The Traderszone Network

EBay Inc’s plans to break up into three different companies could accommodate would-be suitors, signaling a potential merger fight after the breakup. The company plans to spin off its payments division, PayPal, from its core marketplace division in the second half of the year, making two standalone publicly traded companies that some analysts say could be worth more than the combined entity. On Wednesday, eBay added that it will sell or prepare a public offering of its eBay Enterprise unit, which the company bought for $2.4 billion roughly four years ago.

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South Korea’s Hyundai Motor Co on Thursday reported a fourth straight quarterly profit decline, pulled down by a plunge in the Russian ruble and increased buying incentives in the United States. Hyundai, the world’s fifth-biggest automaker when coupled with affiliate Kia Motors Corp, splashed out on land for new headquarters as economic turmoil in Russia undermined earnings in a country where the pair rank second, while a weak yen made Japanese cars cheaper in the U.S., its No.2 market.

KKR refunds money to investors in some of its buyout funds after regulators find it overcharged them, marking one of the highest-profile results yet of regulators’ increased scrutiny of the private-equity business, The Wall Street Journal reports.
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Oil prices dipped early on Thursday, ahead of an expected announcement of a bond-buying program by the European Central Bank (ECB) that could push the dollar to new highs and put downward pressure on commodities. The ECB’s Executive Board has proposed a program that would enable it to buy 50 billion euros ($58 billion) in bonds a month starting in March, a euro zone source said. The expected stimulus program has pressured the euro and sent the dollar, seen as a safe haven, soaring. Oil prices have already more than halved since June last year due to oversupply, partly caused by soaring U.S.

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Most U.S. states expect to hit their revenue targets this fiscal year, but at least six states say they could fall short, the National Conference of State Legislatures said on Wednesday. All states except Vermont must end their fiscal years with balanced budgets, and so states that bring in less money than expected could have to cut spending, use savings or raise taxes to end the shortfalls. Alaska, Arizona, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Michigan, and Vermont all expect to miss their revenue forecasts, according to the report.

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A surprise move by the Bank of Canada to cut interest rates on Wednesday could reignite Canada’s housing market and renew fears of a bubble, just as the market had finally begun to cool after a five-year run to record prices. Canadian housing prices have risen 36.8 percent on average since mid-2009 and the average home price has doubled over the past decade. Last month, the central bank said the housing market could be overvalued by as much as 30 percent. The energy sector makes up about 11 percent of Canada’s GDP and about one quarter of Canadian exports in 2013.

For more than eight years, Johnson & Johnson (JNJ.N) has pursued billions of dollars in damages against Boston Scientific Corp (BSX.N) after the latter won a controversial – and ultimately ill-fated – bidding war for device maker Guidant. J&J is seeking more than $7.2 billion in damages and interest from Boston Scientific as Guidant’s successor, an amount that one analyst has characterized as a “major near-term risk” for a company with a market capitalization of about $19 billion as of Wednesday. U.S. District Judge Richard Sullivan, who oversaw the trial, did not indicate when he would rule.

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