HONG KONG, Aug 11 (Reuters Breakingviews) - A tweak to an archaic takeover rule in the Caribbean will help Thomas Lau to succeed where his sibling did not. The Hong Kong billionaire is offering $240 million to buy out minority shareholders in Caymans-registered Lifestyle International (1212.HK), his department store chain. His timing means the deal won’t have to pass the so-called headcount test that ended a similar tilt at developer Chinese Estates (0127.HK) by the family of his brother Joseph. Dropping the rule makes governance sense, although it removes one means for small shareholders to scupper poor offers.

Several Hong Kong tycoons have fallen foul of the notorious tests, which the Cayman Islands will scrap at the end of this month. The rule stipulates that a deal needs to be approved by a majority of voting shareholders present, as well as by ownership. Joseph Lau’s family failed to buy the 25% it didn’t own in developer Chinese Estates, valuing it at $979 million,...

KYIV, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Russia is attacking scores of civilian and military targets in its bid to establish full control over the east Ukraine regions of Luhansk and Donetsk, with 120 rockets hitting the area around the town of Nikopol overnight, Ukrainian officials said.

Dnipropetrovsk governor Valentyn Reznychenko said three people were killed and seven wounded by shelling in Nikopol when 120 Grad rockets hit the area.

"The enemy is concentrating its efforts on establishing full control over the territories of the Luhansk and Donetsk regions," Ukraine's General Staff said in an early Thursday report, citing more than 60 settlements and military targets.

Aug 11 (Reuters) - Potash and salt miner K+S (SDFGn.DE) reiterated its full-year core profit guidance on Thursday, as it expects soaring prices to offset the impact of a potential gas shortage in Germany.

The group confirmed its April forecast of 2022 earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of between 2.3 billion and 2.6 billion euros ($2.37 billion and 2.67 billion) but now included a gas bottleneck scenario in its calculations.

This scenario assumes a 25% reduction in natural gas availability in the fourth quarter, which together with a new gas levy would lead to a cost burden in the low triple-digit million euro range, Chief Executive Officer Burkhard Lohr said in a statement.

NEW YORK, Aug 10 (Reuters) - Wall Street surged on Wednesday, putting the Nasdaq more than 20% above its June low, after U.S. inflation slowed more than expected in July and raised hopes the Federal Reserve will become less aggressive on interest rates hikes.

A sharp drop in the cost of gasoline helped the U.S. Consumer Price Index stay flat last month after advancing 1.3% in June, the Labor Department said. The CPI rose by a less-than-expected 8.5% over the past 12 months after a 9.1% rise in June. read more

The rally came in the wake of the first notable sign of relief for Americans who have watched inflation steadily climb. The Nasdaq now is up 20.8% since bottoming but still needs to pass its prior peak in November to confirm a new bull market.

LONDON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - British police charged a 38-year-old man who is accused of being a member of an Islamic State cell dubbed The Beatles with terrorism offences on Thursday after he was deported to England from Turkey.

Prosecutors said they had originally authorised the charging of Aine Davis under terrorism laws in 2014. After being deported by Turkish authorities he was arrested on his arrival at Luton Airport and will appear in a London court on Thursday morning.

The IS cell was called "The Beatles" by hostages in Syria because of their British accents. The BBC reported on Thursday that Davis had denied being part of the group.

"Mr Davis, 38, has been charged with terrorism offences and possession of a firearm for a purpose connected with terrorism," the Crown Prosecution Service said.

LONDON, Aug 11 (Reuters) - M&G (MNG.L) posted a 44% fall in operating profit to 182 million pounds in the first half due to market conditions, the British life insurer and asset manager said on Thursday, though the profit numbers beat expectations.

Adjusted operating profit was forecast at 144 million pounds, according to a company-supplied consensus poll.

Insurers and asset managers have faced hits to their investment income and assets under management as a result of market shocks this year, while high inflation is encouraging potential customers to economise.

