WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
SKF SEES LITTLE HOPE OF QUICK RECOVERY
SKF, the world’s biggest producer of industrial bearings, has dashed hopes of a quick recovery in global manufacturing after its chief executive said a broad upturn could be several years away. Tom Johnstone told the Financial Times that even by 2011 it was impossible to say whether demand for bearings would have returned to the levels of last year.
BAVARIA YACHTBAU FACES TAKEOVER
Lenders to Bavaria Yachtbau are in talks over a proposal that may be tabled in coming days to take over the German yachtmaker as part of a restructuring that would slash its €900m (£772m) debts. Bavaria Yachtbau was bought by private equity group Bain Capital for €1.3bn at the peak of the debt bubble. It is struggling after a sharp drop in sales.
COST CUTS BEAR FRUIT FOR GANNETT
Shares in Gannett rallied by 30.6 per cent yesterday after the largest US newspaper publisher and the first in its industry to announce second-quarter earnings reported faster than expected savings from cost-cutting programmes. But the deep advertising slump and continuing disruption of print business models dragged earnings per share down from $12.04 to 46 cents before one-off items.
MSC SET TO CUT SHIP NUMBERS
The once fast-expanding company that runs the world’s second-biggest container ship fleet is set to slash ship numbers in the face of the sector’s crisis, its chairman has told the Financial Times. Gianluigi Aponte, chairman of Switzerland-based Mediterranean Shipping Company, said in a rare interview that the company was aiming to reduce its ship numbers but increase their average size. This would keep overall capacity stable, he said.
THE TIMES
BT RETURNS CALL-CENTRE JOBS TO BRITAIN FROM INDIA
BT will bring at least 2,000 call-centre jobs in India back to Britain as it prepares to close about half its customer service operation on the sub-continent, it emerged yesterday. Ian Livingston, BT’s chief executive, disclosed the move in response to a shareholder question at the telecom group’s annual meeting.
TORIES PLAN 80 CITY-BASED TV STATIONS FOR LOCAL NEWS
ITV’s regional news bulletins would be replaced by 80 city-based stations under a Conservative government, under a plan for reforming local television unveiled today. Jeremy Hunt, the Conservatives’ culture spokesman, said that his party was opposed to taking £50m to £80m a year from the BBC licence fee to prop up regional news on ITV.
The Daily Telegraph
MADOFF TRUSTEE PURSUES HSBC
The trustee aiming to recoup some of Bernard Madoff’s missing $65bn (£40bn) is suing HSBC in the first action of its kind in the case involving a British entity. Irving Picard, the court-appointed trustee charged with recovering money on behalf of investors, has filed court papers in New York accusing the British bank of withdrawing $578m of “fake” profits on behalf of one of its clients less than 90 days before the fund collapsed.
GOLDMAN CAVES IN TO BLOGGER
Goldman Sachs has caved in and allowed a critical blogger to continue airing his negative views about the bank on a controversially-named website. In what has been a real life David vs Goliath battle, Florida-based estate agent and investment adviser, Mike Morgan, will be allowed to keep his GoldmanSachs666.com site.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
BANKS RAMP UP PAY PACKAGES TO TOP TALENT
Some big banks that have received government bailouts in the U.S. and Britain are offering handsome pay packages to lure stars and reverse last year’s steep losses. Bank of America recently hired a top bond salesman with a guaranteed two-year deal valued at about $6m for the first year, people familiar with the matter say.
AIR CANADA GETS RELIEF WITH UNION DEAL
Cash-strapped Air Canada got a break in its quest to avoid a bankruptcy filing when a union approved a new labour contract that contains no raises or pension payments for 21 months. Canada’s dominant airline, a unit of ACE Aviation Holdings, now has agreements with all five of its Canadian unions that will toe the line on wage and pension benefits