Rio Tinto clinches West African mining deal March 19, 2010 MINING heavyweight Rio Tinto has signed up for a joint iron ore venture in West Africa with state owned metals group Chinalco. The Anglo-Australian miner is putting its 95 per cent stake in the Simandou project in Guinea into the mix with Chinalco then paying $1.35bn (£891m) for a 47 per cent interest in the [...]
A big success in any language March 18, 2010 OF all the things you might expect to see in a language-teaching classroom, a piano is perhaps not high on the list. But that’s one of the most noticeable objects in Yalan Chuang’s office in King’s Cross, where she teaches businesspeople Chinese. “It is a very musical language, some words are spoken like a soprano [...]
Placing of shares makes G4S look less secure as markets enjoy a strong day March 17, 2010 SHARES in security services group G4S were the biggest fallers in the leading index for the second day running, even as the market closed near a 21 month high on renewed economic optimism and a spate of takeover news. Hot on the heels of a disappointing 2010 forecast, G4S was hit by news of the [...]
Nomura elects first foreigner to board March 17, 2010 Nomura has appointed its first foreigner to the board, as part of a change in management structure aimed at supporting its global expansion. Former Lehman Brothers executive Jasjit “Jesse” Bhattal will be the first foreigner to take up a place on the bank’s 10-strong executive management board. As of 1 April, Bhattal, who was born [...]
CITY VIEWS: DO YOU EXPECT THE CHINESE BOOM TO CONTINUE? March 17, 2010 MIKE MOLONEY | TRADING CENTRAL “China is going to be the next superpower. In the 1900s, it was England and then it was followed by New York. Now, it’s China’s turn. They have the market and a huge population for the boom to continue.” CHARLES HOBB | ROYAL BANK OF CANADA “The Chinese economy is [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 16, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES EX-EMPLOYEE SUES SOCGEN FOR џ12M Societe Genrale, France’s second-largest bank, is being sued for more than џ12.5m (£11.3m) by its former head of European fixed income after his contract was terminated at the start of the credit crunch. The High Court heard yesterday that Raphael Geys, its London-based former managing director of European [...]
YUAN CHANGE DEPENDS ON US RECOVERY March 16, 2010 LAST weekend Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao dismissed any possibility of an immediate yuan revaluation, noting: “I understand that some countries want to increase their exports, but I don’t understand the practice of depreciating their currency and forcing others to appreciate theirs in order to accomplish this. I think this is a type of trade protectionism.” [...]
FOREX FLASH March 16, 2010 ROUBLE COULD STRENGTHEN 20 PER CENT The Russian rouble could strengthen by as much as 18 to 20 per cent over the next three years, the Russian deputy economy minister Andrei Klepach said yesterday. Klepach warned that this appreciation would hurt manufacturers and limit economic growth. He added: “We are not ready to move to [...]
Why the City’s shipping supremo is battling an old rival for members March 16, 2010 THE CHIEF executive of the Baltic Exchange Jeremy Penn looks remarkably unruffled for a man who has just seen a rival come back for a second time in a concerted attempt to muscle in on his business. The head of the exchange that sets the prices for the majority of the world’s $200bn (£182bn) shipping [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING March 15, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES RBS eyes £10bn debt buy-back as it plans balance sheet shake-up Royal Bank of Scotland is planning a vast balance sheet restructuring in an attempt to boost its capital strength and its standing with bond investors. The move could involve at least £10bn (€11bn) of the bank’s £28bn of debt being bought back [...]