Panasonic and Sony struck by Fitch downgrade to junk status November 22, 2012 RATINGS agency Fitch downgraded the debt ratings of technology giants Sony and Panasonic to “junk” status, yesterday, citing weakness in their consumer electronics and TV operations and further diminishing the lustre of the once-great Japanese brands. The cut to below investment grade, the first by a ratings firm, comes as the floundering companies face weak [...]
Judge orders details of Apple’s HTC agreement to be revealed November 22, 2012 APPLE will have to disclose details of a peace treaty with HTC to its arch-rival Samsung, a US judge has ruled. In the latest development in the ongoing patent wars between the world’s two most successful smartphone makers, the Korean company’s lawyers will have special access to an agreement between Apple and HTC signed earlier [...]
UK’s online retailers prepare for record breaking Cyber Monday November 21, 2012 CHRISTMAS is expected to result in the biggest day in online retailers’ history this year, with visits to shopping websites due to top 100m for the first time. Retailers have flagged Monday 3 December – dubbed “Cyber Monday” as the most intense day of Christmas shopping this year. This is down to a combination of [...]
Tablets that don’t cost the earth November 21, 2012 AMAZON KINDLE FIRE HD Amazon.co.uk, £129 (seven inch) The Kindle Fire was hailed as the first serious challenger to Apple’s domination of the tablet market – a colour e-reader with access to the web that seamlessly integrated with your Amazon account. In reality it was too heavy and too ugly to ever set the tablet [...]
ITC to review Samsung v Apple November 20, 2012 Samsung was handed a boost in its ongoing patent dispute with Apple yesterday when the US International Trade Commission (ITC) said it would review a judge’s decision earlier in the year that Apple did not copy Samsung technology in its products. The ITC has the power to ban sales of products if they are found [...]
Intel boss Otellini takes his leave after 40-year stretch November 19, 2012 INTEL said yesterday that chief executive Paul Otellini will retire in May after 40 years at the company, as the chipmaker copes with weak PC demand and an industry shift to mobile computing. Intel said it would consider both internal and external candidates for the position and that the “leadership transition” will last six months. [...]
So-called fiscal cliff could lead to opportunity November 18, 2012 THE 1987 crash. The Y2K bug. The debt ceiling debacle of 2011. All these events, in the end, turned out to be buying opportunities for stocks. So will the fiscal cliff, some investors say as they watch favourite stocks tumble during the political give-and-take happening in Washington. The first round of talks aimed at avoiding [...]
There is room for two on the US’s east coast November 18, 2012 Hopping over a grate steaming with hot air from the metro system below, I stroll past the gleaming plate glass wrapped around the ground floor of the towering skyscrapers of downtown. As I swing open the door of the city’s chicest fashion boutique, the rooftop bar next door breaks through the traffic noise with an [...]
Forex names foxy winner November 15, 2012 YET more awards on Wednesday night, this time dished out at the Grange hotel by St Paul’s as part of the Forex Summit. Jannick Malling, founder of online trading platform Tradable, brought home the bacon with the Most Innovative Financial Company. When asked about a comparison made between him and Steve Jobs, Malling bashfully replied: [...]
Weak Wal-Mart sales weigh on jittery Wall St November 15, 2012 US stocks were little changed yesterday as the prospect of a drawn-out battle over impending tax and spending changes made investors wary of getting into the water, while retailer Wal-Mart tumbled after disappointing sales. The S&P 500 is down nearly two per cent for the week, adding to last week’s selloff and eroding more of [...]