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UK urged by IMF to bring forward high value spending

Wed, 22 May 2013 15:53:31 -0400

LONDON - In a critique of the United Kingdom's austerity programme, the International Monetary Fund Wednesday urged the Europe's third largest economy to rebalance the policy to make the transition to a high-investment and more export-oriented economy. "The UK could boost growth by bringing forward measures already included in its fiscal plan, such as spending on infrastructure and job ...

Jim Armitage Alone and unloved Swiss provide a salutary lesson for the Eurosceptics

Fri, 24 May 2013 22:09:56 -0400

Jim Armitage is an adviser to Evgeny Lebedev, owner of the Evening Standard and Independent titles, and a former Deputy City Editor of the Evening ...

Chianello Exactly when did the city approve asking for two casinos

Fri, 24 May 2013 22:08:57 -0400

OTTAWA -- Tim Tierney thinks enough has changed on the casino file since council first approved the idea back in October that he's going to try to convince his colleagues to revisit the issue.The councillor from Beacon Hill-Cyrville has a point.Since council gave the go ahead for a casino proposal, the province has a new premier with different ideas about how to modernize gambling, so ...

Jeremy Affeldt Giants Pitcher On Baseball Christianity And The City That Made Him A Better Man

Fri, 24 May 2013 22:00:53 -0400

Neighborhood: East Bay When Jeremy Affeldt started playing baseball, he hated San Francisco. As a conservative Christian, he bristled at the city's liberal ways -- especially its embrace of homosexuality. "I didn't leave my hotel room when we came to play the Giants or A's. I didn't want to go out or see anyone," ...

Montreal lifts boil-water advisory says tap water safe to drink

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:51:11 -0400

Montreal officials say a boil-water advisory has been lifted and residents can drink their tap water after tests showed the water safe to drink. The boil-water advisory, issued Wednesday when the city began receiving calls about discolored water in Montreal's Sud-Ouest distract, was the largest the city has ever experienced, covering a region with 1.3 million residents, Canadian ...

No quick recovery for UK economy says top Bank official

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:10:38 -0400

Britain will have to wait for the boom times to return despite "some signs of a pick-up" in the economy, Bank of England rate-setter Paul Fisher declared ...

787 Dreamliner flights to resume

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:15 -0400

The airline with the greatest number of Boeing's new Dreamliner jets will be the first to resume commercial flights with it today, four months after the 787 jet was grounded over safety ...

PG chief AG Lafley returning

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:14 -0400

Incoming Procter & Gamble boss AG Lafley yesterday said that a sense of "duty" had persuaded him to return to his former job at the consumer goods ...

Waitrose feasts on Eurovision boost

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:14 -0400

If you're going to stay in for an evening of cheesy pop, camp presenters and political voting la Eurovision, you may as well munch on the continent's finest ...

Google eyeing sat-nav startup Waze

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:13 -0400

Google is reportedly eyeing a bid of $1bn (725m) or more for Israeli mobile satellite navigation start-up Waze, just as the internet giant faces a fresh probe into its dominance in ...

Murdochs to take board positions after News Corp split

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:12 -0400

Rupert Murdoch and his sons, James and Lachlan, will take board positions on the two companies that will emerge next month when News Corp splits into two, with the media conglomerate's directors approving the spin-off plans ...

Anthony Hilton Britain’s malaise will last for a while but at least it’s better than Japan

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:11 -0400

I remember a conversation with Paul Fisher in his office deep in the bowels of the Bank of England one day last summer when he said Japan was still struggling after 20 years to get back on its feet following its financial crash so we should not expect too much too soon from the United ...

Outspoken fund manager Andy Brough joins the ranks of UKIP

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:11 -0400

Andy Brough, who manages Schroders' 1.4 billion mid-cap fund, is understood to have joined Nigel Farage's party after growing weary with the coalition and European attacks on the City. The outspoken 52-year-old has worked at Schroders since 1983 and is one of the industry's longest-serving figures. News of his support of UKIP will come as a timely boost for Farage after a group of ...

