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JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Mobile phone group Vodafone (VOD.L: Quote, Profile, Research) has an effective economic interest of 98.7 pct in South Africa's VenFin (VNFJ.J: Quote, Profile, Research) and holds and an effective voting interest of 99.3 percent, the firms said on Monday. Vodafone is paying around $2.4 billion (1.4 billion pounds) for VenFin in an agreed deal which will give it access to ...

By David Burrows LONDON (Reuters) - A property portfolio made up entirely of buy-to-let properties may not seem so appealing now that yields are flattening and capital appreciation has slowed, but there are alternative ways to make money from the housing market. Commercial property funds, spreadbetting against a house price index or participating in floats such as Rightmove.co.uk, could reduce v ...

SHANGHAI (Dow Jones) -- Earnings reports from two key online game operators and China's leading Internet travel firm will keep investors busy this week, plus local search leader Baidu.com fends off Google. The heart of earnings season arrives this week for China-based tech firms, as local Internet search leader Baidu.com Inc. (BIDU) is set to report earnings on Tuesday. This follows in the wake ...

LONDON (Dow Jones) -- State-owned carrier Indian, formerly known as Indian Airlines, on Monday signed a $2.5 billion deal to buy 43 Airbus aircraft. "It is a big order with a value of over $2.5 billion. It is a great achievement," the head of European defense group EADS, Noel Forgeard, told journalists. He was quoted in a report by AFX News. The deal, which had been under negotiation since 2 ...

By Keiron Henderson LONDON (Reuters) - A spike of more than $1 in the price of oil boosted leading shares on Monday but blue chips showed only modest gains as investors waited for much-talked-about bids to materialise. Oil shares, which account for about 20 percent of the FTSE 100's index weighting, pushed ahead as unrest disrupted output in Nigeria. Concerns also persisted over Iran's nuclear  ...

By Reed Stevenson and Fang Yan AMSTERDAM/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - European steel group Arcelor (CELR.PA: Quote, Profile, Research) on Monday dismissed a call to open talks with suitor Mittal Steel (ISPA.AS: Quote, Profile, Research) by a hedge fund known for its active participation in bid situations. Hedge fund Atticus Capital said it had written to Arcelor's chief executive to express dissatisfa ...

TOKYO (Reuters) - The Nikkei share average hit its lowest level in nearly a month on Monday, falling 1.58 percent as Sony Corp. (6758.T: Quote, Profile, Research) extended losses after a brokerage downgrade and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (8306.T: Quote, Profile, Research) declined after cutting its profit outlook. Continued net selling of Japanese equities by foreign investors also wei ...

By Tobias Buck in Brussels and Norma Cohen in LondonPublished: February 19 2006 22:01 | Last updated: February 19 2006 22:01A powerful alliance of banks and financial groups will on Monday urge the European Commission to force the break up of some of the region's biggest stock exchanges. They want the Brussels regulator to take aim at the "vertical silos", such as Germany's Deutsche Börse, Italy's Borsa Italiana and Spain's Bolsa, known as the BSE. All three stand out from rival exchanges such  ...

Richard Dyson, Financial Mail19 February 2006 KENT Reliance Building Society has just issued £20m of permanent interest bearing shares (Pibs), a reminder to income-seekers of the appeal of these often-forgotten shares. OTHER STORIES Market report: Friday close Sunday newspaper share tips Fuel cards power a new boom New on the market Patsystems poised for profits growth  ...