Aug 11 (Reuters) - Gambling firm Entain (ENT.L) said on Thursday it would launch a new venture to drive growth in Central and Eastern Europe markets and purchase Croatia's SuperSport Group after the Ladbrokes owner reported a surge in its first-half profit.

Entain, which also owns Coral betting shops as well as bwin and partypoker online brands, said it will pay 600 million pounds ($731.04 million) in cash for SuperSport.

The London-listed firm's underlying operating profit came in at 246.5 million pounds for the six-month period ended June 30, up 20% from year-ago numbers.

TAIPEI, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Taiwan rejects the "one country, two systems" model proposed by Beijing in a white paper published this week, the self-ruled island's foreign ministry said on Thursday.

Only Taiwan's people can decide its future, ministry spokeswoman Joanne Ou told a news conference in Taipei, the capital.

China was using U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei as an "excuse to create a new normality to intimidate Taiwan's people," Ou added.

SHANGHAI, Aug 11 (Reuters) - China's auto sales surged 29.7% in July from a year earlier to 2.42 million units, extending a recovery that began in June with the help of eased COVID curbs and government incentives.

But sales for the first seven months were still 2% lower than the corresponding 2021 period, data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) showed on Thursday.

Sales of new energy vehicles, which include pure electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, increased 120% in July from the previous year.

COPENHAGEN, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Renewables firm Orsted (ORSTED.CO) raised its full-year outlook on Thursday thanks to high power prices, after a disappointing showing in its offshore wind business led to weaker-than-expected second quarter core earnings which knocked its shares.

Europe's power crunch, largely the result of the conflict in Ukraine, means the world's largest developer of offshore wind farms now expects full-year earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA), excluding new partnerships, of 20-22 billion Danish crowns.

This was up from a previous range of 19-21 billion crowns.

NEW DELHI, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Google has grave reservations about developing a self-regulatory body for the social media sector in India to hear user complaints, though the proposal has support from Facebook and Twitter (TWTR.N), sources with knowledge of the discussions told Reuters.

India in June proposed appointing a government panel to hear complaints from users about content moderation decisions, but has also said it is open to the idea of a self-regulatory body if the industry is willing.

The lack of consensus among the tech giants, however, increases the likelihood of a government panel being formed - a prospect that Meta Platforms Inc's (META.O) Facebook and Twitter are keen to avoid as they fear government and regulatory overreach in India, the sources said.

BENGALURU, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Shares of Indian domestic airlines rose on Thursday, a day after the civil aviation ministry said it will remove the restrictions on ticket prices it had imposed two years ago due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Domestic airlines IndiGo, SpiceJet Ltd (SPJT.NS), Air India, Go First and Vistara - a joint venture between the Tata Group and Singapore Airlines (SIAL.SI) - can now price tickets freely. read more

Shares of top airline IndiGo's parent InterGlobe Aviation Ltd (INGL.NS) rose as much as 2.3% to 2084.6 rupees while smaller rival SpiceJet Ltd (SPJT.NS) jumped as much as 7% to 47.9 rupees.

Aug 10 (Reuters) - U.S. consumer prices were unchanged in July due to a sharp drop in the cost of gasoline, delivering the first notable sign of relief for weary Americans who have watched inflation climb over the past two years.

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) was flat last month after advancing 1.3% in June, the Labor Department said on Wednesday in a closely watched report that nevertheless showed underlying inflation pressures remain elevated as the Federal Reserve mulls whether to embrace another super-sized interest rate hike in September. read more

The reading was the largest month-on-month deceleration of price increases since 1973 and followed on the heels of a roughly 20% drop in the cost of gasoline since mid-June. Prices at the pump spiked in the first half of this year due to the war in Ukraine, hitting a record-high average of more than $5 per gallon on June 14, according to motorist advocacy group AAA. read more

OLENIVKA, Ukraine, Aug 11 (Reuters) - The head of the Russian-backed separatist administration in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk region said on Wednesday that a trial of captured personnel from Ukraine's Azov Regiment would take place by the end of the summer, likely in the city of Mariupol.

