EC supervision plans firming up May 19, 2009 The European Commission is pushing ahead with plans to ramp up financial supervision across the continent, set to be published next week. A leaked draft of a working document last night suggests the EC will push for a European Systemic Risk Council to warn about economic risks. The plans are likely to meet fierce resistence [...]
US Senate passes credit card bill May 19, 2009 The US Senate yesterday voted 90-5 to approve a bill to prevent sudden credit card interest rate increases and hidden fees, with President Barack Obama expected to sign it into law by the end of the month. Experts said the law will affect profits at credit card issuers like American Express.
Pay cuts loom as prices fall to 61-year low May 19, 2009 AN ESTIMATED 80 per cent of workers face the prospect of a pay freeze or cut, after the measure of inflation used for the majority of wage settlements plunged last month. The Retail Prices Index (RPI), which is used for workers’ wage settlements and includes mortgage and rent payments, shrank to -1.2 per cent year-on-year [...]
Fiat, Magna and RHJ set to unveil GM Europe bids May 19, 2009 AT LEAST three bidders are in the running to buy the European operations of stricken US automaker General Motors, it has emerged. Brussels car parts group RHJ International, Italian manufacturer Fiat and Canada’s Magna are likely to reveal formal offers for the Opel-Vauxhall division by today’s deadline. The groups are likely to be asked to [...]
Venture capital plea for fund aid May 19, 2009 Business secretary Lord Mandelson has been urged to use the new £750m strategic investment fund to support the recession-battered venture capital sector. The fund, created in April’s Budget, was not earmarked for investment into specific areas but eight leading venture capital, biotechnology and IT trade bodies last night issued a plea for assitance. The proposal [...]
AIG names board nominees May 19, 2009 Crippled US insurer American International Group (AIG) yesterday named six nominees to sit as independent board members, in a move that was forced by the terms of its government bailout. The group, which has received some $180bn (£116bn) in US taxpayer aid, named Harvey Golub, Laurette Koellner, Christopher Lynch, Arthur Martinez, Robert Miller and Douglas [...]
HP gloomy as demand dives May 19, 2009 US high-tech electronics manufacturer Hewlett Packard (HP) said yesterday the slump in business and consumer spending continued to push down profits, warning it expects to see little growth this year. The group reported a 17 per cent profit fall to $1.7bn (£1bn) in the second quarter, down from a $2.1bn profit in the same period [...]
Job axe falls again at ABN Amro, Lloyds May 19, 2009 ANOTHER slew of redundancies swept the banking world yesterday as Lloyds Banking Group announced 625 new job losses and Dutch bank ABN Amro revealed plans to axe up to 6,500 workers as part of its integration with Fortis Bank Nederland. ABN Amro said between 5,500 and 6,500 would be cut, though the net impact of [...]
Tate & Lyle shares jump after new boss is announced May 19, 2009 SUGAR group Tate & Lyle has seen its shares skyrocket after it named Javed Ahmed, the 49-year old European head of consumer goods giant Reckitt Benckiser, as its chief executive. Shares of the battered Golden Syrup maker jumped 10.7 per cent in early trading, before closing up 8.2 per cent at 296p. They had fallen [...]
Regus update sparks fears rental recovery will be slower than hoped May 19, 2009 OFFICE rental company Regus reported a 16 per cent increase in revenues for the first four months of the year yesterday, but it admitted pressure on occupancy levels and falling prices impacted net income. The company, run by chief executive and founder Mark Dixon, said revenues rose to £387m compared to £334.5m in the same [...]
