04/07/07 FTSE 100 6639.8, +49.2 Dow 13577.3, +41.9 FTSE 250 11747.6, +213.3 Nasdaq 2644.95, +12.65 FTSE All Share 3427.29, +30.52 S&P 500 1524.85, +5.4 Nikkei 18168.7, +18.8 Hang Seng 22214.9, +63.7 Oil (Brent) $73.94 Gold $655.80 Base Rate 5.5% 10 Yr Gilt 5.485% £/$ 2.018 Euro/Gbp 0.6747 Market report  US markets continued their positive start to the second half of 2007, helped by further takeover news and a stronger than expected take on manufacturing growth. The Commerce Department reported new orders at US factories falling 0.5%, much smaller than analysts had expected. Excluding transportation, May factory orders actually rose 0.7%. Markets closed at 1pm ahead of the July 4th holiday. US markets continued their positive start to the second half of 2007, helped by further takeover news and a stronger than expected take on manufacturing growth. The Commerce Department reported new orders at US factories falling 0.5%, much smaller than analysts had expected. Excluding transportation, May factory orders actually rose 0.7%. Markets closed at 1pm ahead of the July 4th holiday. The Dow Jones gained 41.9 points higher to close at 13,577.3, the S&P 500 added 5.4 points to end at 1,524.85. The Nasdaq advanced 12.65 points to finish at 2,644.95. In deal news, Kraft said that it has bid $7.2 billion for Groupe Danone. Snack food maker Kraft slipped $0.87 to $34.66, while Groupe Danone, which have said they will consider the offer on an exclusive basis, fell $0.20 to $16.65. Wendy's International Inc jumped almost 3% after billionaire investor Nelson Peltz said his Triarc Cos Inc would be a "natural, strategic buyer". The fast food chain closed $1.00 higher at $38.39, while Triarc lost $0.25 to $15.75. Apple rallied 5% to $127.17 after technology research firm iSuppli said the new iPhone could deliver hefty profit margins for the company - the most expensive model could make 55%. Caterpillar Inc did not follow the upbeat mood for the day, falling 3.1% to $71.99. The diversified manufacturer fell after MarketWatch reported that UBS had cut its rating on the stock to "reduce" from "neutral". US light crude oil for August delivery added $0.16 to $71.25 a barrel. COMEX gold slipped $3.40 to $655.80 an ounce. Treasury prices went lower, sending the yield on the 10 year note up to 5.04%. The Nikkei climbed 18.8 points to 18,168.7 this morning. Exporters benefited from the better than expected manufacturing report from the US. Nippon Oil Corp led oil related companies lower after Nikko Citigroup Ltd lowered its rating on the shares. Retailers climbed after companies including women's clothing chain operator Honeys Co and shoe merchandiser ABC-Mart Inc raised their full year profit targets. The Hang Seng is currently 63.7 points higher at 22,214.9 this morning, driven by the prospect that investors will pour funds into the local market once overseas investment curbs are eased tomorrow. China Estates Holdings Ltd surged after saying it's in talks with investors who may offer to buy the company. Pub groups and mining stocks led a rally on the London market yesterday, adding to the boost from an overnight surge on Wall Street. The FTSE 100 Index closed up 49.2 points at 6639.8, as blue chips benefited from positive investor sentiment on the other side of the Atlantic. Pub giant Punch Taverns led the day's share risers, gaining uplift along with the rest of the sector after better than expected profits and news of property spin-off plans from FTSE 250 rival Greene King. Punch stock closed up 3% at 1262p as investors saw potential for property value to be realised as Greene King announced plans to separate out up to a third of its sites into operating and property companies. Greene King was up 8% at 1036p, while back in the top flight, Enterprise Inns also cheered 13.5p to 687p. Miners, meanwhile, helped buoy the Footsie on the back of bid rumours and strong metal prices. Lonmin was on the front foot, up 131p to 4310p as speculation of a potential bid from rival Xstrata persisted. The news helped lift stocks across the sector with Antofagasta ahead 18p at 646p and Anglo American up 64p at 3175p. Vedanta Resources also climbed 23p to 1656p and Xstrata surged 46p to 3104p. Engine maker and engineering giant Rolls-Royce joined the risers board, up 2% at 547.5p, after saying that it had experienced an "encouraging" performance in the second quarter of the year. The group said it had benefited from a strong order flow, most notably at its Airbus operations. Share fallers were thin on the ground, but former Anglo American group company Mondi, the European paper producer, started its first day on the Footsie badly, off 2%, or 10p at 490p. Shares in the group had initially opened at 500p. A broker downgrade from UBS saw oil and gas major BG Group drop 7.5p to 824p after UBS warned that it expected the recent strong flow of positive exploration updates from the company to slow. Meanwhile, water utility group Severn Trent was off 1p at 1382p as doubt was cast over the likely success of a bid for United Utilities, after speculation that the group had approached United with a 880p-a-share offer. The FTSE is 16 points higher at 6,655.8 this morning. Hotel and leisure stocks lift the market on news that Blackstone will buy Hilton Hotels. Intercontinental Hotels leads the charge, up 5% and both Whitbread and Punch Taverns follow, gaining around 4%. Lonmin is down 1% after going ex-dividend and Man Group falls 0.25% for the same reason. Economic report    UK PMI Services (Jun) 0930 BST The services PMI has stabilised at around 57 for the last couple of months, down from its peak of 60 in the fourth quarter. Analysts expects it to remain around this level in June. Note that this survey does not cover distribution which is where analysts expect the dampening effect of previous increases in interest rates to really show up. UK Bank of England Mortgage Equity Withdrawal (Q1) 0930 BST Mortgage equity withdrawal is likely to remain strong. But these figures are often misunderstood - when house prices rise, people trading down release equity but those making the purchase increase their levels of debt. These figures only pick up the funds being released from the seller but don't capture the funds being lost by the purchaser. So the implications for consumer spending are often overestimated.   The details published in this e-mail are intended for information only and should not be construed as advice under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Aventus Capital Management will not accept responsibility for any actions taken (or not taken) on the basis of information published in this e-mail. 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