Microsoft edges toward EU deal October 7, 2009 Microsoft said it has made concessions in a bid to end its long-running battle with the European Union’s Competition Commission over the way the firm bundles its Internet Explorer browser with its Windows software. Microsoft has agreed to give PC users a “ballot screen” allowing them the choice of alternative browsers. The software firm added [...]
Aviva to list in New York October 7, 2009 INSURANCE giant Aviva has announced plans to list on the New York Stock Exchange as it embarks on a drive to raise its profile in the US. The company, the world’s fifth-largest insurer by gross premiums, said it would begin trading on 20 October, just days after it said it would launch a partial initial [...]
Biggest USlisting in 18 months sparks optimism October 7, 2009 SHARES of Verisk Analytics, an insurance risk specialist, rose 23 per cent in their first day of trading on Nasdaq yesterday, after the company completed the largest IPO by a US firm in 18 months. Verisk shares immediately jumped 22.7 per cent when trade began, adding to hope that the equity markets are out of [...]
Royal Mail faces massive strike October 7, 2009 BRITAIN’S postal network is about to grind to a halt, with Royal Mail workers today expected to have voted in favour of the first national strike in two years. With the strike destined to bring chaos to Christmas deliveries, online retail giant Amazon has cancelled a contract with the firm worth some £25m. Amazon, Royal [...]
House prices to decline sharply despite recent rally, warns Fitch October 7, 2009 RECENT rises in UK house prices are likely to be reversed next year, ratings agency Fitch said yesterday. The firm said it expected a rapid decline in house prices to a trough of 30 per cent below the peak of October 2007, despite the 1.6 per cent rise recorded by home lender Halifax in September. [...]
SARIN JOINS KKR October 7, 2009 HIGH-PROFILE private equity house Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) has appointed former Vodafone chief executive Arun Sarin as a senior adviser. Sarin is expected to help KKR with deals in the telecoms industry, as private equity firms return to deal-making following the recovery of equity markets and the return of bank credit. Sarin ran Vodafone for [...]
J Sainsbury sales growth slows down October 7, 2009 J SAINSBURY, hot on the heels of supermarket archrival Tesco, yesterday revealed that its second quarter sales growth had slowed as food inflation eased in the autumn. Sainsbury’s said like-for-like sales growth, excluding fuel, slowed to 4.6 per cent rise for the 16 weeks to 3 October down from seven per cent in the previous [...]
WestLB to put 87bn in bad bank October 7, 2009 GERMANY’S WestLB will offload at least €87bn (£80bn) in risky assets into the country’s first “bad bank”, a move other lenders may follow. The regional state-backed lender said it planned to start by next month off-loading some of the billions of euros in loss-making investments it racked up in the credit crisis. While WestLB is [...]
FSA censures traders after their appeal October 7, 2009 THE FINANCIAL Services Authority yesterday censured two bond traders who had appealed against market abuse allegations, stopping short of issuing a hefty fine or a lifelong ban. The news prompted speculation that more people would now choose to appeal to the FSA Regulatory Decision Committee (RDC), as the watchdog forges ahead with its aggressive enforcement [...]
WILL THIS CASE ENCOURAGE MORE APPEALS AGAINST THE FSA? October 7, 2009 SIMON MORRIS CMS CAMERON MCKENNA“This case shows that in nine times out of ten the FSA can spot market abuse from a distance of a hundred yards – here we have the one-in-ten case. Firms and individuals should always scrutinise the FSA’s market abuse allegations, calling in market evidence to rein in its wilder claims.”HARRIET [...]