Court close to a decision on Saab appeal September 14, 2011 A SWEDISH court said yesterday it would decide in the next few days whether to allow struggling car maker Saab to appeal a ruling denying it protection from creditors, with Saab almost certain to slide into bankruptcy if its case is rejected. “The case will be dealt with as a priority and a decision in [...]
MASERATI UPBEAT ON SALES GROWTH September 14, 2011 FIAT luxury brand Maserati is expecting sales growth of seven per cent this year, its chief executive said yesterday, after the car maker presented its first SUV at the Frankfurt auto show. “The [sales] trend of the first eight months of the year will be confirmed for the whole of 2011,” Maserati chief executive Harald [...]
US report faults BP over Deepwater Horizon spill September 14, 2011 The US government has said BP bears the bulk of the blame for the world’s biggest-ever oil spill last year, in the final report from its investigators. The report from the US Coast Guard and offshore oil regulator says BP was solely to blame for 21 of the 35 contributing causes behind the explosion in [...]
Obama hardens tone in push for jobs bill September 14, 2011 US president Barack Obama has sharpened his rhetoric in a push for his $447bn (£282.4bn) jobs package, even as polls showed Americans are sceptical of the plan. In the latest stop on what has become a “pass this bill” tour, Obama used a campaign-style rally to press his warning to Republicans not to let election [...]
Barroso eurobond pledge lifts markets September 14, 2011 European markets have been lifted in a late rally on a promise that EU authorities will draw up plans for a eurozone-wide bond to end fears over the sovereign debt of the bloc’s weakest economies. The FTSEurofirst 300 index of top shares closed up 1.4 per cent after a day of choppy trading, while the [...]
US retail sales growth stalls September 14, 2011 US retail sales failed to increase in August compared with the previous month, official figure have shown. The zero growth rate was worse than expected, and the rate for July was also revised down by the US Commerce Department, from 0.5 per cent to 0.3 per cent. Department store sales continued to suffer, according to [...]
Rolls Royce expects record sales this year September 14, 2011 Carmaker Rolls Royce expects this year to be a record year for sales as luxury buyers remain undaunted by the current market sentiment. The automotive brand, owned by Germany’s BMW, said its super-rich clients had no hesitation about splashing out on a new car and believes sales will beat the 2,700 sold in 2010. “I [...]
Unemployment rises to 2.5m September 14, 2011 The number of Britons claiming unemployment benefit rose slightly less than expected last month, although the number of people without work on the wider ILO measure showed its biggest rise in two years, official data showed on Wednesday. The Office for National Statistics said the number of people claiming jobless benefit rose by 20,300 last [...]
Barratt back in the black September 14, 2011 Housebuilder Barratt Developments returned to profit for the full-year, helped by higher selling prices, and said it expected to make further progress despite the constrained housing market. The country’s largest housebuilder by volume reported full-year profit before tax and exceptional items of £42.7m, at the higher end of market estimates, compared with a loss of [...]
Next raises profit guidance September 14, 2011 Next raised its full-year profit guidance after posting an 8.5 per cent rise in half-year profit, driven by a strong performance from its Directory home shopping business. The firm, which runs over 500 stores in Britain and Ireland, said it made a pre-tax profit of £228m in the six months to 30 RETAILJuly. That compares [...]