Plastic fantastic: Apple hopes iPhone 5C will crack international markets September 11, 2013 APPLE CEO Tim Cook told the audience at Apple’s live-streamed launch that the company was thriving and looking forward to shipping their 700 millionth iOS device next month. But South Korea’s Samsung is leading the way with around 30 per cent of the market share worldwide. Apple is lagging behind in second with around 18 [...]
London investors feeling left out as Verizon’s sterling bond plans are scrapped September 11, 2013 Verizon's $49bn (£31bn) is already the largest investment grad corporate bond sale on record, dwarfing the former title spot (held by Apple's $17bn (£11bn) issuance). There's been such strong demand that Reuters reports that planned euro and sterling offerings have been scrapped. The final size was at the top end of the $45-$49 billion range [...]
Analysts think Apple has gone rotten: Three banks downgrade to neutral September 11, 2013 A disappointing reveal from tech giant Apple last night has seen analysts downgrade their buy recommendations in the company's stock to neutral. No surprises last night despite promises from chief executive officer Tim Cook in May last year that security was being ramped up. Crucially, Apple's budget iPhone 5C turned out to not be that [...]
Apple squares up with new phones September 10, 2013 APPLE last night unleashed its latest salvo in the smartphone war with the launch of the updated iPhone 5s and a lower-cost, brightly coloured iPhone 5c, making its first move into the competitive mid-range market. Despite Apple’s senior vice president Phil Schiller dubbing the iPhone 5s “the most forward-thinking phone perhaps anyone has ever made,” [...]
What the other papers say this morning – 11 September 2013 September 10, 2013 FINANCIAL TIMES Barclays face Saudi damages claim A prominent Saudi businessmen has taken legal action against a US law firm in a preliminary step toward suing Barclays for what he says are damages of potentially as much as $10bn. Mr Jaber and his company allege that Barclays conducted “corrupt activities” in Saudi Arabia that ultimately [...]
New York Report: Hopes for Syria extend S&P’s winning streak September 10, 2013 US STOCKS rose yesterday, with the S&P 500 index advancing for its longest stretch since early July, as an alternative proposal emerged that could avert a possible Western military strike on Syria. Encouraging economic data from China reinforced the view the world’s second-largest economy was stabilising and gave investors a further reason to buy. All [...]
Koch brothers move into electronics with $7.2bn Molex deal September 9, 2013 PRIVATELY owned Koch Industries said yesterday it will buy Molex, a maker of electronic connectors for companies including Apple, for about $7.2bn to give the billionaire Koch brothers a way to diversify from their traditional holdings in energy, chemicals and paper. Koch Industries, which owns brands such as Brawny paper towels, Dixie Cups and Lycra, [...]
Fairfax looks for Blackberry sale September 9, 2013 Blackberry’s biggest shareholder Fairfax has approached several Canadian investment funds about a deal to take the smartphone maker private, Reuters sources said last night. The early-stage talks with the 10 per cent shareholder come after the firm said it is considering all options for its future. The group was once dominant in business mobiles but [...]
Bank of the year September 9, 2013 2013 may be remembered as the year the banking sector shook off the shadow of the financial crisis and really came back into its own. Profitability is up, lenders are at last overcoming tough new regulatory hurdles and a stable future could be just around the corner. Here is our pick of the top five [...]
CNBC Comment: Banks face an IT Wonga challenge September 9, 2013 The market may not be factoring in the cost of new technologies THERE is a shadow looming over the world’s retail banks, which many believe the market is not factoring in. For much of the past few years, the focus has been on the fallout from the higher-stakes poker games played before the financial crisis. [...]