Deals of the day-Mergers and acquisitions

(Adds Hellman & Friedman, JPMorgan, Fosun International and others)

Jan 9 (Reuters) - The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 2100 GMT on Thursday:

** Three consortia, including Middle Eastern funds, are bidding for Royal Dutch Shell's RDSa.L Australian service stations in a A$3 billion ($2.67 billion) auction, the Australian Financial Review reported on Thursday.

News Search ID:nL3N0KI449

** Hellman & Friedman LLC is exploring a sale of Catalina Marketing Corp, which claims to have the world's largest shopper history database and could fetch as much as $2.5 billion, according to three people familiar with the matter.

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** Healogics Inc, a private equity-owned provider of wound care services, is exploring a sale that could value the company at close to $1 billion, according to people familiar with the matter. News Search ID:nL2N0KJ1QJ

** JPMorgan Chase & Co JPM.N plans to sell or exit over time its business of issuing prepaid cards for corporate payrolls and government tax refunds and benefits, the company said. News Search ID:nL2N0KJ1I5

** Portugal's government picked Chinese group Fosun International 0656.HK to buy the insurance arm of state bank Caixa Geral de Depositos for 1 billion euros, which allows Lisbon to further exceed its privatisation revenue goal under an EU/IMF bailout. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ3DF

** Italian government officials will meet on Thursday to discuss the sale of a non-controlling stake in post office group Poste Italiane Href="NewsSearch">PSTIT.UL as part of efforts to reduce the country's massive debt, two government sources said.

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** UBS UBSN.VX may be thinking again about spinning off its investment bank - and could even rescuscitate its old SG Warburg brand - to fend off demands that it put aside yet more capital to protect private banking clients from its investment activities, according to Mediobanca analysts. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ32Z

** Montagu Private Equity has entered advanced talks with Rexam REX.L to buy the British beverage can maker's healthcare packaging unit, two people familiar with the transaction told Reuters. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ3VE

** Switzerland's Da Vinci Invest has bought Italian luxury leather brand Bruno Magli from London-based hedge fund Fortelus, the companies said. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ3ID

** Chilean retailer Cencosud CEN.SN said it will invest around $425 million this year and will focus on boosting efficiency, consolidate its Brazilian and Colombian operations and lowering its debt. News Search ID:nL2N0KJ214

** A senior official from Thailand's top energy firm, PTT Pcl PTT.BK , denied a media report on Thursday that the company was bidding for Royal Dutch Shell's RDSa.L Australian service stations. News Search ID:nL3N0KJ197

** British engineering company Rolls-Royce RR.L made a takeover approach to Finnish ship and power plant engine maker Wartsila WRT1V.HE but the talks ended without a deal, the two companies said on Thursday. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ0N9

** Novartis AG NOVN.VX is discussing swapping its animal health and human vaccines businesses for Merck & Co Inc's

MRK.N over-the-counter products unit in a deal that could boost earnings at both companies. News Search ID:nL3N0KJ3B5

** Satellite TV provider Dish Network Corp DISH.O has withdrawn its $2.2 billion bid to buy bankrupt wireless broadband company LightSquared Inc, throwing the future of LightSquared's valuable spectrum rights into further doubt.

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** Singapore Airlines has chosen Airbus's AIR.PA A320 to launch its new Indian joint venture with Tata Sons Href="NewsSearch">TATA.UL .

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** U.S. drugs wholesaler McKesson MCK.N raised its offer for German peer Celesio CLSGn.DE to about 6.2 billion euros ($8.4 billion) including debt, mollifying an activist hedge fund that had been blocking the deal. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ0GX

** Norway's Vardia Insurance, previously known as Scandinavian Insurance Group, has bought Saga Forsikring and aims to list the combined firm on the Oslo Bourse in April, Vardia said in a statement on Thursday. News Search ID:nL6N0KJ0PL

** Germany's Metro MEOG.DE has rejected an offer for its Vietnam cash and carry business, reported to be from CP Group, the conglomerate run by Thai billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont.

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** Canadian Natural Resources Ltd CNQ.TO , Canada's largest oil producer, said on Thursday it had dropped plans to sell some of its shale gas-rich Montney properties after failing to attract a suitable offer. News Search ID:nL3N0KJ350

** Belgian chemical group Solvay SOLB.BR said on Thursday its sale of a stake in Argentine subsidiary Solvay Indupa

INU.BA to Braskem BRKM5.SA was on track, even after Argentina's regulator rejected the bid as inadequate.

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** South African drugmaker Adcock Ingram AIPJ.J said on Thursday it would further postpone a shareholder vote on a $1.2 billion takeover offer from Chile's CFR Pharmaceuticals CFR.SN because it was still waiting for regulatory approval.

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** The Dnevnik newspaper on Thursday reported that Croatian food concern Agrokor wanted to change the terms of its offer to buy Slovenia's top food retailer, Mercator,

MELR.LJ . News Search ID:nL6N0KJ1PM

** EU antitrust regulators said on Thursday they had cleared the $35 billion merger of U.S. advertising agency Omnicom

OMC.N and French peer Publicis PUBP.PA without conditions.

(Compiled by Sampad Patnaik and Maria Ajit Thomas in Bangalore)

((sampad.patnaik@thomsonreuters.com)(Within U.S. +1 646 223 8780, outside U.S. +91 80 6749 6378)(Reuters Messaging: sampad.patnaik.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Keywords: DEALS DAY/