International stocks trading in New York were mixed on
Wednesday.
The BNY Mellon index of American depositary receipts edged up
0.01% to 145.41. The European index eased 0.01% to 143.46, the
Asian index edged down 0.03% to 153.31, the Latin American index
rose 0.22% to 218.15 and the emerging markets index increased 0.58%
to 262.92. Qihoo 360 Technology Co. (QIHU) was among the companies
with ADRs that traded actively.
ADRs of Qihoo rose 6.2% to $70.15 after the Chinese Internet
firm reported that it received a management-buyout offer valuing
the company at about $10 billion, marking potentially the largest
deal yet in a wave of going-private offers for U.S.-traded Chinese
firms. Qihoo said Wednesday that it received an offer from a group
that included Chairman and Chief Executive Zhou Hongyi to take the
company private at $77 per ADS.
The total amount paid by banks to settle a civil lawsuit tied to
allegations traders manipulated the currency market has now reached
almost $2 billion following a recent round of settlement
agreements. HSBC Holdings PLC (HSBC, HSBA.LN, 0005.HK), Barclays
PLC (BCS, BARC.LN), BNP Paribas SA and Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
recently have signed agreements to settle the case, The Wall Street
Journal reported. HSBC agreed to pay $285 million and Barclays $375
million, the Journal said. Barclays ADRs rose two cents to $16.56
and HSBC rose six cents to $46.71.
BT Group PLC (BT, BT.A.LN) said its proposed acquisition of
mobile operator EE will create a "true digital champion," as the
U.K. fixed-line telecommunications company fights back against
claims the deal could erode competition and lead to higher prices.
ADRs rose 2.2% to $71.25.
The U.S. Justice Department granted an antitrust clearance for
Finnish telecom network equipment supplier Nokia Corp. (NOK,
NOK1V.HE) to proceed with its 15.6 billion euros ($17.6 billion)
deal for French rival Alcatel-Lucent (ALU, ALU.FR). The companies
also are making progress with the regulatory approval processes in
the remaining relevant jurisdictions, Nokia said in a statement.
The deal is expected to close in the first half of next year. Nokia
ADRs fell two cents to $7.12 and Alcatel-Lucent fell 1.1% to
$3.73.
Pearson PLC (PSO, PSON.LN) agreed to sell its PowerSchool
business to Vista Equity Partners for a gross consideration of $350
million in cash. Pearson's chief executive said the sale of
PowerSchool--an administrative system rather than a teaching and
assessment tool--will help further simplify the U.K.-based
publishing and education company as it aims to make its products
more global and digital. ADRs rose 16 cents to $19.93.
Barclays thinks Statoil ASA (STO, STL.OS) is taking the right
steps to weather the oil price downturn by controlling its cost
base, driving efficiency improvements and also being prepared to
use significant flexibility in capital spending beyond 2016. The
bank also sees these actions as appropriate for the current
environment and said that in some cases the Norwegian oil major is
doing better than its peers. However, Barclays expects Statoil's
earnings to lag behind the rest of the sector this year given
limited downstream protection. Statoil ADRs rose 2% to $18.53.
WPP PLC (WPPGY, WPP.LN) more than doubled its stake in
Denmark-based TechEdge to 49% from 20%. The U.K.-based advertising
giant said the increased stake in the television-audience
measurement software supplier is part of the WPP's broader effort
to develop services in fast-growing and important markets and to
strengthen its capabilities in digital media. ADRs of WPP rose
seven cents to $114.85.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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