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LONDON -(Dow Jones)- The Crown Estate, which manages a diversified GBP6 billion portfolio across the U.K. on behalf of the U.K. sovereign, Friday said it had shortlisted a number of potential investment partners to buy a 25% stake in its GBP1.6 billion Regent Street estate in London.

The Crown Estate said the matter is still at an early stage and that detailed discussions will be required with the shortlisted potential partners before a final decision is taken.

The preferred shortlist was drawn from a list of U.K. and international potential buyers, a spokeswoman for the Crown Estate said.

As the estate isn't allowed to borrow, selling a stake in the portfolio to a partner would allow it to raise cash for investment.

A spokeswoman for the Crown Estate said the cash will "enable us to invest further in Regent Street and our St James's portfolios - demonstrating our continued commitment to the West End as well as enabling us to invest elsewhere in the U.K."

Regent Street is home to world famous toy store Hamleys, and houses flagship stores for brands such as National Geographic, Apple Inc. (AAPL) and fashion retailer Aquascutum. The Crown Estate owns all of Regent Street, where it is implementing a GBP750 million regeneration program to create an international retail and business destination.

The estate pays all of its profit to the U.K. Treasury. It paid GBP210.7 million to the Treasury in the year 2009/10 and has paid some GBP1.9 billion over the past 10 years.

The Crown Estate has a property portfolio that comprises farms, forests and parks, as well as commercial holdings in London's Regent Street, Regent's Park and St James's.

It said it remains committed to Regent Street and its investment for the long term and will retain management control, so occupiers and other stakeholders won't see any change to the way Regent Street is managed. It will also keep 100% of the Regent Street freehold.

Its urban estate includes around 1.3 million square meters of office and retail space throughout the U.K. along with over 2,500 residential units.

Copyright © 2010 Dow Jones Newswires

KIEV, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Ukraine has secured a $950 millionloan from China to build a railway link between Kiev and thecapital's main airport and has hired a Chinese company for theproject, Chinese and Russian media said on Friday.

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich signed the loanagreement on a visit to China that began on Thursday. It is thefirst trip to China by a Ukrainian leader.

During the visit "an agreement was ... signed securingChina's credit support to a 30-kilometre railway project andconstruction of auxiliary facilities for an airport in Ukraine'scapital, Kiev," the English-language website of China's People'sDaily said, quoting the China Daily newspaper.

"The railway project, contracted to a Chinese firm, willcost $950 million and construction will begin next year," itsaid, adding that the project would take three years tocomplete.

Russia's Interfax news agency quoted Ukranian official incharge of the project, Vladyslav Kaskiv, as saying that Ukrainewould be able to finance the full cost of the project using theloan.

There was no mention of the rail deal in the jointdeclaration signed between China and Ukraine, a copy of whichwas posted on the Chinese Foreign Ministry's website(www.mfa.gov.cn).

Government officials in China could not be reached forcomment on the deal. (Writing by Olzhas Auyezov; Additional reporting by BenBlanchard in Beijing)

HONG KONG -(Dow Jones)- The Hong Kong government said Friday it will put up a residential site on the Kowloon Peninsula for auction on Oct 12.

The site has an area of 2,808 square meters and maximum gross floor area of 8,424 square meters. The opening bid will be HK$1.053 billion, the government said.

The site, located at No. 3 and 5 Ede Road, is adjacent to the parcel of land won by Kerry Properties Ltd. on Tuesday for HK$1.285 billion.

Copyright © 2010 Dow Jones Newswires

* Pending home sales unexpectedly rise, jobless claims dip * Retail index rises after Aug same-store sales data * Chipmakers, recently battered, continue to rise * Dow up 0.5 pct; S&P up 0.9 pct, Nasdaq up 1.1 pct

(Updates to close, changes byline)

By Rodrigo Campos

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks rose on lowvolume Thursday as data showed improvement in housing andthe job market a day ahead of the critical monthly payrollsfigures.

Investors built on Wednesday's sharp advance as indicatorsprovided the latest reason for optimism the economy couldavoid another downturn. But the nascent rally could bederailed if Friday's jobs data disappoints investors.

