deadweight tonne container ship Cosco Piraeus, operated by Cosco Container Lines (Coscon).

Robert O'Connor of law firm Montgomery McCracken Walker & Rhoads, which acts for OW Bunker USA and OW Bunker North America and took action against Cosco Piraeus, said: "The ship is no longer under threat of arrest."

The ship is one of 10 vessels deployed on an express service carrying consumer and other goods between Asia and the U.S. east coast. Coscon is a unit of China Cosco Ocean Shipping (Group) , China's largest shipping company.

The U.S. payments follow similar cases in Singapore, where ship owners and operators have made payments into court rather than risk having their ship detained by firms seeking to enforce their claims for payment of fuel bills.

"Ship owners and operators lose thousands of dollars a day in revenue if a ship is detained or arrested," said Chris Howse, partner in Hong Kong law firm Howse Williams Bowers, which is involved in several OW Bunker legal cases.

An arrest and any resulting delay could open the door for legal action by the vessel's charterer, Howse added. (Editing by Henning Gloystein and Himani Sarkar)

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UPDATE 1-Creditors seek to put on a hold Caesars' looming bankruptcy

Tue Jan 13, 2015 9:33pm EST

(Recasts with junior creditors seeking to put hold on expected bankruptcy filing)

By Tom Hals

Jan 13 (Reuters) - Junior creditors of Caesars Entertainment Corp moved on Tuesday to put on hold the expected bankruptcy of the casino company's operating unit, which has said it could file for Chapter 11 as soon as Thursday.

On Monday, junior noteholders filed an involuntary bankruptcy against the operating unit in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Delaware. The next day they asked the judge assigned to the involuntary case to stay any voluntary bankruptcy until the Delaware bankruptcy judge can rule on the proper court to hear the case.

Caesars and its creditors are jostling for leverage as the largest U.S. casino company seeks to build support for its complex plan to cut the operating unit's debt to $8.6 billion from $18.4 billion.

Earlier on Tuesday, a Caesars attorney told a Delaware state court judge the company will seek to extend to itself the legal shield of bankruptcy protection once its operating unit files for Chapter 11.

A lawyer for the junior creditors said the plan - which would halt their litigation over the proposed restructuring - was "extraordinary", because the parent company will ask for the benefits of bankruptcy without actually filing for Chapter 11.

Its restructuring plan has the support of senior noteholders but other creditors have been trying to block the overhaul, including junior noteholders who sued the casino company and various subsidiaries in a Delaware court in August.

Eric Seiler, an attorney for Caesars, told a court hearing that once a voluntary bankruptcy has been filed, the company will ask the judge to put on hold the Delaware lawsuit against all the Caesars units, not just the bankrupt subsidiary.

Caesars has asked the Delaware court to dismiss the case, although Caesars is facing a similar lawsuit in New York as well.

An attorney for the junior noteholders, Bruce Bennett of Jones Day, called extending the so-called automatic stay of bankruptcy to the parent "extraordinary relief for a third party that is not in bankruptcy."

Bennett said he expected the lawsuit could continue against the non-bankrupt parent and subsidiaries after the operating unit files for Chapter 11.

The lawsuit that the Delaware court has been asked to dismiss alleges the operating company, which issued $4.5 billion in junior notes, was plundered by shareholders of the parent company and moved beyond the reach of creditors.

Caesars has said the various asset transfers moved capital-intensive projects out of the operating unit to free up cash. (Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Editing by Grant McCool and Ken Wills)

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PRESS DIGEST - Wall Street Journal - Jan 14

Wed Jan 14, 2015 1:31am EST

Jan 14 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories in the Wall Street Journal. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* White House adviser John Podesta will take on a senior advisory role in Hillary Clinton's emerging presidential bid after he leaves the administration in February - another sign that Clinton will launch a 2016 campaign. (on.wsj.com/1IsWt2k)

* A surge of oil from outside of the Middle East flooded global energy markets. The worldwide thirst for crude did not keep up. OPEC stood by as prices fell and then fell more. Welcome to the world of oil in 2015 - a repeat in surprising ways of the story 30 years ago. (on.wsj.com/1IuEbhk)

* For years, the United States has ceded more and more of its manufacturing to low-cost corners of the global economy. Some companies now want to come home. (on.wsj.com/1FTrbDZ)

