Danes join Cameron in fight against financial transaction tax January 10, 2012 A FINANCIAL transactions tax will cost hundreds of thousands of jobs, Danish economy minister Margrethe Vestager said yesterday, while Denmark’s former foreign minister Lene Espersen described the tax as “bullshit.” The Danes – who hold the EU’s rotating presidency – now match David Cameron’s rejection of the European Commission’s proposals. Vestager pointed to the EC’s [...]
Rivals round on Romney January 10, 2012 MITT Romney faces growing questions about his candidacy for the Republican US presidential nomination despite going into last night’s primary contest as the clear favourite. The former head of private equity house Bain held onto a significant lead in the final opinion polls for the New Hampshire primary, while the battle for second place appeared [...]
Orange juice futures soar January 10, 2012 US orange juice futures surged by more than 10 per cent to an all-time high yesterday over fears an unapproved fungicide in Brazil could hit juice imports. The benchmark March frozen concentrated orange juice contract on the ICE Futures US exchange – one of the smallest futures markets featured in the 1980s film Trading Places [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING January 10, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES MICROSOFT ALLEGES PIRACY IN CHINA LAWSUITS Microsoft has stepped up its fight against software piracy in China with unprecedented lawsuits against Chinese electronics retailers. The company is suing Shanghai Gome, a branch of one of the country’s largest electronics and appliances chains, and Beijing Chaoyang Buynow, one of China’s largest computer malls. The [...]
Fannie Mae chief steps down January 10, 2012 The head of US mortgage funder Fannie Mae quit yesterday, less than three months after the chief of America’s other mortgage backer Freddie Mac left his post. Michael J Williams said “the time is right to turn over the reins to a new leader”, after almost three years in the top job saw him take [...]
Cargill has worst quarter in years January 10, 2012 US agribusiness giant Cargill yesterday reported its worst quarter since 2001, posting a worse than expected 88 per cent slump in quarterly earnings from continuing operations to $100m. The company, which has announced plans to lay off 1.5 per cent of its staff and has parted ways with its top sugar trader, is suffering alongside [...]
Investment banking boss quits Nomura January 10, 2012 NOMURA signalled a full-scale retreat from its ambitions to become a top-tier international investment bank yesterday as its head of wholesale, Jasjit (Jesse) Bhattal, announced he is quitting the industry. While the bank’s plans to downsize its global operations were well-known, the departure of Bhattal, who moved to the bank when it bought Lehman Brothers’ [...]
Lost Bhattal in a bruising industry war January 10, 2012 JESSE Bhattal’s departure from Nomura is a moment that shows just how badly wrong things have gone for investment banks even since the financial crisis. Few banks have escaped the decline, but Nomura’s slide has been exacerbated by the huge cost base it bought by taking on thousands of Lehman staff, as well as giving [...]
EU set to axe Deutsche and NYSE merger January 10, 2012 THE HEADS of NYSE Euronext and Deutsche Boerse are set to hold urgent talks today to try to stop regulators ripping up their $9bn (£5.81bn) merger. Duncan Niederauer and Reto Francioni, the respective chief executives, are expected to meet in New York after it appeared the European competition commissioner would veto the deal to create [...]
Miliband: Fairness is crucial to Labour January 10, 2012 NEW ideas based on fairness will win the 2015 election for Labour, party leader Ed Miliband claimed in a speech yesterday. “Tough times will continue,” he said, acknowledging that spending cuts are necessary. However, he also stressed that high government spending can be beneficial, pointing to schools built under the last Labour governments, and that [...]