What the other papers say this morning – 23 August 2013
FINANCIAL TIMES
Kia Motors braces for work stoppages
Kia Motors is facing production losses of hundreds of millions of dollars from a suspension of Saturday shifts at its South Korean car plants, as it fights to avoid a wider strike following failed pay negotiations with its union.
Saturday production was halted in March at two of Kia’s three domestic assembly plants, and at all plants of its larger affiliate Hyundai Motor, amid union protests over a new shift structure. Weekend shifts began again in May at Hyundai and in June at Kia, after management concessions. The confirmation of the long-running industrial action comes as the carmaker prepares to enter last-ditch talks with its union.
Steven Sinofsky back to Silicon Valley
Steven Sinofsky, the former head of Microsoft’s Windows business, has taken a position at Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz in his first venture back on to the tech scene since leaving the software company last November. Mr Sinofsky was credited with turning around Microsoft’s software development process.
China antitrust push draws US ire
US regulators and businesses have spoken out against an antitrust enforcement push by Chinese authorities as the issue emerges as a potential new friction point in relations between the two economies. Foreign investors in China are concerned that they are being targeted in investigations of pricing practices, such as one aimed at baby formula makers earlier this year.
THE TIMES
Tata Motors revamps backfiring Nano
Tata Motors was yesterday forced to reveal plans for a revamp of the Nano. It will now be marketed as a smart city car as the group struggles to revive a project that has proved a commercial flop. Sales of the Nano plunged by 27 per cent in the year to March.
Brewer expands to quench Ugandans
SABMiller’s Nile Breweries subsidiary has opened a $90m (£57.75m) brewery in western Uganda.
The company’s existing 57-year-old brewery, in Jinja, underwent a $29m expansion in 2009, doubling capacity to 1.8m hectolitres, but the site is approaching maximum production amid growing demand for its Eagle Lager.
The Daily Telegraph
Labour’s property firm paid no tax
Labour Party Properties Limited (LPPL), which owns a £6.3m portfolio of properties, has paid no corporation tax since 2003. In those eight years the company has received a total of £8.7m in rents but declared losses of £279,000. A Labour Party spokesman said the firm had done nothing to intentionally cut its tax bill.
Fears over visas for Chinese visitors
Tourism chiefs have raised fresh concerns over whether the UK is doing enough to attract high-spending Chinese visitors to Britain, as research shows more than two-thirds of travellers from China are now booking independently, rather than through tour operators.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Wal-Mart to open more African stores
Wal-Mart’s South African arm plans to open 90 new stores across sub-Saharan Africa over the next three years, as it targets growth markets such as Nigeria. Massmart Holdings said it will open a trial food store in west Africa by the end of the year, in hopes of expanding to east Africa.
Rabobank Profit Falls
Rabobank Group, the second-largest Dutch bank, said Thursday that provisions for bad loans and settlements resulted in a 14 per cent drop in profit in the first half, but it is weathering the housing bust in the Netherlands as households still have enough savings to pay their mortgages.