Live Financial And Business News By SaneBull

(Reuters) - A revised bill on financial regulation reform is set to be released next week in the U.S. Senate by Democratic Banking Committee Chairman Christopher Dodd.

LONDON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - BP will pay $7 billion to Devon Energy for assets that will extend its reach into Brazil and bulk up its position in the Gulf of Mexico, as the world's top oil companies look to acquisitions to refill depleting reserves.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama pressed China on Thursday to move to a "more market-oriented exchange rate" in a speech where he laid out a plan to boost U.S. exports in the coming years.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An overwhelming majority of Americans wants Wall Street subjected to tougher regulation in the aftermath of the bank bailout and the bonus scandals that have rocked the U.S. financial sector, according to a Harris poll released on Thursday.

BAGHDAD (Reuters) - A cross-sectarian, secularist list headed by former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi on Thursday alleged major fraud in Iraq's national election this week.

NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - Brewer Anheuser-Busch InBevNV has sued an Illinois state regulator for blockingits attempt to buy an alcoholic beverage distributor, inviolation of the U.S. Constitution.

LONDON, March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's top share indexclosed 0.4 percent lower on Thursday, pressured by miners andbanks after data revived concerns about monetary tightening inChina, while buyers came in for general retailers.

* Sees 2014-15 deficit C$12.3 bln, vs gov't view C$1.8 bln

* To sell U.S. life unit, eyes IPO of U.S. asset management

CONAKRY, March 11 (Reuters) - The main union at Guinea'sCBG, the world's top bauxite miner, suspended its strike onThursday ahead of negotiations on grievances due next week.

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - Lockheed Martin Corp's F-35 program, the Pentagon's biggest acquisition ever,is crashing through a cost-growth threshold that will spark athorough review of the program, the Pentagon's chief weaponsbuyer told Congress on Thursday.

SANTIAGO, March 11 (Reuters) - Chile's freshly inauguratedPresident Sebastian Pinera said a series of aftershocks onThursday caused "significant damage" in Rancagua, a city almost100 km (62 miles) south of the capital.

* Abbott's MitraClip, Medtronic's ablation system featured

(Adds Bank of America, GoldenTree Asset Management, StarwoodCapital, Nixon Peabody)

* PM Harper says export markets still uncertain (Adds prime minister's comments)

* PM Harper says export markets still uncertain (Adds prime minister's comments)

* Robust consumer spending helps speed up Brazil recovery

MEXICO CITY, March 11 (Reuters) - Gross fixed investment inMexico grew for the third straight month in December as theeconomy rebounded from a deep recession, the nationalstatistics agency said on Thursday.

LOS ANGELES - Federal Reserve Bank of San FranciscoPresident Janet Yellen speaks on the economic outlook andobservations on central bank independence before a TownHall-Los Angeles luncheon, 1235 PDT/1535 EDT/1935 GMT. Audienceand media Q&As follow. Millennium Biltmore Hotel, 506 SouthGrand Avenue. Contact: Deborah Weinberg,dweinberg@townhall-la.org or 213 312 9307

OTTAWA, March 11 (Reuters) - New home prices in Canada keptclimbing in January, rising 0.4 percent from the previous monthas expected, according to Statistics Canada on Thursday.

OTTAWA, March 11 (Reuters) - Canadian industries ran at70.9 percent of capacity in the fourth quarter of last year, upfrom 68.7 percent in the previous quarter, for the firstsubstantial increase in three years, Statistics Canada said onThursday.

March 11 (Reuters) - Commerce Department report of U.S. international trade.

March 11 (Reuters) - Commerce Department report of U.S. international trade.

OTTAWA, March 11 (Reuters) - Canada's trade surplus grewmore than expected in January to C$799 million ($776 million)as higher prices for commodities such as gold boosted exports,while imports fell, Statistics Canada said on Thursday.

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - The U.S. trade deficitnarrowed unexpectedly in January as oil imports fell to theirlowest since February 1999, a government report showed onThursday.

