International stocks trading in New York closed mixed Wednesday,
with the Bank of New York index of American depositary receipts
rising 0.2% to 151.30. The European index slipped 0.1% to 150.48,
the Asian index added 0.7% to 147.70, the Latin American index rose
0.7% to 269.02 and the emerging markets index climbed 0.7% to
269.53. Among the companies with stocks that actively traded were
ABB Ltd. (ABB, ABB.SK, ABBN.VX) and VisionChina Media Inc.
(VISN).
ABB said Wednesday fourth-quarter earnings were hit by roughly
$260 million in charges as storms in the North Sea delayed
wind-turbine projects, compounding unexpected slowdown in its main
power-systems business. Zurich-based ABB, which specializes in
energy equipment and automated factory systems, said the unit
missed its profit target in the three months to Dec. 31, a
performance it described as "disappointing." The rest of ABB's
performance was in line with expectations, the company said. Shares
fell 4.1% to $25.59.
Outdoor-advertising company VisionChina Media said it entered
into an exclusive deal with Chinese Internet-search firm Baidu Inc.
(BIDU, K3SD.SG) to promote Baidu's games brand and products.
VisionChina shares jumped 16% to $28.15, while Baidu shares rose 1%
to $174.43.
Brazilian airline Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes SA (GOL,
GOLL4.BR) shares rose sharply following a conference call with
investors in which company officials pledged to continue building
on a 24% revenue increase per passenger mile posted for the fourth
quarter. Shares rose 5% to $4.88.
Swiss drug maker Novartis AG (NVS, NOVN.VX) is cutting more than
500 jobs in the U.S. due to the planned shutdown of a manufacturing
plant, the second such restructuring of the company's operations in
as many days. Basel-based Novartis said it was shutting its
manufacturing facility in Suffern, N.Y., a closure that would
affect roughly 525 employees. Some staff involved in "necessary
functions" may be transferred to other facilities, the company
said. The closure was prompted by an expected fall in demand for
Diovan, a best-selling blood-pressure drug whose patent has
expired. Shares edged down 0.7% to $80.79.
Brazilian retail bank Itau Unibanco Holding SA (ITUB, ITUB3.BR,
ITUB4.BR) put its unit that insures high-risk projects up for sale
because the high-risk division isn't part of the bank's core
business, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal that
cites a person close to the talks. Shares edged down 0.5% to
$12.75.
Write to Anna Prior at anna.prior@wsj.com
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