BHP sews up Petrohawk acquisition August 21, 2011 MINING giant BHP Billiton has sealed its $12.1bn (£7.35bn) of US shale gas specialist Petrohawk, just days before it is expected to report record-breaking profits. BHP said yesterday it has approval from 97.4 per cent of Petrohawk shareholders, a month after agreeing the deal with the firm’s board. The Anglo-Australian firm hopes to complete a [...]
Russia’s largest shipping company mulls City listing August 21, 2011 RUSSIA’s state-owned shipping company Sovcomflot could make an initial public offering on the London Stock exchange by the end of the year, as the Russian government looks to push ahead with its ambitious privatisation plans. Sovcomflot, which is sending test cargoes along a new Arctic route to service Russia’s offshore oil fields, is at the [...]
Markets in meltdown as global fears grow August 18, 2011 STOCKS nose-dived in the opening minutes of trading in Japan this morning, mirroring another disastrous day for markets in Europe and the US yesterday. The Nikkei lost over two per cent in initial trades, dropping to 8,756. Earlier in the month the index hit a low of 8,656. The FTSE suffered its biggest fall in [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING August 16, 2011 FINANCIAL TIMES CITIC ARM TO PRESS AHEAD WITH HK LISTING Citic Securities is to go ahead with a planned Hong Kong listing that could raise up to $2bn for the Beijing-based financial services group. Bankers say that the listing is likely to take place by the beginning of September. The decision comes as many other [...]
Google to buy Motorola Mobility for £7.6bn August 15, 2011 Google Inc said it will buy Motorola Mobility Holdings for about $12.5bn (£7.6bn) in cash. The Mobility business includes Motorola’s smartphones and analysts are seeing the move as part of Google’s plans to take on Apple in the lucrative market. The $40 a share offer is at a 63 per cent premium to Motorola Mobility’s [...]
Stocks dive again as worries return August 10, 2011 Fear returned to Wall Street yesterday, sending the S&P 500 to another four per cent decline, triggered by worries that Europe’s debt crisis could engulf French banks and spill onto the US financial sector. Trading was once again marked by sharp moves on heavy volume. For a fifth straight day, the Dow industrials fluctuated in [...]
NYSE invokes special rule to calm markets August 10, 2011 The New York Stock Exchange and NYSE Amex Cash Markets have invoked a rule to smooth trading at the market open, as futures pointed to a sharp drop in the major indexes. Rule 48 allows the exchange to suspend price indications that help determine the floor price at the open during regular sessions. Bypassing the [...]
Wall St rebounds after volatile day August 9, 2011 US stocks rallied yesterday in a volatile session as investors struggled to decipher the Fed’s signals on the economy after a dizzying two-week slide. Buying accelerated into the close and the S&P 500 posted its best day in more than two years, following a drop of nearly 17 per cent over the past weeks. The [...]
US stocks plunge after panic selling August 8, 2011 US stocks plunged on yesterday, taking the S&P 500 down more than six per cent on growing fears of a recession, exacerbated by the loss of the country’s pristine triple-A credit rating. Panicked selling on heavy volume resulted in the S&P 500’s worst day since December 2008, with every stock in the benchmark index ending [...]
Buffett unit bids £2bn for Transatlantic August 7, 2011 A UNIT of Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway jumped into the bidding war over Transatlantic Holdings, offering to buy the reinsurer for $3.24bn (£1.98bn). Transatlantic’s board said yesterday it would “carefully consider and evaluate” the $52-per-share offer by Berkshire unit National Indemnity. Buffett’s bid tops two rival offers put before Transatlantic. Transatlantic has an agreement to [...]