EU NY STOCK MARKET MERGER MAYBE

The Bible plainly says the European Union will control the Money of the World in the future, so this could be the beggining if EURONEXT AND NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGES MERGE. If they do merge then the EU will develope a micro-chip system that will work because Revelation says the EU will make every one on Earth recieve a Chip in their right hand or forehead or they will be murdered.

Euronext, NYSE discuss merger proposals: source By Mathieu Robbins Tue May 16, 4:01 PM

ET LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - European share markets operator Euronext and New York rival NYSE Group Inc. are looking at merger options as industry players rush to team up, said a source familiar with the matter on Tuesday.

Euronext (ENXT.PA) advisers met NYSE (NYSE:NYX - news) management in New York on Monday and discussed options such as an all-share deal, a cash offer or the creation of a new company, in which investors of both exchanges would get cash and shares, the source said. NYSE's Chief Executive John Thain and his Euronext counterpart Jean-Francois Theodore have met several times in recent weeks, including at least once last week, the source said. There is only a limited number of exchanges Euronext could merge with so it's normal they are talking," said Michael Long, an analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods.

They want to flesh out their options and the best way to do that is to meet. The exchanges are jostling for position in a frenzy of merger talks among European bourses. This has been spurred on by activist shareholders in Euronext and Deutsche Boerse AG (DB1Gn.DE) pushing the two exchanges to merge, as well as several takeover approaches to the London Stock Exchange (LSE.L) (LSE). Exchanges are under pressure to consolidate to boost volumes, create economies of scale that reduce trading costs and to attract more companies to list their shares.

The LSE's shares have surged around 150 percent over the past 12 months, while it has been courted by Deutsche Boerse, Euronext (ENXT.AS), Australia's bank Macquarie Bank Ltd. (MBL.AX) and U.S. exchange Nasdaq Stock Market Inc.

(Nasdaq:NDAQ - news), although it has rejected offers as being too low. Euronext's imminent annual general meeting on May 23 has also focused the attention of the Paris-based company on making progress in its own plans and it has said it is looking into alternatives to a Boerse merger, which it could present at the meeting. Both Euronext and NYSE have had contact with several potential tie-up counterparties in the last few weeks as they ponder a range of different strategic options and tie-ups. Euronext is still in talks with Deutsche Boerse, while NYSE is still considering a bid for the London Stock Exchange if the talks with Euronext do not lead to a successful deal.

The New York exchange is talking first to Euronext because the Paris-based exchange wants to be able to brief its shareholders on the outcome of talks by the time of its annual meeting, sources familiar with the situation said. On the other hand, the NYSE's main rival to buy the London exchange, Nasdaq, is largely restrained from bidding for several months. This leaves the NYSE time to think through alternatives before focusing on any bid for London. Euronext, which the source said has asked the French treasury and market regulator AMF if they have any objection to a tie-up, reiterated on Monday it was open to a deal with Deutsche Boerse on the right terms.

Euronext said on Tuesday it was still considering several options ahead of its annual meeting, but declined to comment further.

SHAREHOLDERS MIXED ON DEAL

Among hurdles the NYSE would need to surmount is hostility to a deal from some of its own shareholders. As I understand Euronext, I don't know that I'd be wildly in favor of a merger," said Thomas Caldwell, chairman of Caldwell Asset Management Inc., whose firm owns or controls more than 4 million NYSE shares and a smaller stake in the London Stock Exchange. He thinks the NYSE should focus on the U.S. market.

But shareholder and former NYSE seat holder Bill Power said a deal could be good if it was non-dilutive. He cited Euronext's Liffe derivatives exchange and Liffe Connect electronic trading platform as benefits of such a deal. Another NYSE shareholder, who spoke on condition of anonymity, also cited Euronext's Liffe division as a good reason for going ahead with a deal.
But Nasdaq's recent accumulation of a 24.1 percent stake in the LSE does make it harder for the NYSE to bid for the London bourse, the shareholder said. If the NYSE bought the LSE for stock, Nasdaq would become a large shareholder of the Big Board, while if it was for cash, it would be added to Nasdaq's war chest for acquisitions.

(Additional reporting by Megan Davies and David Cullen)



Fears for eurozone if dollar crashes · ECB boss warns of future damage to export demand · Poor US economic data adds to the pressure Larry Elliott, economics editorWednesday May 17, 2006 The Guardian

The European Central Bank warned last night of the dangers to the world economy of a plunge in the dollar as the US currency came under renewed pressure on foreign exchange markets.
Christian Noyer, a member of the ECB's governing council, said a marked depreciation in the greenback would be bad for growth in the 12-nation eurozone and run counter to agreements made by the G7 industrial nations.

Mr Noyer's remarks, made in an interview on Reuters TV, came as a business survey in Germany showed that a stronger euro and higher commodity prices may already be hurting confidence.

The ZEW expectations index - a barometer of Germany's future economic health - fell sharply from 62.7 in April to 50 this month, its fourth consecutive decline. Analysts said Germany - the eurozone's biggest economy - had been boosted by strong demand for its exports, but that this trend would be jeopardised if the single currency continued to rise.

"The evidence since the euro's launch is that its movements affect economic activity in the zone with a lag of 12 to 18 months," said Stephen Lewis of Insinger de Beaufort. "Euro appreciation is storing up trouble for the future.

The weaker than expected ZEW index temporarily halted the slide in the dollar. It resumed its decline, however, after the release in Washington of data showing softness in the American economy. Core producer prices - an indication of the cost pressures facing US industry - showed a 0.1% monthly increase, while the number of new houses being built stood at 1.85m, 100,000 fewer than expected.

While foreign exchange dealers remain confident that the ECB will raise rates by at least a quarter point next month, the US figures prompted speculation that the Federal Reserve will pull back from raising borrowing costs for a 17th successive time at its June meeting.
By lunchtime in New York, the euro was trading at $1.2820 against the US currency, up from $1.2795 on Monday. Sterling moved up from $1.8793 overnight to $1.8820, taking its rise since the turn of the year to almost 10%. The pound held steady against the euro at €1.4680 and was close to a 10-month high when measured by its trade-weighted index against a basket of currencies.

Mr Noyer said he did not believe the euro's rise was the start of the sort of disorderly unwinding of global imbalances feared by some economists. Any such development would be counter-productive, he added.

I exclude that kind of development. I don't think it would happen but if it were to happen it would not anyhow correct the imbalances, it would aggravate global imbalances. This would be worrying for world growth ... This is certainly not something which is hoped or wished for by any authority within the G7.

The euro is up almost 6% against the dollar since the start of April. "If we had big movements in the foreign exchange market which could hamper the economic growth in the euro area, it would run exactly contrary to what is deemed as necessary by the G7 to help rebalancing the global economy," Mr Noyer said.

Special reportsThe euro European integration
British politics and the euro
Currency converterFind out what your cash is worth abroad
See the new currencyPhoto gallery: know your euro notes and coins
MapA graphical guide to euroland
Talk about itShould Britain join the single currency?
Useful linksUK Independence party
Quest database: your euro questions answered (EU)