International stocks trading in New York closed higher on
Thursday. The BNY Mellon index of American depositary receipts rose
nearly 1% to 143.85. The European index increased 1.2% to 141.8,
the Asian index edged up 0.6% to 147.99, the Latin American index
rose 0.8% to 228.94 and the emerging-markets index increased 0.2%
to 270.15. Among the companies with shares that actively traded was
Tata Motors Ltd. (TTM, 500570.BY).
Tata Motors posted an unexpected 26% drop in profit for the
quarter ended Dec. 31, driven by sluggish sales at its Jaguar Land
Rover Automotive PLC unit and a loss at operations in its home
market of India. Shares fell 5.3% to $47.85.
ABB Ltd. (ABB, ABBN.VX, ABB.SK) reported a 30% rise in earnings
for its latest quarter on Thursday, as the Zurich-based power and
automation giant's new strategic direction produced some early
gains. Shares of the world's largest maker of power grids rose 2.6%
to $20.36.
AstraZeneca PLC (AZN, AZN.LN) moved to further bulk up its
respiratory-drug business with the acquisition of Actavis PLC's
branded respiratory-drug business in the U.S. and Canada for an
initial $600 million. The deal was announced as the U.K. drug maker
also reported a disappointing set of fourth-quarter results. Shares
fell 2.6% to $69.25.
Cemex SAB (CX, CEMEX.MX) said it plans to sell between $1
billion and $1.5 billion in assets over the next 12 to 18 months to
chip away at its heavy debt burden and related financial expenses.
Shares of the Mexico City-based cement company rose 14% to
$9.98.
Sanofi SA (SNY) reported a sharp rise in fourth-quarter profit,
helped by lower charges, and said it would name a new chief
executive in the coming weeks. The Paris-based pharmaceutical
giant's shares rose 3% to $48.42.
Teva Pharmaceuticals Industries Ltd. (TEVA, TEVA.TV) said its
profit rose in the most recent quarter as a drop in costs offset
revenue declines driven in part by currency fluctuations. Shares
rose 1.9% to $57.54.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires