Business news for Mon, 17 Dec 2007 & with word buy. 57 news.

Pity parents trying to guarantee toys they buy are lead-free this holiday season. But shoppers can increase their confidence by looking for safety-standards labels that are akin to a Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval.

In what could be a major boost for Northrop Grumman Corp.'s Long Island operations, three foreign countries have expressed interest in the last few weeks about buying the venerable maritime spy plane the company builds for the U.S. Navy, government and company officials confirmed Monday.

Consumers seem to be waiting until the last minute to buy holiday gifts.

The New York Times has discovered that buyers and sellers aren't all happy with eBay. Forgive me, but I think I've heard this before. I don't mean to belittle the many commenters on his post calling for Amazon to buy...

TIANJIN Port Co, operator of the busiest port in northern China, says it has received "conditional" regulatory approval for a private share placement to buy assets worth 4.1 billion yuan (US$556 million) from its parent. In May it said it planned to issue up to 226 million new A shares at 18.17 yuan each to acquire berths and the container handling business from its state-owned parent, Tianjin Port (Group) Co. China Securities Regulatory Commission gave approval for the deal on Friday with some conditions, Tianjin Port said in a brief statement to the Shanghai Stock Exchange, without elaborating. Formal approval is expected later, it said. After the announcement, Tianjin Port rose 2.56 percent to 24.88 yuan yesterday when its shares resumed trading after a suspension on Friday. The Shanghai Composite Index was down 2.62 percent. The deal would reduce business overlap between Tianjin Port and its parent and the amount of connected transactions, as well as improve the

NEW World Department Store China Ltd, a unit of billionaire Cheng Yu-tung's New World Development Co, agreed to buy a department store and real estate from its parent for HK$885.4 million (US$113 million). New World Department Store China will buy Wuhan Department Store and a shopping mall in a complex its parent owns in the central Chinese city of Wuhan in Hubei Province, it said in a statement yesterday.

Following up on its vow to raise money by selling its drugs to other companies, PDL BioPharma of Redwood City announced today that a Japanese company has agreed to buy a PDL drug used in bone marrow transplants for $200 million in cash.

ACE Ltd has agreed to buy Combined Insurance Co of America from Aon Corp, the world's second-largest insurance broker, for US$2.4 billion in cash. The purchase of the Illinois-based accident, health, and life insurance unit, which has four million policy holders and almost 7,000 sales agents, will probably close by the end of the second quarter, Ace said yesterday. Aon is also selling Washington-based health-care insurer Sterling Life Insurance Co to Munich Re, the world's second-biggest reinsurer, for US$352 million. "The acquisition of Combined is a significant milestone for Ace and represents both an opportunity for considerable growth and expense-related efficiencies," Ace Chief Executive Officer Evan G. Greenberg said. Ace, the Bermuda-based business insurer, said in October it may make an acquisition to expand its life insurance business, according to Bloomberg News. Greenberg said the company was also planning to expand small-business coverage in Asia and

CHINA Eastern Airlines Corp, the nation's third-largest carrier, said it is in talks to buy 40 Boeing Co 737 planes and has applied to the government for 40 Airbus SAS A320s to expand its fleet. The planned purchases may help expand the Shanghai-based carrier's fleet by 53 percent to 322 aircraft in 2010 from the current 210, Zhang Jing, a China Eastern spokeswoman, said yesterday, confirming a Reuters report. Singapore Airlines Ltd and parent Temasek Holdings Pte plan to buy a 24-percent stake in China Eastern for HK$7.16 billion (US$918 million), cutting the carrier's debt and easing its "most difficult" period, Chairman Li Fenghua said last week. The cash infusion may help the company pay for the planes to compete with Air China Ltd, according to Bloomberg News. "Carriers are queuing up to buy planes as demand grows," said Ma Ying, an analyst at Haitong Securities Co in Shanghai. "China Eastern's stake sale will enable it to afford the

