Obama’s pay tsar set on AIG October 28, 2009 Kenneth Feinberg, the Obama administration’s pay tsar said renegotiating bonuses to American International Group employees is a “top priority” yesterday, adding he believes he can do so without losing key employees. At the same time Feinberg, who reduced pay for executives at seven major US firms, said he didn’t want broader powers over the rest [...]
Saudi Armaco ditches WTI October 28, 2009 Saudi Aramco yesterday announced it will begin using the Argus Sour Crude Index (ASCI) published by Argus Media as the benchmark price for all grades of crude oil sold to US customers – in a move away from WTI. Saudi Aramco has used WTI crude prices published by McGraw Hill’s Platts as the benchmark for [...]
JJB Sports wins over investors October 28, 2009 Embattled sportswear retailer JJB Sports yesterday confirmed it has received shareholder support for 90 per cent of the shares it intends to issue in its £100m cash call. Shareholders will vote today to approve the rights issue.
NatEx rejects Stagecoach merger plans October 28, 2009 NATIONAL Express last night ruled out a merger with Stagecoach and said that it was pressing ahead with a fundraising. The transport group said that its board and advisers had decided a merger would not offer greater value and certainty to shareholders. National Express said last week that Stagecoach had made a “highly preliminary” approach, [...]
Yell set to take 3.8bn debt restructure to court October 28, 2009 TROUBLED directories publisher Yell will today say that it is prepared to ask the courts to push through the restructuring of its £3.8bn debt mountain, after it failed to secure agreement from enough of its lenders. Yell had until 5pm last night to get the required 95 per cent support from its 300 lenders for [...]
Bodog circles government sale of theTote October 28, 2009 A POTENTIAL buyer has emerged for the Tote, just weeks after the government put the bookmaker on the block as part of plans to sell off £16bn worth of state assets to reduce the burgeoning pile of public debt. Bodog Europe – a franchise of US betting giant Bodog – is understood to be mulling [...]
Ford picks Geely as Volvo frontrunner October 27, 2009 FORD named Zhejiang Geely Holding Group as preferred bidder for its loss-making Swedish unit Volvo in what could lead to the biggest overseas acquisition by China’s fast-growing auto sector. Ford and privately owned Geely did not disclose a possible sale price for Volvo but it is thought to be closer to $2bn (£1.3bn) than the [...]
European lending takes a hit October 27, 2009 LOANS to Eurozone households and businesses fell for the first time ever in September, amplifying concerns that weak bank lending could hinder the Eurozone’s still fragile recovery. Official data from Eurostat showed that loans to the private sector fell 0.3 per cent on September 2008 – the first time this measure has dropped into negative [...]
Personal insolvency levels to break records in 2009 October 27, 2009 PERSONAL insolvencies will jump to the highest figure on record today, according to new figures from insolvency specialist Tenon Recovery. On average there have been 300 personal insolvencies every day in 2009 – with an estimated 107,014 personal insolvencies so far this year. Tenon Recovery’s national head of bankruptcy Mark Sands is predicting that the [...]
Honda profits driven up by scrap scheme October 27, 2009 CAR giant Honda tripled its annual profit forecasts yesterday, as second-quarter earnings fell less than forecast on the back of scrappage schemes worldwide. Honda has weathered the industrial turmoil, which drove two US car giants into bankruptcy last year, better than its competitors as its profitable motorbike business cushioned the blow. The carmaker said yesterday [...]