New stock value for Facebook July 13, 2009 Digital Sky Technologies (DST), the Russian investment firm that invested $200m in Facebook this spring, is offering $14.77 (£9.09) a share for stock in the social network, in a deal that values it at around $6.5bn. The new valuation is lower than the $10bn valuation at which DST originally invested, as well as the $15bn [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 12, 2009 THE SUNDAYSThe Sunday TelegraphFOCUS DIY CHAIN FACES TOUGH CREDIT REVIEWA review of Focus DIY’s financial position will be delivered by Ernst & Young (E&Y) to the group’s lenders this Friday to help them to decide whether to continue backing the DIY retailer. Although the lenders, GMAC and HBOS, have agreed in principle to renew a [...]
Government helps drive up Chinese vehicle sales July 9, 2009 CAR sales in China jumped emphatically by 48.5 per cent for the month of June, bucking the worldwide trend, the Chinese Association of Automobile Manufacturers announced yesterday. China recently overtook the US to become the world’s largest car market, and the nation’s thriving industry stands in stark contrast to car markets in the West which [...]
Arsenal keep Usmanov at arm’s length by rejecting proposal for rights issue July 8, 2009 ARSENAL’S second largest shareholder Alisher Usmanov last night responded frostily after the Premier League club rejected his proposal of a rights issue. Gunners chief executive Ivan Gazidis said yesterday that the board had discussed the fund-raising exercise but concluded it would not greatly improve their financial position. Usmanov, who owns a 25 per cent stake [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 8, 2009 FINANCIAL TIMES ARCELORMITTAL ATTEMPTS TO EASE DEBT BURDENArcelorMittal has started talks with its banks about making conditions for re-paying its $26bn (£16.2bn) of debt less onerous, in a bid to reduce financial pressure on the company as the global downturn continues. The world’s biggest steelmaker has taken this step as an insurance policy against its [...]
Europan Union fines E.on and GDF Suez 1bn for collusion July 8, 2009 UTILITY giants E.On and Gaz De France (GDF) Suez were fined a total of almost £1bn by the European Commission’s competition regulators yesterday, who said the pair had divided up gas markets and deprived customers of price competition. Germany’s E.On and France’s GDF Suez were fined €553m (£477m) each, after it emerged that they had [...]
Zhirkov seals 18m switch to Chelsea July 7, 2009 CHELSEA’S newest recruit Yuri Zhirkov has admitted that accepting a switch to Stamford Bridge was an easy decision. The versatile Russia international, 25, who can play anywhere down the left flank, signed a three-year contract yesterday after sealing his £18m move from CSKA Moscow. Zhirkov said he could not have rejected the dream transfer, having [...]
Chinese BAIC joins bid for GM Europe July 7, 2009 CHINA’S Beijing Automotive Industry Corporation (BAIC) yesterday offered to invest €660m (£570m) in GM Europe in return for a 51 per cent stake. The state-owned Chinese group’s offer is likely to involve plans to expand operations inside China, the world’s largest car market. The deal would need €2.64bn of state-guaranteed loans. BAIC would also look [...]
PEPSICO LOOKS FOR RUSSIAN FIZZ July 6, 2009 PepsiCo pledged yesterday to invest $1bn (£616m) in Russia over three years. It said it was confident in the Russian market, which is still growing despite the financial crisis. Russia is critical for PepsiCo, which is looking to boost profits as recession and changing consumer habits limit sales growth in the US.
Goldman man in theft case July 6, 2009 A FORMER Goldman Sachs computer programmer is facing trial over claims that he stole secret trading codes from the firm and published them on a German website. Sergey Aleynikov, 39, was arrested last week and yesterday saw his bail set at $750,000 (£461,000) over charges of “theft of trade secrets”. Authorities have not yet confirmed [...]