Mittal stuns markets with US$23bn bid for Arcelor
London, UK: The world's largest steelmaker, Mittal Steel Co, on Friday announced an unsolicited US$22.8 billion offer for rival Arcelor SA. Luxembourg-based Arcelor called it a hostile takeover attempt and said the company's directors will meet shortly to take a position on the offer. In a statement, Arcelor said that it ''…underlines the hostile character of this move that takes place without prior discussions or consultations between both companies.''

Before Arcelor's reaction, Mittal CEO and chairman Lakshmi Mittal had acknowledged at a news conference in London that Arcelor CEO Guy Dolle had rejected the idea of a merger during brief talks on January 14.

The bid is part of Mittal's attempt to form a global powerhouse capable of producing more than 100 million tonnes a year. The steel industry has been consolidating rapidly in recent years and Mittal has been openly looking for acquisitions to increase its market share as demand from China and India rises.

Mittal's offer values Arcelor shares at US$24.50 each, a 27 per cent premium to Thursday's close.

Interestingly, if the deal should materialize, Mittal has said that it will sell Canadian automotive-steel maker Dofasco Inc. to German-based steelmaker ThyssenKrupp AG. Dofasco, just earlier this week had agreed to a US$4.85bn takeover by Arcelor.
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Boston Scientific receives stern FDA warning
New York: Boston Scientific's shares tumbled 7 per cent on Friday after the Food and Drug Administration issued a stern regulatory warning to the US heart devicemaker, citing "serious violations" of processes to report product problems and manufacturing quality. The FDA said the deficiencies required changes on a "corporate-wide basis", and it could withhold new product approvals until it was satisfied with the changes.

The warning has come even as Boston Scientific was yet to get over the euphoria of having won the bidding battle for Guidant for US$27bn, or US$80 per share.

Some more bad news poured in for Boston on Friday as Guidant reported a sharp fall in sales and profits in the fourth quarter, because of a product recall. The recall had scuttled its deal originally struck in December 2004 with J&J, which negotiated a lower price, allowing Boston to counterbid.

On Friday, Boston's shares fell US$1.52 to US$21.63, below the collar threshold in the deal of US$22.62, implying a significantly lower price for Guidant of about US$78.32 per share.

However, the final price will be determined by a 20-day average of Boston's share price before closing the deal. The falling deal price once again raises the spectre of J&J returning to the fray.
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Chevron reports Q4 revenues of US$53bn
New York: Chevron Corp. on Friday reported US$53bn in revenue in the fourth quarter, a 26% increase from the year-ago period, on high oil, gas and refined-product prices.

Chevron said its net income was US$4.1bn compared with net income of US$3.4bn, or US$1.63 a share, reported a year ago.

Revenue in the fourth quarter was ahead of analysts expectations of US $51.7bn. A year ago, Chevron's revenue was US $42 billion. For the full year, Chevron reported net income of US$14.1 billion, or US $6.54 a share, compared with earnings of US$13.3bn, or US$6.28 a share a year ago.

Sales climbed to US$194bn from US$151bn.

"We achieved these results despite an estimated $1.4 billion negative impact on profits in the second half of the year, the consequence of disruptions caused by third-quarter hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico," chairman and CEO Dave O'Reilly said in a statement. "About half of this adverse effect on earnings related to the fourth quarter."

Chevron received about US$52 a barrel for its oil in U.S. in the fourth quarter, up from US$38 a year ago, and US$50 a barrel internationally from US$37 a barrel. U.S. natural gas sales prices increased 69% to top US$10 per thousand cubic feet, and outside the U.S. prices rose 21% to US$3.50.

For the year, Chevron replaced 175% of its oil-equivalent production. It added, including sales and acquisitions, more than 1.5 billion barrels. Oil-equivalent production totaled 870 million barrels. The amounts exclude volumes from the Canadian oil sands and an operating service agreement in Venezuela.

The company expects oil-equivalent production to increase to 2.7 to 2.8 million barrels per day in 2006 from 2.5 million barrels per day in 2005 with help from Unocal's properties - Chevron acquired Unocal last year - and new project start-ups.
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FDA clears release of first inhalable insulin
New York: The Food and Drug Administration has given its approval for the release of the first inhaled insulin, Exubera, designed to reduce or eliminate the need for diabetics to take injections to control their blood sugar.

The approval of Exubera, a powder that is breathed into the mouth and lungs through a six-inch inhaler, is expected to be a blockbuster seller for drug maker Pfizer Inc.

Exubera is scheduled to go on sale this summer. Exubera is short-acting insulin that can be taken before meals. It would not replace long-acting insulin shots that many must take before bedtime.

Safety concerns delayed the FDA review of Exubera for three years while additional clinical trials were conducted.
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