Evergreen hero says good-bye in comic style July 1, 2010 Film SHREK FOREVER AFTER Cert: U The fourth and final instalment of the popular Shrek franchise sees everyone’s favourite Scottish cartoon ogre return for what’s supposedly the final chapter (predictably upgraded to 3D). Like many who saw the third installment, Shrek (voiced as ever by Mike Myers) has grown pretty bored. Bogged down by both [...]
Funds to be hit by bonus rules June 30, 2010 Cash bonuses to be capped at 30 per cent Hedgies and investment firms fall into EU’s net Politicians say clamp down will end risk-taking HEDGE funds and asset managers will be caught in the tough crackdown on bankers’ bonuses put forward by European Union politicians and member states last night. In the harshest measures yet [...]
Barclays warns on deals June 30, 2010 BRITISH titan Barclays yesterday warned of a slowdown in investment banking activity in the past two months, suggesting wilting confidence in corporate boardrooms is impacting on dealmaking revenues. Barclays finance director Chris Lucas told an analyst conference investment banking market conditions in May and June were “softer” than those seen in the first quarter, when [...]
US reform bill gets key vote June 30, 2010 THE US House of Representatives yesterday approved a landmark overhaul of financial regulations but the Senate put off action until mid-July, delaying a final victory for President Barack Obama. Still, the 237 to 192 vote in the House marked a win for Obama and his fellow Democrats, who have made the most sweeping rewrite of [...]
Reforms needed to boost private jobs June 30, 2010 A MAJOR question dominated the debate in Westminster yesterday: will the private sector create enough jobs to compensate for the looming bloodbath in the public sector? The Office for Budget Responsibility, the new independent official forecasting outfit, believes it will, as does the government; the opposition, the unions and the left-wing media, unsurprisingly, disagree. The [...]
Relief at low ECB take-up June 30, 2010 FEARS over the health of the Eurozone financial system were eased yesterday after the European Central Bank (ECB) reported much lower demand than expected for its three-month liquidity to replace €442bn (£361bn) in 12-month loans that expire today. The auction, seen as a test of the sector’s health, temporarily eased concerns about bank finances which [...]
Moody’s mulls cutting Spanish triple-A rating June 30, 2010 MOODY’S Investors Service said yesterday it was reviewing Spain’s ratings and may lower them by as much as two levels due to sliding growth expectations and mounting fiscal challenges. The ratings agency, the only major agency that still maintains a top rating for Spain, said it was conducting a three-month review of the country’s triple-A [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING June 30, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES ARCELORMITTAL FINED €276M FOR PRICE-FIXING ArcelorMittal, the world’s biggest steel producer, has been fined €267.5m ($339m) for the part that its companies played in one of the most wide-ranging and long-running cartels to come to light in Europe. In all, 17 steel manufacturers were involved, and were given fines totalling €518.5m yesterday, with [...]
Tate & Lyle is poised for sale to a US firm June 30, 2010 BRITISH company Tate & Lyle is expected to sell its historic sugars business to US rival American Sugar Refining for around £200m. The deal, which is due to be announced officially today, is likely to cause anger over the loss of yet another UK business – coming, as it does, after the sale of Cadbury [...]
Cameron defends Budget as 610,000 public jobs to go June 30, 2010 DAVID Cameron was forced to defend his government‘s public spending cuts yesterday when it emerged an estimated 610,000 public sector jobs will be lost. The report by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecasts one in eight public sector jobs will be shed by the end of this parliament. However, the report also estimates the [...]