* The man who last week murdered four Jewish hostages in a kosher grocery and shot down a police officer nursed deep resentment against French law enforcement. (on.wsj.com/1z9NDoP)

* The World Bank cut its outlook for global growth Tuesday, saying a strengthening U.S. economy and plummeting oil prices will not be enough to offset deepening trouble in the eurozone and emerging markets. (on.wsj.com/1IJ3xX2)

* MetLife Inc is challenging the federal government's decision to subject the insurer to stricter oversight, setting up the biggest test yet for regulators responsible for protecting the U.S. financial system from another crisis. (on.wsj.com/1AZqlTf)

* The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday adopted a borrower-friendly interpretation of a federal law that gives consumers the right in some circumstances to unwind certain mortgage loans. (on.wsj.com/1swJxou)

* Adidas AG plans to sharply ramp up endorsement deals with U.S. pro football and baseball players in the next few years, as the German sportswear maker tries to gain traction in the American market. (on.wsj.com/1yafvZZ)

* Caesars Entertainment Corp largest unit is preparing to file for bankruptcy protection as soon as Thursday. (on.wsj.com/1C5gYhC)

* Alibaba Group Holding Ltd said on Wednesday it had bought a controlling stake in a Chinese Internet marketing firm AdChina, in a move aimed at expanding its advertising business. (on.wsj.com/1BZm413) (Compiled by Rama Venkat Raman in Bengaluru)

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UPDATE 2-Hedge funds push for Caesars bankruptcy, seek examiner

Mon Jan 12, 2015 10:25pm EST

(Adds certain lenders opposing the plan in paragraphs 8,9; adds closing share price)

By Tom Hals

Jan 12 (Reuters) - A group of hedge fund creditors of Caesars Entertainment Corp sought on Monday to force its main operating unit into bankruptcy and to appoint an independent examiner to investigate what they allege was the plundering of the company.

The move follows Friday's announcement that the largest U.S. casino operator had the backing of senior noteholders for its plan to cut the debt of the operating unit, known as CEOC, to $8.6 billion from $18.4 billion.

Under that plan, the hedge funds that filed the involuntary bankruptcy would be paid around 12 percent of what they are owed. They hold claims of $41.1 million, according to court papers.

The funds alleged that insiders of Caesars "plundered" billions of dollars in choice assets from the operating unit, including Planet Hollywood and The Quad in Las Vegas. They asked the Delaware Bankruptcy Court to appoint an examiner to investigate deals involving the operating company dating back to 2010.

"The action is designed to injure CEOC while these junior creditors attempt to boost their standing," Caesars said in a statement. The company has said the asset moves were aimed at freeing the operating unit of capital-intensive properties.

The involuntary bankruptcy petition was filed by affiliates of Appaloosa Management, Oaktree Capital Management and Tennenbaum Capital Partners, which are large investors in financially distressed companies.

"They want to throw sand in the gears and slow down a prenegotiated plan," said Jonathan Lipson, a professor at the Temple University School of Law.

Certain first lien bank lenders of CEOC said late on Monday they have agreed not to support, consent to or approve the proposed restructuring deal unless the transaction is approved by them, making the bankruptcy process more complex.

The group, holding more than 50 percent of the aggregate principal amount of first lien bank debt, is advised by Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP and Rothschild Inc, the statement said. It didn't name the lenders involved in the group.

Examiners are often frowned upon by the lawyers who restructure companies because their investigations can derail a bankruptcy. Caesars creditors seem to be hoping to repeat the Chapter 11 case of Dynegy, a power plant operator.

Dynegy Holdings filed for bankruptcy in 2011 and junior creditors alleged assets had been moved to the parent company beyond their reach. An examiner found those moves were fraudulent and eventually the transferred assets were brought into the bankruptcy for the benefit of the creditors.

A company can contest an involuntary bankruptcy or convert it to a voluntary Chapter 11. The operating unit has said it will file for bankruptcy by Jan. 20.

The casino operator has been weighed down with debt from a $30 billion leveraged buyout in 2008 by TPG Capital and Apollo Global Management.

Caesars shares closed down 4.2 percent at $13.25 on Monday on the Nasdaq. (Reporting by Rohit T. K. and Supriya Kurane in Bengaluru, Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Editing by Saumyadeb Chakrabarty, Dan Grebler and Gopakumar Warrier)

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