Bank rolls over QE while Draghi hints at rate cut February 7, 2013 THE BANK of England yesterday announced it would reinvest maturing assets in the gilt market, to keep its asset portfolio in line with its £375bn target. The rate-setters kept interest rates at their all-time low of 0.5 per cent for the 47th month, and maintained the size of the quantitative easing (QE) gilt-purchase programme at [...]
What the other papers say this morning February 7, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Dell to repatriate $7bn of cash Dell plans to ship as much as $7.4bn (£4.7bn) of the cash it holds in foreign countries back to the US to help finance its proposed buyout, breaking ranks with other big US technology companies that have kept most of their liquid reserves abroad to avoid a [...]
Senior Barclays staff delay pay February 7, 2013 MANAGING directors in Barclays’ investment bank will not get an upfront bonus for 2012, instead receiving the payouts – half cash and half shares – over the next three years. More junior staff will receive a bonus of up to £65,000 in cash upfront, gaining more at the expense of the 1,200 MDs affected. It [...]
Seymour still hopes for deal February 7, 2013 EMPLOYEES at Seymour Pierce were summoned to a staff meeting last night to hear of their fate at the financially stretched small companies bank – but they left it no clearer as to their future, only with a hope that there might be a resolution to the situation later today. Chief executive Tom Forcier told [...]
LinkedIn shines to revenue gain February 7, 2013 PROFESSIONAL network LinkedIn hailed a “transformative” 12 months for the business yesterday after an 86 per cent increase in annual revenues. The online company increased revenues to $972.3m (£618.8m) due to a big jump in advertising sales. Revenues per user shot up from $1.16 a year ago to $1.50 for the three months ending December [...]
Retail boss found guilty February 7, 2013 THE boss of failed retail group Baugur, one-time king of the British high street, was found guilty of tax evasion yesterday. Jon Asgeir Johannesson, whose investment company owned stakes in a string of British high-street retailers including Hamley’s, Iceland and House of Fraser, was handed a suspended one-year prison sentence and a fined of 62m [...]
New governor vows to shake up central bank February 7, 2013 MARK Carney yesterday pledged to shake up weak economic forecasting, work out how to unwind quantitative easing (QE) and reorganise the Bank to make sure its vast new powers over banks can be used properly. The Canadian governor showed some disagreement with Sir Mervyn King, arguing interest rates should be raised when policy needs to [...]
Charming Carney wins hearts February 7, 2013 GOLDMAN Sachs bankers don’t often get a warm welcome from Labour MPs. Nor do public sector staff earning the best part of £1m. Lauded as the greatest central banker of his generation – and, as it happens, the best looking – Mark Carney was surely in for a hard bump back to earth. “Quarter of [...]
Apple to chew over proposals to return cash February 7, 2013 APPLE said yesterday it would consider proposals from US billionaire David Einhorn urging the company to return more of its colossal cash pile to shareholders. Einhorn’s hedge fund Greenlight Capital, which owns 0.12 per cent of the iPhone and iPad maker, yesterday said it was taking legal action over Apple’s proposals to change its company [...]
Warner Music wins prized record label Parlophone in £487m deal February 7, 2013 WARNER Music has bought the Parlophone record label from Universal Music, winning a bidding war against rivals including Sony Music and BMG. Warner is paying £487m for the label, whose artist roster includes Coldplay, Kylie Minogue, Radiohead and Kraftwerk, after significantly outbidding three other parties for the label. A joint bid from Sony Music and [...]