Business news with words assets+close+deal. 12 news.

WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- Progress Energy said it's reached an agreement to sell Powell Mountain Coal Co., Dulcimer Land Co. and Kanawha River Terminals, a transaction that would mark the final deal in its program of divesting non-regulated assets. The deal with an investor group made up of Pegasus Capital Advisors, Kelso & Co., Resource Capital Funds and an affiliate of Traxys North America will bring in $94 million, Raleigh, N.C.-based Progress Energy said. The transactions are expected to close in January, with Progress Energy earmarking proceeds for general corporate purposes.

Is News Corp. becoming a publishing centric media conglomerate? That appears to be a pattern emerging following Saturday's announcement that the company would divest of eight U.S. television stations to private equity firm Oak Hill Partners for about $1.1 billion. The divestiture, which is expected to close in the third quarter of 2008, follows News Corp.'s deal to acquire print and online publisher Dow Jones and Co. for $5 billion, and moves to liquidate other TV assets, including stakes in DirecTV and Gemstar TV Guide.

General Motors Corporation and International Truck and Engine Corporation, the principal operating subsidiary of Navistar International Corporation , have entered into a non-binding deal in which Navistar would purchase certain assets and rights for GM's medium-duty truck business, the two companies said Thursday. Navistar would acquire GM's medium-duty truck business, including assets and intellectual property rights to manufacture some GMC and Chevrolet brand vehicles and the purchase of the related service parts business. The deal is expected to close in 2008 subject to completion of due diligence, the negotiation of a definitive purchase agreement, customary regulatory clearance and board approval, the companies said. Upon closing, transition of the business could take several months to conclude, they said.

Cessna Aircraft Co. came out the winner Tuesday in an auction to buy the assets of troubled Columbia Aircraft Manufacturing Corp. A bankruptcy court judge in Portland, Ore., is expected to sign the final sale order today. Cessna said it will pay $26.4 million -- $15.9 million in cash and the assumption of certain liabilities -- for the assets of the Bend, Ore., company. The deal is expected to close by Dec. 4. Columbia, which makes two models of high-performance single-engine piston airplanes, filed for bankruptcy protection in September. "The Columbia models are a good fit with our existing product line," Cessna chief executive Jack Pelton said in a statement.

FORD workers are expected to vote this week on a landmark contract with the United Auto Workers that should help the ailing auto maker by lowering wages for thousands of new workers and moving Ford's retiree health care obligations to a union-run trust. In exchange for the wage cuts and other concessions, the auto maker promised not to close any US plants beyond those it has already identified. It also promised future products to six US assembly plants and agreed to make hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of improvements to plants. Some analysts question whether the four-year deal is enough to help Ford, which lost more than US$12 billion last year and has mortgaged its assets - including its blue oval logo - to fund a turnaround. If Ford's US market share keeps falling, the company might have to go back to the UAW and ask for more, said David Cole, chairman of the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor. "They're in a very rocky position right now," he said.

TEL AVIV (MarketWatch) -- Zebra Technologies Corp., the Vernon Hills, Ill., producer of specialty digital printing and automatic identification solutions, said it agreed on one acquisition and closed another. In a statement late on Monday, Zebra said it agreed to acquire Navis Holdings LLC, the Oakland, Calif., provider of solutions for managing logistics, assets, inventories and cargo flows across the supply chain, for $145 million cash. Subject to antitrust clearance and other conditions, Zebra hopes to close the deal this year. Zebra also said it acquired Proveo AG, the Crailsheim, Germany, provider of real-time-location technology, for $16.3 million in cash.

CHINA Minsheng Banking Corp will buy up to 20 percent of UCBH Holdings Inc in its first overseas expansion move. Minsheng, China's seventh-largest bank by market value, will initially buy 5.4 million shares of UCBH for between US$97 million and US$145 million, representing a 4.9 percent stake, Minsheng said in a statement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday. Next year, Minsheng will increase its ownership to 9.9 percent for between US$115 million and US$172 million. The bank also has the right to increase its UCBH stake to 20 percent, the statement said. Minsheng will pay up to a combined US$317 million for the 9.9 percent stake. "The strategic investment offers Minsheng a platform to step into the US markets and also marks Minsheng's first foray overseas," the Beijing-based bank said. The lender has no overseas network now, and UCBH's 70 branches on the east and west coast of the United States and its sound base in the Chinese community in America will help boost Minsheng's business. The investment is pending approval from the China Banking Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange. UCBH is the biggest bank serving the Chinese community in the US. UCBH, the holding company for United Commercial Bank, has US$10.7 billion in assets and 70 branches in the US and one in Hong Kong. UCBH will use the proceeds for an acquisition in China, the US bank said. That part of the deal will close in the fourth quarter. In March, UCBH said it would buy China's Business Development Bank Ltd. Meanwhile, Minsheng plans to acquire a 26.58 percent stake in Shaanxi International Trust & Investment Corp for 2.34 billion yuan (US$311.6 million). The deal represents the second move by a lender to buy a stake in a trust company in China. The deal awaits approval by the CBRC and the China Securities Regulatory Commission. Minsheng Bank shares closed at 16.30 yuan yesterday in Shanghai, up 3.1 percent. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.53 percent to 5,692.76.