Anthony Hilton Byrne’s right on pension funds – bigger is better

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:10 -0400

To Birmingham for an interesting speech from Liam Byrne - he who as a member of the Labour Government Treasury team famously left the note after the 2010 election warning the incoming Chancellor there was no money ...

Banks given ultimatum to plug their black holes

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:09 -0400

It comes amid mounting frustration among regulators about what is being seen as "foot dragging" by the industry over the issue. Yesterday the beleaguered Co-operative Bank, which remains in talks with its supervisors over its capital position, confirmed plans to cease lending to new business customers as it battles to restore its capital base.Earlier this week Lloyds and Royal Bank of ...

Anthony Hilton Gilbert deserves credit not brickbats

Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:09 -0400

That may make me biased but I nevertheless think that Aberdeen's chief executive Martin Gilbert, who until this week doubled up as chairman of First Group, has been subject to unduly harsh criticism following the announcement of a rights issue by the transport group. First Group needs the rights issue money because it bought heavily in America a few years ago and then could not reduce the ...

News Corp to take charge of up to $1.4 billion this quarter

Fri, 24 May 2013 20:11:32 -0400

said on Friday it will write down the value of its Australian and U.S. publishing assets by up to $1.4 billion (925.4 million pounds), as the company prepares to split its business between its newspaper and entertainment operations.The company said the goodwill impairment charge was primarily for its Australia newspapers though it gave no more details. It also said it expected reduced cash flows ...

UK’s FTSE suffers biggest single drop

Fri, 24 May 2013 20:08:04 -0400

Britain's FTSE 100 share index suffered its biggest one-day drop in a year on Thursday, knocked off historic peaks by weak economic data and signs the United States Federal Reserve could soon taper its stimulus ...

Visa Mastercard ask U.S. court to declare card fees are lawful

Fri, 24 May 2013 18:40:41 -0400

An employee stands behind a MasterCard logo during the launch of the international credit card issuer's first ATM transaction in Myanmar, in Yangon November 15, ...

Deutsche Post files EU complaint against German email law

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:36:24 -0400

has filed a complaint with the European Commission against a German law that will require government agencies and public services to use a rival encrypted email system.A spokesman for the German postal services group said on Friday that a German bill on the use of "De-Mail", offered by Deutsche ...

Bankia sells City National Bank of Florida for $883 million

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:36:22 -0400

for $883 million (583 million pounds), part of a plan to sell assets to boost solvency.Bankia, bailed out by Europe last year in Spain's biggest bank rescue, said the sale would book 180 million euros (153.9 million pounds) of net capital gains and generate 30 basis points of core capital, a measure of resilience to economic downturn.Bankia must sell assets and close branches under the terms ...

Exclusive DBRS to rate all euro zone sovereigns by year-end

Fri, 24 May 2013 15:10:21 -0400

An illuminated euro sign is seen in front of the headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) in the late evening in Frankfurt January 8, ...

Yahoo joins growing list of bidders for Hulu -sources

Fri, 24 May 2013 14:55:31 -0400

By Ronald Grover LOS ANGELES | Fri May 24, 2013 2:55pm EDT LOS ANGELES May 24 (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc has submitted a formal proposal to buy Hulu, joining a growing list of bidders for the video service owned by News Corp and Walt Disney Co, two sources with knowledge of the bid told Reuters on Friday. Yahoo just this week announced a $1.1 billion acquisition of blogging service Tumblr. ...

Analysis - Gold faces more pressure as inflation stays tame

Fri, 24 May 2013 13:59:34 -0400

By Jan Harvey LONDON (Reuters) - Gold prices are looking even more vulnerable after April's price crash, as rampant inflation expected from successive rounds of monetary easing fails to materialise. The idea that record-low interest rates ...

Ally of HK leader investigated in exchange probe

Fri, 24 May 2013 13:59:32 -0400

By James Pomfret HONG KONG (Reuters) - The chairman of Hong Kong's Mercantile Exchange is under police investigation, the government said on Friday, as three other men were charged with possessing false documents including a fake cheque for ...

