FSA hits back as MPs attack August 13, 2009 THE FINANCIAL Services Authority (FSA) yesterday hit back at MPs, after all three political parties rounded on the City regulator over its rules on executive pay. FSA chief executive Hector Sants said it was not the watchdog’s job to wage war on bonuses for social reasons, and that politicians should bring in laws to cap [...]
Facebook tries to climb the great firewall of China August 13, 2009 WHEN a screenshot of Facebook Lite was leaked earlier this week, the blogosphere went crazy, proving that Web 2.0 scribblers have a silly season too. Most bloggers were convinced the slimmed-down version of the social network was an attempt to take on Twitter, something Facebook emphatically denies. Instead, it forms part of the firm’s attempt [...]
US ECONOMY August 13, 2009 SALES at US retailers unexpectedly fell in July and the number of workers filing new claims for jobless benefits rose last week, indicating the recession-hit economy faces a bumpy recovery. A Commerce Department report yesterday showed total retail sales edged down 0.1 per cent after increasing 0.8 per cent in June, compared with market forecasts [...]
NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT August 13, 2009 STEPHEN Schwarzman, the chief executive of private equity firm Blackstone, was yesterday named as America’s highest-paid boss, taking home $702.4m (£424.m) last year. The vast majority of his pay came from vested shares in 2008 after taking the business public in 2007, according to shareholder rights group Corporate Library.
Rail strike action called off August 13, 2009 Strikes which had caused misery for tens of thousands of City commuters were called off yesterday, as National Express appeased its unions with an improved pay offer. Aslef, the RMT and TSSA union members had caused chaos on the East Anglia line. Planned walk-outs for later this month are also expected to be called off.
Rio Tinto eyes $1bn US IPO August 13, 2009 Mining giant Rio Tinto is set to spin-off a slew of its most highly valuable coal mines in an initial public offering, in a bid to raise as much as $1bn (£604m). The firm is expected to list much of its Rio Tinto Energy America arm after filing registration papers with US regulator the Securities [...]
Magna makes sweetened bid for GMEurope August 13, 2009 MAGNA, the Canadian car-parts maker hoping to snap up a stake in General Motors’ (GM) European unit Opel, yesterday sweetened its offer for the coveted company, as the protracted bidding process nears its end. US carmaker GM, which is selling off its European arm as part of a massive restructuring, said yesterday it would review [...]
Tui to bail out Hapag-Lloyd August 13, 2009 Hapag-Lloyd, the stricken German container ship fleet, is to get a €420m (£362m) capital injection from travel group Tui that will guarantee the firm’s future. Tui, which already owns a 43 per cent stake in Hapag, is to provide an investment that will then enable the firm to file a vital application for €1.2bn in [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS August 13, 2009 MITCHELLS & BUTLERGoldman Sachs downgraded Mitchells & Butlers to “sell” and added the stock to its “conviction list”, saying that the company looks expensive versus its managed pub peers, despite facing identical challenges and having much higher than average leverage. The broker added that it expects sales to lag peers going forward. MITIEMitie was upgraded [...]
Aegon unveils surprise loss and cash call August 13, 2009 AEGON, the Dutch insurer, yesterday reported a surprise loss in the second quarter and said it would ask markets for up to €1bn (£862m) to pay off part of its government bailout. The group, whose Aegon UK arm has two million customers across its life, pensions and asset management operations, saw its Dutch shares plummet [...]