SOUTH Korea's largest retailer Lotte Shopping Co plans to acquire a stake in a Chinese discount-store chain to expand its presence on the Chinese mainland, the Seoul-listed company said in a regulatory filing yesterday. Lotte agreed to buy a 49-percent stake in CTA Makro, which now operates five discount stores in Beijing and two in Tianjin, from SHV Holdings NV for 57.6 million euros (US$82.90 million). The Netherlands-based SHV Holdings IV now operates CTA Makro with a 49-percent stake while China Trade Association Property Corp Ltd owns 51 percent. Lotte also plans to open another outlet in Beijing next year, according to the statement. However, the acquisition plan is still awaiting China's regulatory approval. Shanghai Daily's call to CTA Makro yesterday was not answered. The retailer, which controls more than 40 percent of South Korea's department store market and 14 percent of discount stores, is preparing to open new outlets through land purchases and buying existing

SHARES in Shanghai Automotive Co Ltd, the listed unit of China's largest car maker, gained 1.18 percent yesterday after it announced government approval for a proposed issue of 6.3 billion yuan (US$851 million) of convertible bonds. Shanghai Auto, owned by Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp, will sell the six-year bonds, along with detachable warrants to A-share investors, according to its filing to the Shanghai Stock Exchange yesterday. Shares closed at 25.70 yuan, nearly tripling from the beginning of this year. The 63 million units of bonds will have a face value of 100 yuan each and 3.6 warrants, the company said. Shanghai Auto offers the bonds with a coupon between 0.8 and 1.2 percent, but the final price depends on interest from institutional and retail investors. Bond holders will be allowed to use the warrants to buy Shanghai Auto's shares at 27.43 yuan per share after 24 months. Subscriptions start on Wednesday, and SAIC has said it will buy at least 800 million yuan

INGERSOLL-RAND Co, the maker of Thermo King refrigerated trucks, has agreed to buy Trane Inc for US$10.1 billion in cash and stock to gain cooling systems for transportation and buildings. Ingersoll-Rand will pay US$36.50 in cash and 0.23 of a share for Trane, the Bermuda-based company said, according to Bloomberg News. That values the New Jersey-based air-conditioner maker's shares at US$47.81 based on Friday's closing price. Ingersoll-Rand will take on US$150 million of debt. Chief Executive Officer Herbert Henkel said the purchase of the air-conditioner maker will create a company with US$17 billion of sales, more than half coming from the heating and cooling business. Ingersoll-Rand this month completed the sale of its Bobcat construction-machinery unit, shifting its focus to refrigeration systems amid rising trade in frozen foods. "The market for transporting food is very strong," Sanjay Jha, a London-based analyst at Pali International, said in an interview.

Just weeks after selling off its kitchen and bath business and changing its name to reflect its most prominent brand, Trane Inc. agreed to be acquired by Ingersoll Rand Co. Ltd. in deal valued at $10.1 billion. (JCI) (TT) (IR)

Merger Mondays aren't as dramatic as they were but Ingersoll-Rand's $10bn deal to buy air-conditioning company Trane shows the market for big acquisitions is not frozen.

The company's deal to buy Grant Prideco makes it a formidable competitor—but it may face price battles in its new drill-bit market

Chinese citizens will be able to buy shares and mutual funds in London and New York through their local banks after a regulatory reform

San Francisco private equity firm JH Partners LLC provided the financing for AmeriMark Direct to buy Dr. Leonard's Healthcare Corp.

Americans love to buy things, but retailers are finding it's increasingly hard to make any money at it. The Financial Page, by The New Yorker's James Surowiecki

First Reserve Corp., the biggest private-equity investor specializing in the energy industry, agreed to buy Scottish oil drilling services company Abbot Group Plc for $1.8 billion.

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- National Oilwell Varco Inc. said Monday it would buy Grant Prideco Inc. for about $7.5 billion in cash and stock, marking the second major tie-up seen in the oil-services sector in the past few months.