International stocks trading in New York closed higher on
Wednesday, with the Bank of New York index of American depositary
receipts adding 0.3% to 152.34. The European index was essentially
flat at 152.02, the Asian index added 0.4% to 144.34, the Latin
American index jumped 2.1% to 285.37 and the emerging markets index
rose 0.8% to 278.17. Among the companies with shares that actively
traded was Noah Education Holdings Ltd. (NED).
Noah Education, a leading provider of education services in
China, agreed to a boosted takeover bid that values the company at
about $107 million. Some of the shareholders of the China-based
education company, including an affiliate of Morgan Stanley's (MS)
private equity arm in Asia, have offered $2.85 a share to buy out
the company, up five cents a share from December's bid. Shares rose
1.9% to $2.75.
The board of directors of Brazilian phone company Oi SA (OIBR,
OIBR4.BR) has authorized the issuance of up to a maximum 7.8
billion in new shares, worth some 23.6 billion Brazilian reais
($10.38 billion) at today's market price, as part of its plan to
merge with Portugal Telecom SGPS SA (PT, PTC.LB). Oi shares added
4.6% to $1.36.
A third-party probe into the Japanese unit of Swiss drug giant
Novartis AG (NVS, NOVN.VX) said its staff tried to cover up
evidence and were involved in a number of questionable activities,
but concluded that data wasn't falsified in clinical research into
leukemia treatments. Shares edged up 0.1% to $84.57.
In the latest of a string of recent drug-development setbacks,
GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK, GSK.LN) stopped a late-stage trial of its
cancer vaccine after a series of disappointing results. Shares
slipped 0.6% to $53.00.
Brazilian mining company Vale SA (VALE, VALE3.BR, VALE5.BR) said
Wednesday it has suspended coal shipments from its mines in
Mozambique after a train conductor was injured in an attack that
authorities are blaming on former rebel group Renamo. Shares still
rose 4% to $14.34.
Write to Anna Prior at anna.prior@wsj.com
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