WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING May 16, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES HEDGE FUNDS HIT BY MAY VOLATILITY Some of the world’s biggest hedge funds have suffered significant losses this month after high levels of volatility across markets and the shortlived stock market plunge in New York combined to wipe billions from portfolios. Losses in the first week of May alone erased all gains made [...]
SOC GEN’S ROGUE TELLS HIS SIDE OF THE STORY May 4, 2010 MILLION-dollar profits and banking “orgies” sound nice and juicy at the best of times, but especially so when they involve a tell-all book penned by a man at the centre of some of the most high-profile rogue trading allegations ever to rock the financial world. Jerome Kerviel has made a household name of himself after [...]
Ford reports a $2.1bn profit April 27, 2010 FORD posted a stronger-than-expected $2.1bn (£1.38bn) quarterly profit and said it would be “solidly profitable” in 2010, a year ahead of schedule, driven by strong US sales and market share gains. Ford raised its North American production plan for the current quarter as well as the 2010 outlook for its Ford Motor Credit financing arm. [...]
WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING April 19, 2010 FINANCIAL TIMES HCL FUELS DEBATE The head of one of India’s biggest IT outsourcing companies has waded into the debate on UK public sector efficiency savings, complaining of an “old boys’ network” in government procurement. Vineet Nayar, chief executive of HCL Technologies, hit out at the “stranglehold of a few companies” in Britain’s £17bn market [...]
GM SEES LIGHT AT END OF TUNNEL April 12, 2010 General Motors expects to report “solid” operating results for the first quarter, which will show progress towards its goal of returning to profitability in 2010, chief executive Ed Whitacre (left) said yesterday. A profit in 2010 would end a five-year streak of losses and mark a turnaround for the US carmaker, which emerged from a [...]
Ford agrees sale of Volvo March 28, 2010 THE Chinese carmaker Geely has agreed to buy Volvo from US giant Ford for $1.8bn (£1.2bn) in the country’s biggest overseas car purchase to date. The takeover highlights China’s arrival as a major force in the global automobile industry and ends nearly two years of talks over Volvo. Geely said it had secured all the [...]
Government backs electric car revolution March 18, 2010 The government yesterday announced it will back Ford and Nissan in the development of electric cars and environmentally friendly engines, allotting nearly £2bn to the cause in an effort to further green motoring development in the UK. Ford is preparing to invest £1.5bn into its four UK sites over the course of five years after [...]
GM bullish but no plans to IPO March 17, 2010 GENERAL Motors has a “reasonable chance” to make a profit in 2010. It could sell shares by late this year though it insists it has no timetable for an initial public offering (IPO) that would reduce the American government’s majority stake in the carmaker, chief financial officer Chris Liddell said yesterday. Liddell, speaking to reporters [...]
Close profits rocket 50pc March 16, 2010 British merchant bank Close Brothers saw first-half profits rocket 50 per cent, smashing analyst expectations. However, it sounded a note of caution saying the buoyant conditions had sagged recently. Chief executive Preben Prebensen said uncertainty surrounding the upcoming election has spooked markets and hit its profits. Its operating profit before tax reached £62.3m for the [...]
Petrol prices are rising to record levels, warns AA March 16, 2010 UK petrol prices could hit a record average high of £1.20 a litre in the next few weeks, the AA has warned. The motoring organisation has said the wholesale price of petrol has sent the cost up. Some petrol stations in central London, which the AA says typically have the highest petrol prices in the [...]