CHINA Minsheng Banking Corp will buy up to 20 percent of UCBH Holdings Inc as its first attempt at overseas expansion. Minsheng, China's seventh-largest bank by market value, will first buy 5.4 million shares of UCBH for between US$97 million and US$145 million, representing a 4.9 stake, Minsheng said in a statement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday. Next year, Minsheng will increase its ownership to 9.9 percent for between US$115 million to US$172 million. The bank also has the right to increase its UCBH stake to 20 percent, the statement said. Minsheng will pay up to a combined US$317 million for the 9.9 percent stake. ``The strategic investment offers Minsheng a platform to step into the US markets and also marks Minsheng's foray into the overseas market,'' the Beijing-based bank said. The bank has no overseas network now and UCBH's 70 outlets on the east and west coast of the United States and its sound base in the Chinese community in America will help boost Minsheng's business. The investment is pending approval from the China Banking Regulatory Commission and the State Administration of Foreign Exchange. UCBH is the biggest bank serving the Chinese community in the US. UCBH, the holding company for United Commercial Bank, has US$10.7 billion in assets and 70 branches in the US and one in Hong Kong. UCBH will use the proceeds for a pending acquisition in China, the US bank said. That part of the deal will close in the fourth quarter. In March, UCBH said it will buy China's Business Development Bank Ltd. Minsheng plans to buy a 26.58 percent stake of Shaanxi International Trust & Investment Corp for 2.34 billion yuan (US$311.6 million). It is also the second move from a lender to buy stake of a trust company in China. The deal is pending approval from CBRC and the China Securities Regulatory Commission. Minsheng Bank closed at 16.30 yuan today in Shanghai or a rise of 3.1 percent. The benchmark Shanghai Composite Index rose 2.53 percent to 5,692.76.

CHINA'S Minsheng Banking Corp will buy 20 percent of UCBH Holdings Inc by 2009, the first stake purchase by a Chinese mainland bank in a US bank. Minsheng, China's first non-state-owned bank and the seventh-largest bank by market value, will buy 5.4 million shares of UCBH shares for US$96 million, taking up a 4.9 percent stake, according to a statement released by UCBH, the biggest bank serving Chinese communities in the United States. Next year, Minsheng will raise its ownership to 9.9 percent and by June 2009, the bank may increase its holding to 20 percent, the statement said. UCBH Holdings Inc, with US$10.65 billion in assets as of June 30 this year, is the holding company for United Commercial Bank, which is a leading bank in the United States serving the Chinese communities and American companies doing business in Greater China. The company has 70 branches in the United States and one in Hong Kong. It has also opened representative offices in Shanghai and Shenzhen. Beijing-based Minsheng has US$112 billion in assets and 298 branches. UCBH will use proceeds from the initial sale for a pending acquisition in China, according to the statement. That part of the deal will close in the fourth quarter, the statement said. In March, UCBH said it will buy China's Business Development Bank Ltd for US$205 million to gain a toe-hold in the world's fastest-growing major economy. Shares of the Shanghai-listed Minsheng Bank surged 0.69 yuan (9 US cents), or 4.36 percent, by 11:30am today, which is the first trading day after the week long National Day holiday. The Shanghai Composite Index, which tracks both yuan-denominated A shares and hard-currency B shares, jumped 2.99 percent, or 166.19 points, to close at 5,718.49.

Seeking additional new media assets, WPP is in talks with the Vancouver-based interactive shop Blast Radius, according to sources close to the deal. As of Monday, however, no agreement had been reached.

The chief executive of the oil group said discussions about expanding its development assets were "well advanced" as it unveiled a fall in interim profits

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Owens Corning late Friday said it has agreed to sell its continuous filament mat business in Huntingdon, Pa., as well as related marble production assets in Anderson, S.C., to AGY, a producer of fiberglass yarns and high-strength fiberglass reinforcements. Financial terms weren't disclosed. The divestitures are intended to address regulatory concerns associated with Owens Corning's proposed acquisition of Saint-Gobain's reinforcement and composites business, the company said. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter.