08/03-2010 13:04:00: =DJ EUROPEAN MIDDAY BRIEFING FROM DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

  AMERICAN MARKETS OUTLOOK: Futures indicate a flat open Monday in subdued
trading, with little direction.

  A lack of economic data means that the markets are likely to stay in a
holding pattern throughout the day, Ashraf Laidi, chief market strategist at
CMC Markets in London said.

  "Despite a 2% rally in Asia we're seeing equities stall in Europe. U.S.
equities are still looking for direction after rallying on better-than-expected
jobs data last week," Laidi said.

  At 1141 GMT, S&P 500 futures were down 0.85 points at 1135.65, Nasdaq 100
futures were down 1.50 points at 1884.00 and Dow industrial futures were up
6.50 points at 10,542.50.

  EUROPEAN MARKETS: European stocks are a shade lower around midday, with the
EuroStoxx 50 index down 0.1% at 2875.84, as traders examine the latest German
industrial production data. ING Bank says in the very short-term, the bad
winter weather is a clear impediment to growth. "The construction sector is
suffering from the snowiest winter since the early 1970s. However, under the
solid blanket of snow, the fundamentals are promising, scotching any double-dip
fantasies quickly," ING said.

  London's FTSE 100 is down 0.2% at 5587.04, staying in the red, having eased
back from its recent 18-month highs. The index is finding it difficult to
sustain momentum around the 5600 level.

  Bunds and gilts are little changed. At 1130 GMT, June bunds were down 0.02 at
122.50, while June gilts were down 0.28 at 113.96.

  Confidence that the Greek debt crisis will now be resolved has helped to
boost the euro in European trading. At 1130 GMT, the dollar was up at Y90.42,
the euro was up at $1.3645 and the pound was down at $1.5125.

  ===========================

  TOP STORIES:

  EU MEMBERS CRAFTING SUPPORT PLAN FOR GREECE: French President Nicolas Sarkozy
says a number of European Union countries are preparing a support package for
Greece, even though he doesn't believe the Greek government will need financial
help.

  GERMAN INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT REBOUNDS BUT COLD SNAP BITES: German industrial
production rebounds in January from December, but despite strong orders the
rise is less than expected, partly due to a construction slump caused by an
unusually cold winter in Europe.

  PORTUGAL PRESENTS NEW PLAN TO CUT DEFICIT: Portugal's government presents to
opposition parties its proposals to cut the budget deficit. Portugal is under
severe market pressure to rein in its deficit as Greece's debt crisis has
fueled concerns over other highly indebted euro-zone countries.

  SHELL, PETROCHINA BID $2.96B FOR ARROW ENERGY: Royal Dutch Shell and
PetroChina offer to pay about $2.96 billion in cash for Arrow Energy, in an
effort to secure a bigger foothold in the booming coal seam gas industry in
Queensland state. Arrow Energy shares close up 46.8%.

     ============================

  INSIGHT & ANALYSIS FROM DOW JONES NEWSWIRES:

  =FOREX FOCUS: As the Australian economy continues to accelerate ahead of the
global recovery, so should the Australian dollar. Last week illustrated just
why the Aussie should soon revisit its 2008 high at $0.9850.

  =MONEY TALKS: On the face of it aluminum, the most widely traded metal in the
world apart from steel, is a solid bet on an economic recovery, but as so often
is the case with commodities there is a caveat.

  ===========================

  STILL TO COME
 ET/GMT   COUNTRY/PERIOD
0430/0930  UK   Feb     BoE narrow money
0600/1100  FRA  Jan     OECD Standardized Unemployment Rates
0600/1100  GER  Jan     Indus Production Index
0800/1300  UK           BoE MPC Member Barker speech at NIESR
0815/1315  CAN  Feb     Housing Starts
1000/1500  US   Feb     Conference Board Employment Trends Index
1200/1700  EU           ECB Member Stark speaks in Arlington, Va.


  ===========================

  OTHER NEWS:

  GREEK UNIONS STEP UP PROTESTS AHEAD OF STRIKE: Greek tax officials, court
workers, sanitation workers and local government staff will stage a series of
strikes and walk-outs this week, culminating in a 24-hour general strike
Thursday to protest the government's latest austerity measures.

  GREECE SOVEREIGN 5-YEAR CDS TIGHTENS: The cost of insuring Greek sovereign
debt against default fell Monday following French President Nicolas Sarkozy's
reassurance that the Europe Union would support Greece if required to do so.

  EU READY TO PROPOSE EUROPEAN MONETARY FUND: The European Commission is in
early stage talks with euro-zone countries about setting up a European Monetary
Fund or a similar mechanism to improve economic cooperation and surveillance in
Europe, a commission spokesman says.

  GERMAN STEEL OUTPUT UP 34% ON YEAR: German raw steel production in February
rose 34% on the year to 3.42 million tons, German steel association
Stahl-Zentrum said.

  UK PROBES KRAFT OVER CADBURY COMMENTS: U.K. regulators are investigating
whether Kraft Foods misled employees and investors during its battle to take
over Cadbury, people familiar with the matter tell The Wall Street Journal.

  PRUDENTIAL SEEKS HONG KONG LISTING BEFORE RIGHTS ISSUE: U.K. insurer
Prudential says it plans to list on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange before it
launches the $20 billion rights issue needed to help fund its acquisition of
American International Group's Asian life-insurance business.

  PRUDENTIAL WON'T SELL BUSINESSES TO RAISE FUNDS: Prudential PLC (PRU.LN)
doesn't need to sell any of its businesses to fund its $35.5 billion bid for
the Asian arm of AIG, Chairman Harvey McGrath was quoted as saying by the
Sunday Telegraph.

  PRISA SELLS STAKE TO HELP PAY DOWN DEBT: Spanish media company Prisa sells
more than 50% of its shares to U.S.-based Liberty Acquisition Holdings, the
latest of a series of drastic moves to pay down its crippling debt.

  AUDI GLOBAL SALES RISE 20%, FUELED BY CHINA: Luxury car maker Audi says that
global sales rose 20% year-on-year in February to around 75,900 cars as a 62%
sales rise in China more than offset a 3.3% decline on its German home turf.

  PETROFAC PROFIT UP 33%, MIDDLE EAST DRIVES GROWTH: U.K.-based oil services
company Petrofac says its 2009 full-year net profit rose 33% following a record
intake of new business driven by contracts from the Middle East and North
Africa.

  LONDON STOCK EXCHANGE SELLS 9% STAKE IN TURQUOISE: The London Stock Exchange
Group says it sold a 9% stake in its Turquoise trading facility, a move that
allows the exchange operator to keep its majority stake in the business while
increasing the number of its partners.

  CREDIT SUISSE SAYS NO TO NEW TAX DODGERS: Credit Suisse Group says the Swiss
bank won't accept new funds from wealthy clients seeking to circumvent their
home tax authority if it knows the money is not being declared.

  -By Eva Szalay, Dow Jones Newswires; 4420-7842-9449; eva.szalay@dowjones.com


  Click here to go to Dow Jones NewsPlus, a web front page of today's most
important business and market news, analysis and commentary:
http://www.djnewsplus.com/ge/al?rnd=xw%2BymPVdlTz6TDL3EDnXgQ%3D%3D. You can use
this link on the day this article is published and the following day.


  (END) Dow Jones Newswires

  08-03-10 1204GMT

Copyright (c) 2010 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

Nyheten er levert av DJNB.