What the other papers say this morning January 10, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Herbalife hits back at ‘myths’ Herbalife, the nutritional supplement company accused of being a pyramid scheme by short seller Bill Ackman, yesterday lashed out at his Pershing Square hedge fund. Mr Ackman, whose hedge fund has sold short almost a fifth of Herbalife’s stock, in December claimed that the company was operating with [...]
Apple says no cheap iPhone January 10, 2013 A SENIOR Apple executive has shot down suggestions that the company is looking to build a cheaper version of the iPhone, saying Apple would be unwilling to sacrifice its high profit margins to gain greater market share. “Despite the popularity of cheap smartphones [in China], this will never be the future of Apple’s products,” marketing [...]
Luxury cars still selling fast in new markets January 10, 2013 BMW and Audi both posted record-breaking annual sales yesterday as demand for high-end marques in emerging markets continued to drive growth. Germany’s BMW reported sales of 1.845m vehicles in the year, a rise of 10.6 per cent. All three of its brands – BMW, Mini and Rolls-Royce – delivered increases during the year. Rolls-Royce enjoyed [...]
China trade boost adds to hope that the slowdown has ended January 10, 2013 CHINESE export growth rocketed to a seven-month high in December, adding to evidence the world’s second biggest economy had turned a corner. Exports were 14.1 per cent higher in December than the same month in 2011, easily surpassing analyst expectations that the measure would show four per cent growth. This growth drove the Asian giant’s [...]
Profit-taking cannot halt FTSE as it hits highest close since May 2008 January 10, 2013 BRITAIN’S top share index closed above the 6,100 resistance level for the first time since 22 May 2008, yesterday, recovering from a late wobble after a choppy trading session. The FTSE 100 index was up 2.86 points, or 0.1 per cent, at 6,101,51, having seen some late profit-taking erased in the closing auction, but the [...]
Chinese exports rebound in December January 10, 2013 Chinese export growth rebounded in December to a seven-month high, adding to optimism that the world’s second-largest economy is heading for a recovery. Data this morning showed that the value of China’s exports rose by 14.1 per cent last month compared with the previous month, which was way beyond analysts’ expectations. Imports grew by six [...]
Funding threat to $10bn HSBC insurance sale January 8, 2013 THE SALE of HSBC’s stake in a major Chinese insurer could be at risk of collapsing, it emerged yesterday, as the bank funding the purchaser could pull out of the deal. Thai conglomerate Charoen Pophand (CP) Group is part way through acquiring HSBC’s 15.6 per cent stake in Chinese insurer Ping An for $9.4bn (£5.96bn). [...]
African Barrick Gold plunges as talks finish January 8, 2013 SHARES in London-listed miner African Barrick Gold (ABG) plummeted more than 20 per cent yesterday, as its Canadian parent Barrick Gold said it was no longer in talks to sell the unit to a national Chinese gold company. The talks with China Gold regarding the London-listed gold producer, which is 74 per cent-owned by its [...]
It makes no sense for Voda to give up its US ambitions January 8, 2013 NO wonder investors cheered Verizon Communications’ boss Lowell McAdam’s claim yesterday that he’d be up for buying out Vodafone’s stake in America’s Verizon Wireless. Analysts are valuing the 45 per cent stake at around £50bn, and having waited years to take a dividend from the US tie-up shareholders will no doubt be hoping they can [...]
Chipmaker battles hot up at Vegas consumer show January 8, 2013 FASTER and more powerful mobile phone technology became the focus of Las Vegas’s Consumer Electronics Show (CES) yesterday, as microchip makers battled to show off the designs they hope will be used in the next generation of smartphones. Two US processor manufacturers – Qualcomm and Intel – have both unveiled their latest mobile microchips, in [...]