US vice president says reform of Wall St ends uncertainty July 18, 2010 THE passage of Wall Street reforms by Congress helps the US economic recovery now under way by easing uncertainty that had been holding back investment, Vice President Joe Biden said yesterday. Biden said financial regulation legislation passed on Thursday would encourage businesses that were hesitant about expanding to move ahead. “The very uncertainty they had [...]
Club Med could be taken private by Brunei-based wealth fund July 18, 2010 HOLIDAY company Club Med looks set to be taken private by Brunei private equity group BMB. BMB, which manages funds for the Brunei royal family, is believed to have approached investors in the Paris-listed company to offer a deal that would value the firm at €800m (£675m). The four main shareholders in the 60-year-old company [...]
Telefonica bid for Vivo joint venture fails July 18, 2010 SPAIN’S Telefonica has abandoned its €7.15bn (£6bn) bid to buy out Portugal Telecom from its Brazilian joint venture, after the deadline for the Portuguese firm to respond expired on Friday. Telefonica, owner of O2 network, said it wouldn’t wait until 28 July for a decision on the Vivo venture, as requested by Portugal Telecom (PT). [...]
Ocado is bruised after yet more bashing from analysts July 18, 2010 OCADO received yet another mauling at the hands of an analyst in the run-up to its proposed £1bn flotation. Evolution’s Dave McCarthy joined the growing list of analysts to bash the online grocer as it attempts to convince investors to part with £200m despite never having turned a profit. McCarthy raised concerns over whether the [...]
Telefonica July 18, 2010 WHAT a terrible mess. There is little worth rescuing from the ashes of Telefonica’s failed attempt to buy Portugal Telecom (PT) out of their Brazilian joint venture, after the Portuguese government exercised its “golden share” option to scupper the bid. For both sets of shareholders, the deal would have made perfect sense. Telefonica could have [...]
AIG settles in $725m Ohio fraud lawsuit July 18, 2010 INSURER American International Group (AIG) has been ordered to cough up $725m (£473.7m) in compensation to its Ohio pension fund shareholders, as part of a settlement of a long-running securities class action lawsuit against the firm. AIG was accused by the pension funds and the Ohio attorney general’s office of anti-competitive market practices, including a [...]
Irish minister to stay in his post July 18, 2010 IRISH finance minister Brian Lenihan, who devised of some of Europe’s toughest fiscal reforms, is in robust health and can keep his job despite an earlier cancer diagnosis, he said in remarks aired yesterday. Lenihan, praised by investors for efforts to stem Ireland’s steep budget deficit rise, said in January he would only fulfil essential [...]
Skills still vital to businesses July 18, 2010 IN TODAY’S changing economy vocational skills are vital to business success, according to the latest findings from vocational education group City & Guilds. A survey of 1,200 London employers showed nine out of 10 view their vocationally trained staff as vital to the success of their business, while two thirds think vocationally trained employees make [...]
London shops boom but UK sales stutter July 18, 2010 LONDON shops enjoyed June sales 14.4 per cent higher than a year ago, according to research out today. The shopping boom far outstrips the rest of the UK, where like-for-like growth was just 1.2 per cent, and represents the strongest sales growth in the capital since October 2006. Research by KPMG and the British Retail [...]
West End falls behind rest of capital July 18, 2010 LONDON’S West End has seen an upsurge in high-end purchases, though shops in the area have bounced back at a slower rate than the rest of the capital. June sales in the West End shops rose 10 per cent on last year, compared to a 14.4 per cent rise in London and a 1.2 per [...]
