The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S. and Asian companies were reported by 0930 GMT on Friday:
** SK hynix dropped its bid for bankrupt Japanese semiconductor maker Elpida Memory Inc, sending shares of the South Korean chipmaker to a two-week high.
** French retail chain Casino said it made a cash gain of 138 million euros ($181.5 million) from selling a 9.8 percent chunk of its holding in real-estate unit Mercialys as it seeks to cut debt and boost financial flexibility.
** Chinese utility Beijing Enterprises Holding Group, parent of listed Beijing Enterprises Ltd, has bought shares in city gas distributor China Gas Holdings Ltd from Oman Oil, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Friday.
** Italian cement maker Italcementi said on Friday it has agreed to acquire a stake in West China Cement as the group moves to strengthen its position in the world's largest building materials market.
** French utility EDF said it would share the increase in the price it has to pay to buy out the Italian investors of Italian utility Edison, paying half of the 50 million euros ($65.76 million) for the Italian utility.
This article is copyrighted by Reuters
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