CFO confidence crashes October 11, 2010 MORE than a third of chief financial officers expect a double dip recession as confidence crashes to its lowest level in 18 months. As a result, finance bosses are maintaining a strong focus on keeping costs down and three quarters warn against taking risks, according to a Deloitte survey. However, larger companies are no longer [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING October 10, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES EUROZONE BOND INVESTORS ACCUSED OF OVERREACTING Investors in Eurozone bond markets stand accused of letting “animal spirits” affect their judgment on the risk of a European debt default, creating a situation where financial markets could force weaker countries into excessive budget cutting. A senior official at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development [...]
Banks urged to cut dividends October 10, 2010 A more proactive supervisory policy forcing banks to cut dividend payouts in times of stress may help shield the economy from future credit shocks, Boston Federal Reserve Bank President Eric Rosengren said yesterday. Rosengren, speaking at an event on the sidelines of International Monetary Fund (IMF) meetings, said banks were slow to cut payouts in the [...]
Stretched out Greek loans October 10, 2010 Bailout loans to Greece could be stretched out or replaced if refinancing worries lingered in markets, the IMF said yesterday, but it currently has no concrete plans to do so. Earlier in the day, a top European Central Bank official had said the IMF was considering whether to lengthen Greece’s €110bn (£96.4bn) loan programme, launched [...]
IMF talks fail to allay currency war fears October 10, 2010 CRUNCH talks between leaders of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) member countries yesterday failed to allay fears of an all-out currency war. Finance chiefs had hoped to thrash out concrete plans for dealing with uneven global growth, which is behind increasingly choleric currency tensions. Rhetoric between China and the US has been stepped up in [...]
RBS to quit its 199 Bishopsgate office by end of the year October 10, 2010 ROYAL Bank of Scotland will vacate its Bishopsgate office, while a second lease on its Regent’s House building hangs in the balance. The bank is scaling back its property portfolio as it prepares to shed thousands of jobs. It is understood RBS will leave 199 Bishopsgate before the end of the year. It will keep [...]
Fresh austerity drive for Ireland October 10, 2010 Ireland will seek savings well above an initial target of €3bn (£2.6bn) in its 2011 budget, finance minister Brian Lenihan said yesterday. Ireland is under pressure to demonstrate it can shrink the worst budget deficit in the EU to allay concerns the former “Celtic Tiger” economy may need external assistance to shore up its finances. [...]
Women missing out on careers October 10, 2010 Middle-aged women are sacrificing their careers because they are acting as unpaid carers, according to a new study by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. Often women go straight from caring for children to looking after an elderly parent, effectively crushing any hopes for a successful career. It also has a negative impact on women’s [...]
GUINNESS TO PUSH FOR US EXPANSION October 10, 2010 Guinness, part of the Diageo empire headed by Paul Walsh (above), will embark on an advertising rally in the US as it attempts to bolster its sales there. It will introduce two new versions of its iconic black stout as well as launching a sports-themed advertising campaign to run on channels including Disney-owned ESPN.
Potash plans break up to avoid BHP bid October 10, 2010 POTASHCORP, the Canadian chemicals giant, is believed to be working on a potential break up of the company as one way of fending off a $38.6bn (£24.1bn) hostile bid from the mining company BHP Billiton. The plan is among several strategies being worked on at Potash – whose advisers include RBC Capital Markets, Goldman Sachs [...]
