Sept 15 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1300 GMT on Friday:
** South Africa's biggest cement producer PPC PPCJ.J said it expected Canada's Fairfax Africa Investments to raise its takeover offer that valued the firm at about 9.2 billion rand ($700 million). Specialty chemicals maker Clariant's CLN.S proposed merger with U.S.-based Huntsman HUN.N may catapult the combined company into Switzerland's blue-chip Swiss Market Index, lifting its appeal for funds focusing on the largest Swiss companies. Singapore's Mandarin Oriental International Ltd MOIL.SI said it had received takeover proposals from potential buyers for The Excelsior hotel in Hong Kong. Hong Kong-based insurance giant AIA Group Ltd 1299.HK has shown interest in buying Commonwealth Bank of Australia's CBA.AX insurance business, which is likely to be valued at about $4 billion, people with knowledge of the matter said. Insolvent German airline Air Berlin AB1.DE has received several offers for its assets which will now be assessed, a spokesman for the carrier told Reuters TV. The Turkish government is in talks with business leaders about boosting industry, an adviser to President Tayyip Erdogan said, as it prioritises the economy after the April referendum that gave Erdogan sweeping new powers. Lufthansa LHAG.DE and several other parties have bid for parts of insolvent Air Berlin AB1.DE by a Friday deadline as administrators look for investors for Germany's second largest airline. German online pharmacy Shop Apotheke SAEG.DE said it is currently not in talks to be bought by Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O , denying an earlier report by trade publication Apotheke Adhoc. German family-owned logistics company Zeitfracht said it was submitting an offer for Air Berlin AB1.DE assets that it expects would secure around 1,000 jobs at the insolvent German airline. Media scion Lachlan Murdoch made a revised offer for Ten Network Holdings Ltd TEN.AX , a day after Australia's senate voted to lift a ban on the ownership of multiple types of media assets, allowing him to challenge U.S. suitor CBS Corp (NYSE:CBS) CBS.N . Amazon.com Inc AMZN.O is interested in buying German online pharmacy Shop Apotheke SAEG.BE , trade publication Apotheke Adhoc reported.
** Russian lenders Promsvyazbank and Vozrozhdenie plan to merge next month, Vozrozhdenie said in a regulatory filing. Nestle NESN.S has bought a majority stake in California-based Blue Bottle Coffee, marking a first step by the packaged coffee leader into the hipster world of speciality bars that serve high-end, single-origin and cold brewed coffees. British sportswear retailer JD Sports Fashion JD.L said on it had continued its global expansion with a joint venture deal to enter the South Korean market. Eurobank EURBr.AT is in talks with Banca Transilvania ROTLV.BX to sell its subsidiaries in Romania as part of a restructuring plan agreed by Greece's third largest lender with European Union authorities. JD Finance, a unit of China's No.2 e-commerce firm JD.com JD.O , is in talks to buy a 24 percent stake worth about $1.5 billion in domestic brokerage First Capital Securities Co Ltd 002797.SZ , people with knowledge of the matter said. Bain Capital, now in the lead to buy Toshiba Corp's 6502.T prized memory chip unit, said it has brought in Dell Inc and other tech firms as new members of its consortium to bolster its bid. France's Engie SA ENGIE.PA has received final bids from Chinese-owned Alinta Energy and private Australian firm Delta Electricity for its Loy Yang B coal-fired power plant in Australia, two people familiar with the process said. "Moneyball" baseball executive Billy Beane is joining a consortium including Chinese businessman Chien Lee and American investor Paul Conway to acquire English soccer club Barnsley, a source close to the matter told Reuters.