Bernanke: US economy is not out of the woods yet April 7, 2010 THE US economy still faces significant headwinds, including a housing sector that has yet to recover convincingly and an ailing employment market, Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said yesterday. In a speech that suggested the central bank chief was in no rush to begin raising interest rates, Bernanke outlined a number of challenges to the [...]
Heritage Oil shares slip on Iraqi fears April 7, 2010 HERITAGE OIL shares fell more than six per cent yesterday after it revealed that it needed to drill deeper in one of its wells in Iraq. The Miran West-2 appraisal well in Kurdistan will need to be deepened to 4,600 metres from its current 2,627 metres in order to explore its potential. Chief executive Tony [...]
Employment tribunal claims to jump after parliament passes Equality Bill April 7, 2010 EMPLOYERS in the UK are bracing themselves for a jump in employment tribunal claims after parliament yesterday passed the Equality Bill. The Bill is expected to be turned into law by October and brings together a number of equality laws to form a single Act. “The new law has been a long time coming and [...]
IPO market makes comeback as China readies huge listing April 7, 2010 THE global initial public offering (IPO) market made a remarkable recovery in the first quarter of this year, and the pace of listings shows no sign of tailing off. Last night, the Agricultural Bank of China was readying an IPO that could raise a staggering $25bn (£19bn) – making it the biggest share offering ever. So [...]
Vodafone to extend net access April 7, 2010 Vodafone said it will launch the Opera Mini browser on low-cost handsets so its millions of users in emerging markets can easily access the internet. The firm said it had worked with Opera to develop an enhanced version of Opera Mini 5, which gives internet access to lower and mid-tier handsets connected to the more [...]
Shed Media profits are up April 7, 2010 Shed Media posted a 24 per cent rise in full-year pre-tax profit, helped by lower finance costs, maintained its final dividend and said 2010 had begun well. Shed, which produced the Oscar-winning documentary “Man on Wire”, said it launched a new drama series “Garrow’s Law” in the UK, while it grew business in the United [...]
Chloride full-year sales strong April 7, 2010 Power protection firm Chloride Group said its full-year sales were higher than last year and that its order book for the current fiscal year was strong. The company, whose products protect against power shortages at venues like Heathrow’s Terminal 5 and the Emirates stadium, said performance for the year ended 31 March was in line [...]
GM hints at moving to profit in 2010 April 7, 2010 CARMAKER General Motors posted a net loss for 2009, but said it was possible to make a profit this year and that it was laying the foundation to return to public ownership. GM reported a $4.3bn (£2.82bn) 2009 net loss covering the period from its emergence from bankruptcy in July through to the end of [...]
Election hits property market April 7, 2010 INVESTMENT in central London commercial property has fallen by 50 per cent in the first quarter of this year, according to figures released by property adviser Cushman & Wakefield. Just £1.63bn was invested across the City of London, Docklands and West End, down significantly from the £3.096bn in the final quarter of 2009. It is [...]
AA workers back strike action over pensions cap April 7, 2010 Workers at the private equity-owned AA breakdown service have voted to hold the first strike in the company’s 105-year history in a row over pensions, their union said yesterday. The Independent Democratic Union (IDU) said 57 per cent of thoseballoted supported the strike to protest against plans to limit theirpensions. The turnout was 87 per [...]
