WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
RBS TAKES CONTROL OF 42 MARRIOTT HOTELS
Royal Bank of Scotland has taken control of a £1bn property portfolio of Marriott hotels after failing to secure a debt-for-equity restructuring of one of its largest individual real estate loans made during the property boom. RBS on Tuesday night appointed Ernst & Young as receivers to the portfolio of 42 hotels across the UK.
BANK CHIEFS’ PAY RISES BY 36PC
Bank chiefs’ average pay in the US and Europe leapt 36 per cent last year to $9.7m, according to data compiled for the Financial Times. Two of the industry’s biggest names – Jamie Dimon, the JPMorgan Chase chief executive, and Goldman Sachs’ Lloyd Blankfein – were paid more than 15 times their 2009 earnings. Mr Dimon received nearly $21m in 2010, topping the FT’s survey of the salary and bonus packages awarded to 15 top bankers. Mr Blankfein earned $14.1m, including a $5.4m cash bonus – up from $863,000 in 2009.
IMF WARNS RUSSIA OF REFORM OR RECESSION
Russia has dashed hopes that the 2008-2009 economic crisis would spur needed economic reforms aimed at modernising the economy, a mission from the International Monetary Fund has concluded.
US DERIVATIVES REFORMS TO BE DELAYED UNTIL END OF 2011
Derivatives rules are set to be delayed by six months in an effort to quell legal uncertainty around financial reform that some worry could roil markets. Gary Gensler, chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, said officials would miss a July 16 deadline to finalise rules stemming from the sweeping Dodd-Frank financial reforms passed last year.
THE TIMES
NETWORK RAIL FAILED TO ADDRESS SAFETY RISKS SAYS REGULATOR
Network Rail must take urgent action to improve its safety procedures, the rail regulator said yesterday after the private maintenance company missed eight out of ten of its performance targets. It failed a string of targets for punctuality and serious delays in England, Scotland and Wales, with long-distance services on the East and West Coast Main Lines suffering the worst of the disruption.
TO GO OR NOT TO GO . . . UNION SAYS THAT IS THE QUESTION
The owner of a call centre and a leading union are locked in a legal battle over how long staff take to go to the lavatory. The CWU has called for a day of action to protest at the Birchwood Industrial Park in Warrington today and has pledged to dress up in Victorian clothes to make its point.
The Daily Telegraph
UK ECONOMY REMAINS STEADY AS GLOBAL GROWTH WOBBLES
The UK’s economic recovery is expected to remain on track over the coming months in the face of a deteriorating outlook for France, Italy and the euro area as a whole. Britain’s relative resilience emerged in the closely-watched leading indicators index compiled by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).
SURGEON INTERRUPTS CAMERON’S HOSPITAL VISIT
A senior surgeon interrupted a hospital visit by David Cameron and Nick Clegg to complain that the TV crews filming them were not observing strict hygiene rules. David Nunn left the Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister stunned with his angry outburst during the walkabout at Guy’s hospital in London Bridge.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
UNIBAIL MAY BE SHOPPING FOR SPANISH MALLS
Unibail-Rodamco SA, a leading European property company, could be on the prowl for property in Spain, according to analysts. An acquisition of shopping centers in Spain that fit Unibail’s business would appear “well-timed and strategically sound,” says John Lutzius, managing director of the European offices of Green Street Advisors, a boutique research firm.
CHINA TIGHTENS, COMMODITIES SHRUG
Fresh monetary tightening by China’s central bank was largely shrugged off by commodities, a sign investors are getting more comfortable with inflation-tackling measures from the world’s top commodities consumer. The People’s Bank of China said it will lift the amount of capital banks must keep on reserve by half a percentage point.