WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
UNION “NOT MILES APART” FROM BA
The broad outlines of a settlement in the dispute between British Airways and its cabin crew are emerging in informal talks between the two sides, the Unite union said yesterday. “We’re not miles apart,” said Steve Turner, national officer for aviation at Unite, which represents BA’s 12,000-plus cabin crew and launched a second strike ballot last week. “There is a way to resolve this.”
LENOVO PROFITING FROM RECOVERY
Lenovo, the world’s fourth-largest PC maker, on Thursday revealed a second consecutive quarter of profit as the group saw its recovery broaden beyond China to other emerging markets. The Chinese group, which just a year ago reported its first loss in three years, yesterday reported net profit for its fiscal third quarter to December of US$80m, significantly ahead of expectations, compared with a US$97m net loss for the same quarter a year earlier.
RESOLUTION EYES MOVE ON RBS BRANCHES
Resolution Group, set up by Clive Cowdery, and Blackstone, the US?private equity group, are in the running to join National Australia Bank in a potential bid for the 318 branches being sold by Royal Bank of Scotland.
GALA STARTS TALK OVER DEBUT BOND
Gala Coral is in talks over a potential £500m ($788m) bond issue that would see it join the likes of Manchester United in reaching out to institutional investors to help raise funds to refinance £2bn of bank debt, according to people familiar with the matter. If the company’s restructuring talks are successful the bonds could be sold in the next six months. The UK gambling group has been talking to Royal Bank of Scotland, Credit Suisse and Deutsche Bank.
THE TIMES
AMFIBUS GETS TRY OUT ON THE CLYDE
James Bond might think it old hat, but a vehicle that can travel across both roads and water is proving to be something of a licence to thrill for Brian Souter, the boss of Stagecoach.
The £700,000 “amfibus”, borrowed by Stagecoach from a Dutch company that plans to operate five of them around Rotterdam, begins tests next week as a possible replacement for the Clyde ferry in Glasgow.
BRITAIN AND INDIA AGREE Nuclear DEAL
Britain and India today agreed a deal that will allow British companies to enter the fray against Russia and France to supply nuclear power equipment worth an estimated $150bn. It comes after a ban that prevented India from buying nuclear technology for 30 years were lifted in 2008.
THE DAILY TELEGRAPH
AUSTRIAN BAILED IN BAE BRIBERY CASE
An Austrian count charged with bribing Eastern European officials to buy fighter planes from BAE Systems was granted bail yesterday, as the Serious Fraud Office (SFO) steps up its investigation into Britain’s biggest defence company.
Count Alfons Mensdorff-Pouilly, 56, will be held in custody until he comes up with bail money totalling £1m, and will then be electronically tagged and subject to a curfew at his home in Sloane Square.
US JOBS REPORT DISAPPOINTS
Ahead of today’s eagerly anticipated non-farm payroll numbers for January, US government data showed that first-time unemployment benefit claims rose by 8,000 to 480,000 last week, against a forecast of a 10,000 fall in new claims.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
ZURICH FINANCIAL BOOSTS DIVIDEND
Zurich Financial Services AG yesterday said fourth-quarter net profit soared on the back of rising investment gains and higher premium volume, allowing the insurer to lift its dividend by 46 per cent. The Zurich-based company said net profit for the three months to the end of December rose to $1.05bn from $205m a year earlier, when the bottom line result was hurt by asset write-downs of around $1bn.
GOOGLE WORKS WITH NSA
Officials at the National Security Agency have been working with Google Inc. to investigate the cyber attacks that Google announced publicly last month, according to people familiar with the investigation. The partnership began weeks ago, as the Internet company shared details about the attack.