* Japanese chipmaker Elpida Memory Inc will start tie-up talks next month with Taiwanese rival Nanya Technology Corp, with a view to a possible merger, the Nikkei business daily said on Thursday.

* Workday Inc., a maker of software that helps companies manage operations, plans to file for an initial public offering next year that could raise as much as $500 million, Bloomberg reported, citing two people with knowledge of the matter.

* Lafarge, the world's biggest cement maker, is seeking a buyer for its cement operations in South Africa in a deal that may fetch $700-$800 million euros, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing two unnamed sources.

* Hochtief could sell its subsidiary aurelis Real Estate in parts rather than in one transaction, German daily Financial Times Deutschland cited the builder's chief executive as saying.

* The sale of HSBC Holdings' consumer finance unit in Brazil is facing serious hurdles, mainly disagreements with potential bidders on price, a local newspaper said.

* The Austrian government and banking regulators disagree over extra capital requirements at nationalised lender Hypo Alpe Adria, Finance Minister Maria Fekter said in a magazine interview.

* German group HeidelbergCement would consider making an offer for parts of Vulcan Materials if they were put up for sale after a possible takeover by Martin Marietta Materials, its chief executive was quoted as saying.

* German chipmaker Infineon Technologies AG could make acquisitions worth as much as 1 billion euros ($1.3 billion) and is most interested in companies focusing on energy efficiency, its finance chief said.

* French media group Lagardere is in talks to sell its 20 percent stake in pay-TV channel Canal+ France to U.S. investment fund Hellman & Friedman, La Tribune newspaper reported.

• A Permanent Economic Emergency