TheChek News Flow

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BN 11/18 15:32 *RENAULT CEO CARLOS GHOSN SPOKE IN INTERVIEW: AFP BN 11/18 15:32 *RENAULT TO EXIT CRISIS `MUCH STRONGER' IN 2015-16: AFP

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Renault to Exit Crisis ‘Much Stronger’ in 2015-16: AFP 2013-11-18 15:36:28.944 GMT

By Steve Rhinds Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- The carmaker will emerge from the current economic crisis “very much stronger” in 2015-16, CEO Carlos Ghosn says in an interview with Agence France-Presse

Link to AFP story (in French):{NSN MWGT1I3H0JK0 <go>} Link to Company News:{RNO FP <Equity> CN <GO>}

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: {FIRST<GO>} First Word newswire: {NH BFW<GO>}

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Rhinds at +33-1-5365-5072 or srhinds@bloomberg.net

Leviathan oil well drilling postponed indefinitely

Sources inform ''Globes'' that investment in developing Leviathan's gas and oil field has ground almost to a complete halt. 18 November 13 16:57, Amiram Barkat

Drilling of the well to Leviathan's oil-bearing strata, which was supposed to begin in December, has been postponed indefinitely. The $250 million well will reportedly be delayed by at least six months. Sources at Leviathan's partners - Noble Energy Inc. (NYSE: NBL), Delek Group Ltd. (TASE: DLEKG), and Ratio Oil Exploration (1992) LP (TASE:RATI.L) - told "Globes" that no decision had been taken to postpone the drilling, but other sources informed ''Globes'' that investment in developing Leviathan's gas field has ground almost to a complete halt. These include the tender for choosing a floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) ship. In addition, expensive equipment intended for developing the gas field has been sent out of Israel. "Israel's oil and gas exploration industry has ceased to exist," a major drilling equipment supplier told "Globes". Postponing Leviathan's development could have major repercussions on Israel's economy, which will face a natural gas shortage from 2015. At a recent electrical engineers conference Noble Energy VP Eastern Mediterranean Lawson Freeman said that regulatory uncertainty was the main reason delaying Leviathan's development, such as the lack of an approved outline plan for bringing gas from Leviathan, without which Noble Energy cannot obtain rights to develop the field. Leviathan's partners are waiting for Antitrust Authority director general David Gilo's decision on a suspected cartel in the licenses. The companies have invested over $800 million in Leviathan to date, mostly for drilling and planning the field's development. Postponing Leviathan's oil well is the latest development in the saga. The Atwood Advantage ultra deepwater drillship, which was scheduled to arrive in Israeli waters in October to drill the well, is still at the Daewoo shipyard in South Korea. The ship was built to order for Noble Energy, after the rig that tried to reach the oil-bearing strata was forced to stop drilling at a depth of 6,500 meters because of high pressure disparities at the great depth. Updated estimates give a 25% probability of finding 1.5 billion barrels of oil in various target strata beneath Leviathan's gas-bearing strata. Construction of the Atwood Advantage was completed in September. Noble Energy has committed to hiring the ship at a cost of $584,000 a day, and planned to first use the ship at Leviathan before moving it other deepwater fields offshore from West Africa and the Falklands. Noble Energy declined to comment on the report.

100 DAYS OF HEAVY SNOW: Britain now facing worst winter in SIXTY YEARS warn forecasters

LONG-RANGE weather forecasters have warned that Britain should prepare for heavy and persistent snow for up to THREE MONTHS with winter 2013 set to be the worst in more than 60 years.

The latest detailed forecasts for winter 2013 ALL point towards months of relentless extreme cold with heavy snow 'extremely likely' across the country.

Arctic air will roar in from the North Pole later this week, triggering the start of the worst winter in many people's lifetimes.

Experts in long-range weather forecasting said the WHOLE of Britain should be prepared for this winter to be the most severe since 1947, which saw the UK hit by relentless snow and some of the lowest temperatures on record.

February 1947 was the coldest in history with heavy snow the following month leading to seven-metre high drifts.

Flooding was also a problem as rain ran off frozen ground in torrents leading to widespread chaos on the roads.

As the Daily Express reported at the time, roads and railways across Britain were blocked by huge Arctic blizzards.

Coal supplies - already low in the wake of WWII - struggled to get reach power stations and many were forced to shut down, causing widespread blackouts. The lack of power supplies became so critical that at one point radio and TV broadcasts were suspended, magazines were ordered to stop being published and many newspapers were forced to cut their size.

Gapping down

In reaction to disappointing earnings/guidance: MZOR -7.2%.

