Obama woos JP Morgan exec January 4, 2011 US PRESIDENT Barack Obama is considering tapping JP Morgan Chase executive William Daley for a senior role in the White House, such as chief of staff. Daley, who is Midwest chairman of JP Morgan Chase and head of corporate social responsibility, was also a former commerce secretary. If he were chosen, the move would help [...]
Solicitors have to become businesslike January 4, 2011 CROWE CLARK WHITEHILL There is a sense of pessimism about the future of the legal profession. The downturn has hit the law hard, with many City firms making redundancies, and it has triggered much debate about the future of such fundamental things as the partnership model and the fees structure. Add the fact that the [...]
Mining resumes in flood-hit Australia January 4, 2011 FLOODWATERS have eased in Australia’s major coal mining region, allowing some mines to resume production, although most remain idle as floods force towns to be evacuated. Queensland is the world’s biggest exporter of coal used in steel making, but floodwaters have brought production and shipments overseas to a virtual standstill, pushing world coal prices higher. [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS January 4, 2011 PricewaterhouseCoopers PwC has appointed a new technology leader in the UK: Jass Sarai. He will be replacing Barry Murphy, who has been the company’s technology leader in Britain for the last two years. Sarai has worked on the technology sector for the last decade, having joined PwC straight from university, and will now be responsible [...]
Sanofi-Aventis unions call for strike action in France January 4, 2011 UNIONS at Sanofi-Aventis have called on staff in France to strike today to fight plans to cut jobs at the French drugmaker. A group of nine trade unions representing staff at Sanofi said the company was seeking to scrap 916 jobs, adding that 2,700 jobs had been cut at the company since the merger between [...]
BEST OF THE BROKERS January 4, 2011 BAE SYSTEMS Espirito Santo Investment Bank, which incorporates Execution Noble, recommends a “buy” on BAE?Systems, saying the stock “has sunk back towards the bottom end of its historic price-to-earnings ratio range”. The broker says that the risk-reward trade-off now “looks attractive heading into results”. DOMINO’S PIZZA Numis rated the stock a “buy” yesterday, ahead of [...]
Swedish, swift and very swish January 4, 2011 THIS is the first Saab to be launched since GM handed the brand over to Dutch supercar maker Spyker, and one that gives a flavour of what Saab might look like in the future. It’s been a long, long 13-year wait since the previous 9-5. Thankfully this one is a lot more attractive and slick [...]
CAR TALK January 4, 2011 HAPPY NEW KIA Kia is hoping to follow the success of its POP compact urban electric concept car – unveiled at September’s 2010 Paris Motor Show – with another successful introduction at next week’s 2011 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. Kia’s KV7 large crossover concept has a clever clamshell tailgate and unusual [...]
Simon set to sign £3bn loan to fund Capital Shopping Centres takeover January 4, 2011 ALL EYES will be on US real estate firm Simon Property this week as it signs loan agreements to fund a formal bid for UK mall owner Capital Shopping Centres worth around £3bn. Simon has until 12 January to formalise its 425p per share offer for the FTSE 100-listed firm after the City”s Takeover Panel [...]
Facebook value jumps to $50bn January 3, 2011 GOLDMAN Sachs has given social networking site Facebook an unprecedented vote of confidence by investing $450m (£291m) in the company at an astounding valuation of $50bn. The amount represents a fivefold increase from a valuation just two years ago of $10bn. In addition to Goldman’s investment, the Russian firm Digital Sky Technologies, which invested $200m for two [...]
