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India’s home minister resigns over Mumbai attacks
India’s home minister Shivraj Patil became the first high-profile political casualty of the terrorist attacks on Mumbai, offering his resignation on Sunday to take responsibility for the violence, which claimed at least 192 lives.
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Pakistan warns of threat to terror war
Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan’s president, warned that escalating tensions between Pakistan and India would be disastrous for the war on terror by sapping his nation’s effort against militants on its Afghan border
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Opec delays further output cut
The Opec oil cartel decided to defer any decision to further cut its output in order to boost prices. It’s next cut could come as early as December 17 when the group meets in Oran, Algeria
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Potential buyers line up for possible Woolworths bid
Neville Kahn, the Deloitte partner who is leading the administration process, said on Sunday that he would be talking to interested parties on Monday and expected to have a preferred bidder for the retailer’s brand and a large number of stores by the end of the week.
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
The Young Professional Blog Aggregator
The past year and a half I’ve met many interesting young professionals online and offline through this blog and my other related activities. For my own benefit and yours I’ve started a new site to keep track of what young professional related blogs are doing and saying right now– The Young Professional Blog Aggregator.
In less than a week of being online ypblogs.com has over 400 posts available from 25 blogs!
Every 10 minutes ypblogs.com scans numerous young professional related blogs for updated articles. When a new article [...]
Minister targets viable companies
Business Secretary Peter Mandelson outlines plans to draw up a list of industries that could be saved from collapse.
Source: BBC News | Business | UK Edition
Legal challenge to HBOS takeover
A last-ditch attempt to block the planned Lloyds TSB takeover of Halifax Bank of Scotland is launched.
Source: BBC News | Business | UK Edition
easyJet row proves far from easy for Stelios
Sir Stelios HajiIoannou is in a bit of a flap. The subject: aluminium tubes. There are 109 arriving and boy is that a cause for concern.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Labour’s challenge: to pick and mix business survivors
Through the national mourning about the collapse of Woolworths I’m sure some sighs of relief were audible from the West End office of Apax Partners the private equity group.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Brown’s UK borrowing binge is now dangerous bravado
Political reaction to last Monday’s preBudget report has stressed the precise details of the fiscal changes.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Climate change report pours cold water on £2bn power station plan
Plans by energy group E.ON to build a £2bn power station will be dealt a blow tomorrow when a governmentfunded report calls a halt to developing coalfired generators until new carbon capture technology is ready.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Magners chief Dunsmore toasts shares bonanza
The former Scottish ? Newcastle boss John Dunsmore is to receive a shares bonanaza worth millions of pounds if he restores the ailing Magners cidermaker C?C’ share price to a level far below where it was trading just six months ago.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Liberata gets rescue funds
General Atlantic Partners has been forced to inject extra capital into Liberata who was last month sacked by the Government over the student grants fiasco.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Vincent Bolloré revives Aegis campaign
Vincent Bolloré the French financier will restart his mission to appoint independent directors to the board of Aegis.
Source: Telegraph Finance
3i bid group circles Gatwick Airport
The listed buyout group 3i has joined forces with one of the world’s largest pension funds to work on a bid for Gatwick Airport that could be worth more than £1.5bn.
Source: Telegraph Finance
HBOS merger illegal claim Scottish challengers
A group of Scottish businessmen has launched a lastminute legal challenge to the merger of HBOS with Lloyds TSB claiming that the Government’s approval of the deal was illegal.
Source: Telegraph Finance
‘Smart’ TV adverts signal new dawn for BSkyB
It sounds like an advertising executive’s Holy Grail: a way of never showing a dog food commercial to a viewer obsessed by all things feline.
Source: Telegraph Finance
CPS investigates BT over internet trials
The Crown Prosecution Service CPS is investigating claims that BT broke privacy laws by using an internet advertising system with the potential to track and record every website visisted by its customers.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Lord Mandelson warns creditstarved companies over EU state aid
The Government will have to take account of European rules on state aid before deciding whether to formulate rescue packages for businesses and industries which are being starved of bank credit Lord Mandelson has warned.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Dubai vows to keep building despite global crisis
Debts have cast a shadow on the Dubai dream.
Source: Telegraph Finance
BBC Dragon lines up bid to rescue Woolworths
Theo Paphitis one of the stars of the BBC television series Dragons’ Den is among a pack of potential bidders who are this weekend circling the highstreet chain Woolworths.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Rentokil to clean up £1.1bn debt mountain
The Business services group Rentokil Initial has brought on board advisers to restructure its £1.1bn debt pile underlining the deepening financing crisis facing bluechip British businesses.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Barclays boss’s wife reels in movie deal
Action Diana Jenkins who is married to the Barclays executive who orchestrated the bank’s controversial Middle Eastern fundraising has sealed a Gulf deal of her own
Source: Telegraph Finance
JJB Sports lender Barclays piles on pressure
A key lender to JJB Sports one of Britain’s largest sports goods retailers has drafted in an accountancy and restructuring firm amid growing concerns about the chain’s future.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Leaner Compass heads in the right direction
Even in a recession people have to eat so Compass’s business is relatively defensive.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Investment clubs: Longterm view - and there’s a Plan B
Picking shares and sticking with them to avoid the impact of sudden stock market movements is the preferred investment strategy for members of Plan B Investment Club.
