BAE deal with SFO on hold March 2, 2010 BAE Systems may yet face trial over alledged allegations of bribery and corruption following yeterday’s decision by the High Court to grant an injunction against the Serious Fraud Office (SFO). The injunction prevents the SFO from concluding its investigation into BAE Systems, Europe’s largest defence company. Last month, the firm agreed to pay fines of [...]
HK cracks down on short sellers March 2, 2010 Hong Kong’s securities watchdog said yesterday it plans to require some short-sellers in the equities market to disclose their positions as part of an attempt by regulators around the world to boost transparency in short selling to better protect investors. The regulator plans to require short-sellers, who make money when a stock’s price falls, to [...]
Fresnillo results beat forecasts March 2, 2010 Mexican miner Fresnillo , the world’s largest primary silver producer, posted a 141 per cent rise in full-year earnings per share yesterday, better than expected, on higher prices and stronger output.
Barclays sells Deb Group March 2, 2010 Barclays Private Equity will sell Deb Group, to Charterhouse. The deal worth £325m is a boost for the buy-out arm of the UK bank as it gears up for its next round of fundraising and plans to spin out as an independent house.
Greece prepares for cuts as euro dives March 2, 2010 GREECE plans to unveil new austerity measures today in order to cut its budget deficit and secure support from fellow EU members. The austerity package is worth up to €4.8bn (£4.36bn) of cuts, ranging from new taxes, a VAT hike and the proposed slashing of public sector pay. Prime Minister George Papandreou told Parliament yesterday [...]
VT shareholders hold out hope for an improved offer from Babcock March 2, 2010 SHAREHOLDERS in defence services company VT Group yesterday speculated over a raised offer from shipbuilder Babcock, which has been ordered to “put up or shut up” by April. VT has already knocked back two approaches from Babcock, the most recent of which valued VT at between 885p and 715p per share depending on synergies. The [...]
Revised US banking bill set to shake up consumer protection March 2, 2010 A REVISED bill on financial regulatory reform is expected to be unveiled this week in the US Senate by Democratic Banking Committee chairman Christopher Dodd. The bill will be the next step in a long drive by the Obama administration and congressional Democrats to tighten bank and capital market oversight. Dodd is expected to call [...]
LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK March 2, 2010 GMAC chief executive Michael A. Carpenter received a pay packet comparable to Goldman Sachs’ Lloyd Blankfein. Carpenter, head of the bailed-out US auto and real estate lender, received nearly $1.2m (£1m) for a month-and-a-half’s leadership. That amounts to $9.5m annually – just under Blankfein’s $9.6m.
WestLB receives 10 bids March 2, 2010 WestLB has received 10 non-binding bids for its real estate finance unit Westdeutsche Immobilienbank but the offers are below book value, sources said yesterday, stoking fears that a fire sale could spoil real estate asset valuations. There is no current book value for the unit but at the end of 2008, WestLB valued it at [...]
CF relaunches Terra bid March 2, 2010 Fertiliser maker CF Industries Holdings has relaunched its hostile bid for Terra Industries, betting that a higher price of $4.75bn (£3.49bn) would help it break up Terra’s planned takeover by Norway’s Yara International.
