Moody’s adds to euro woes September 27, 2010 CREDIT ratings agency Moody’s slashed its ratings on Anglo Irish Bank’s lower-grade debt yesterday, unnerving investors as Dublin tots up the final cost of rescuing a lender whose soured loans have crippled the country’s economy. Yields on 10-year government bonds increased to 430 points above the equivalent German securities as investors fretted over a writedown [...]
IMF is right – but savings crisis looms September 27, 2010 GEORGE OSBORNE was a happy man yesterday, courtesy of the usually dour International Monetary Fund (IMF), which released an unusually effusive and gushing endorsement of the coalition’s macroeconomic policies. The IMF is upbeat for 2011, predicting growth of two per cent. It makes it clear that slashing the deficit and controlling public spending is the [...]
Rolls-Royce sued over patent September 27, 2010 In a continuing battle over engine part designs, jet engine-maker Pratt & Whitney yesterday sued Rolls Royce, accusing the British company of misleading the US Patent and Trademark Office to obtain a patent. Pratt & Whitney, a subsidiary of United Technologies, said in its lawsuit that Rolls-Royce’s patent is invalid and unenforceable. The East Hartford-based [...]
Crossrail plans efficiencies September 27, 2010 Crossrail set out a series of cost savings to its £16bn budget yesterday but said there would be no cuts in its planned stations or branches. Instead efficiencies would be found by making use of existing train designs, rather than building new carriages from scratch as originally planned. The latest cuts are part of Crossrail’s [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING September 27, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES BRAZIL IN GLOBAL CURRENCY WAR’ ALERT An “interntaional currency war” has broken out according to Guido Mantega, Brazil’s finance minister, as governments around the world comcompete to power their exhange rates to boost competiveness. Mantega’s comments in Sao Paulo follow a series of interventions by central banks in Japan, South Korea and Taiwan [...]
JPM sets up alternatives unit in the US September 27, 2010 JPMORGAN Chase is starting a new alternatives unit in its asset management business, formed from traders who are no longer allowed to trade for the bank’s own account under new US rules, according to a company memo. The fate of the JPMorgan traders has been up in the air as banks scramble to come to [...]
RIM unveils Blackberry PlayBook as rival to iPad September 27, 2010 RESEARCH in Motion (RIM) unveiled its own tablet computer to rival Apple’s iPad yesterday. The computer, named BlackBerry PlayBook, has a seven-inch screen and dual facing cameras. It is WiFi and Bluetooth enabled but needs to link with a BlackBerry smartphone to access the mobile phone network. Shares of RIM jumped nearly two per cent [...]
Former US Treasury chief joins BA board September 27, 2010 FORMER US Treasury secretary John Snow, and Telefónica chairman César Alierta, are to join the board of the newly formed International Airlines Group (IAG) as non-executive directors, it was announced yesterday. The company, which is being formed by the planned merger of British Airways and Iberia, will create Europe’s second-largest airline by market value after [...]
Unilever is hoping for a good hair day September 27, 2010 Unilever yesterday announced it will buy US hair and skin care specialist Alberto Culver in a deal worth $3.7bn (£2.34bn). The acquisition of the firm behind household names such as V05 and TRESemme marks the single biggest Unilever acquisition in almost a decade. The new brands will complement Unilever’s existing portfolio, which includes Dove, Clear [...]
This purchase makes financial sense September 27, 2010 INVESTORS should keep their hair on. Financially, this deal makes sense. Unilever’s $37.5bn-a-share offer, which values Alberto Culver at around $3.6bn, is good value. The offer, which is worth around 12 times prospective earnings for 2011, is pretty cheap when compared to similar deals. Which is just as well, because the deal – while sensible [...]