UBS France could face criminal investigation source

Fri, 24 May 2013 13:58:57 -0400

UBSN.VX ) French unit could be placed under formal investigation in the coming days as part of a broader probe into the Swiss bank's business practices, a person familiar with the matter said on ...

Ford to retain 1000 jobs at French plant after deal

Fri, 24 May 2013 13:58:57 -0400

F.N ) will retain 1,000 jobs at a plant in southwest France after striking a deal on Friday with local authorities to share the burden of new investments needed to keep the factory ...

EU reviews policies looks for ways to help aluminium industry

Fri, 24 May 2013 13:11:32 -0400

By Maytaal Angel and Susan ThomasLONDON (Reuters) - The European Commission expects to complete a review by October of ways to help Europe's struggling aluminium industry, looking at policies such as on import duties and long-term power contracts.About 2 million tonnes of aluminium production have been shut down in Europe since the 2008 financial crisis, while global production has grown by ...

Monte Paschi might not be an isolated bank case in Italy - Chairman

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:46:13 -0400

BAGNAIA, Italy (Reuters) - The crisis that has hit Italy's third-largest lender Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena (BMPS.MI) might not be an isolated case, Monte Paschi Chairman Alessandro Profumo said on Friday. "There could be other cases similar ...

Pullback on UKs FTSE deepens as HSBC declines

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:32:58 -0400

* FTSE closes down 0.6 pct at 6,654.34 points* FTSE fall sharply for second straight session* Index had hit near 13-year highs earlier this week* HSBC fall takes most points off FTSE 100 index* London stock market closed on Mon. May 27 for holidayBy Sudip Kar-GuptaLONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - Britain's benchmark equity ...

RPT-Henrik Fisker joins Hong Kong tycoon to salvage Fisker -sources

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:32:06 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 12:32pm EDT * One of two competing offers in play * Fisker cofounder teams up with investors trying to buy U.S. loan * Group may offer between $25 mln and $30 mln for loan * Sources caution figures are changing, on the rise * DOE considering ramifications of selling Fisker loan -source By Deepa Seetharaman and Norihiko Shirouzu DETROIT/BEIJING, May 24 (Reuters) - Henrik Fisker is ...

RPT-UPDATE 2-News Corps publishing business to initiate stock buyback

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:29:08 -0400

By Jennifer Saba May 24 (Reuters) - News Corp set the distribution ratios for the spinoff of its publishing business, which may start buying back stock right away. The board of the publishing business, which will retain the News Corp ...

UPDATE 2-HSBC calls for faster banking reforms

Fri, 24 May 2013 12:02:23 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 12:02pm EDT * Investor confidence undermined if change takes too long * Bank slammed for compliance failings, aiding tax avoidance * 89 percent of shareholders back 2012 pay plan * Shares dip 2.1 pct By Steve Slater and Matt Scuffham LONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - HSBC called on regulators to speed up industry reform as its shareholders urged Europe's biggest bank to take a lead ...

RLPC-Royal Mail sounds out market for 1.5 billion pounds IPO loan

Fri, 24 May 2013 11:30:22 -0400

By Tessa Walsh LONDON (Reuters) - Banks have been asked to gauge by the end of this week the appetite for a 1.5 billion-pound syndicated loan to back the planned privatisation of Britain's Royal Mail Group (IPO-RMG.L), banking sources said. A ...

UPDATE 2-UKs Co-op Bank stops lending to new corporate clients

Fri, 24 May 2013 11:05:36 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 11:05am EDT * Bank will continue lending to individuals * Existing corporate customers are not affected by move * Co-op is in talks with regulator on capital plans * Moody's ratings downgrade prompted capital concerns By Matt Scuffham LONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - The Co-operative Bank has stopped offering loans to new business customers, part of measures designed to quell ...

EU watchdog seeks powers over cross-border insurers

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:36:58 -0400

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - EU insurance watchdog EIOPA on Friday set out a wish list of new powers it is seeking, including stepped-up supervision rights over the bloc's big insurers. The European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority ...

China solar companies shun home market in pursuit of margins

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:36:22 -0400

(Reuters) - Chinese solar panel makers are shunning their overcrowded home market in favor of lucrative exports, a switch that has helped to arrest a two-year slump in margins and push shares to 12-month ...

