Fifa widens World Cup bribery probe October 18, 2010 THE CRISIS enveloping the bidding process for the 2018 World Cup deepened last night when governing body Fifa revealed it had widened its investigation into claims of corruption. Two members of Fifa’s executive committee, which will in December decide who hosts that 2018 and 2022 tournaments, are being probed over claims they offered to sell [...]
BP links bonus pay to safety October 18, 2010 FOURTH?quarter bonuses for staff at embattled oil major BP will be based entirely on safety, chief executive Bob Dudley has said. Dudley has sent an email to all staff members saying their performance in terms of safety and risk management would be the only factor used to work out bonuses. “We are taking this step [...]
The accountant who sees EU rules as a chance to transform his firm October 18, 2010 For a man less than three months away from retirement, BDO’s policy board chairman – in effect, the firm’s international chairman – can’t wait to get into the issues. And to be fair, there is much for Dermot Mathias, who joined the accountancy giant 37 years ago, to discuss. What excites him most is the [...]
BP in $1.8bn asset sale October 18, 2010 Russia’s TNK-BP, half-Owned by BP, said it would acquire BP’s production and pipeline assets in Vietnam and Venezuela for $1.8bn (£1bn). The company will use its own funds to finance the new acquisitions, TNK-BP said in a statement. “The acquisitions in Venezuela and Vietnam mark a milestone in TNK-BP’s strategic expansion in the global energy [...]
Fears of World Cup vote delay amid bribery claims October 17, 2010 GLOBAL governing body Fifa has launched an investigation into claims of a cash-for-votes scandal surrounding England’s fight to host the 2018 World Cup. A Sunday newspaper alleged that two of the 24 members of Fifa’s executive committee, who will decide in December who is to stage the tournament, offered to sell votes. Nigerian Amos Adamu, [...]
Diageo says Europe is weak October 14, 2010 DIAGEO, the world’s biggest spirits group, said trading in Europe was weaker as it met forecasts with a five per cent rise in first-quarter underlying sales driven by growth in emerging markets. The maker of Smirnoff vodka, Captain Morgan rum and Guinness also stuck to its forecast to see higher profit growth this year than [...]
The grisly taste of her screams October 13, 2010 SCREAM BY NIGEL MCCRERY Quercus, £20 A more gruesome beginning to a book you couldn’t ask for. A woman is bound, with her kneecaps exposed, as a ruthless killer tells her how he’s going to carve through her knee bones, one after the other, before moving onto other parts. Her screams are immense but pointless. [...]
From Japan to Oman: the life of Mark Mobius October 12, 2010 EMERGING markets may be the most popular investment flavour of the past decade but Franklin Templeton’s charismatic and distinctive guru Mark Mobius can safely lay claim to having been one of the first to spot the opportunities these countries offered. Countries like Hong Kong and Japan were deemed emerging markets when Mobius started looking at [...]
Russian rail group plans London IPO October 12, 2010 RUSSIAN transport group TransContainer is poised to launch an initial public offering (IPO) in Moscow and London, in a bid to raise as much as $500m (£317m). TransContainer, a subsidiary of the state-owned Russian Railways group, will float 35 per cent of its equity, or 4,863,170 shares. Last week, Russian Prime Minister Vladmir Putin signed [...]
BP venture to pay highest ever dividend October 12, 2010 TNK-BP HOLDING, the publicly traded part of BP’s joint venture in Russia, said yesterday it has recommended a record-high interim dividend of 124bn roubles (£2.6bn). Russia’s third-biggest oil company, which elected former BP chief executive Tony Hayward to its board last month, has recommended the payout in what several analysts said is a move to [...]