(Adds Associated British Foods, Elliott, Pfizer Inc (NYSE:PFE), Canadian
Pacific, Bilfinger, BNP Paribas ,)
April 8 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers,
acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2000 GMT on Friday:
** Verizon Communications Inc (NYSE:VZ) VZ.N is ready to make a bid
for Yahoo's web business, and hopes to make a merger more
successful by also making an offer for a stake in Yahoo's Japan
subsidiary, Bloomberg reported on Thursday, citing a source
familiar with the matter. The U.S. Justice Department on Friday called on a
regulator to reject a voting trust Canadian Pacific CP.TO has
proposed as part of its takeover bid for Norfolk Southern (NYSE:NSC)
NSC.N , saying it risked harming competition in the rail
industry. French media group Vivendi VIV.PA agreed on Friday to
buy the pay-TV operation of Italian broadcaster Mediaset
MS.MI , completing a major step in billionaire businessman
Vincent Bollore's plan to build a southern European content and
video-on-demand powerhouse. U.S investment fund Elliott said on Thursday it had asked
an Italian court to raise the offer price of a past takeover bid
on rail signalling company Ansaldo STS STS.MI to 15 euros
($17.08) per share from 9.68 euros. Associated British Foods ABF.L , the biggest shareholder
in Illovo Sugar ILVJ.J , has reached an agreement to buy the
rest of the South African sugar producer for 5.6 billion rand
($370 million) after raising an earlier offer. German engineering services group Bilfinger GBFG.DE is
in talks with France's Engie ENGIE.PA and buyout group EQT
about a potential sale of its Building and Facility unit, people
familiar with the matter said. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (NYSE:HOT) Inc HOT.N and
Marriott International Inc MAR.O said on Friday their
stockholders voted for Marriott's acquisition of Starwood to
create the world's largest hotel company. BNP Paribas BNPP.PA has no intention of expanding its
presence in Italy, the chief executive of the French bank said
on Friday. Activist investor Starboard Value LP, which has an
economic stake of 9.8 percent in Depomed Inc DEPO.O , in a
letter criticized the drugmaker's board over corporate
governance deficiencies and other matters and urged it to
explore a potential sale. Nigeria plans to split state oil company NNPC into two to
help ease a planned stake sale and wants to sell at least 40
percent of a newly created National Petroleum Co (NPC) in coming
years, according to a draft of a long-awaited oil bill seen by
Reuters. ANZ Banking Group ANZ.AX is weighing the sale of its 24
percent stake in Malaysian lender AMMB Holdings Bhd (AmBank)
AMMB.KL and is also seeking to reduce its 20 percent stake in
China's Shanghai Rural Commercial Bank as the Australian bank
steps up efforts to exit minority stakes in Asia, people
familiar with the matter said. Czech investor EPH is set to acquire Vattenfall's
VATN.UL loss-making German lignite coal mines and associated
power plants in Germany, three people familiar with the matter
said on Friday. BM&FBovespa SA BVMF3.SA , Latin America's largest
financial exchange operator, on Thursday sold its 4 percent
stake in larger peer CME Group Inc (NASDAQ:CME) in a move aimed at raising
funds to buy a Brazilian rival. Fairfax India Holdings Corp FIHu.TO is close to
acquiring a minority stake in privately-held Indian
petrochemical company Sanmar Chemicals Group via a roughly $300
million investment in the company, according to two sources
familiar with the matter. Around 400 Chinese citizens have signed a letter to
protest the purchase of Swiss-based seeds and pesticides company
Syngenta by state-owned ChemChina, saying the deal would
eventually lead to genetically modified crops being sown across
swathes of the country. Hanwha Techwin 012450.KS , a defense arm of South Korean
conglomerate Hanwha Group, said on Friday that it has agreed to
buy its domestic peer Doosan DST for 695 billion won ($603
million). SMA Solar S92G.DE , Germany's largest solar group, is
taking a 27 percent stake in Tigo Energy Inc as part of a $20
million capital increase of the Los Gatos-based group.
South Africa's Illovo Sugar ILVJ.J said on Friday its
largest shareholder, Associated British Foods ABF.L , has
agreed to buy the remaining stake in the company for 5.6 billion
rand ($370 million).