Source: Telegraph Finance
‘Mr Darling has found billions for bankers but still offers peanuts to pensioners’
Pensioners and experts are underwhelmed by measures in the preBudget report.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Children’s savings accounts stay over 7pc
At a time of gloom for savers impressive rates on accounts for children bring a little cheer.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Tis the season to be sensible Christmas parties downscale due to the credit crunch
Staff looking forward to a slapup meal and unlimited free drinks could be in for a shock when they turn up to their office parties this Christmas and find they have to pay their own way.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Pre Budget Report: The view of the experts
Economics experts give their verdict on the preBudget report.
Source: Telegraph Finance
A flood of rate cuts
As changes to savings rates flood in here are best buys in instant access notice and fixedrate accounts.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Lord Mandelson draws up list of businesses Government should save from collapse
Lord Mandelson is assessing which businesses and industries are important enough for the Government to save from collapse as the economy worsens he disclosed last night.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Land Registry reports 10.1% annual fall in house prices
Latest figures from the Land Registry show house prices in England and Wales falling by an annual 10.1%, in October.
The average value of a home declined 1.5% during the month, to £165,529, a figure last seen in mid-2006.
The Registry compiles its data from completed transactions and therefore lags behind other monitors of the housing [...]
Source: Finance Markets: Finance News - UK Personal Financial News & Financial Markets
US shoppers brave downturn on ‘Black Friday’
But most leading US retailers are predicting that their holiday sales will decline this year, even though Friday’s pre-dawn traffic seemed, in northeast Ohio at least, to be at least on a par with or above previous years
Source: FT.com - Companies
Capital raising guidelines to be eased
Companies will be able to sell new shares worth up to two-thirds of their existing capital without holding a special shareholder meeting, under changes suggested by ABI
Source: FT.com - Companies
Mumbai siege ends as death toll rises to more than 195
Commandos killed the last Islamist gunmen holed up at Mumbai’s Taj Mahal hotel, ending a three-day rampage and siege that killed at least 195 people and is already being described as India’s 9/11
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Anger at ‘heavy-handed’ arrest of MP
MPs from all parties have expressed outrage at the ‘tinpot dictatorship’ treatment of Damian Green, the shadow immigration minister
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Saudi hints Opec to delay further cut
As the oil cartel prepares to meet in Cairo calls are growing for a surprise cut as evidence the slowdown is leading to rising inventories in consumer countries
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Chinese exploit western job losses
Out-of-work finance professionals in the UK and US have a new reason for optimism about their employment prospects – especially if they speak Mandarin
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
UK retailers braced for a tough Christmas
Major stores left wringing their hands after ‘Early Bird’ event and despairing of any quick upturn in their fortunes
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Capital raising guidelines to be eased
Companies will be able to sell new shares worth up to two-thirds of their existing capital without holding a special shareholder meeting, under changes suggested by ABI
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Vodafone loses prime 3G race to Turkcell
Ankara tempts more bidders to raise bn after cancelling spectrum auction last year
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Brown says no to bank nationalisation
Further action promised but full state ownership only in extreme circumstances, says prime minister
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Amlin pulls out of credit insurance market
Withdrawal raises prospect of other groups having problems finding reinsurance when contracts come up for renewal at end of December
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Savings offers to go as banks impose rate cuts
Wave of last-minute alterations means more than half of all savings providers have made cuts to account offers
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Green finds fitting home for Moss Bros holding
Retail billionaire sells 28.5 per cent stake in men’s wear retailer to a trust headed by Simon Berwin, owner of suit specialist Berwin and Berwin
Source: Financial Times - UK Homepage
Changes to the VAT Flat Rate Scheme
Following the reduction of the VAT rate from 17.5% to 15%, HM Revenue and Customs has issued the following guidance relating to the changes to the flat rate VAT scheme:
8.4 Flat rate scheme
Will the rate change affect my flat rate percentage?
Yes. The table of flat rates has been changed to reflect the new rate of VAT. The new table is set out in Annex E. You should make sure you use the new rate for your sector from 1 December 2008.
My flat rate has not been reduced. Why not?
The flat [...]
More job cuts as Indy moves in with Associated
Another 100 jobs are expected to go at The Independent newspaper titles after it was announced that its backoffice operations will be combined with Associated Newspapers and its staff will move into the Daily Mailowner’s Kensington headquarters.
Source: Telegraph Finance
Aon to cut 700 jobs
Aon Corporation the world’s largest insurance broker has unveiled plans to slash up to 700 jobs following the acquisition of its rival Benfield Group.
Source: Telegraph Finance