Insight Luxury brands position for U.S. boom

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:36:21 -0400

PARIS/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Most men might balk at spending $600 on a pair of Dior sneakers but for U.S. shoppers like Ephraim, an upbeat 30-year-old, such indulgences are becoming increasingly ...

UPDATE 1-Italian tax police seize assets of steel magnate Riva

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:28:02 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 10:28am EDT (Adds statement from ILVA, background) BARI, Italy May 24 (Reuters) - Italy's tax police have seized assets worth 8.1 billion euros belonging to the Riva family, owners of the Italian steel group ILVA, in connection with allegations of environmental crimes, investigative sources said on Friday. The order to seize the assets was issued by a judge in the southern ...

GLOBAL MARKETS-Stimulus fears haunt share markets dollar recovers

Fri, 24 May 2013 10:16:46 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 10:16am EDT * Shares tumble worldwide amid concerns about stimulus programs * Dollar recoups losses to trade flat vs euro after U.S. data * Oil set for biggest weekly drop since mid-April By Herbert Lash NEW YORK, May 24 (Reuters) - Global equity markets drifted lower on Friday as investors were beset by worries that central bank stimulus may be curtailed, but the dollar ...

PG CEO switch will not lead to big strategy change-CFO

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:40:56 -0400

Shares of P&G rose to $81.90 in premarket trading after closing at $78.70 on Thursday, before the decision was announced. P&G, the maker of Tide detergent and Gillette razors, did not give a specific reason for McDonald's departure other than to say that he is retiring. McDonald is 59 and Lafley is ...

WRAPUP 1-U.S. durable goods orders rise point to factory resilience

Fri, 24 May 2013 09:15:00 -0400

* Orders for long-lasting goods rise 3.3 percent in April * Gauge of business spending plans climbs * Military capital goods shipments fall By Jason Lange WASHINGTON, May 24 (Reuters) - Orders for long-lasting U.S. manufactured goods rose more than expected in April, a hopeful sign that a contraction in factory output could soon run its course. New orders for durable goods, which range from ...

Japans All Nippon Airways first to resume Dreamliner flights

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:53:12 -0400

The airline with the greatest number of Boeing's new Dreamliner jets will be the first to resume commercial flights with it on Sunday, four months after the 787 jet was grounded over safety ...

Schroders star Andy Brough signs up for Ukip

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:53:12 -0400

Andy Brough, who manages Schroders' 1.4 billion mid-cap fund, is understood to have joined Nigel Farage's party after growing weary with the coalition and European attacks on the City. The outspoken 52-year-old has worked at Schroders since 1983, making him one of industry's longest-serving figures. He is well-known for having forthright views, and recently overhauled his fund ...

Boom times look to be a long way off MPC’s Paul Fisher warns

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:53:11 -0400

Britain will have to wait for the boom times to return despite "some signs of a pick-up" in the economy, Bank of England rate-setter Paul Fisher declared ...

Eurovison boosts Waitroses profits thanks to sales of meatballs and Danish pastries

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:53:11 -0400

That's ready meals of chicken kiev and meatballs, with Danish pastries for dessert, according to the latest figures from Waitrose. It saw sales of Danish pastries rise 17.5 per cent, meatballs by 31 per cent and chicken kievs by 45 per cent in the Eurovision week to 18 May. Overall revenues through Waitrose's tills rose 9.4 per cent to 115.3 million, excluding sales at its petrol ...

Analysis German economy to pick up but fall short of traditional pace

Fri, 24 May 2013 08:47:08 -0400

BERLIN (Reuters) - Germany's economy will recover from a bout of winter weakness but fall well short of the dynamic growth rates of previous years as euro zone recession and global slowdown stunt exports and ...

EU risks too big to cooperate bank supervision

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:55:54 -0400

BRUSSELS/LONDON (Reuters) - The role of the European Banking Authority must be beefed up beyond current plans to ensure that regulation of Europe's banks does not fragment into two competing systems, one of the architects of the reforms told a public hearing on Friday. Jacques de Larosiere, former head of the Bank of France and IMF, said the European Central Bank's role in a European ...

