Hello traders!

US stocks ended lower tonight as caution a day ahead of the Fed's latest interest-rate decision overshadowed lower crude-oil prices.

The Dow closed down 31.15 points at 10,374.38 while the Nasdaq fell 1 point to 2,068.89 and the S&P500 dipped 1.72 points to 1,199.85.

See you in the morning with the latest updates....

G.

Good morning traders!

In quiet trading in Asia this morning the Nikkei was down 15.86 at 11,561.58 and the Hang Seng up eleven points at 14,288.28.

Oil was slightly higher at $57.44 a barrel, up 18 cents from its close of $57.26 in NY.

Off to find some UK news.......

Happy trading!

G.

BUNZL UPGRADED TO 'BUY' VS 'HOLD' AT CITIGROUP

PEARSON H1 2004 OPG PROFIT UNDER IFRS 9 MLN STG VS LOSS 77 UNDER GAAP

Dixons upgraded to 'neutral' vs 'sell' at Merrill Lynch

Aviva upgraded to 'overweight' at JP Morgan

BURBERRY INITIATED 'BUY' AT ABN AMRO; TARGET PRICE 570P

HSBC CUT TO 'UNDERWEIGHT' VS 'EQUAL-WEIGHT' AT MORGAN STANLEY

PERSIMMON UPGRADED TO 'EQUAL-WEIGHT' VS 'UNDERWEIGHT' AT MORGAN STANLEY

BOVIS DOWNGRADED TO 'UNDERWEIGHT' VS 'EQUAL-WEIGHT' AT MORGAN STANLEY

Outlook http://www.moneyam.com/action/news/showArticle?id=850220

Morning all. Thanks Greystone & Digger.

AFX UK at a glance share guide - 2

MARKETS
FTSE 100 5,109.1, up 18.7
FTSE 250 7,329.1, up 18.7
DJIA 10,374.50, down 31.10
Nasdaq Comp 2,068.89, down 1.00
S&P 500 1,199.85, down 1.70
Tokyo: Nikkei closed at 11,584.01, up 6.57
Hang Seng midday 14,288.28, up 11.00
Gold 437.25 usd (436.45 usd)
Oil - Brent Aug 56.15 usd (57.18 usd)

BREAKING NEWS
* Aid will not lift growth in Africa, warns IMF - FT
* BOOTS plans to bring in other companies to fill excess space in prime locations - FT
* High street sales suffered their worst year-on-year fall for 22 years in June as many retailers pulled forward summer sales to lure shoppers, a CBI survey says - FT
* France Telecom drops Wanadoo; group marks its return with doubling of dividend; Orange earmarked for all international mobile, broadband and commercial services - FT
* Boardroom rift at EUROTUNNEL looks set to continue after Herve Huas, a key opponent of chairman Jaques Gounon, vows to remain a director at the Channel tunnel operator - FT
* ENTERPRISE INNS pulls out of talks with Cinven over Spirit - FT
* Unions say GROUP 4 SECURICOR is unfair to workers - Guardian

PRESS COMMENT
FT
THE LEX COLUMN comments on ITV (on balance, the shares should rise), France Telecom, Global brewers (compared with the broader market, defensive brewing stocks look attractive, not least on valuation grounds; but it might take a little longer for internally generated advances to provide extra fizz), Japanese investment
Express
CABLE & WIRELESS (renewed talk of takeover interest at France Telecom) - BANGO (makes AIM debut today) - SHARE WHISPER: ANKER (according to observers, a bigger software company has Anker in its sights) - WHO'S DEALING: TELECOM PLUS (finance director tops up stake and now holds 0.56 pct)
Times
DIRECTORS' DEALINGS: E2V TECHNOLOGIES (chief executive and finance director each sells 1 mln stg worth of shares) - TEMPUS: INDEPENDENT NEWS & MEDIA (hold), SAVILLS (cautious investors should probably lock in at least some profits), INCHCAPE (hold)
Telegraph
QUESTOR: SAVILLS (take profits), ARENA LEISURE (for gamblers only), ISLAMIC BANK OF BRITAIN (avoid)
Guardian
o2 (rumours that a private equity group is weighing the merits of a bid) - BABCOCK INTERNATIONAL (speculation that it is in takeover talks with its larger competitor VT GROUP)
Independent
THE INVESTMENT COLUMN: SINCLAIR PHARMA (wait) - MONEYBOX (gossips reckon a formal takeover offer is on the way) - PERSIAN GOLD (expected to float on AIM today)
Mail
BABCOCK INTERNATIONAL (VT GROUP merger buzz) - ZEST GROUP (worth watching)
The Shares Magazine
Top 3 Index performers - FTSE 100: INTERNATIONAL POWER, XSTRATA, BHP BILLITON; FTSE 250: BURREN ENERGY, DANA PETROLEUM, CHARTER; FTSE Small Cap: STANELCO, ASHTEAD, ENTERTAINMENT RIGHTS; FTSE Fledgling: QXL RICARDO, PGI, BISICHI MINING; AIM: ASIA ENERGY, GAMING CORPORATION, ACCIDENT EXCHANGE - Plays of the Week: buy INSPACE, METAL TECH - Play Updates: buy CRANSWICK; stopped (lossed) Out: TELECOM PLUS, BRADY, SCAPA GROUP, CHRYSALIS