Google testing self-drive car October 10, 2010 Google, the world’s largest internet search engine, has been tinkering with engines of another sort and come up with some futuristic results – a car that drives itself. Google, in a posting on its official blog, said it has developed the technology and been busy testing a fully automated car that would take the controls [...]
Pressure on US lenders increases October 10, 2010 More than two-thirds of US state attorneys general plan this week to launch a joint probe into charges some banks used fraudulent paperwork to kick struggling borrowers out of their homes, sources said yesterday. Bank of America, the nation’s largest mortgage servicer, on Friday said it would put a temporary halt to foreclosures nationwide as [...]
EuroDisney set to carry on investing October 10, 2010 EURODISNEY has defended its decision to keep pouring cash into expanding its theme park business despite a £1.7bn debt pile. Chief executive Philippe Gas said the group’s strategy of continuing to develop the parks near Paris was sensible despite rising losses. EuroDisney has in the past been criticised for pressing ahead with its Studios Park in [...]
AARDMAN’S CLOSE SHAVE October 10, 2010 WALLACE and Gromit creator Aardman has posted a £2.5m loss this year after soaring costs and shrinking income from its commercials division ate into the bottom line. Despite recording £1m profits last year and increasing revenues by a third to £31.5m since then, the Bristol-based animation house has been hit by costs from moving headquarters, [...]
Businesses still feeling the pinch on bank loans October 10, 2010 CASH-STRAPPED UK companies are still struggling to get bank loans, a new survey has claimed. Almost 40 per cent of businesses surveyed said it had become harder to access bank lending over the past year, while 14 per cent believed it had worsened in the past three months. Yet 27 per cent said their need [...]
BACK ON THE BOIL October 10, 2010 Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has news to toast after doubling profits at his troubled restaurant business. Gordon Ramsay Holdings turned a £4.2m profit in the 11 months to August, up from £2.47m in the same period the previous year. Ramsay was forced to restructure and recapitalise his companies after rapid international expansion in 2008 backfired, [...]
Walker to bid £1bn for food firm Iceland October 10, 2010 THE boss of frozen food chain Iceland is planning a £1bn takeover of the firm he founded four decades ago, although he faces a potential bid battle, it emerged yesterday. Malcolm Walker, who together with other managers owns about a quarter of the retailer, is thought to have offered to buy the remaining 76 per cent [...]
Wal-Mart US managers in firing line over sales October 10, 2010 WAL-MART Stores’ US management will be in the firing line at the company’s investor meeting this week, where Wall Street analysts will press for details on rescuing the retailer’s largest business. Sales at US Wal-Mart stores open at least a year have fallen in five straight quarters, hurt by competition from lower-priced dollar stores and [...]
Jobless count set to rise as austerity hits October 10, 2010 UNEMPLOYMENT data published on Wednesday is expected to confirm the gloomy outlook for the UK jobs market and to show that more Britons joined the dole queue last month, intensifying fears of an austerity-induced second wave of job losses. A consensus of City economists predicts that 2,700 additional people will have been claiming Job Seeker’s [...]
BDO: Quantitative easing needed to stimulate UK’s economic growth October 10, 2010 FINANCIAL services firm BDO has called for an extra £50bn to be pumped into the economy through quantitative easing to maintain the economic recovery. The firm backed MPC member Adam Posen’s call for more quantitative easing in the fourth quarter. BDO’s Business Trends forecast is predicting slower than expected growth for the first half of 2011, which [...]