3i grows infrastructure arm with Barclays fund purchase

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:52:42 -0400

LONDON (Reuters) - 3i Group PLC (III.L) is to buy the European infrastructure fund management business of British bank Barclays (BARC.L) as part of a drive to boost its fee income from public-private partnerships and renewable energy projects. ...

Steel distributor Kloeckner to cut more jobs sites

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:52:41 -0400

DUESSELDORF, Germany (Reuters) - German steel distributor Kloeckner & Co (KCOGn.DE) increased planned job cuts to more than 2,000, the third time it has broadened the scope of its restructuring programme in less than a year. The steel sector has ...

UPDATE 1-Italian firms tap debt market as bank lending dries up

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:34:21 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 7:34am EDT * First time issuers coming to Italian corporate debt market * 8/25 issues so far this year from newcomers * Bankers see at least 4-5 new issues by the summer * Issues on rise as bank lending dries up, spreads tighten (Add news on Ferrovie Italiane and Poste Italiane) By Francesca Landini MILAN, May 24 (Reuters) - More Italian companies are set to tap the debt market ...

Dai-ichi expands in Southeast Asia with Panin Life deal - source

Fri, 24 May 2013 07:02:28 -0400

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's Dai-ichi Life Insurance Co Ltd has agreed to buy a 40 percent stake in Panin Life from the parent of the Indonesian insurer for around 30 billion yen ($295 million), a source with direct knowledge of the matter said. The stake acquisition by one of Japan's top four life insurers is the latest in a string of deals by increasingly acquisitive Japanese firms. ...

Tighter oil market will boost unloved energy stocks - Investec

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:59:53 -0400

By Claire Milhench LONDON (Reuters) - A tighter oil market in the second half of 2013 will boost some energy stocks, which have trailed the rest of the equity market though the rally, said Charles Whall, co-manager of Investec's $1 ...

Mitsubishi Motors manoeuvres to end 15-year dividend drought

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:59:52 -0400

By Yoko Kubota TOKYO (Reuters) - Mitsubishi Motors Corp (7211.T), the Japanese maker of Triton pickups, the Outlander Sport SUV and i-MiEV electric car, wants shareholders to approve a capital reorganisation to clear more than $9 billion (5.9 ...

Academics back BPs fight to cap oil spill payouts

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:59:25 -0400

BP.L ) fight to cap the U.S. oil spill compensation payouts it has to fund as the cash outflow threatens to add billions of dollars to its bill for the ...

HSBC urges acceleration of banking reform

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:59:25 -0400

HSBA.L ) Chairman Douglas Flint said on Friday the pace of reform in the banking industry must be accelerated to avoid investor confidence in the sector being ...

Japan life insurers may keep money at home as bond yields rise

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:32:26 -0400

By Taiga Uranaka TOKYO | Fri May 24, 2013 6:32am EDT TOKYO May 24 (Reuters) - Japanese life insurers are giving signs that they may not send much more of their $3 trillion in assets abroad this year, as Japanese government bond yields start picking up, despite hinting last month that they might boost their foreign bond holdings to seek higher returns. Investors have been spurred to ...

Three mainland Chinese charged in HK mercantile exchange probe

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:10:29 -0400

View Photo A security guard stands at the entrance as an office worker walks inside the Hong Kong Mercantile Exchange in Hong Kong May 23, 2013. REUTERS/Bobby ...

Banks in the spotlight in debate over UK listing rules

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:07:03 -0400

By Clara Ferreira-Marques and Kylie MacLellan LONDON (Reuters) - As Britain's stock market watchdog pores over the implications of scandals at mining companies ENRC and Bumi, the role of sponsor banks who helped lead their listings is coming ...

Is the FTSE Ready For a Sell on the Weekly

Fri, 24 May 2013 06:04:17 -0400

weekly time frame gives us a good clue that a medium term sell is imminent as it rejects 6800. All we need to dois wait for the close this afternoon at 4:30pm to see if it does close as a bearish pin bar reversal on the weekly. If it does, we our second clue that this Index is ready for a multi-week sell (using the weekly ...

