BHP says committed to $20 bn Australian port project BHP Billiton, the world’s largest miner, said it was still committed to a $20bn (£13bn) expansion of the harbour at one of Australia’s biggest ports, Port Hedland, after it signalled earlier in the week it would delay the investment. “The outer harbour continues to be an important part of our long-term strategy,” BHP’s head of [...]
Euribor rates fall to new lows on ECB rate cut hopes Bank-to-bank lending rates fell to new all-time lows today as weak economic surveys bolstered expectations the European Central Bank will cut interest rates as soon as next month to help combat the Eurozone crisis. The fall in Euribor rates extended a fall in interbank rates that began late last year when the ECB flooded money [...]
Second quarter recession shallower than expected The UK economy shrank less than first thought in the second quarter despite a hefty drag from trade, but the wider picture of economic weakness was little changed, data on today showed. Second quarter output fell 0.5 per cent, compared to an initial estimate of 0.7 per cent, depressed by one-off factors including unusually wet [...]
Rio Tinto upbeat on copper amid end of boom fears August 24, 2012 The positive long-term outlook for copper remains intact, the head of Rio Tinto’s copper division said today, adding his voice to a chorus of mining executives reluctant to call time on the resources boom. Debate over whether the decade-long bull run in commodities has ended has ramped up in recent days as China heads for [...]
John Lewis sales up as shoppers catch sports fever August 24, 2012 John Lewis, Britain’s biggest department store group, posted strong sales growth last week, helped by increased demand for sports equipment following Britain’s gold medal haul at the London Olympics. The employee-owned firm said today department store sales jumped 14.5 per cent year on year to £61.1m in the week to 18 August, the third week [...]
Aer Lingus reiterates rejection of Ryanair bid August 24, 2012 Irish airline Aer Lingus today renewed a call to its shareholders to reject Ryanair’s latest takeover bid, saying its budget rival had failed to provide any new information on its offer. Ryanair has asked EU antitrust regulators to approve the €694m (£535m) takeover bid – its third – for the former state carrier in what [...]
Seoul court rules Samsung didn’t violate Apple design August 24, 2012 Samsung’s flagship Galaxy smartphone looks very similar to Apple’s iPhone, but the South Korean firm has not violated the iPhone design, a Seoul court ruled today. The South Korean ruling comes as the two technology titans are locked in a high-stakes global patent battle that mirrors a fierce rivalry for industry supremacy between two companies [...]
Oil hits three-month high above $114 August 13, 2012 Oil rose above $114 (£73) per barrel today to the highest in more than three months as concern about supplies and hopes that governments will roll out more stimulus measures trumped signs of weakening fuel demand. Supply of the North Sea crudes underpinning the Brent crude contract is set to hit a record low. Iranian [...]
Julius Baer to buy Merrill Lynch private bank outside US August 13, 2012 Swiss private bank Julius Baer is to buy Bank of America’s Merrill Lynch private bank outside the US, paying 860m CHF (£563m) to boost its assets under management by 40 per cent and backing the deal with plans to raise 1.19bn CHF in new capital. The acquisition, the latest in a string of purchases for [...]
Growth doubts dull European shares August 13, 2012 Weak Japanese economic data on Monday tempered European investors’ optimism about European Central Bank (ECB) plans to tackle the Eurozone crisis, with stocks down slightly and the euro flat. Japan said its economy grew 0.3 per cent in the three months to June from the first quarter, half as much as expected, as Europe’s debt [...]
