WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING July 26, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES fears over china’s bad loans China’s banks are facing serious default risks on more than one-fifth of the Rmb7,700bn ($1,135bn) they have lent to local governments across the country, according to senior Chinese officials. In a preliminary self-assessment carried out at the request of the country’s regulator, China’s commercial banks have identified about [...]
HMV launches an iTunes rival July 26, 2010 RETAILER HMV is to taking on iTunes with the launch of a new music download service yesterday. The company will challenge its online rivals, including the American industry leader, Apple, with a launch promotion offering every single in the top 40 UK chart for 40p each. The new hmvdigital service has a catalogue of over [...]
Dreary place, bright food July 26, 2010 Brasserie Joel First Floor, Park Plaza Westminster Bridge, SE1 7UT. Tel: 020 7620 7272 FOOD SERVICE ATMOSPHERE Cost per person without wine: £45 MUCH has been made of the unfortunate location of Brasserie Joel – and rightly so. This new outpost of the talented Joel Antunes, fresh from exile in the States, sits in a [...]
FOOD & BOOZE NEWS July 26, 2010 KARAOKE IN KENSAL RISE Karaoke mania continues apace with the August opening of a private room at west London’s quirkiest gastropub, Paradise By Way of Kensal Green. Expect a library of 7,500 classic songs, with 50 of the latest chart hits added each month as well as themed playlists available alongside music-themed food and drink [...]
Wall St cheers bumper results July 22, 2010 WALL Street bellwethers cheered investors with a raft of good results last night, pushing up US indices and raising hopes of a sustained economic recovery. Corporate stalwarts UPS, Caterpillar and 3M all posted double-digit profit growth for the last quarter, while Microsoft surpassed Apple’s recent sales to report a record rise in revenue. The upbeat [...]
Nokia in crisis as profits fall sharply again July 22, 2010 Pressure on Nokia boss Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo reached fever pitch yesterday when the embattled phone maker announced a sharp drop in second-quarter profits. The firm, which makes every third mobile phone sold in the world, has been rocked by two profit warnings and a management shakeup in the second quarter alone as it struggles to keep [...]
AT&T enjoys halo-effect from iPhone as it posts better than expected profits July 22, 2010 AT&T yesterday posted better-than-expected profits and said it was more optimistic on growth prospects for the year. The exclusive US provider for Apple’s iPhone forecast strong earnings per share growth for the full year 2010 after previously promising “stable-to-improved” results. AT&T’s profit rose to $4bn (£2.6bn), from $3.2bn in the same quarter a year earlier. [...]
Amazon steps up ebook war July 22, 2010 Online retailer Amazon.com said yesterday it will exclusively publish digital editions of 20 classic books owned by the Wylie Agency, including authors such as Philip Roth, John Updike and Norman Mailer, for the first time on its Kindle electronic reader. Amazon’s move is a sign of intensifying competition in the crowded digital book format, including [...]
Wall St falls after dour Bernanke view July 21, 2010 FEDERAL Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s dour assessment of America’s recovery hit US stocks yesterday, as the Fed chief’s comment on “unusually uncertain” economic prospects discouraged investors. Stocks sank after Bernanke acknowledged the labour market’s continued weakness while offering few specific options to stimulate lending and investment. “The market sold off because unfortunately there is no [...]
Mac sales push Apple profits up July 20, 2010 APPLE stunned investors last night after posting better than expected third quarter results, bolstered by hearty Mac computer sales. For the period ended 26 June, revenue climbed by 61 per cent to $15.7bn (£10.2bn), while net quarterly profit almost doubled on the same period last year and came to $3.25bn. The California based group tied [...]