Rosy China growth forecasts fade on further signs of slowdown

Fri, 24 May 2013 05:18:11 -0400

Reuters © A newly built residential compound is seen from the demolition site of an old village on the outskirts of Beijing May 23, 2013. REUTERS/Kim ...

Market turbulence poses first serious test for Abenomics

Fri, 24 May 2013 05:17:59 -0400

By William MallardTOKYO (Reuters) - This week's turbulence in Tokyo markets exposes a key risk of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's all-in strategy to revive Japan's economy - if investor confidence falters, the government and the Bank of Japan may be left with few options to turn the tide.On Friday, the Nikkei share average had another tumultuous session, traversing a 7.1 percent range ...

Negative rates could hurt UK Bank of Englands Fisher

Fri, 24 May 2013 04:44:39 -0400

My own personal view is that negative rates would not necessarily do very much at the moment to boost growth, (and) could even be perverse," - Paul ...

Britains FTSE steadies after worst day in a year

Fri, 24 May 2013 04:02:02 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 4:02am EDT * FTSE 100 flat after Thursday's 2.1 pct slump * Investors jittery ahead of long weekend * Morgan Stanley downgrades Next on valuation By Toni Vorobyova LONDON, May 24 (Reuters) - Britain's leading shares steadied on Friday after their steepest fall in a year in the previous session, with central bankers offering some reassurance that stimulus will stay for a ...

UK may be three quarters of the way through debt purge - Fisher

Fri, 24 May 2013 04:01:13 -0400

CARDIFF (Reuters) - Britain may be as much as three quarters of the way through the process of working off the high debt levels which have weighed on the economy since the financial crisis, a top Bank of England policymaker said on Friday. ...

Feds Bullard wants inflation pickup before tapering QE

Fri, 24 May 2013 03:52:52 -0400

inflation would have to pick up before he voted to scale back monetary policy stimulus and that this was unlikely to happen in the coming month. "Before I would be in favour of tapering I would like to see some reassurance that inflation was going to move back towards target," St. Louis Fed President James Bullard said in an interview. "I am concerned about this inflation number ...

Private consumption helps Germany to meagre growth in first-quarter

Fri, 24 May 2013 03:08:18 -0400

Berlin (Reuters) - Private consumption helped Germany eke out meagre economic growth of 0.1 in the first quarter of the year, compensating for declines in exports and investment in Europe's largest economy, data showed on Friday. The ...

GLOBAL MARKET-Volatile Nikkei keeps Asian stocks on edge

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:55:09 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 3:45am EDT * Nikkei ends a seesaw day up 0.9 pct * Asian stocks outside Japan dip to 1-month lows * Yen rises vs USD and euro on turbulent Nikkei * European stocks expected to fare better By Ian Chua SYDNEY, May 24 (Reuters) - Asian stocks fell to one-month lows on Friday and the yen rebounded broadly as extreme volatility in the Nikkei kept investors on edge. The Nikkei has ...

3i says to buy Barclays Infrastructure Funds Management

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:45:16 -0400

Fri May 24, 2013 2:45am EDT LONDON May 24 (Reuters) - 3i Group PLC is taking over the European infrastructure fund management business run by Barclays as part of a plan to boost fee income from public-private partnerships and energy investment projects. The private equity firm, which is aiming to become one of Europe's biggest investors in infrastructure, said the deal announced on Friday ...

New chamber of trade president

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:23:47 -0400

Halfords has warned of a long uphill slog to recovery as profits tumbled by 22% and its dividend was slashed by a third to pay for a £100m revamp. New chief executive Matt Davies pledged to refresh tired-looking stores and improve customer service over the next three years but warned that earnings were unlikely to recover until ...

Japans Nikkei turns positive in volatile trade

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:10:08 -0400

Reuters © A passerby is reflected on a graph showing recent movements of Japan's Nikkei average at a brokerage in Tokyo May 24, 2013. REUTERS/Issei ...

