Dell to launch a tablet in China in deal with Baidu September 6, 2011 DELL and China’s top search engine Baidu plan to jointly develop tablet computers and mobile phones, targeting the Chinese market dominated by Apple and Lenovo. China is one of the fastest growing markets for tablets and is home to more than 900m mobile phone subscribers, but analysts were sceptical that the partnership would unseat Apple [...]
Shaw sells nuclear stake to Toshiba September 6, 2011 TOSHIBA will buy out Shaw’s stake in nuclear power plant company Westinghouse Electric, clearing nearly $1.7bn of the US firm’s debt. Shaw says the sale of its 20 percent stake in the venture will be used to strengthen its balance sheet. Shares in Toshiba fell more than seven per cent to two and a half [...]
SPRINT PILES INTO AT&T LEGAL FIGHT September 6, 2011 US mobile phone group Sprint Nextel yesterday sued to block rival AT&T’s $39bn (£24.4bn) purchase of T-Mobile USA, saying the deal would lead to higher prices for consumers and create a duopoly between AT&T and Verizon Communications. Last week, a similar lawsuit was brought on by the US Justice Department, putting the takeover in jeopardy.
Shares in Blyth soar despite bigger losses September 6, 2011 SHARES in home decorative items maker Blyth soared by more than a quarter yesterday despite the company reporting a net loss for the second quarter as discontinued operations and charges related to its ViSalus equity incentive plan took their toll. The company also raised its earnings guidance for the full-year 2012, citing strong sales and [...]
Apple is still shining despite the loss of Jobs September 6, 2011 A fortnight ago Steve Jobs announced that he was resigning as chief executive of Apple with Tim Cook, the former chief operating officer, taking over. Jobs guided the company he had founded in 1976 from the difficult days of the late 1990s to become one of the most successful and biggest companies in the world. [...]
PIRC questions DTZ boss September 6, 2011 Investor body PIRC has advised DTZ shareholders to oust chairman Tim Melville-Ross, following last month’s board shake-up at the property consultancy. PIRC said yesterday that Melville-Ross is not independent because he was nominated by takeover suitor and biggest shareholder SGP. The firm’s chief exec and finance director left in August.
Ashtead more than doubles profit September 6, 2011 Industrial equipment hire firm Ashtead forecast “substantially” better full-year results after booming business in its core US market. The FTSE 250 company posted a 211 per cent rise in first-quarter pretax profit for the three months to 31 July of £33.8m, easily beating market expectations. The firm’s shares soared almost 19 per cent on the [...]
NO PLAN B GEORGE IS GQ MAN OF THE YEAR September 6, 2011 BETTER LATE than never for George Osborne’s belated fortieth birthday present from Condé Nast’s UK head Nicholas Coleridge, whose glossy magazine empire last night rewarded the chancellor for his “sheer bloody mindedness”. BBC political editor Nick Robinson presented Osborne with his Politician of the Year trophy at the GQ Men of the Year Awards at [...]
Gazprom fills Nord Stream gas pipeline September 6, 2011 GAZPROM yesterday started pumping the first gas through its controversial subsea pipeline from Russia to Germany, bypassing Ukraine, where disputes have halted energy supplies to European countries twice since 2006. The 1,220-kilometre Nord Stream pipeline is the first direct link between western Europe and Russia, which provides for around quarter of the EU’s gas supplies. [...]
Fenner predicts a year of big growth September 6, 2011 INDUSTRIAL conveyor belt maker Fenner forecast full-year results ahead of market expectations after strong trading in its fourth quarter. The firm said yesterday trading in the final quarter to 31 August had been particularly robust in both the conveyor belting and advanced engineering products divisions. Fenner said it would end the year with net debt [...]
