REVEALED: WALL STREET BANKS’ BONUS BONANZA July 30, 2009 NEARLY 5,000 bankers at the top nine US lenders were paid bonuses of more than $1m in 2008, despite their employers receiving $175bn (£106bn) in taxpayer-backed bailout funds, it was revealed yesterday. New York attorney general Andrew Cuomo found that staff at the banks, all of which received funds via the Troubled Asset Relief Programme [...]
FSA to probe trading in oil July 30, 2009 THE FINANCIAL Services Authority (FSA) is to quiz oil industry representatives, hedge fund managers and politicians on the issue of whether speculators impact on oil prices. The meeting, scheduled for 5 August, will address whether or not the City watchdog should impose limits on oil trades positions, as has recently been mooted by the US [...]
A partial defence of banking bonuses July 30, 2009 FINANCIAL voyeurism has arrived with a splash – and it is unlikely to go away again. Yesterday’s report from New York, details of which can be found on our front page, make rivetting reading. The numbers for Goldman Sachs are fascinating and confirm its reputation as a money-making machine: read the raw data and marvel [...]
Train strikes hit London July 30, 2009 RAIL strikes caused havoc for commuters travelling on the National Express East Anglia train services yesterday, as members of the Rail Maritime and Transport (RMT) and Aslef unions took industrial action over a pay dispute. The 48-hour walk-out had “crippled” services, the unions said. Many commuters stayed at home as a limited peak-time service failed [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 30, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES VW BRACED FOR “ZERO GROWTH” IN CAR MARKETVolkswagen warned yesterday that it could face flat sales in 2010 as Europe’s largest carmaker reported a sharp profit drop in the second quarter. The third-biggest carmaker behind General Motors and Toyota said it expected “zero growth” in the car market next year. PRIVATE EQUITY SUFFERED [...]
BHP to elect new chairman soon July 30, 2009 The world’s largest miner BHP Billiton is close to announcing a new chairman to replace Don Argus and is understood to have narrowed the field to two candidates. Current non-executive directors Jacques Nasser, the former Ford chief executive and John Schubert, the chairman of Commonwealth Bank of Australia, head the running.
Mallorca bomb fuels new fears July 30, 2009 A second bomb attack in two days by Basque separatist group Eta on the island of Mallorca has prompted fears of an escalation of violence. Yesterday’s blast killed two police officers, a day after 60 people were injured in an attack on the island’s tourist district.
Skype flotation hitch hits eBay July 30, 2009 Online auction house eBay’s efforts to float internet phone business Skype is under threat from a legal dispute over the technology behind the telephone service. eBay is suing Skype’s founders over their efforts to withdraw the company’s licence to use the technology. The company said it had begun working on replacement software in case it [...]
MPs: Darling’s big reform bid has no depth July 30, 2009 THE INFLUENTIAL group of MPs investigating the banking crisis will today dismiss chancellor Alistair Darling’s White Paper bid to reform financial regulation as “largely cosmetic”, in a devastating final report. The Treasury Committee will say Darling’s efforts to lead the City into a new rules era are based on “merely re-branding” the regulatory system, and [...]
HORLICK CALLS OFF BID July 30, 2009 NICOLA Horlick’s investment management vehicle Petersfield Asset Management said yesterday it had terminated offer discussions with Bramdean Alternatives. Horlick — investment manager to London-listed Bramdean — made an approach to the board in April which was rejected in June, shortly before an extraordinary meeting installed candidates nominated by Bramdean investor Vincent Tchenguiz.