Other news: ALNY -5.8% ( presents new pre-clinical data on RNAi Therapeutics for cardiovascular disease), FU -5.5% (continued volatility), CXP -2.5% (following late spike, announces final results of its modified Dutch Auction tender offer; total of ~9.362 mln shares of Common Stock were properly tendered and not properly withdrawn at or below the final purchase price of $25.00 per share), YOKU -2.4% and RENN -1.4% (still checking), QGEN -1.8% ( Announces Third Co-Development Program for Companion Diagnostics Paired With Lilly's (LLY) Investigational Cancer Compounds ; New partnership builds on Lilly-QIAGEN framework agreement), ADT -1.6% (unfavorable mention on MadMoney), UNH -0.4% ( plans to drop thousands of doctors from plans, according to reports).

Analyst comments: SVU -4.9% (downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman), REGI -2.5% (downgraded to Hold from Buy at Canaccord Genuity), ANR -2.2% (downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Citigroup), NVDA -1.7% ( downgraded to Underweight from Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley), MSFT -1.6% (downgraded to Underperform from Neutral at BofA/Merrill), WLT -0.8% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup), CNX -0.8% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Citigroup), HK -0.6% (downgraded to Sell from Neutral at Goldman)

Gapping up

In reaction to strong earnings/guidance: JKS +10.2%, TSN +3.9%.

A few financial related names showing strength: DB +1.3%, IBN +1.4%, ITUB +1%, JPM +1% (reaches $4.5 bln agreement with 21 institutional investors to resolve repurchase and servicing claims), RBS +0.7% (disclosed that it previously announced that it planned to exit its structured retail investor products and equity derivatives business; RBS continues to make progress).

Select solar stocks trading higher: JASO +4%, CSIQ +2.8% ( DIF Infrastructure to Acquire Four Utility-Scale Solar Power Plants from Canadian Solar), SPWR +2.7%, YGE +2.2%, SOL +1.9% (announced it will deliver more than 178,000 PV modules, which will be used in a 53.5MW project being developed by leading solar PV project developer, OCI Solar Power ), SUNE +1.1%, FSLR +0.3%

Other news: CTIC +7% (continued strength; plans to discuss with investors and analysts its Development, Commercialization and License Agreement with Baxter (BAX); Co expects to receive $67 million in cash milestone progress payments from Baxter through 2015), CPRX +6.2% (Announces Publication of Preclinical Proof-of-Principle of CPP-115 Efficacy in Suppressing Infantile Spasms in Epilepsia; CPP-115 suppresses spasms in the multiple-hit model of IS), VJET +5.1% / DDD +1.3% (continued strength), ARIA +4.8% (still checking), ONVO +4.8% (continued strength), FREE +4.2% (announces results of annual meeting of shareholders and Appointment of new Chief Financial Officer Dimitris Papadopoulos), BA +3.3% (receives order from Etihad Airways, Boeing and flydubai announce historic single-aisle agreement), PSTI +3.3% (still checking), MCP +3% (still checking), JCP +2.4% (still checking), CG +1.8% (Carlyle ticking higher on positive Barron's mention), FUEL +1.7% (Rocket Fuel higher after exec interview on MadMoney), YY +1.6% (YY announced that it has decided to withdraw its previously announced proposed offering of $250 mln in aggregate principal amount of convertible notes due 2018 ), POT +1.5% / MOS +0.9% (Russia's Mikhail Prokhorov has agred to purchase a 21.75% stake in Uralkali, according to reports), CRM +1.4% (mentioned favorably on MadMoney on Friday), QIHU +1.3% (Qihoo 360 Tech. and Xunlei plan launch of new 360 Safe Browser in November, according to Marbridge ), SNE +1.1% (Sony has sold 1 mln PS4's on first day, according to reports), SI +0.4% (Chairman plans to stay at company until 2018, according to reports).

Analyst comments: DBD +1.4% (upgraded to Buy from Hold at KeyBanc), GG +0.7% (upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citigroup)

{GOLDS Index GIP<GO>}

Tyson Foods beats by $0.01, reports revs in-line; guides FY14 revs above consensus; Jim Lochner, Chief Operating Officer, to retire at end of FY14

Reports Q4 (Sep) earnings of $0.70 per share, $0.01 better than the Capital IQ Consensus Estimate of $0.69; revenues rose 7.0% year/year to $8.89 bln vs the $8.9 bln consensus.

Co issues upside guidance for FY14, sees FY14 revs of $36.0 bln vs. $35.72 bln Capital IQ Consensus Estimate.

"All periods reported reflect a discontinued operation, which was part of our Chicken segment, recognized in fiscal 2013." Chicken - Sales volumes grew due to increased domestic and international production driven by stronger demand for our chicken products. The increase in average sales price in the fourth quarter and 12 months of fiscal 2013 was due to mix changes and price increases associated with higher input costs. Beef - For the fourth quarter of fiscal 2013, sales volume rose as we increased production due to sufficient cattle supply and strong demand for our beef products. Pork - Sales volume decreased as a result of balancing our supply with customer demand and reduced exports. Prepared Foods - Sales volume increased as a result of improved demand for our prepared products and incremental volumes from the purchase of two businesses in fiscal 2013. "Outlook In fiscal 2014, we expect overall domestic protein production (chicken, beef, pork and turkey) to increase ~1% from fiscal 2013 levels. Grain supplies are expected to increase in fiscal 2014, which should result in lower input costs."