Nikkei falls below 14000 in sharp afternoon sell-off

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:50:39 -0400

TOKYO | Fri May 24, 2013 12:50am EDT TOKYO May 24 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average fell below 14,000 for the first time in three weeks at one point on Friday afternoon, extending the previous session's 7.3 percent plunge. The Nikkei was down 2.3 percent at 14,154.87 by 0448 GMT after trading as low as ...

Pubs operator in huge investment

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:57 -0400

24 May 2013 Mitchells & Butlers, the UK's biggest operator of managed pubs placed upmarket, special occasions and family dining at the centre of an investment drive. The Harvester, O'Neill's and All Bar One owner set aside 30m in capital expenditure in the current year to October but it will rise to between 50m and 80m a ...

America turns screw on Irish tax regime

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:57 -0400

David Elliott delliott@belfasttelegraph.co.uk - 24 May 2013 THE Irish government has again been forced to defend its tax system after coming under increasing pressure from the US to close a loophole which has allowed companies ...

Firms new export contract just what the doctor ordered

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:56 -0400

Don Mattrick, the software giant's president of Interactive Entertainment, has told an audience of gaming journalists at Microsoft HQ in Redmond, Washington, that the new Xbox ONE console is not simply a games console, but "The ultimate all-in-one home entertainment ...

Tesco staff pay the price for profit slump as shares bonus pot halved

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:56 -0400

John Collingridge bustel@belfasttelegraph.co.uk - 24 May 2013 Checkout staff at Tesco have seen their annual shares bonus pot halved after the supermarket giant slumped to its first annual profits fall in nearly 20 ...

Every little helps – at least for BTs chief

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:55 -0400

JAMES tHOMPSON bustel@belfasttelegraph.co.uk - 24 May 2013 TWO of the FTSE's biggest bosses have banked rather different pay packets, it has been ...

Dublin wont take a bite out of Apple

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:54 -0400

On the face of it, shining a light on the fact our nearest neighbours have been operating something akin to a Dutch tax auction with multinational companies like Apple should bode well for us.If the loopholes that allow the maker of my phone to pay only 2% tax through its office across the border are closed in reaction to pressure from the US - where Apple's taxes should really be going - ...

Services industry gives vital boost to economy

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:54 -0400

John Collingridge bustel@belfasttelegraph.co.uk - 24 May 2013 The UK's return to growth has been underlined as revised figures confirmed the dominant services sector helped the economy expand by 0.3% in the first three months of the ...

We can follow the US to beat global problem

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:53 -0400

But people tend to be rather hazier on what that "something" should be. To define a solution we first need to grasp the nature of the problem: a global tax loophole.In our age of liberalised cross-border trade and free capital flows, multinational companies find themselves with a considerable level of freedom to choose where they pay tax on profits.With some sophisticated planning from ...

Halfords uphill slog to recovery

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:52 -0400

24 May 2013 Halfords has warned of a long uphill slog to recovery as profits tumbled by 22% and its dividend was slashed by a third to pay for a 100m revamp. New chief executive Matt Davies pledged to refresh tired-looking stores and improve customer service over the next three years but warned that earnings were unlikely to recover until ...

Skodas superb say car owners

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:52 -0400

Skoda Superb is the car that owners are most satisfied with, according to a survey. And another Skoda model - the Yeti - was second on the list compiled from owners' views by What Car? and JD Power and Associates. Third was ...

Spending habits picked up early

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:39:51 -0400

24 May 2013 Most children's money habits have been formed by the time they reach the age of seven, research from a Government-backed body has ...

BOJ Kuroda vows to calm JGBs guide economy to recovery

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:24:26 -0400

By Leika KiharaTOKYO (Reuters) - Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda on Friday expressed confidence the central bank can stem bond market volatility with flexible market operations and engineer a steady recovery in the world's third-largest economy.Kuroda said the central bank's aggressive monetary stimulus launched in April was a "necessary and sufficient" step to achieve ...

BOJ Kuroda says will strive to ensure JGB market stability

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:30:39 -0400

TOKYO | Thu May 23, 2013 11:30pm EDT TOKYO May 24 (Reuters) - Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Friday the central bank will make efforts to avert volatility in bond markets through flexible market operations and enhanced communication with market participants. "We don't have specific targets for stock prices or currency rates, and I won't comment on daily ...