"Money seems to be flowing out of bonds and into the stockmarket," said Ryan Detrick, senior technical strategist atSchaeffer's Investment Research in Cincinnati.

"Obviously, tomorrow comes the big news with theemployment data. But in the near term, it shows how explosiverallies can be when we get decent economic data, because themarket is pricing a double-dip recession."

Chipmaker shares rose for a second day running and thePHLX semiconductor index gained 2.1 percent to closeabove its 14-day moving average for the first time since lateJuly.

Broadcom Corp, up $1.63 at $32.71, posted a 9.2percent advance in the last two sessions, its largest suchgain since May 2009.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 50.63points, or 0.49 percent, to 10,320.10. The Standard & Poor's500 Index rose 9.81 points, or 0.91 percent, to1,090.10. The Nasdaq Composite Index gained 23.17points, or 1.06 percent, to close at 2,200.01.

About 6.6 billion shares traded on the New York StockExchange, the Nasdaq and the American Stock Exchange, aboutaverage for the past month, but still way below last year'sdaily average of 9.65 billion. Volume is typically light inthe days just ahead of the Labor Day holiday weekend.

The housing and labor markets have long been consideredtwo of the biggest headwinds the economic recovery faces.Friday's payrolls report is expected to show about 100,000jobs were lost in August.

Data from the National Association of Realtors showedpending home resales rose unexpectedly in July and a separatereport showed new claims for unemployment insurance fell for asecond straight week.

Shares of Hovnanian Enterprisesrose 5.4 percentto $3.88 on the home sales data and after the sixth-largestU.S. builder reported a narrower quarterly loss lateWednesday.

"Homebuilders, semis are doing well, the riskier trade iskind of back on," said Detrick.

The biggest open interest on an ETF that tracks the S&P500 was at September $109 on the call side and September $110on the put side. Since the SPDR S&P 500was at 109.47,the open interest suggests options investors are not expectinga major move after the payrolls report.

The S&P 500's moving average convergence-divergence orMACD generated a 'buy' signal after having been a 'sell' sinceAug. 11. The last time the signal turned bullish was July 9,foreshadowing an advance that ended a month later and madeJuly the best month for the index in a year.

"At least in the near term, that's a sign things areimproving. That's usually the first step. We need thatpositive MACD for bigger future gains," Schaeffer's Detricksaid.

The Morgan Stanley Retail index rose 2.4 percentand Nordstrom Inc jumped 8.1 percent to $32.76 as U.S.retailers posted better-than-expected sales in August.

"Today's data is positive, but given the high level ofunemployment, it's hard to be too optimistic about theconsumer," said Michael Sheldon, chief market strategist atRDM Financial in Westport, Connecticut.

Burger King Holdings Inc agreed to sell itself toinvestment firm 3G Capital for about $3.26 billion, pushingthe stock up 25.1 percent to $23.59.

In the end to an extended bidding war, Hewlett-Packard Co raised its buyout offer for data storage company 3PARInc to $33 a share, topping an earlier bid from DellInc. The higher bid prompted Dell to bow out.

Shares of 3PAR rose 2.5 percent to $32.88 while Dellgained 2 percent to $12.36.

HP, a Dow component, rose 1.2 percent to $39.68.

Advancing stocks outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE bya ratio of about 7 to 3, while on the Nasdaq, about eightstocks rose for every five that fell. (Reporting by Rodrigo Campos; Additional reporting by RyanVlastelica and Angela Moon; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Stocks mounted a modest afternoon rally to close near the day's highs as investors awaited monthly jobs data on Friday that will shed more light on the economic recovery.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJI) finished up 50.33 points, or 0.49%, at 10319.80. The Nasdaq Composite (RIXF) rose 1.06% to finish at 2200.01 while the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index (SPX) gained 0.91% to 1090.08.

Better-than-expected housing and retail data provided some encouragement to investors, but caution prevailed following Wednesday's big run-up.

If the government's jobs report falls short of already guarded expectations, "that's going to reverse what happened" on Wednesday, when stocks jumped 255 points, said John Canally, economist and investment strategist at LPL Financial.

Canally said that while economic data has come in mixed recently, "the preconditions for a double dip are not here." Strong manufacturing data on Wednesday "puts the burden of proof back on the double dippers," he said.

