Strong US recovery helps Honda get back on track January 31, 2011 HONDA MOTORS is on track for its strongest earnings in three years after raising its outlook above market expectations thanks to a recovery in the US, where improving profitability is countering a strong yen and sliding Japanese sales. Robust sales growth in emerging markets has helped global automakers weather a fall in mature markets such [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 31, 2011 SMITHS GROUP RBS rates the technology group as a “buy”, and raises its target price from 1,300p to 1,600p. The broker says that if the Group was broken up and its businesses sold, it would estimate a value of 1,804p in the absence of any tax liabilities. It therefore says that a break-up valuation is [...]
CNOOC reaches $1.3bn shale deal January 31, 2011 CNOOC will pay $1.3bn (£817m) in its second shale deal with America’s Chesapeake Energy, the latest move by China’s top offshore oil producer in its aggressive drive for overseas acquisitions. In line with CNOOC’s strategy to expand into the oil-rich shale deposits in North America, the state-owned company will buy a 33.3 per cent stake [...]
India approves Posco mill January 31, 2011 India’s environment ministry yesterday approved plans by South Korea’s Posco to build a $12bn (£7.5bn) steel mill, a boost for the foreign investment climate in Asia’s third-largest economy after several setbacks for big-ticket industrial projects. The long-delayed clearance for India’s biggest foreign direct investment follows a year in which environment minister Jairam Ramesh has blocked [...]
Hearst bids for Lagardère January 31, 2011 French conglomerate Lagardère is to sell over 100 magazine titles to the publisher of Cosmopolitan for €651m (£560.6m), part of a turnaround strategy for the aerospace-to-media group. Yesterday’s deal with US-based Hearst came as Lagardère shares fell more than three per cent on news of a formal investigation into an insider trading scandal, and as [...]
Trichet’s hawkishness appears to be a bluff January 31, 2011 WAS Jean-Claude Trichet’s hawkishness on inflation earlier this month a bluff? He sounded tough until the market reacted, but then rolled back the strength of what he said, leaving us hanging in suspense. Now with European inflation rates hitting 2.4 per cent in January – the highest level for more than two years (see chart) [...]
Government savings boost outsourcers January 31, 2011 CONSTRUCTION and facilities management firm Mitie said it was well placed for profitable growth as the cash-strapped UK government looked to outsourcers to help it cut costs. Mitie, which provides cleaning, security and maintenance services for banks and law courts, said it expected earnings for the year ending 31 March to be in line with [...]
FED HAS DONE A GOOD JOB ON US EQUITIES January 31, 2011 THE Federal Reserve has so far done an excellent job of goosing US equities through its ongoing asset purchase programme. As Fed chairman Ben Bernanke has intimated, boosting stock prices is now one of the Reserve’s aims, on top of its officially mandated dual role of ensuring price stability and full employment. So investors were [...]
Fears over turmoil in Egypt weigh on FTSE as banks fall January 31, 2011 WORRIES over the impact of the political unrest in Egypt saw Britain’s top share index fall yesterday, but losses were limited by gains from heavyweight energy issues as the crude price firmed. At the close, the FTSE 100 index was 18.43 points, or 0.3 per cent lower, at 5,862.94, having shed 1.4 per cent on [...]
Markets lifted by bullish US economy January 31, 2011 US stocks rose yesterday on strong earnings and signs of a strengthening economy, even as a surge in the price of oil highlighted the potential for increased political risk in the Middle East to upset markets. Egyptian Vice President Omar Suleiman said on Monday that President Hosni Mubarak has asked him to start a dialogue [...]