The following is a summary of the fiscal 2014 outlook for each of itssegments, as well as an outlook on sales, capital expenditures, net interest expense, debt and liquidity, share repurchases and dividends: Chicken -- We expect domestic chicken production to increase 3-4% in fiscal 2014 compared to fiscal 2013. Based on current futures prices, we expect lower feed costs in fiscal 2014 compared to fiscal 2013 of ~$500 million. Beef -- We expect to see a reduction of industry fed cattle supplies of 2-3% in fiscal 2014 as compared to fiscal 2013. Pork -- We expect industry hog supplies to increase 1-2% in fiscal 2014 and exports to improve compared to fiscal 2013. For fiscal 2014, we believe our Pork segment will be in its normalized range of 6.0%-8.0%. Prepared Foods -- We expect operational improvements and pricing to offset increased raw material costs. In a separate release, the co announced Jim Lochner's decision to retire in September 2014 after a more than 30-year career at Tyson Foods and IBP, inc. Lochner has served since 2009 as the company's chief operating officer and overseen much of the turnaround during the last four years. He is relocating to the company's fresh meats headquarters in Dakota Dunes, South Dakota, where he will support the fresh meats business. Following retirement, Lochner will serve the company in an advisory capacity through the end of 2017. Co also announced the creation of several new leadership positions to support future growth in its domestic and international protein and prepared foods businesses. The move aligns with the company's stated long-term strategy, which is to accelerate growth in the international, poultry and prepared foods arenas through innovation and services while cultivating the best talent in the food industry.

Early premarket gappers

Gapping up: ARIA +8.4%, MCP +8.1%, CTIC +7%, JKS +5.8%, VJET +5.1%, ONVO +4.8%, BA +3.3%, PSTI +3.3%, CSIQ +2.8%, SOL +1.9%, CG +1.8%, YY +1.6%, POT +1.5%, CRM +1.4%, SNE +1.1%, JPM +1%, MOS +0.9%, RBS +0.7%, SI +0.4%

Gapping down: MZOR -7.2%, ALNY -5.8%, FU -5.5%, CXP -2.5%, QGEN -1.8%, ADT -1.6%, UNH -0.4%

Good but not vintage

Over the past two years, global equity returns have been driven entirely by multiple expansion, with aggressive monetary policy helping reduce tail risks and lower the equity risk premium. With QE coming to an end this is unlikely to continue in 2014. However, we do not foresee a new bear market. Economic growth is picking up, earnings are likely to meet relatively modest expectations and retail investors are finally returning to equities. We see a total return of around 10% for the global market by end-2014.

Global themes for 2014

In the regional reports that accompany this global overview, we asked our analysts to identify the investment themes which they think will drive their sector over the coming 12 months. A careful reading of these themes reveals some interesting common threads from a global perspective. Below, we highlight the six most often-cited themes: * Regulation/government policy (p. 15). Six years after the global financial crisis, governments continue to interfere in markets, creating potential winners and losers. * Margin improvement (p. 16). With top-line growth likely to remain hard to come by, the focus will remain on improving margins. * M&A (p. 17). Our analysts see a new wave of M&A starting, based mainly on structural consolidation. * Stretched valuations (p. 17). After five years of a bull market, some valuations are beginning to look stretched. We believe investors should focus on second-tier stocks where valuations remain attractive. * Higher interest rates (p. 18). As the Fed moves towards tapering, analysts are increasingly nervous about companies with high gearing or that are otherwise affected by rising rates. * Tech break-throughs/new models (p. 19). A convergence in technologies is dramatically altering many business models.

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Saipem Jumps; Seadrill Said Interested in Offshore Drilling 2013-11-18 09:08:20.59 GMT

By Benjamin Dow and Chiara Remondini Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Saipem up as much as 4.4%, leads gains on Stoxx 600 Oil & Gas Index (-0.35%), FTSE MIB Index (-0.2%). * On Nov. 16, Milano Finanza reported that Seadrill may be interested in SPM IM’s offshore drilling business, particularly deepwater; paper cited people familiar

For Related News and Information: First Word scrolling panel: FIRST<GO> First Word newswire: NH BFW<GO>

To contact the reporters on this story: Benjamin Dow in Moscow at +7-495-771-7735 or bdow2@bloomberg.net; Chiara Remondini in Milan at +39-02-8064-4241 or cremondini@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Ludden at +44-20-7673-2645 or jludden@bloomberg.net