Inside Track: Tesco executives ponder a spin-off for Asian business September 11, 2013 IT’S hardly on the scale of Royal Bank of Scotland, but Tesco’s retrenchment from the empire-building of Sir Terry Leahy means it will soon struggle to describe itself using the adjective “global”. Fresh from its exit from Japan, a retreat into a joint venture in China and this week’s announcement of the part-sale, part-closure of [...]
Lockheed Martin expands in Britain September 11, 2013 DEFENCE and technology giant Lockheed Martin plans to create 200 new UK jobs after its British arm won a $100m (£63.2m) IT contract with the new Nato headquarters in Brussels. Lockheed, which runs some of the Pentagon’s computer networks, said the roles will be spread across London and the south west of England. The company [...]
Firms insist on reforms to UK’s deal with the EU September 11, 2013 BRITAIN’S businesses want David Cameron to demand a slashing of red tape from Brussels as part of the UK’s proposed renegotiation of terms with the EU, according to a survey published this morning. Over half – 52 per cent – of companies surveyed by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and YouGov believe that leaving [...]
Commission president Barroso lashes out at eurosceptic Tories September 11, 2013 EUROPEAN Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso launched a stinging attack on David Cameron’s Conservatives yesterday, provoking a defiant response from the Prime Minister’s party. Barroso, having made his annual State of the European Union speech, turned on Conservative MEP Martin Callanan. “I think your party, and your group, is increasingly looking like UKIP and the [...]
German cost of borrowing at a 23-month high September 11, 2013 THE GERMAN government’s cost of borrowing jumped to a near two-year high at a bond auction yesterday, reflecting appetite among investors for riskier assets. The sale of 10-year debt saw the average yield rise to 2.06 per cent, the highest level since October 2011. Germany sold €4.076bn (£3.4bn) of its new 10-years, attracting the same [...]
Italian worries spook market September 11, 2013 THE THREAT of a political crisis pushed Italy’s funding costs higher at an auction yesterday, as Prime Minister Enrico Letta warned that costs will spiral if instability is allowed to spook markets. Italy’s treasury paid 1.34 per cent to sell €8.5bn in one-year bills, up from 1.05 per cent at a similar sale a month [...]
French government says deficit will be hit by sluggish economy September 11, 2013 THE FRENCH government cut its forecast for growth next year to just 0.9 per cent yesterday and said its public deficit would fall more slowly than previously expected as a result. In April it had predicted growth of 1.2 per cent for next year. Presenting headline figures for the 2014 budget yesterday, finance minister Pierre [...]
Banks raise forecasts for China growth above official targets September 11, 2013 PROSPECTS for Chinese growth this year appear to be firming, as banks raise their growth forecasts and the government commits to reforms. In contrast to some other emerging markets, institutions are becoming more optimistic about China’s economic prospects for the rest of the year. Predictions of economic growth in 2013 have been hiked to 7.6 [...]
Deutsche Bank to keep joint leaders until 2017 September 11, 2013 DEUTSCHE Bank’s joint chief executive Juergen Fitschen’s contract is set to be extended by two years, keeping the leadership at Germany’s biggest lender in place until 2017. Deutsche Bank said in a statement yesterday its supervisory board would formalise the proposal from a board sub-committee at a meeting on 29 October. The move addresses concerns [...]
Swiss bank Rahn & Bodmer falls under US tax spotlight September 11, 2013 SWISS private bank Rahn & Bodmer is under investigation by US authorities, it said yesterday, the latest bank to be targeted in a lengthy dispute over tax evasion. The Zurich-based bank, set up as a silk trader in 1750, has come under investigation despite a recent Swiss-US deal to allow some Swiss banks to pay [...]