The Azov Regiment, a unit of Ukraine's national guard with far-right and ultranationalist origins, garnered international attention for its resistance to the Russian siege of Mariupol's vast steelworks.

After fighting for weeks from the bunkers and tunnels below the steel works, hundreds of Azov fighters surrendered in May to Russian-backed forces.

BERLIN, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Daimler Truck (DTGGe.DE) reported a 15% rise in earnings before interest and taxes to 1.01 billion euros ($1.04 billion) in the second quarter, far exceeding analysts' expectations as high demand and positive exchange rate effects lifted revenues.

The truck and bus maker saw an adjusted return on sales of 8%, from 8.1% last year. Revenues reached 12.1 billion euros, beating expectations of six analysts polled by Refinitiv SmartEstimate of 11.8 billion euros.

Daimler Truck maintained its full-year outlook for the Group of 7-9% adjusted returns and 48-50 billion euros in revenues, but lowered expected adjusted returns for its Trucks Asia business to 1-3% from 3-5% previously because of the impact of supply chain constraints in China on the second quarter.

PARIS, Aug 11 (Reuters) - France is battling a "monster" wildfire in the Landiras region near the winegrowing heartland of Bordeaux, Gregory Allione from the French firefighters body FNSPF said on Thursday.

"I would qualify the fire in Landiras as a mega-fire," Allione told RTL Radio.

"It's an ogre, it's a monster," he added.

Wildfires have torn through the Gironde region near Bordeaux in southwestern France this week, destroying homes and forcing the evacuation of 10,000 residents, some of whom had clambered onto rooftops as the flames got closer. read more

Aug 11 (Reuters) - Coca-Cola HBC AG (CCH.L) said on Thursday it incurred a one-time hit of 190 million euros ($195.36 million) in the first half due to costs related to its Russian business after it stopped sale of Coca-Cola drinks in the country following the Ukraine war.

HBC also reinstated its forecast, expecting comparable operating profit for 2022 to be between 740 million euros and 820 million euros, dented by a smaller presence in Russia and inflation woes. That is lower than 831 million euros it reported in 2021.

The soft drinks bottler, which once counted Russia as one of its biggest markets, said it expects to sustain financial charges of about 82 million euros in the second-half as it depleted all its stocks and would no longer make or sell Coca-Cola (KO.N) or other brands of the Coca-Cola Company in Russia.

Aug 11 (Reuters) - Australia's Santos Ltd (STO.AX) said on Thursday it had bought a company that owns an approved underground pipeline route that could transport natural gas from its planned Narrabri project, aiming to supply the domestic market around mid-decade.

Santos did not disclose the price it paid to buy Hunter Gas Pipeline Pty Ltd but a spokesperson said it was "not a significant sum".

Australia's second-largest independent gas producer said it would work with infrastructure developers and owners to build the pipeline, which Hunter Gas Pipeline has previously said would be valued at A$1.2 billion.

Aug 11 (Reuters) - French vaccine developer Valneva (VLS.PA) on Thursday cut its full-year revenue outlook citing lower demand for its anti-COVID shot from European Union member states.

The European Commission in July slashed its order for VLA2001 to just 1.25 million doses from a previously targeted 60 million, pointing to European countries being well supplied with other vaccines and a slowdown in vaccination programmes. read more

The French drugmaker, based in southwest France, now expects to post revenue for the year of between 340 million and 360 million euros ($370 million) down from an earlier forecast of 430 million to 590 million.

SYDNEY, Aug 11 (Reuters) - At an indoor pool in a western Sydney suburb, about 20 Afghan women who recently reached Australia as refugees listen to former asylum seeker Maryam Zahid as she offers them swimming classes and talks about the country's beach culture.

Zahid, who arrived in Australia from Afghanistan 22 years ago, said her sessions help the women develop "an identity for themselves" and deal with the trauma of the war that ravaged their home country.

"That is something that will impact psychological and emotional aspects of their life ... to have an identity for themselves as a human being first," Zahid told Reuters at the Ruth Everuss aquatic centre in the suburb of Auburn.