Leveson must not purge the press of its messy freedom November 28, 2012 LORD Justice Leveson’s report into media “culture and ethics” will not turn Britain into Zimbabwe-on-Sea. But it will risk leaving our press even less free and open than it is already. Today, Leveson is widely expected to propose a new press regulator backed by law. Statute-backed regulation is certainly what celebrities and anti-tabloid crusaders are [...]
Could President Hollande’s anti-business stance drive companies away from France? November 28, 2012 YES Bill Witherell The bitter dispute between the French government and the steel company Mittal reflects its contradictory attitude towards business. Francois Hollande’s post-election actions have had an anti-business flavour that appealed to his socialist support base. But in response to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warning France over its low competitiveness, Hollande introduced new measures [...]
Rapid responses November 28, 2012 Bank multi-tasking [Re: Mark Carney’s Canadian legacy has still not weathered the test of time, yesterday] Mark Carney’s appointment as the new governor of the Bank of England has been welcomed with open arms. Indeed, he appears to be the strongest candidate for the job. Needless to say, expectations are extremely high. The Bank requires [...]
E-currencies reach a major milestone November 28, 2012 FOR SOME, Bitcoin is an unregulated rogue currency for pornographers and drug dealers. For others, it is a victory for economic freedom, and a way of protecting business transactions from what they see as the inherent volatility of the banking system. But despite its contentiousness, the controversial e-currency is in rude health. Yesterday it reached [...]
Here are some other successful (and not so successful) internet currencies November 28, 2012 DigiCash started it off but went bust Founded in 1990 by David Chaum, DigiCash was one of the first electronic currencies but was went bust almost a decade later when Mark Twain bank – the only bank that supported the business – decided to withdraw its backing. Mint Chip focuses on small transactions MintChip is [...]
VALENTINO: The last emperor of couture November 28, 2012 For MANY, the closest you will ever get to a couture outfit are the images you see in magazines. That is, of course, if you’re not amongst the handful of women whose pockets are deep enough to meet the £50,000 starting price for a dress. But this year in particular, the upper echelon of fashion [...]
US budget talks hit standstill November 28, 2012 US politicians last night remained deadlocked over dramatic, year-end tax increases and spending cuts known as the “fiscal cliff.” At the White House, small business leaders emerged from a one-hour meeting with President Barack Obama to voice support for his goal of extending low tax rates for the middle class beyond the end of the [...]
Thomas Cook profits halve November 28, 2012 Thomas Cook this morning said operating profit for the year to 30 September fell by 49 per cent to £156m. The company largely blamed the slump on higher fuel costs. Despite this the venerable travel group said it was optimistic about its performance in recent months. “These results reflect the major issues that Thomas Cook [...]
MegaFon prices London IPO at bottom of range November 28, 2012 Russian telephone network MegaFon this morning priced its London flotation at the bottom of a $20-$25 range, valuing the firm at $11.1bn (£6.9bn). The business is controlled by Russia’s richest man Alisher Usmanov, the part-owner of Arsenal football club. The float will raise $1.7bn with an initial free float of 15.2 per cent of shares. [...]
Tech boss sparks new row with HP November 27, 2012 THE founder of the British technology firm at the centre of a multi-billion pound accounting scandal yesterday went on the offensive against computing giant Hewlett-Packard (HP), challenging the US company to answer questions over the allegations it made against his firm. Mike Lynch, the founder and former chief executive of Autonomy, said he found it [...]
