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Shoppers Drug Mart Corp on Wednesday sold C$500 million ($490 million) of senior unsecured medium-term notes in two parts, according to a term sheet seen by Reuters. _0"> The sale included C$225 million ($221 million) of notes due May 24, 2016. The 2.01 percent notes were priced at 99.980 to yield 2.017 percent, or 79.7 basis points over the Canadian government benchmark, according to the term sheet. It also included C$275 million ($270 million) of notes due May 24, 2018. The 2.36 percent notes were priced at 99.962 to yield 2.368 percent, or 94.8 basis points over the Canadian government benchmark. The joint book-running managers on the sale were the investment dealer arms of Royal Bank of Canada, Bank of Nova Scotia, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and Toronto-Dominion Bank.

LATAM Airlines Group SA aims to launch a capital increase at the end of the third quarter and its controllers intend to subscribe their respective proportional stakes in the operation, the company said during a conference call on Wednesday. Latin America's largest carrier will ask shareholders on June 11 to approve the $1 billion increase aimed at helping to finance its spending plans over the coming years and regain its investment grade. "Regarding the timing for the capital increase, we would target at this point definitely towards the end of the third quarter... it would be probably September-October this year," said Gisela Escobar, LATAM's head of investor relations. The company is the fruit of Chilean airline LAN's takeover of Brazil's TAM in June. Following the takeover, Fitch Ratings lowered LATAM's ratings on global debt to "BB plus" from "BBB," citing the carrier's high debt levels and constrained cash holdings follow

Bankrupt Residential Capital LLC said on Tuesday that parent Ally Financial Inc reached a private settlement with ResCap creditors, who say Ally owes them $25 billion. _0"> The deal will keep sealed a potentially damaging report on Ally's role in ResCap's collapse. A deadline to release the report by examiner Arthur Gonzalez had initially been set for 11 a.m. EDT (1500 GMT) if the sides could not reach a deal. Creditors had lambasted an initial offer by Ally to contribute $750 million for ResCap creditors.   Lewis Kruger, ResCap's chief restructuring officer, said after a hearing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan on Tuesday that a term sheet between Ally and the creditors had been signed. The sides still had to work out details on how to implement its terms, Kruger said. Details of the deal remained private. The examiner's report will remained sealed until May 23, Kruger said.

Bulgaria on Tuesday resumed the sale of state-owned arms maker VMZ Sopot, aiming to attract a strategic investor to overhaul the debt-laden plant and funds for the cash-strapped government. _0"> The privatisation agency set an end-November deadline for binding bids for the largest state producer of missiles, grenades and ammunition. The agency cancelled a previous sale attempt in January after Bulgarian company EMCO, the sole interested party, withdrew because of a condition that none of the over 3,000 staff could be laid off without trade union consent.   The Bulgarian parliament has since changed the sell-off strategy and the size of the future workforce will be negotiated with bidders. The sell-off agency had no word on likely bidders or how much the sale might raise. The annual results of VMZ Sopot are kept secret by the government. VMZ Sopot has debts of over 150 million levs ($100 million)and the management has already started to lay off some 600 people to avoid b

Ally Financial Inc on Tuesday agreed to an important deal with creditors of its bankrupt Residential Capital LLC subsidiary that will allow the lender finally to separate itself from its former mortgage business.   The details of the agreement will remain private until a request to approve the deal is filed next week with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, which is overseeing ResCap's Chapter 11. "This agreement is a seminal moment for Ally," said Ally Chief Executive Officer Michael A. Carpenter in a statement. The settlement will allow Ally to put behind it problems tied to mortgage lending so it can focus on its U.S. auto lending business and its online bank. Ally has raised billions of dollars by selling its international business and wants to use that money to repay the U.S. government, which still owns three-quarters of the company following a bailout. Ally and the ResCap parties were still working out the details of how to implement the agreement, ResCa

Many California cities are showing signs of improvement, but limits on raising revenues, swelling pension costs and other pressures will leave them "fiscally challenged over the next few years," Moody's Investors Service said on Tuesday. _0"> The agency said it downgraded the ratings on 27 cities' obligations and upgraded the general obligation ratings of two cities after reviewing all of the 95 California cities it assesses.   The review was inspired by the bankruptcy filings of Stockton and San Bernardino, California, to understand the risk of future bankruptcy filings and the cities' current budget conditions, Moody's said.

Alabama's bankrupt Jefferson County has reached a deal with creditors JPMorgan Chase and Bayerische Landesbank covering $105 million of general obligation warrants, county officials said on Monday. _0"> The agreement, one of a series the county has reached since filing a landmark $4.2 billion bankruptcy in late 2011, covers the county's 2001b GO series and was expected to be approved on Thursday by the Jefferson County Commission.   The deal saves the county $2 million in fees and interest payments and shifts its variable rate to a fixed interest rate, officials said.