LONDON, Sept 14 AFP - US investment giant Lehman Brothers was heading for possible liquidation late today after the front-runner to bail out the embattled firm, Barclays, pulled out of negotiations.

WASHINGTON - The United States is mired in a “once-in-a century” financial crisis which is now more than likely to spark a recession, former Federal Reserve chief Alan Greenspan said today.

ZURICH- Switzerland’s biggest bank, UBS, is set to write down a further $US5 billion ($A6.24 billion) in assets amid continuing financial turmoil, Swiss weekly SonntagsZeitung reported Sunday.

LAGOS - The most prominent militant group in oil-rich southern Nigeria on Sunday said it had declared an “oil war” and threatened all international industry vessels that approach the region.

HOUSTON - Federal officials say it appears Hurricane Ike destroyed a number of oil production platforms and damaged some of the pipelines in the Gulf of Mexico.

LONDON - A second British vacation company has gone bust, the country’s aviation regulator said Sunday, the same week the UK’s No 3 tour operator collapsed.

LOCAL NEWS

SYDNEY - Oil and gas giant Santos is facing a ten-fold cost blow-out in its clean-up of the world’s largest mud volcano in East Java, a new report shows.

SYDNEY- Eastern Star Gas Ltd chief executive David Casey said the hidden value of coal seam gas reserves was that coal beds ran for considerable lengths, with embedded gas resources possibly far larger than presumed.

SYDNEY - Forty per cent of Australians say their income fell between 2001 and 2005, despite the former federal government claiming the period was a golden age.

PERTH - Conservative parties - with the help of independents - are set to control both houses of Western Australia’s parliament for the first time in 12 years.

STOCKS TO WATCH ON THE AUSTRALIAN STOCK EXCHANGE TODAY:

STO - SANTOS LTD - closed on Friday at $19.37
Oil and gas giant Santos is facing a ten-fold cost blow-out in its clean-up of the world’s largest mud volcano in East Java, a new report shows.

ASL - AUSDRILL LTD - up 15 cents to $2.15
MAH - MACMAHON HOLDINGS LTD - up 3.5 cents to $1.835
Takeover target Ausdrill has blamed a fall in the company’s share price on hedge fund selling after comments from suitor Macmahon Holdings that its bid was unlikely to succeed.

RPG - RAPTIS GROUP LTD - suspended from trading at 40 cents
Shares in Surfers Paradise-based property developer Raptis Group have been suspended from trading on the Australian stock exchange, pending an announcement about a potential funding injection into the company.

HWI - HOUSEWARES INTERNATIONAL LTD - up two cents to $1.26
Housewares International has appointed Stephen Audsley as its chief executive officer.

BSL - BLUECSOPE STEEL LTD - up 38 cents to $8.25
BlueScope Steel says an emissions trading scheme must allow the company to remain competitive so it is able to generate cash and fund individual carbon reduction initiatives.

ALL - ARISTOCRAT LEISURE LTD - up 19 cents to $7.00
Poker machine maker Aristocrat Leisure has appointed a new head in North America, replacing its previous boss with its head of European, Middle Eastern and African operations, Nick Khin.

WHS - THE WAREHOUSE GROUP LTD - up one cent to $2.63
Dual-listed shopkeeper The Warehouse Group has posted a 21 per cent fall in annual net profit to $NZ90.8 million ($A74.63 million), hit by economic slowdown and pressure on household budgets.

CWN - CROWN LTD - up 19 cents to $9.00
The Packer-controlled Publishing and Broadcasting Limited pays rent of just $1 a year for its Crown casino complex in Melbourne.

NWS - NEWS CORPORATION - up 25 cents to $17.75
NWSLV - NEWS CORPORATION NON-VOTING - up 42 cents to $17.45
French outdoor advertising firm JCDecaux SA says it is negotiating to buy Russian rival News Outdoor Group from global media giant News Corp.

CHN - CHALICE GOLD MINES LTD - up one cent to 12 cents
PEM - PERILYA LTD - up 12.5 cennts, or 60.98 per cent, to 33 cents
Perilya is to gain a 73 per cent interest in Chalice Gold Mines after the unior gold explorer agreed to issue the lead and zinc miner with 200 million new shares as consideration for Perilya’s Mount Oxide copper and cobalt project in Queensland.

