The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals involving European, U.S. and Asian companies were reported by 1000 GMT on Wednesday.

 ** London Metal Exchange (LME) shareholders voted on Wednesday in favour of a $2.2 billion offer by the Hong Kong Stock Exchange for the 135-year-old institution, the world's largest marketplace for materials such as copper, aluminium and zinc.

** Australian gas distributor APA Group said it is raising its hostile bid for rival Hastings Diversified Utilities Fund by 21 percent to A$1.33 billion ($1.37 billion), beating a competing offer from a consortium that includes a Canadian fund.

** A group of companies controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing has agreed to buy UK gas company Wales and West Utilities for 645 million pounds ($1 billion), the latest acquisition by the tycoon that will boost his gas portfolio in Britain.

** Ancestry.com Inc, the family-history research website, is exploring a sale to private equity firms and is hoping to solicit revised bids from them in early August, two sources familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

** The quartet of billionaires that owns half of Anglo-Russian oil firm TNK-BP would welcome state oil firm Rosneft as an equal partner, the Interfax news agency reported on Wednesday.

This article is copyrighted by Reuters