STOCKS NEWS US-Markets advance at open following data

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0930 ET 05June2009-Markets advance at open following data
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Major U.S. indexes opened higher on Friday, following data that showed that
employers cut 345,000 jobs in May, far fewer than had been expected.

"I look through these numbers, and I'm trying to find something that is
very disappointing, and I am very hard-pressed," said Hugh Johnson, chief
investment officer at Johnson Illington Advisors in Albany, New York.

"It seems to be consistent with the current view that although we are in a
recession, the recession is clearly getting less worse."

The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI rose 0.7 percent to 8,810.37 while
the S&P 500 .SPX gained 0.5 percent to 946.66 and the Nasdaq .IXIC was up
0.8 percent to 1,864.02.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0908 ET 05June2009-Rio Tinto ADRs advance, ends Chinalco deal
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U.S.-listed shares of Rio Tinto (RIO.AX) (RIO.L) (RTP.N) rallied in
premarket trading on Friday, after the company spurned $19.5 billion of funding
from China on Friday in favor of a cost-saving iron ore joint venture with
rival BHP Billiton (BLT.L) (BHP.N) and a share sale to slash its debts.

The deal with Chinese metals group Chinalco was put together in February at
the height of the financial crisis in a bid to halve Rio's $38 billion of debt.
It's collapse under shareholder pressure leaves China, the world's biggest
steel making nation, vulnerable to just two suppliers -- a Rio/BHP combination
and Brazil's Vale (VALE5.SA) -- controlling 70 percent of global iron ore
trade.

For details, see [ID:nSYD73514]

Shares of Rio Tinto advanced 9.3 percent to $199.63 on the New York Stock
Exchange before the bell.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0903 ET 05June2009-Merck heart failure drug misses goal in study
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Merck & Co Inc's (MRK.N) experimental heart failure drug failed to meet the
goals of a pivotal late-stage study, the pharmaceutical company said on Friday.
The Dow component said it wouldn't file applications this year seeking
regulatory approval for rolofylline.

The medicine failed to meet the primary or secondary efficacy goals in the
2,033-patient Phase III study.

For details, see [ID:nN05273234]

Shares of Merck rose 2 cents to $26.60 in premarket trading on Friday.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0849 ET 05June2009-FDIC aiming to shake up Citi management: WSJ
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The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp is aiming at a shake-up of Citigroup
Inc's (C.N) top management, including replacing Chief Executive Vikram Pandit,
according to a report in the Wall Street Journal, which cited people familiar
with the matter.

U.S. officials have reached out to former U.S. Bancorp (USB.N) Chief
Executive Jerry Grundhofer, who recently joined Citigroup's board, to see if he
is interested in the top position at Citi, the paper said.

For details, see [ID:nSP443945]

Shares of Citigroup rose 2.2 percent to $3.65 in premarket trading.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net
0844 ET 05June2009-Boston Properties to sell shares, stock drops
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Shares of Boston Properties (BXP.N) sank in premarket trading on Friday, a
day after the office landlord said it would sell more than 12 million shares to
raise cash. The company is selling 10.5 million shares and granting
underwriters an additional 1,575,000 shares to cover overallotments.

For details, see [ID:nN04518299]

Shares of the company fell 3.8 percent to $51 in premarket trading.

Reuters Messaging: ryan.vlastelica.reuters.com@reuters.net