NEW YORK - Wall Street shares zigzagged to a mixed finish on Friday in a market dragged around by reports and speculation about the fate of two troubled financial firms, Lehman Brothers and Washington Mutual.
In a volatile session that saw gains and losses reverse several times, the Dow Jones Industrial Average ended with a modest decline of 11.72 points, or 0.10 per cent, at 11,421.99.
The tech-heavy Nasdaq rose 3.05 points, or 0.14 per cent, to 2,261.27 while the broad-market Standard & Poor’s 500 index managed a gain of 2.65 points, or 0.21 per cent, to 1,251.70.

LONDON - European stocks closed higher on Friday, with investors betting that the US authorities will ensure that failing investment bank Lehman Brothers finds a saviour and ease the pressure on the banking sector.
In London, the FTSE 100 index was up 98.3 points, or 1.85 per cent, to 5,416.70 points.

FRANKFURT - Germany’s DAX 30 rose 55.99 points, or 0.91 per cent, to 6,234.89.

PARIS - France’s CAC 40 jumped 83.59 points, or 1.97 per cent, to 4,332.66 points.

TOKYO - The Tokyo Stock Exchange’s benchmark Nikkei-225 index closed up 112.26 points, or 0.93 per cent, to 12,214.76 ahead of a three-day weekend in Japan.

HONG KONG - Hong Kong share prices closed down 0.18 per cent on Friday, as weakness in Chinese banks offset earlier gains in property developers and energy firms.
The benchmark Hang Seng Index plunged 35.82 points to 19,352.90

WELLINGTON - The New Zealand share market rose to end the week, the benchmark NZSX-50 index closing up 28.15 points, or 0.844 per cent, at 3361.68.

SYDNEY - Australian markets have received a mixed lead from Wall Street, although the price of oil fell again in a special trading session overnight whilst gold and silver rose.
At 0722 AEST, the Sydney Futures Exchange’s September Share Price Index contract was 50 points higher, or 1.02 per cent, at 4,975.
In news today, the Australian Bureau of Statistics will release dwelling unit commencements data for June.
Reserve Bank of New Zealand assistant governor Dr John McDermott speaks at an Australian Business Economists lunch on “Monetary Policy Issues in New Zealand”.
Base metals and uranium explorer Aluminex Resources Ltd is to list on the Australian securities exchange.
On Friday, the benchmark S&P/ASX200 was up 89.5 points, or 1.86 per cent, to 4,903.8, while the broader All Ordinaries added 85.6 points, or 1.76 per cent to 4,957.1.

NYMEX

In energy trading on Friday, crude oil briefly fell below $100 a barrel despite threats to Gulf energy supplies from Hurricane Ike, suggesting traders still believe a soft economy will keep driving down demand.
Light, sweet crude for October delivery ended Friday 31 cents higher at $101.18 a barrel, after briefly sinking to $99.99.
That was the first time oil traded below $100 since April 2.
In a special trading session on the NYMEX last night Australian time, crude oil fell to a six-month low and gasoline tumbled amid signs that refineries along the Gulf of Mexico coast will soon resume operations after escaping major damage from Hurricane Ike.
More than 20 per cent of the US’s oil refining capacity was shut, limiting fuel deliveries and prompting the Department of Energy to release 309,000 barrels from its strategic reserves. New York Mercantile Exchange electronic trading opened early today to allow traders to respond to Ike.
Crude oil for October delivery fell $2.18, or 2.2 per cent, to $99 a barrel at 4.26 pm (0626 AEST) on the Nymex. Futures touched $98.46, the lowest since February 26.
Prices are up 25 per cent from a year ago.
Gasoline for October delivery fell 10.86 cents, or 3.9 per cent, to $2.661 a gallon in New York.
Oil in New York has fallen 33 per cent from a record $147.27 a barrel on July 11 as high prices and slowing global economic growth reduce demand for fuels. Sales at US retailers dropped in August for a second straight month and July inventories at American businesses increased the most in four years, Commerce Department reports showed last week.

COMEX

Gold for December delivery rose $19 to settle at $764.50 an ounce on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Friday, after earlier rising to $770.50. It was gold’s first positive close in 10 days.
Other precious metals also traded higher Friday. December silver rose 24 cents to settle at $10.795 an ounce, while December copper gained 7.2 cents to settle at $3.194 a pound.