Quake budget agreed as auto markets suffer May 2, 2011 JAPAN’S parliament yesterday passed a $50bn (£30bn) emergency budget for disaster relief after the 11 March earthquake and tsunami, a downpayment on what is set to be country’s biggest public works effort in six decades. Opposition parties backed the first round of spending to finance work such as clearing rubble and building temporary houses. Reaching [...]
Danisco board backs higher DuPont offer May 2, 2011 DENMARK’S Danisco has urged shareholders to accept a higher takeover bid from US chemicals group DuPont yesterday as fund managers welcomed the “decent offer” and said it would likely succeed. DuPont, run by chief executive Ellen Kullman, raised its offer for the Danish food ingredients and enzymes producer by five per cent to 700 Danish [...]
Rolls-Royce can hire a foreign boss May 2, 2011 ROLLS-ROYCE shareholders will this week get to vote on whether to allow a foreign chairman or chief executive to run the firm for the first time, after the government agreed to give up some of its “golden share” powers. The department for business, innovation and skills (BIS) has agreed to let the firm change its [...]
Actelion shares plummet as jury favours Asahi in licensing dispute May 2, 2011 SHARES in Actelion tumbled yesterday after a jury decided Asahi Kasei Pharma should be awarded up to $547m in a licence dispute. The decision puts Actelion under even more pressure ahead of its annual general meeting this Thursday when it will square up to largest shareholder Elliott Advisors, which has accused the $7.7bn (£4.6bn) company [...]
Speculative builds tailing off May 2, 2011 Speculative real estate development has fallen by 50 per cent over the last two years, paving the way for a bigger-than-expected space squeeze in central London, new research by Jones Lang LaSalle shows. There is currently 3.9m square feet of space under construction without an agreed tenant, 27 per cent behind the 10-year average, the [...]
Qatar Airways buys into cargo May 2, 2011 Qatar Airways expects to sign a deal for a 33 per cent stake in European all-cargo airline Cargolux in a few weeks, its chief executive said yesterday. Cargolux has previously said it was in talks to sell a stake to a strategic investor. Akbar Al Baker said there would be synergies, but did not put [...]
PPR pounces on Volcom May 2, 2011 French retailer and luxury goods giant PPR is to buy surfing-inspired clothing firm Volcom for $607.5m (£364m), making good on its promise to refocus its operations on sports and lifestyle brands. PPR, which already controls the German sports brand Puma, luxury firm Gucci and designer Alexander McQueen, will make a tender offer to acquire all [...]
Eurozone sees factory boom despite woes May 2, 2011 FACTORIES in the Eurozone ramped up production and prices in April, as manufacturing growth accelerated even faster than originally estimated. Strong growth in the core powerhouse economies Germany and France continued to more than compensate for the sluggish factory sector in peripheral member states troubled by sovereign debt problems. “The data means that 2011 has [...]
Royal Wedding has built bridges for Britain May 2, 2011 I WAS lucky enough to attend the Royal Wedding last week and see first-hand how it brought together people in celebration across the UK, Commonwealth and the world. The international appeal of this event bears testament to the historical strength of the UK when it comes to building bridges all over the globe. As a [...]
UK’s million pound home sales surge May 2, 2011 SALES of properties worth over £1m have shot up at the fastest rate in four years, research by Lloyds TSB showed yesterday. Million pound house sales numbered 7,185 last year, up 54 per cent from 2009. “This is the largest annual increase since 2006 and suggests a real resurgence at the very top end of [...]
