US boost for global economy May 3, 2010 PROSPECTS for the global economic recovery received a welcome boost yesterday as growth in the US manufacturing sector crept to a six-year high. The news sent the S&P climbing 15 points to nudge back over the 1,200 mark, offsetting much of last week’s 20 point drop. The ISM manufacturing index rose to 60.4 in April, [...]
EC to rein in derivatives May 3, 2010 EUROPEAN politicians are poised to crack down on derivatives trading after blaming speculators for exerbating fears over Greece and Spain’s finances to their own advantage. Internal markets commissioner Michel Barnier will kick off his term by bringing in new rules as early as June. They are expected to fall along lines set out by the [...]
Cable takes aim at financial privacy May 3, 2010 OUR front page story contains an intriguing scoop : Vince Cable believes that “there is an argument” for applying to all publically listed companies in all industries his idea of disclosing the name of anyone earning £200,000 or more. At the moment, Lib Dem policy is only to do this for the banks; but the [...]
Apax buys Sophos stake May 3, 2010 SOPHOS, the biggest privately held security software maker, has agreed to sell a majority stake to private equity firm Apax Partners, ditching efforts to take itself public, City A.M. can confirm. The two co-founders of the Oxfordshire-based company, Jan Hruska and Peter Lammer, are selling most of their combined 60 per cent share in a [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 3, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES DERIPASKA IN NEW LISTING Oleg Deripaska, the Russian billionaire, is preparing to float a second resource company in Hong Kong just three months after the controversial $2.2bn initial public offering of Rusal, his aluminium group. Strikeforce Mining and Resources aims to raise as much as $200m this month, according to people close to [...]
Warburg Pincus buys Poundland May 3, 2010 US-based private equity group Warburg Pincus is today set to announce the buyout of the discount retailer Poundland. Pound shops such as Poundland, which sells all products for £1, have been a winner with UK consumers counting pennies during the recession.
HgCapital in Swedish deal May 3, 2010 UK private equity group HgCapital is set to buy Swedish disability care service company Frosunda in a €130m (£112m) deal. HgCapital is set to buy the firm from Danish buyout group Polaris. The deal, which requires regulatory approval, follow’s HgCapital’s bid for Acorn Care and Education earlier this year. It lost out to Canada’s Ontario [...]
Australian miner buys rival May 3, 2010 Australia’s largest gold miner, Newcrest Mining, agreed a A$9.5bn (£5.8bn) takeover of its nearest locally listed rival, Lihir Gold, today with an improved offer of A$4.03 per share. Lihir shareholders are to receive one Newcrest share for every 8.43 shares they own.
Miners say they will flee Aussie tax May 3, 2010 THE world’s top miners have said they will scale down their operations in Australia if the Government goes ahead with plans to slap a 40 per cent tax on mining profits. According to mining chiefs at BHP Billiton, Rio Tinto and Xstrata, the plans by the Australian government will hamper long-term investment in the country, [...]
Goldman Sachs hit by slew of lawsuits May 3, 2010 Goldman Sachs yesterday made the surprise move of disclosing information about the flood of lawsuits facing it. A deluge of cases accusing the Wall Street bank of mismanagement and dishonesty were filed in the days following the decision by the US Securities and Exchange Commission to bring charges against it. Shareholders blame the bank for [...]