Basel rules will hit world growth May 3, 2010 TOUGH new rules forcing banks to set aside funds to combat future financial crises could slash world economic growth by as much as one per cent a year. Chairman of the Basel Committee on Banking Regulation Nout Wellink told the Financial Times that regulators are determined to push through the legislation despite repeated warnings from [...]
Obama puts boot into BP May 3, 2010 A WHITE House spokesman yesterday promised to keep a “boot on the throat” of oil giant BP as chief executive Tony Hayward met with Washington officials to discuss ways to stop a worsening oil leak from spreading further. The British energy giant said it will foot the bill for the clean up of the oil [...]
Cost of spill could be huge May 3, 2010 IT IS virtually impossible to say how much the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico will cost BP in hard cash, but the damage to its reputation could be far greater. Analysts put the final clean-up cost somewhere between $2bn and $8bn, meaning it could dwarf the $3.8bn that Exxon eventually paid to clear up [...]
TIME LINE | WORLD’S MAJOR OIL SPILLS May 3, 2010 ● Argo Merchant, December 1976 The vessel carrying 7.7m gallons of Number 6 oil ran aground off the coast of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts and dumped its entire cargo into the sea when it broke apart. ● Ixtoc I, June 1979 The exploratory oil rig off the Bay of Campech in Mexico suffered from a blowout [...]
Markets still doubt Greece May 3, 2010 A RECORD €110bn (£95.2bn) bailout deal for debt-stricken Greece met with widespread wariness on European markets yesterday. European investors yesterday vocied concerns that Greece’s resolve to implement austerity measures would crumble under political pressure and an inability to match fiscal tightening with complementary monetary policy alterations. “Germany is pulling away from the peripheral [eurozone countries] [...]
ECB gets behind rescue plan by suspending credit rules May 3, 2010 EUROPE’S central bank yesterday threw its support behind debt-stricken Greece, bolstering the record €110bn (£95.1bn) bailout deal offered to the country by moving to underpin liquidity in the government’s bonds. The ECB said it would suspend the minimum credit rating required for Greek assets to be used as collateral for loans until further notice, giving [...]
Greek unions prepare for two-day walkout over austerity package May 3, 2010 GREECE’S notoriously militant unions will today take up arms again in the fight against EU-agreed austerity measures to shore up its battered finances, doubling the length of a nationwide protest strike to two days. The main public sector union, ADEDY, yesterday added to fears over the success of the €110bn (£95.2bn) bailout, as it said [...]
Cam’s Tories in the driving seat, says poll May 3, 2010 Brown made the speech of his life, writes Steve Dinneen. But is it enough? GORDON Brown tried to banish the memories of “Bigotgate” yesterday as he delivered an impassioned speech at Westminster. He was emotional and decisive as he related a story about a family barely surviving on low wages. He told the CitizensUK action [...]
Continental and United sign merger May 3, 2010 CONTINENTAL Airlines and United Airlines have signed a $3.15bn (£2bn) merger agreement that is expected to create the world’s largest airline. The two US carriers signed the all-stock merger agreement yesterday, with expectations that they will officially consolidate both companies by the end of the fourth quarter this year. Under the agreement, United shareholders will [...]
IATA: airlines see shares surge 15pc May 3, 2010 AIRLINE shares surged by 15 per cent this year, despite the six-day disruption caused by the volcanic ash cloud, according to the International Air Transport Association (IATA). IATA said in its latest financial health monitor that the increase for airline shares was a result of improved financial results for US airlines during the first quarter [...]