* Northern might eye takeovers as rivals expand footprints

(Adds Bank of America, GoldenTree Asset Management, StarwoodCapital, Nixon Peabody)

* Washington worried rules could penalise U.S. fund managers

NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - Macy's Inc would seeonly minimal impact from a purchase of bankrupt General GrowthProperties Inc by its larger rival, Simon PropertyGroup Inc , said Terry Lundgren, chief executive officerof the department store chain.

BOSTON, March 11 (Reuters) - State Street Corp onThursday unveiled a new exchange-traded fund investing inshares of red-hot Russian companies.

BOCA RATON, Florida (Reuters) - The head of the top U.S. futures regulator chided Wall Street on Thursday for resisting calls to make over-the-counter derivatives markets more transparent, arguing major reforms are required after the recent financial crisis.

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - An overwhelming majorityof Americans wants Wall Street subjected to tougher regulationin the aftermath of the bank bailout and the bonus scandalsthat have rocked the U.S. financial sector, according to aHarris poll released on Thursday.

LONDON, March 11 (Reuters) - A former partner of Cazenove,known as the Queen's stockbroker, was jailed for 21 months onThursday for making more than 100,000 pounds from buying sharesin companies just before takeovers were unveiled.

NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co plans to jump into the burgeoning exchange-traded fund (ETF)business, according to two Securities and Exchange Commissionfilings.

* China inflation sparks concern about monetary tightening

NEW YORK, March 11 (Reuters) - Brewer Anheuser-Busch InBevNV has sued an Illinois state regulator for blockingits attempt to buy an alcoholic beverage distributor, inviolation of the U.S. Constitution.

* Sees 2014-15 deficit C$12.3 bln, vs gov't view C$1.8 bln

* Weak jobless claims number counteracts supply pressures

SANTIAGO, March 11 (Reuters) - Chile's freshly inauguratedPresident Sebastian Pinera said a series of aftershocks onThursday caused "significant damage" in Rancagua, a city almost100 km (62 miles) south of the capital.

* PM Harper says export markets still uncertain (Adds prime minister's comments)

March 11 (Reuters) - The following is a list of scheduled U.S. agency billsales from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for 2010.

March 11 (Reuters) - The following are lists of upcoming high-grade andhigh-yield corporate bond offerings in the United States. The information wasgathered from Thomson Reuters U.S. new issues team, and other market sources:*Denotes 144a private placement debt offering.HIGH-GRADE BOND SALES EXPECTED FOR WEEK OF 3/8/2010 COMPANY AMT MAT/DEBT RTGS MGRS PRICEDAirgas $300 mln 3.5-yr Baa3/BBB/NA BAML/BARC/GS

JOHANNESBURG, March 11 (Reuters) - South Africa may need toenforce power cuts or raise electricity tariffs further if adisputed $3.75 billion loan from the World Bank is not approved,a senior government official said on Thursday.

* Canada will emerge much stronger than others, he says (Adds quotes, background)

OTTAWA, March 11 (Reuters) - Canadian Prime MinisterStephen Harper adopted a more upbeat tone than usual whendiscussing the economy on Thursday, saying the nation wasrecovering with a growing sense of optimism.

(Adds Bank of America, GoldenTree Asset Management, StarwoodCapital, Nixon Peabody)

* PM Harper says export markets still uncertain (Adds prime minister's comments)

MEXICO CITY, March 11 (Reuters) - Mexico's peso slipped onThursday and stocks fell after U.S. data showed a drop inMexico's U.S.-bound exports and slightly weaker-than-expectedresults on jobless claims, hurting confidence in the U.S.economic recovery.

* SunEdison, Santander to invest 200-250 mln euros in plant

* Robust consumer spending helps speed up Brazil recovery

BOCA RATON, Florida (Reuters) - The head of the top U.S. futures regulator chided Wall Street on Thursday for resisting calls to make over-the-counter derivatives markets more transparent, arguing major reforms are required after the recent financial crisis.

