European Central Bank moves swiftly to sterilise government bond buying May 17, 2010 THE European Central Bank yesterday laid out plans to sterilise its controversial government bond purchases, in a rapidly orchestrated move designed to quash fears the buy-ups will lead to a surge in inflation. The ECB also revealed €16.5bn (£14.1bn) worth of bond purchases had been settled by last Friday, giving markets their first true glimpse [...]
Oil slips to a five-month low on demand concerns May 17, 2010 US oil prices fell to a five-month low below $70 a barrel yesterday on concerns about Europe’s economy, the weak euro, swollen US oil inventories and fears that China’s growth may have peaked. US oil futures hit a 19-month high at $87.15 on 3 May before mounting worries about Europe’s debt problems and high oil [...]
Germany prepares plan to stave off future debt crises May 17, 2010 GERMANY is drawing up plans to boost the euro and avert future debt crises, a finance ministry spokesman said yesterday, declining to confirm reports Berlin wants a German-style debt brake across the Eurozone. Berlin is said to be pushing the idea of tougher fiscal rules based on a German law to shield the Eurozone from [...]
Google slams Microsoft May 17, 2010 The battle between Microsoft and Google took another twist yesterday when the internet giant derided Bill Gates’ firm’s chances of succeeding in the cloud computing market. A new feature on Microsoft Office allows users to store their documents in an online “cloud”, in a direct attack on Google’s Docs software. But Dave Girouard, president of [...]
Samsung and Lovefilm tie up May 17, 2010 Samsung and Lovefilm yesterday announced they will tie up to stream movies direct to customers’ internet-ready TVs. Existing Lovefilm subscribers will be able to stream unlimited movies through their specially enabled Samsung TVs immediately. The firm says blu-ray players and home cinema systems will be incorporated into the scheme soon.
ANZ on hiring drive in Asia May 17, 2010 Australia and New Zealand Banking Group (ANZ) will boost its Singapore headcount by 25 per cent this year after completing the acquisition of the retail banking operations of Royal Bank of Scotland in the region yesterday. Bill Foo, chief executive of ANZ Singapore, said the bank will hire 500 or more new staffers. The move [...]
BP oil spill success sends shares up May 17, 2010 NEWS of BP’s success in containing some of the oil spilling into the Gulf of Mexico sent the company’s shares up yesterday as the market responded to the first encouraging signs that the leak could be contained. BP’s shares rose by 2.4 per cent, giving energy stocks a brief boost before closing at 529p, as [...]
Delays for iPad in UK after pre-orders outstrip demand… May 17, 2010 THE instant success of Apple’s iPad in its native US looks set to be repeated in the UK after record pre-orders have already outstripped demand. The tablet notebook – described by Apple as “revolutionary” – finally goes on sale in the UK on 28 May after a series of delays. But now Apple is warning [...]
Amex and Permira join forces to bid for RBS’ WorldPay payment division May 17, 2010 AMERICAN Express has teamed up with UK private equity firm Permira to bid for Royal Bank of Scotland’s (RBS) payment-processing arm. French software firm Atos Origin has also joined the private equity consortium of CVC Capital Partners and Welsh Carson Anderson & Stowe to bid for RBS’s Global Merchant Services (GMS) unit, which includes the [...]
… as the iPhone chips away at RIM dominance May 17, 2010 STANDARD Chartered is replacing the BlackBerry, currently its standard corporate communications device, with the iPhone, a move that could eventually result in thousands of bankers switching to the Apple device for business communication on the go. Standard Chartered bankers said the London-based lender was giving its corporate BlackBerry users the option of switching to the [...]
