Markets playing let’s make a deal

Published Tuesday, July 24, 2007

NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks rebounded yesterday after a fresh round of buyout news offered evidence that Wall Street’s penchant for making deals hasn’t disappeared.

Better-than-expected profit news from Merck & Co. also boosted the mood on Wall Street, helping it partially recover from a steep sell-off Friday that was triggered by weak earnings reports and worries about souring subprime loans.

The stock market pushed those concerns aside yesterday after Transocean Inc., the world’s largest offshore drilling contractor, and rival GlobalSantaFe Corp. said they agreed to merge. The combined company will have a market value of about $53 billion.

In addition, equipment rental company United Rentals Inc. agreed to be taken private by affiliates of Cerberus Capital Management LP for about $4 billion in cash, and British bank Barclays PLC said it would raise its offer for ABN Amro Holding NV to $93.2 billion to fight a rival bid.