Retailers led Thursday's small climb after sales for the back-to-school buying month of August largely came in better than expected. Nordstrom (JWN) jumped 8%, Limited Brands (LTD) advanced 6% and J.C. Penney (JCP) rose 3.2%.

Homebuilders were also strong, as investors were heartened by an unexpected increase in pending sales of used homes, a surprising reversal after the index fell two months in a row following the April 30 expiration of a tax credit for buyers. D. R. Horton (DHI) rose 2.5%, PulteGroup (PHM) added 2.4% and Lennar (LEN) climbed 1.8%.

However, the retail-sales reports came on easy comparisons, and Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors, warned that the housing market's recovery would still be a long one.

The Dow traded in a tight range of just over 50 points for most of the day before breaking higher in the final hour of trading, led by consumer discretionary and industrial stocks. More defensive sectors, including utilities, telecommunications and health-care stocks, were the three worst performers of the day.

Thursday's data had its disappointments. U.S. factory orders rose less than expected in July, while the level of U.S. workers filing new jobless claims last week suggested lingering troubles in the job market, and second-quarter productivity fell more than previously thought.

"We're sort of stuck in the mud," said Barry Knapp, managing director, equity research at Barclays Capital. While he noted that the housing and retail sales data topped expectations, Knapp said, "nothing in the data to me points to a change in trend. It points to continued slow growth."

Meanwhile, the government's monthly employment report loomed. Unemployment currently stands at 9.5%, and that figure Friday is expected to creep up to 9.6% as U.S. employers drop another 110,000 people off the payrolls.

"The recovery is stumbling along at this point," said Edmund Hyland, managing director and a global investment specialist for JPMorgan Private Bank's southeastern region. "It's been carried by strength in the corporate sector. What the market would like to see is that it starts to translate to jobs because consumers still account for a significant portion of GDP."

Volume was low, with just over 3.8 billion shares changing hands in NYSE Composite trading. The 2010 daily average is about 5 billion shares, although the August average was just over 4 billion shares.

The euro (CUR_EURUSD) edged up to $1.2822, from $1.2803 late Wednesday, after the European Central Bank kept its benchmark interest rate unchanged at a record low 1%, as expected. ECB President Jean-Claude Trichet said the ECB would extend its tool box of additional bank funding on a "full allotment" basis, citing continued uncertainties in the economy.

Treasurys were mixed, with an increase in the two-year note pushing its yield down to 0.50% while a decline in the 10-year note lifted its yield up to 2.63%. Crude-oil futures edged up to about $75 a barrel, while gold futures also advanced.

Among stocks in focus, Burger King Holdings (BKC) soared 25% to $23.59 as the fast-food chain confirmed that 3G Capital has signed a deal to buy the company for $24 a share.

Meanwhile, computer maker Dell (DELL) withdrew from the bidding war for 3PAR (PAR), surrendering the storage maker to rival Hewlett-Packard (HPQ) after the tech giant lifted its offer to $2.1 billion. 3Par, which makes storage products used in cloud computing, accepted H-P's offer, valuing the company at $33 a share. H-P gained 1.2%, while Dell rose 2% and 3PAR climbed 2.5% to $32.86.

Copyright © 2010 Dow Jones Newswires

(Updates markets to close)

By Lucia Mutikani

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Pending sales of previouslyowned U.S. homes rebounded unexpectedly in July and new claimsfor jobless benefits fell last week, helping quell fears theeconomy could face a double-dip recession.

The data released Thursday, including sturdy sales fromU.S. retailers last month, followed a report Wednesdayshowing a surprising gain in manufacturing and suggested theeconomy retained some underlying strength.

"This is an economy that has hit a soft patch. It's not aneconomy that appears to be heading towards a double-diprecession," said Brian Levitt, an economist at OppenheimerFundsin New York.

Investors appeared to agree that fears of a double-diprecession might have been overdone as they sold U.S. governmentdebt for a second straight day and bought stocks. The broadStandard & Poor's 500 Index ended up 0.91 percent.