SAO PAULO, March 11 (Reuters) - Yields on Brazilianinterest rate futures contracts ticked higher onThursday, as strong January retail sales data fueledexpectations of a rate hike in the near future.

March 11 (Reuters) - The Swiss National Bank inched closerto a first rise in interest rates with a more optimistic view ongrowth on Thursday, but it knocked back expectations it wouldsoften its stance on curbing excessive currency gains.

TORONTO, March 11 (Reuters) - Gold miner Kinross said on Thursday it has agreed to acquire exploration companyUnderworld Resources in a deal worth C$139.2 million($135.3 million), expanding its asset base in northwest NorthAmerica.

BOSTON, March 11 (Reuters) - Diversified U.S. manufacturerHoneywell International Inc cut its top executives' paylast year as a brutal global downturn drove net income down22.9 percent.

LONDON, March 11 (Reuters) - Britain's top share indexclosed 0.4 percent lower on Thursday, pressured by miners andbanks after data revived concerns about monetary tightening inChina, while buyers came in for general retailers.

March 11 (Reuters) - The following are scheduled sales announcement datesfor potential Freddie Mac reference, Fannie Mae benchmark notes and Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLB) global note offerings in2010.

BOSTON, March 11 (Reuters) - State Street Corp onThursday unveiled a new exchange-traded fund investing inshares of red-hot Russian companies.

TORONTO, March 11 (Reuters) - Power Financial Corp said on Thursday its operating profit fell in the fourthquarter as subsidiaries contributed less to earnings.

* State wants to resolve looming debt crisis by paying less

* Auto industry recovery driving stock-analyst (Adds analyst comments, background, byline)

DUBAI, March 11 (Reuters) - Sharia boards face increasedscrutiny and criticism as high-profile corporate defaults andcautionary comments from respected scholars cast a harsh lighton the fast growth of financial products touted as Islamic.

WASHINGTON, March 11 (Reuters) - An overwhelming majorityof Americans wants Wall Street subjected to tougher regulationin the aftermath of the bank bailout and the bonus scandalsthat have rocked the U.S. financial sector, according to aHarris poll released on Thursday.

ATHENS, March 11 (Reuters) - EFG Eurobank ,Greece's second-largest lender, posted a smaller than expectedfall in full year net profit and called on people to backgovernment efforts to haul the country out of a debt crisis.

CALGARY, Alberta, March 11 (Reuters) - Sprott Inc's fourth-quarter profit sank 35 percent as the fundmanagement firm's performance fees dropped and returns from itshedge funds were squeezed in the market rally, it said onThursday.

* Issues in long-running case go to international tribunal

* Start-up process to last through March 20 (Recasts, changes dateline from SINGAPORE previous)

* Devon jumps after deal to sell fields to BP for $7 bln

SAO PAULO, March 11 (Reuters) - Brazilian state-run oil companyPetrobras said Thursday it found light oil in itsexploratory block in the Llanos basin in Colombia.

March 11 (Reuters) - Canadian heavy oil producer BaytexEnergy Trust reported lower-than-expected quarterlyprofit, mainly on higher royalties and expenses that offsetimprovements in oil prices.

March 11 (Reuters) - Independent oil and gas company DeltaPetroleum Corp posted a narrower fourth-quarter loss,helped by fewer impairments recorded in 2009, and offshorelitigation gains.

OSLO, March 11 (Reuters) - Shell Energy Europe, a unit ofRoyal Dutch Shell , said its 200 Megawatt power plantsupplying the Ormen Lange gas field and processing plant inNorway would return to full strength on Friday after a shutdown.

* Devon jumps after deal to sell fields to BP for $7 bln

NEW DELHI, March 11 (Reuters) - Indian Oil Corp onThursday started a naphtha cracker, its first such plant atPanipat refinery, its director for refineries said, a movewhich will help IOC make value-added products from surplusnaphtha.

* Futures down: Dow 14 pts, S&P 2.2 pts, Nasdaq 3.5 pts