Deals of the day - mergers and acquisitions

Jan 5 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S. and Asian companies were reported by 1530 GMT on Thursday.

** China Development Bank and Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group are slugging it out in the final days of an auction to buy Royal Bank of Scotland's aircraft leasing business in a deal that could fetch up to $7.5 billion, a source with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Thursday.

** Private equity firm Carlyle Group said it raised $2.34 billion for a U.S. real estate fund to invest in the residential, hotel, senior living, retail and office sectors in major cities.

** British explorer Cove Energy Plc has put itself up for sale, raising the prospect of a deal that analysts said could be worth some $1 billion and would test big oil companies' interest in the emerging gas basins of east Africa.

** Safeway Inc said on Thursday it would sell 16 of its Philadelphia-area Genuardi's stores to Ahold unit Giant Food Stores in a deal the buyer valued at $106 million.

** India's Tata Motors is not on the hunt for any acquisitions of car brands, such as bankrupt Swedish car maker Saab, Chairman Ratan Tata said on Thursday.

** Bookstore owner Barnes & Noble Inc on Thursday said it is considering splitting off its Nook electronic reader business and also cut its full-year earnings forecast, citing a shortfall in sales of its basic touchscreen reader.

** Israel's SodaStream International Ltd partnered with Kraft Foods Inc to make the U.S. company's branded flavors available with its soda makers, a move that is expected to raise visibility for the brand and the home carbonation segment.

** Europe's biggest commercial broadcaster RTL Group is giving up on the Greek broadcasting market as the country's debt-induced economic crisis crushes advertising revenue.

** French nuclear group Areva is eyeing a stake in UK-based uranium enrichment company Urenco, a Dutch paper reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter.

** British energy services firm Petrofac said it will team up with Schlumberger, the world's largest oilfield services company, to enable it to bid for bigger projects with national oil companies and other firms.

** Italian auto maker Fiat has increased its stake in Chrysler Group by 5 percent to 58.5 percent as it committed to build a highly fuel-efficient car at a U.S. plant, Fiat said on Thursday.

** British soap maker PZ Cussons, best known for its traditional Imperial Leather brand, has increased its push into the youth beauty market with an acquisition of the Fudge haircare products.

** Italian insurer Unipol and private equity firm Clessidra have put forward proposals to play a role in the reorganisation of Italy's biggest motor insurer Fondiaria-SAI and its parent Premafin, a source close to the matter said on Thursday.

** India's Aditya Birla group is considering a bid for a 10 to 15 percent stake in Indonesian coal miner Bumi Resources Tbk PT to secure coal supplies for its expanding cement and aluminium operations, the Economic Times reported on Thursday.

** Ireland's state-controlled Allied Irish Banks is to end a five-year old deal with British insurer Aviva under which the bank sold Aviva life and pension products through its branches.

** Norwegian fertiliser company Yara would like to boost its current 35-percent stake in Australian ammonia maker Burrup and is considering whether to match Apache Corp's bid for 65 percent the firm.

** Croatia's new centre-left government will probably sell a leading local insurer, Croatia Osiguranje, and one of the last banks in state hands, the incoming finance minister said on Thursday.