DealZone

Reuters’ blogger Felix Salmon asks the question: “Could News Corp end up in play?”

British group Aegis, one of the last independent advertising agencies, could fall prey to a larger rival if it sells its Synovate unit, with major shareholder Vincent Bollore in the role of kingmaker.

American International Group is looking to sell part of its airplane-leasing business through an initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

The New Yorker profiles Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio.

Volkswagen sought to allay Suzuki Motor’s concerns it might overstep its bounds in a multi-billion-dollar alliance and try to bring the Japanese carmaker under its control.

State-owned People’s Insurance Company of China Group, one of the country’s largest insurers, plans to raise $5 billion to $6 billion in an initial public offering in Hong Kong and Shanghai, IFR reported, citing two sources with knowledge of the plans.

“Quite a few people in biotech are still lapping up all sorts of short-sighted, destructive advice from the financial powers that be,” reports Xconomy.

BHP Billiton will buy U.S. gas producer Petrohawk Energy for $12.1 billion, ramping up its bets on the booming but environmentally controversial shale gas industry. The FT also takes a look at the deal.

Carl Icahn offered to buy Clorox in a $10.2 billion deal, but also invited the household products maker to solicit rival bids, which he said would yield much higher offers for the company.

They were just a few brief comments at an investor conference but they were enough to set the health insurance industry abuzz: Could Aetna buy Cigna?

Integrated energy company ConocoPhillips said it would split its businesses into two stand-alone, publicly traded corporations by spinning off its refining and marketing business.

Borders Group’s buyout deal with private equity firm Najafi Companies collapsed, raising the possibility that the bankrupt bookseller could be forced to liquidate its remaining stores and go out of business.

L-3 Communications, which faces breakup pressure from an activist investor, is expected to divest some low-end services assets but does not plan a broader portfolio restructuring such as a breakup, people familiar with the situation said.

News Corp will withdraw its bid for British broadcaster BSkyB, the company said. Breakingviews columnist Chris Hughes writes James Murdoch should stage his own tactical retreat and resign from News Corporation.

Medical device maker Kinetic Concepts said it would go private in a nearly $5 billion cash deal with a consortium of private equity firm Apax Partners and two Canadian pension firms.

Electronic Arts Inc, the video game publisher, is buying PopCap Games in a deal worth up to $1.3 billion as it tries to ramp up its social and casual games portfolio and better compete with Zynga.

The award of a much-delayed mining permit that will turn European Goldfields into Europe’s largest primary gold producer could also make it a prime takeover target, in a sector where players are scrambling for growth.

Peabody Energy and ArcelorMittal are likely to succeed with their $5 billion takeover offer for Macarthur Coal, investors bet on Tuesday, driving up shares in the world’s biggest producer of pulverized coal by 37 percent.

“Mom-and-pop investors are helping to make or break an IPO’s reputation as “hot” in Hong Kong, one of the busiest markets for new listings in the last few years and one that is increasingly attracting companies from outside the city and China,” reports the WSJ.

Britain was looking for a way out of approving media baron Rupert Murdoch’s multi-billion dollar deal to buy broadcaster BSkyB amid a phone-hacking scandal that has damaged the prime minister and raised broader questions about politicians’ relations with the media.

American International Group plans to replace one or more Wall Street banks in its next sale of shares from the U.S. government, the WSJ reported on Sunday. AIG Chief Executive Robert Benmosche told the newspaper he was disappointed in the bank’s efforts to drum up interest in the previous offering.

Peabody Energy has teamed up with ArcelorMittal to offer $5 billion for Australia’s Macarthur Coal, the world’s biggest producer of pulverized coal, as demand for steel-making raw materials intensifies.

The British government said it would take the closure of the Rupert Murdoch tabloid, News of the World, into consideration when deciding on the mogul’s bid to buy BSkyB.

Shares in Rupert Murdoch’s bid-target BSkyB slumped as the phone hacking scandal engulfing the media mogul’s empire pushed the controversial deal into uncharted waters .

Private equity firm, Carlyle Group, is in talks to buy Energy Capital Partners, a buyout company focused on power generation, electric transmission, midstream gas and other energy markets, the New York Times said.

The NYSE moved closer to ceding control to a German company after investors threw their support behind a $9.4 billion takeover by Deutsche Boerse. Now the deal’s fate lies across the Atlantic, where the transaction requires approval from 75 percent of Deutsche Boerse shareholders by Wednesday of next week and then must survive a thorny European Commission antitrust review that could run through the rest of the year.

Charter International, a UK-based industrial tools maker which last week rejected a $2 billion approach, is likely to be targeted by U.S. rivals attracted by the prospect of its welding tools business, the world’s second-largest.

Live Nation Entertainment, the world’s largest concert and promotions business, would benefit from being taken private, according to the company’s largest shareholder.

Berkshire Hathaway has joined the group bidding for Citigroup’s consumer lending unit OneMain, formerly known as CitiFinancial, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

South Korea’s shipping-to-shipbuilding group STX Corp  said it may bid for a 15 percent stake in Hynix Semiconductor, reviving hopes for a $2.4 billion deal after Hyundai Heavy Industries dropped its bid plan.

Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings sold stakes in two of China’s biggest banks to raise $3.6 billion, piling more pressure on mainland lenders amid concerns about rising bad debts.