Subscribe to Print Edition | Thu., November 27, 2008 Cheshvan 29, 5769 | | Israel Time: 01:36 (EST+7)   Back to Homepage web haaretz.com Haaretz Toolbar Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Car Rental Books Haaretz Magazine Business Real Estate GA 2008 Travel Week's End Anglo File

Markets in Brief By Tal Levy , TheMarker , TheMarker , TheMarker , TheMarker , Nathan Sheva , Nathan Sheva , TheMarker Bank Hapoalim insists that this time, its computer system really is working. The bank announced that Sunday's glitch had been repaired on Monday, but its clientele found that stated position to be a hair optimistic. Last week Nochi Dankner and other top IDB managers convened to discuss the merits of a massive stock buyback and delisting of group companies. Yesterday IDB announced that it will be offering to repurchase 650,000 shares of Property & Building for NIS 126 per share, costing it up to NIS 82 million. This price us 9.5% above P&B's opening share price on Tuesday morning. P&B is a direct subsidiary of Discount Investment Corp, which is a direct subsidiary of IDB Development, which is a direct subsidiary of IDB Holding. Advertisement Deutsche Bank yesterday repeated a Buy recommendation for Makhteshim Agan, after the agrochemical company's stock lost 40% in the space of two weeks. Deutsche's 12-month price target for the stock is NIS 21, almost double Makhteshim Agan's starting price yesterday. After an upbeat meeting with the Makhteshim management last week, Deutsche notes that most of the company's (not small) debt is spread through to the year 2020. The first substantial repayment that Makhteshim has to make is NIS 100 million in two years, which hardly counts. Ortam Sahar's board of directors is changing dividend policy regarding the year 2008 - and only the year 2008. Namely, shareholders will get up to 90% of the company's annual net profit eligible for distribution, as long as the company's cash flow or business plans aren't impaired thereby. Smile 012 Communications is also repurchasing debt. The company announced yesterday that it will buy back up to NIS 100 million of its Series A bonds, via the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. Half that may be bought by its parent company, as explained below: Internet Gold is also buying back up to NIS 100 million of its Series B bonds, and up to NIS 50 million of the bonds issued by subsidiary Smile 012 Communications. The board of directors at real estate company Pangaea has decided to expand its debenture repurchase program by NIS 20 million, to a total of NIS 60 million. The company will be buying back Series B1 and B2 bonds from time to time on or off the market. ? Merrill Lynch, once an investment bank and now a regular bank, has become a remote member of the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange. That means it can trade directly in Israeli securities through a direct computer link between the TASE trading system and the foreign bank's London office. And that means that Merrill can eschew the kind services of local brokerages, and the fees. Merrill is one of the two biggest players on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, but until now had to route its orders through locals. IDB Development, a subsidiary of Nochi Dankner's IDB Holding Corp, lost NIS 23 million in the third quarter of 2008, compared with netting NIS 129 million in the same period of 2007. The problem was simply that most of its group companies either shifted to a loss or shrunken profit. b Much of the woe came from subsidiary Clal Industries, which contributed a loss of NIS 8 million in the quarter, while in the parallel quarter it had contributed a gain of NIS 184 million. b Subsidiary Koor Industries' profit had shrunk 13% to NIS 428 million, from NIS 492 million the previous year. b In the third quarter, Koor posted capital gains of NIS 535 million from selling Credit Suisse stock. But in the parallel quarter of 2007, Koor had posted capital gains of NIS 615 million from selling its controlling interest in ECI Telecom. b Moving into the industrial sector, IDB Development said it lost NIS 43 million. That said, Israeli-American Paper Mills (often called Hadera Paper) netted NIS 20 million, while the paper-production company had earned NIS 8 million the previous year. b Now in the real estate sector, profit shrank by nearly two-thirds at Property & Building, from NIS 25 million to NIS 10 million. The main problems at P&B were rising costs of financing and losses from its investment in securities. b Technology brought no relief: IDB Development posted a loss of NIS 33 million compared with a gain of NIS 170 million the previous year, most of which derived from Koor and Clal Industries selling their ECI shares last year. Elron's $15 million loss fell into this category this year. b Clal Insurance contributed a loss of NIS 31 million, while the year before it had netted NIS 23 million. b Discount Investment Corp, however, did bring relief, doubling its profit contribution to NIS 144 million thanks to its share of Koor's Credit Suisse wealth. Altogether, IDB Development's revenues dropped by nearly 35% year over year to NIS 6.7 billion, compared with NIS 10.2 billion the previous year. The company ended the third quarter with NIS 1.2 billion in cash, compared with NIS 1.7 billion at the end of 2007. (Yuval Maoz) Bookmark to del.icio.us   Who's missing? Haredi parties absent from Jerusalem coalition for first time in decades. 'Kavosh 2' Amid nuclear tensions, Iran says it successfully launched rocket.