Nikkei recoups some of Thursdays 7.3 percent dive bull run seen intact

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:30:31 -0400

Reuters © Members of the media crowd around passers-by walking in front of an electronic stock quotation board outside a brokerage in Tokyo May 23, 2013. REUTERS/Toru ...

Google like Facebook in talks to buy Waze for about $1 billion report

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:47:14 -0400

(Reuters) - Google Inc is considering buying Israeli mobile satellite navigation start-up Waze Inc, which may lead to a bidding war with Facebook Inc, Bloomberg news reported, citing people familiar with the ...

Billionaire Icahn seeks up to US$7bil for Dell bid

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:58:59 -0400

and Silver Lake Partners. Icahn and Southeastern are seeking at least $5.2 billion and as much as $7 billion in lender commitments, sources said. "They want the shareholders to know that they have an alternative," another source said. Jefferies is understood to have committed $1.6 billion to the bridge loan. The arranger is asking for commitments as large as $1 billion and is expected ...

Commodities trader sues BP Shell others for alleged oil price fixing

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:58:59 -0400

Prime International Trading Ltd in a proposed class-action lawsuit filed in the courthouse in White Plains, New York on Wednesday, accused the oil companies of misreporting prices of trades in the North Sea benchmark, which sets the price of about 70 percent of the world's oil. The lawsuit comes on the heels of a European Commission probe into potential market abuse involving the reporting ...

Bond issue launched by Glencore

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:16 -0400

Glencore Xstrata, the newly forged wheat trading to coal mining empire, has launched its first bond issue since becoming a single entity earlier this ...

Flybe hits out at Gatwick over discrimination

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:15 -0400

Flybe has hit out at the owners of Gatwick, claiming the airline's decision to sell 25 take-off and landing slots at the base to easyJet for 20m was due to the airport's "discriminatory" treatment of smaller ...

Ben Chu This was Plan B all right

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:15 -0400

Outlook Some commentators are saying the IMF's advice to Mr Osborne this week did not amount to a call for the Chancellor to adopt an economic Plan B. I beg to differ. The IMF did not say the Government should merely permit the automatic stabilisers to function - which is what Mr Osborne means when he talks about his plan's flexibility. It did not say the Treasury should cut more to ...

Meet the new Goldman as shareholders back board

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:14 -0400

Nikhil Kumar is The Independent's New York correspondent. He was formerly assistant editor on the foreign desk and has also done a variety of jobs on the city desk, where he wrote about markets, commodities and other business and economics ...

Ben Chu So the deficit did rise last year after all

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:14 -0400

Outlook The Treasury this week hailed the fact that data from the Office for National Statistics showed that "underlying borrowing" is now falling. But did it? If you strip out factors such as gilt coupon payments from the Bank of England and transfers from the Royal Mail pension fund, borrowing in April 2013 was 10.2bn, up 1.3bn on the 8.9bn borrowed in April 2012. Ah, but what about ...

Shares worldwide go on the slide

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:14 -0400

In London, the FTSE 100 ended the day down more than 2 per cent at 6,696.79 as a weeks-long rise came to an end, with the index having moved up in every session bar one since the end of April in a seemingly inexorable rise towards the 6930 record hit at the height of the dot.com boom in 1999. The Paris market also fell more than 2 per cent while the main Italian index, the FTSE MIB, slumped by ...

Galaxy S4 off to a flier as Samsungs sales record is broken

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:12 -0400

Samsung's new Galaxy S4 smartphone has become its fastest-selling phone ever, shifting at a rate of one every four seconds since its launch in late ...

Lower print costs aid Telegraph climb

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:12 -0400

The owner of the Daily Telegraph saw pre-tax profits climb 5 per cent to 57.2m last year as falling newsprint costs offset a decline in ...

Guinness Peats plans to hand back cash face a final hurdle

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:56:11 -0400

Guinness Peat must mount one last corporate battle as the Pensions Regulator threw a potential spanner in the works of plans to shrink the one-time activist investor and return cash to ...