Nortel set to soar on opening

Stocks are mixed in Europe once again this morning. The FTSE is up 34 points to 6,424. In France, the CAC 40 has gained 51 points to 6,514. Only Germany’s DAX is down, off 36 points to 7,293.

In M&A news, Dresdner Bank AG and Commerzbank AG have broken off merger talks in the face of shareholder opposition. French regulators have announced they won’t block the Vivendi-Seagram deal.

In other business news, Xerox Corp. is set for a fall this morning after it reported a 50% drop in second-quarter profit. It also said third-quarter earnings will be lower than expected.

DaimlerChrysler AG says its operating profit will fall below 1999 due to higher costs. Nevertheless its second-quarter net income is up 18%to $1.7 billion. LSI Logic Corp. and BMC Software Inc. both missed their forecasts and are expected to fall today.

An insider trading probe has forced the resignation of Telefonica SA’s chairman Juan Villalonga, a move that is pushing up the telco’s stock.

TSE market giant Nortel Networks Ltd. is expected to jump this morning after it beat Wall Street forecasts last night after the close. In U.S. pre-market trading, Nortel was up at $88 from its close yesterday of $82.50.

In Canadian M&A news, Ranger Oil Ltd. is set to accept a $650 million takeover offer by Canadian Natural Resources Ltd.

In Asia stocks closed mixed again, too. The Nikkei finished down at 16,502, off 71 points. While the Hang Seng gained 245 points to 17,620.

Also, AT&T Canada Inc. posted a large second-quarter net loss, $1.27 a share, down from a $4.03 a share profit in 1999.

Canadian Utilities Limited reported earnings for the six months ended June 30, of $1.88 a share, up from $1.87 a share in 1999. Earnings for the three months were 68¢ a share compared with 71¢ a share last year.

Microforum Inc. has acquired Blue Hypermedia, a New York-based web development firm and new media production company for US$14 million, funded by US$4.9 million cash and 1,770,160 common shares.