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Cinven Ltd CINV.UL has agreed to buy CeramTec for 1.49 billion euros ($1.99 billion), beating rival private equity firm BC Partners Ltd in bidding for the Germany -based industrial ceramics unit of U.S. chemicals maker Rockwood Holdings ( id="symbol_ROC.N ROC.N ). _0"> A statement issued on Sunday by Rockwood said Cinven had obtained fully committed financing for the deal, which was expected to close in the third quarter of this year once it obtained regulatory approvals.   _1"> Reuters reported on June 14 that Cinven was in exclusive talks to buy CeramTec for close to 1.5 billion euros, outbidding BC Partners' bid of just over 1.4 billion. CeramTec is a leading manufacturer of high performance ceramics for applications in the medical, automotive, industrial and electronic markets. Its proprietary product portfolio includes hip joint prostheses components, high-speed cutting tools and ballistic ceramics for armor. "We are keen to support (CeramTec&#

Aerojet Rocketdyne, the new company formed after GenCorp Inc's ( id="symbol_GY.N_0"> GY.N ) acquisition of Pratt & Whitney Rocketdyne, said on Sunday it has promised the U.S. government savings of $1 billion in savings over the next decade as a result of the deal, and possibly $2 billion more in later phases of the merger. Aerojet Rocketdyne President Warren Boley told Reuters in an interview ahead of the Paris air show that he expected the new company's revenue to double over the next five years from a current combined estimate of $1.7 billion for both GenCorp unit Aerojet and Rocketdyne.   He said the company was also looking at other business opportunities, and would soon sign a memorandum of understanding on a "significant strategic relationship" with Israel Military Industries that could evolve into a joint venture in the future. U.S. authorities approved GenCorp's acquisition of Rocketdyne on Friday after a year-long review. [ID:nWNAB02

Pratt & Whitney, a unit of United Technologies Corp ( id="symbol_UTX.N_0"> UTX.N ), expects to reach agreement with the Pentagon within the next 30 days on a contract for engines to power a sixth batch of F-35 fighter jets, Pratt President David Hess told Reuters. Hess said negotiations were still under way with the U.S. Defense Department but he expected the contract's final price to reflect a further cost reduction of less than 10 percent, continuing a trend seen in recent years.   "We're making progress there. We've gotten an offer from the (Joint Program Office) and I expect we'll get that closed pretty quickly ...certainly within 30 days," Hess told Reuters in an interview ahead of the Paris air show. Hess declined to give details on the projected value of the contract. The company, which is the sole producer of engines for the single-seat F-35 fighter jet, which is built by Lockheed Martin Corp ( id="symbol_LMT.N_1"> L

U.S. planemaker Boeing ( id="symbol_BA.N_0"> BA.N ) will launch a larger version of its lightweight 787 Dreamliner this week with up to 100 orders worth just under $30 billion, industry sources said on Sunday. The latest addition to Boeing's fleet, the 323-seat 787-10, is partly designed to serve fast-growing routes within Asia and sharpens a fight with Europe's ( id="symbol_EAD.PA_1"> EAD.PA ) Airbus for sales of the latest generation of efficient, carbon-composite jets.   The decision to go ahead and build a new version, backed by up to 100 orders spread between five or six launch customers, is expected to be announced on Tuesday at the Paris Airshow. Some orders may be converted from existing demand for smaller jets. Boeing ( id="symbol_BA.N_2"> BA.N ) declined comment. "We have no comment but we are having discussions with our customers about the potential for the 787-10X," a Boeing spokesman said, referring to the work

Brookfield Asset Management Inc ( id="symbol_BAMa.TO_0"> BAMa.TO ) said it will sell its Longview Timber holdings in the U.S. Pacific Northwest to Weyerhaeuser Co ( id="symbol_WY.N WY.N ) for $2.65 billion, including assumption of debt, and will sell a nearby paper and packaging business to KapStone Paper and Packaging Corp ( id="symbol_KS.N KS.N ) for $1.025 billion. _0"> Brookfield's Longview Fibre Paper and Packaging operations include a large paper mill in Longview, Washington and seven container plants in the region that produce Kraft paper, container board and corrugated boxes. Brookfield said it expects net proceeds from that transaction of about $250 million, after repaying debt and distributions to other investors. _1"> "While the timing of the (separate) sale transactions is coincidental, for investors in our funds these transactions represent monetization at excellent returns and puts each of these assets into the hands of

Stock Building Supply Holdings Inc filed with regulators to raise up to $175 million in an initial public offering, the latest building supplier looking to tap the market to take advantage of a U.S. housing recovery. _0"> North Carolina-based Stock Building Supply, which is backed by buyout firm Gores Group, sells lumber and building materials to new construction, and repair and remodel contractors.   A number of private equity firms are looking to capitalize on a housing rebound and a rallying stock market to exit their investments in the sector. Industrial and construction supplies company HD Supply Holdings Inc said this week that it planned to raise over $1 billion from an IPO. Shares of Taylor Morrison Home Corp, backed by TPG Capital and Oaktree Capital Management, have risen 15 percent since the homebuilder's $628 million IPO in April. Stock Building Supply operates in 13 states of the United States that accounted for about 48 percent of 2012 single-family hou

Stock investors eager to hear from the Federal Reserve about its plans for continuing economic stimulus may get some soothing words from the U.S. central bank next week. The Fed is unlikely to tip its hand about when it may begin to scale back its bond-buying program, but policymakers still may be inclined to try to tamp down recent volatility in financial markets with some mention of the issue.   The rally in stocks stumbled and Treasury bond yields rose to 14-month highs following Chairman Ben Bernanke's comments that the Fed may decide to begin scaling back its quantitative easing in the next few policy meetings if the economy improves. As part of its quantitative easing policy, adopted more than four years ago, the Fed has been buying Treasury and other bonds each month to keep interest rates low and promote growth. Interpreting Bernanke's words and recent signs about the economy have roiled markets since then. The Dow industrials climbed 200 points in eight of the 1