Read & React Documents reveal IDF killed wanted Palestinians against court guidelines Responses: 178 Israel asks Bush to explain its 'special relationship' with U.S. to Obama Responses: 115 Settler teens rampage through Palestinian neighborhood in Hebron Responses: 126 Aluf Benn: Obama's challenge will be to persuade Netanyahu to advance peace Responses: 57 Judea Pearl: Israel and Palestinians should apologize to each other Responses: 52 More Headlines 01:11 At least 80 people dead, hostages taken in multiple Mumbai attacks 23:55 AG seeks to indict Olmert over double-billing affair 22:07 Pines-Paz: It's a tragic day for Israel when a PM is indicted 23:44 Barak: We will evacuate settlers from Hebron house, by force if necessary 18:30 Lebanon asks Iran to supply its army with midsize weapons 23:40 UN watchdog clears Syria bid for atomic aid, despite world doubts 01:30 Who stole Hitler's golden bookmark? 17:27 Holocaust survivor to meet her Polish savior after 60 years 19:25 Haredi parties absent from Jerusalem coalition for first time in decades 18:29 Amid nuclear tensions, Iran says it successfully launched rocket 21:46 Borat's brother - a.k.a. Erran Baron Cohen - releases Hanukkah CD 18:28 Livni urges Thailand to commute Israeli drug smugglers' death sentence 18:28 Hamas, Fatah women brawl in Gaza as factional tempers flare 18:19 Short on fuel, Gazans use car batteries to restart power plant 13:31 Ban: Israel, Lebanon must 'seize the moment' and make peace 18:22 Settler rabbi: Peace Now chief should be jailed for treason Previous Editions Select Day 26 nov 25 nov 24 nov 23 nov 21 nov 20 nov 19 nov 18 nov 17 nov 16 nov 14 nov 13 nov

Special Offers Advertisement Living in Israel Studying in English Click & Meet our students from all around the world Living in Israel Studying in English Click & Meet our students from all around the world Dan Boutique Jerusalem New Dan Hotel in Jerusalem Young, Fun & Distinctively Dan Book Now Online! Fattal Hotel Chain Perfectly located hotels on best resorts of Israel. Car rental in Israel Shlomo Sixt Receive $15.00 from our low rates. Dial 013 for your long-distance calls and get all your money back US CITIZENS Vote for real change. Request your ballot today! Eldan Rent a Car Israel's leading car rental company offers you a 20% discount on all online reservations Jewish Singles Personal Ads Find the love of your life on JDate.com Israel's Premier Real Estate Website www. israel-property.com Hebrew Summer courses From $39.95 Junkyard Junk a car - get free towing nationwide and a tax-deductible receipt

Home | TV | Print Edition | Diplomacy | Opinion | Arts & Leisure | Sports | Jewish World | Underground | Site rules |

Real Estate in Israel | Travel to Israel with Haaretz | Hotels Israel | Restaurants Israel | Tourist attractions Israel | Shops Israel

birthright Israel | Search engine marketing

Haaretz.com, the online edition of Haaretz Newspaper in Israel, offers real-time breaking news, opinions and analysis from Israel and the Middle East. Haaretz.com provides extensive and in-depth coverage of Israel, the Jewish World and the Middle East, including defense, diplomacy, the Arab-Israeli conflict, the peace process, Israeli politics, Jerusalem affairs, international relations, Iran, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, the Palestinian Authority, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, the Israeli business world and Jewish life in Israel and the Diaspora.

© Copyright  Haaretz. All rights reserved