WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING February 8, 2012 FINANCIAL TIMES BROKERS SUSPENDED IN LIBOR INQUIRY More than a dozen traders and brokers in London and Asia have been fired, suspended or put on leave by their employers as a multinational probe into alleged manipulation of crucial global lending rates accelerates. Regulators have been investigating US and European banks that help set interbank lending [...]
Ernst & Young fined $2m in US February 8, 2012 The US watchdog board for corporate auditors yesterday said it has imposed a $2m penalty, its largest fine ever, on accounting and consulting firm Ernst & Young LLP in a settlement involving past audits of Medicis Pharmaceutical Corp. The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board said it also sanctioned four current and former Ernst & Young [...]
Diamond Foods to ditch top staff February 8, 2012 Diamond Foods, the US-listed maker of Kettle crisps and Emerald nuts, is replacing its chief executive and chief financial officer and will restate its earnings for the last two years following an accounting probe. The investigation into payments to farmers has thrown into doubt the company’s deal to buy the Pringles snack business from Procter [...]
BarCap’s role in £56bn deal is challenged February 8, 2012 BARCLAYS Capital’s last-minute inclusion in the adviser list for the Glencore-Xstrata merger, which has lifted its place in the Thomson Reuters league table for M&A worldwide, has been challenged by one of its rivals. Thomson Reuters, which has lifted BarCap from eighth to sixth following the bank’s declaration that it is an adviser on the [...]
Groupon grabs more revenue but fails to post its first profit February 8, 2012 ONLINE discount website Groupon posted a $42.7m (£27m) net loss for its fourth quarter – despite almost tripling revenue to $506.5m – in its first ever earnings report as a public company. However, the loss attributable to shareholders, which Groupon put down to particularly high tax rates in certain countries, decreased 89 per cent on last [...]
Facebook deal sends Bango stock sky high February 8, 2012 SHARES in British mobile payments business Bango rocketed yesterday as the company did a deal with Facebook, despite both parties refusing to disclose the terms of the agreement. Bango said in a statement it will “provide payments services to Facebook”. This follows last week’s confirmation – after a rise in share price around the time [...]
Cisco trumps estimates and increases guidance February 8, 2012 NETWORK equipment maker Cisco Systems last night promised further revenue growth after its second quarter results beat estimates thanks to a restructuring, leading to a dividend increase. The company, a sector bellwether because of its global scale and diverse client base, forecast five to seven per cent growth in fiscal third quarter revenue. That translates [...]
Lenovo results beat forecasts February 8, 2012 LENOVO Group, the world’s second-biggest PC maker, this morning posted a 54 per cent rise in third-quarter net profit, beating expectations. But growth at Hong Kong-listed Lenovo slowed for a third straight quarter on weak global PC demand and a shortage of components. The firm, which last year edged out Dell to rank behind market [...]
Greek bailout held up by politicians’ refusal to accept plans to cut the cost of pensions February 8, 2012 GREEK Prime Minister Lucas Papademos said last night that one final area of disagreement “requires further elaboration and discussion with the troika”, as talks over a new bailout package dragged on. The troika – the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund – requires Greece to implement reforms and austerity measures to ensure [...]
BA and Japan Airlines agree revenue share February 8, 2012 BRITISH Airways and Japan Airlines have agreed a revenue-sharing deal for flights between Europe and Japan, potentially giving their oneworld alliance more competitive muscle. The joint venture would lead to more choice of flights and could lead to more routes, BA’s parent International Airlines Group (IAG) said yesterday. “Despite the difficulties the Japanese aviation market [...]