The National Association of Realtors' Pending Home SalesIndex, based on contracts signed, rose 5.2 percent in July fromJune. Analysts had expected the index, which leads actual salesby a month or two, to fall 1 percent.

Home sales have dropped sharply since a popular tax creditfor home buyers ended in April and the surprise gain in pendingsales raised hopes the sector could soon stabilize.

A separate report from the Labor Department showed initialclaims for state unemployment benefits dropped for a secondstraight week last week, slipping 6,000 to 472,000.

RETAILERS POST STRONG SALES

Investor sentiment was also lifted by better-than-expectedAugust data reported by retailers which showed sales getting alift as consumers sought bargains during the key back-to-schoolselling season.

While new jobless claims declined last week, they are stillhigh for this stage in the recovery. Two weeks ago they hit anine-month high and they remain above where they stood at thebeginning of the year.

"We're still uncomfortably high given where we are at thisjuncture of the recovery, but that we're moving towards 400,000rather than 500,000 is indicative of at least some measure ofjob creation," said Mark Luschini, chief investment strategistat Janney Montgomery Scott in Philadelphia.

The government is expected to report Friday that nonfarmpayrolls dropped 100,000 in August, the third straight month ofjob declines, with private sector employment increasing only41,000, according to a Reuters survey.

The claims data offered few hints of whether thoseforecasts are on track, since it fell outside the survey periodfor the closely watched monthly jobs report.

The weak labor market threatens to derail the U.S.economy's recovery from the most painful recession since theGreat Depression. Growth is losing steam as the boost from a$814 billion government stimulus package and the rebuilding ofinventories by businesses fade.

FED WATCHING RECOVERY

The Federal Reserve has acknowledged the slowing recoverypace but the minutes of the U.S. central bank's last policymeeting released this week showed several policymakers felt theoutlook would have to deteriorate "appreciably" to spur freshmonetary support.

Growing unease over the economy's health and the highunemployment rate are weighing on President Barack Obama'spopularity and dimming the Democratic Party's prospects ofkeeping control of Congress in November's mid-term elections.

The economy grew at a 1.6 percent annualized rate in thesecond quarter, less than half the 3.7 percent pace seen in theJanuary-March period.

The lackluster recovery was underscored by a second reportfrom the Labor Department Thursday that showed U.S. businessproductivity contracted at an annual rate of 1.8 percent in thesecond quarter, instead of the previously reported 0.9 percent.It was the largest decline since the third quarter of 2006.

While falling productivity will hurt corporate profits,some analysts said it also signaled job growth was imminent.

"When productivity peaks and starts to go lower, it meansthat businesses have basically gotten as much out of theirworkers as they can and usually that is a pretty good indicatorfor future job creation," said OppenheimerFunds' Levitt.

The report showed unit labor costs, a gauge of potentialinflation pressures, rose at a 1.1 percent rate rather than thepreviously estimated 0.2 percent. It was the biggest increasesince the fourth quarter of 2008.

Other data Thursday showed new orders received by U.S.factories edged up 0.1 percent last month after falling 0.6percent in June. (Additional reporting by Glenn Somerville in Washington andRyan Vlastelica in New York; Editing by James Dalgleish)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The regulator for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac lowered its goals for the two mortgage finance entities to buy loans for some low-income properties.

The Federal Housing Finance Agency said it would now require at least 21 percent of its single-family refinance loan purchases to be for low-income properties, down from 25 percent in an earlier proposal.

"The final rule adjusts the low-income refinance goal downward reflecting recent market conditions," FHFA said in a prepared statement.

It also lowered low-income and very low-income goals for multi-family properties by about 25 percent, the agency said.

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would be required to make sure at least 27 percent of the home purchase loans it acquires are for low-income properties and 8 percent are for very low-income properties. Those levels are unchanged from the proposed rule.

Congress in 2008 required FHFA to establish new rules for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and Thursday's announcement is the final step in that process. The rule is expected to take effect in October.

"FHFA does not intend for the Enterprises to undertake economically adverse or high-risk activities in support of the goals, nor does it intend for the Enterprises' state of conservatorship to be a justification for withdrawing support from these important market segments," the agency said. (Reporting by Corbett B. Daly; editing by Todd Eastham)