GSK whistleblower tried to spill the beans to boss in 2003 October 27, 2010 CHERYL Eckard, the whistleblower awarded a record-breaking £60m by a US court earlier this week, reportedly tried to call the former chief executive of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) JP?Garnier in July 2003, to warn him there were problems with the group’s manufacturing plant in Puerto Rico. GSK declined to say last night whether JP Garnier knew that [...]
Brazil’s Vale sees its third quarter profits rocket by 250 per cent October 27, 2010 BRAZILIAN mining giant Vale yesterday said third-quarter profits rose more than 250 per cent from the year earlier to their highest level ever as the company benefited from rising iron prices and higher output. Vale, the world’s largest iron ore miner, reported a record net income of 10.55bn reais (£3.9bn) that beat analysts estimates as [...]
Betfair risks are revealed in prospectus October 27, 2010 BETFAIR yesterday released the prospectus that helped it float for almost £1.4bn earlier this month. The document includes 15 pages of risk factors that could derail the business, including attempts by EU member states to prevent online betting operators and clarification of online gaming regulation which could hit Betfair’s position as an exchange, rather than [...]
Bonfire Night strike looms as union talks break down October 27, 2010 A FIREFIGHTER strike across the city on Bonfire Night looked increasingly likely yesterday, after talks between the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) and the London Fire Authority (LFA)?broke down. Members of the union are due to walk out in a row over new contracts for two days from 5 November. Firefighters claim they face the sack [...]
JP Morgan and HSBC accused by investors in silver-fixing case October 27, 2010 JPMorgan Chase & Co and HSBC Holdings were hit with two lawsuits yesterday by investors who accused them of conspiring to drive down silver prices, and reaping an estimated hundreds of millions of dollars of illegal profits. The banks, among the world’s largest, were accused of manipulating the market for COMEX silver futures and options [...]
Business air travel boost benefits BAA October 27, 2010 A BOUNCE-BACK in business travel helped BAA to shrink its losses at Heathrow and Stansted, although the UK airport operator warned of a possible impact next year from spending cuts. BAA also echoed British Airways in urging simplified security at UK airports, saying some measures inconvenienced passengers. BAA said underlying traffic at Heathrow hit a [...]
Mail.ru eyes $878m IPO October 27, 2010 FACEBOOK investor, Mail.Ru Group’s initial public offering (IPO) is up to two times oversubscribed with nearly two weeks left before pricing, financial market sources said yesterday. Fund managers said the organisers put total bids as of Tuesday night at $1.1bn. Mail.ru was looking to raise up to $876m in the sale of 16 per cent [...]
EDF and US partner end nuclear row October 27, 2010 EDF and US partner Constellation Energy have settled a row over a nuclear project that could have cost the French power group up to $2bn. Under the deal, EDF will buy Constellation’s half-share in their UniStar partnership for $140m and will also transfer its 3.5m shares in Constellation back to the company and give up [...]
CSR misses smartphone sales boom October 27, 2010 CHIPMAKER CSR forecast lower fourth-quarter revenue yesterday, reflecting a lack of exposure to smartphones and capacity constraints in the manufacture of its GPS chips, sending its shares plunging. The maker of GPS, bluetooth and wi-fi chips for phones, cars and digital cameras said fourth-quarter revenue would be $170-$185m, down from $198m a year ago and [...]
SAP remains cautious despite solid profits October 27, 2010 GERMAN business software maker SAP AG stuck to its full-year targets in third-quarter results, dashing investor hopes that had been raised by solid results from North American peers. SAP said third-quarter operating profit rose 16 per cent to €716m. Software and software-related service revenue (SSRS) rose 20 per cent to €2.32bn. Operating profit was forecast [...]