KILL THE COMPETITION
Welcome to today's round-up of business news from The Times: what we're saying, what they're saying, from Michael Beh
Friday, January 15, 0730 GMT
Top stories
The Times: Three UK banks may pay $10 billion (£6 billion) to the US Government as part of its crackdown on financial institutions bailed out by taxpayers.
The Daily Telegraph: There is a one-in-five chance of a second financial crisis, warned the World Economic Forum.
The Times: Up to 20 companies told the Ministry of Defence of their interest in participating in the part-privatisation of the Merchant Navy.
Comment
David Wighton in The Times: As taxes go, the Obama levy on US-based banks is rather a good one. It's certainly better than our half-baked tax on bonuses.
Damian Reece in the Daily Telegraph: London is now the most expensive of the world's major financial centres as far as income taxes are concerned.
Hamish McRae in The Independent: This will be a year of two halves: the first half will tend to disappoint but the second will bring positive surprises.
Upside
Wall Street Journal: Major US banks and securities firms are likely to pay their staff a record $145 billion (£89 billion) for 2009.
New York Times: A revitalized personal computer market drove fourth-quarter earnings at Intel, the world's largest chip maker, sharply higher.
The Daily Telegraph: TV and computer sales jumped over the holiday period as book sales languished, three leading UK retailers said.
Downside
The Independent: Harsh taxes caused North Sea oil and gas exploration by the UK to drop by 35 per cent last year, while it boomed in Norway.
Wall Street Journal: US authorities opened an antitrust investigation into the business practices of Monsanto, the crop-biotechnology giant.
New York Times: US retail sales fell unexpectedly in December, despite earlier signs that the 2009 holiday shopping season was stronger than expected.
Mergers and shakers
The Times: Simon Fuller, the former Spice Girls manager and creator of television show American Idol, plans to launch a global entertainment company.
The Times: Shares of Baidu rose as investors bet the company, which has 60 per cent of China's internet search market, will take much of Google's business.
The Times: O2, the mobile phone company owned by Telefónica, will enter the fixed-line telecoms market and compete with BT, its former parent.
Around Asia
The Times: China ignored an ultimatum from Google to relax internet censorship, and reminded companies that they must strictly abide by state cyberspace laws.
The Times: As many as 10,000 lawyers in India are working for outsourcing providers and total revenues will double this year to $1 billion (£613 million).
The Times: Japanese machinery orders, one of the main engine rooms of the giant manufacturing economy, plunged to levels last seen in the late 1980s.
Look ahead
The Times: Growing sales at Primark will drive a rise in full-year profits, predicts Associated British Foods, the budget fashion retailer's owner.
Wall Street Journal: The outlook for 2010 by economists is muted, with the US unemployment rate projected to be above 9 per cent throughout the year.
Bloomberg: New World Department Store China, the retailer controlled by Hong Kong billionaire Cheng Yu-tung, will open at least six stores in China in 2010.
MARKETS
FTSE 100 5,498.20 up 0.5% (Thursday close)
Dow 10,710.55 up 0.3% (close)
S&P 500 1,148.46 up 0.2% (close)
Nasdaq 2,316.74 up 0.4% (close)
Nikkei 10,889.32 down 0.2% (latest)
Hang Seng 21,654.83 down 0.3% (latest)
Currencies
Sterling $1.6322/1.132euros (latest)
Euro $1.4419 (latest)
Commodities
Brent crude $78.05 down 52 cents (latest)
West Texas crude $78.89 down 50 cents (latest)
Gold $1141.90 down $1.10 (latest)
New York
Reuters: Technology shares drove Wall Street higher on bets that business spending will bolster profits in the sector. Intel, a Dow component and the world's largest chipmaker, rose 2.5 per cent in the regular session. After the bell it rose 1.7 per cent on a quarterly profit that beat expectations. Software maker Oracle rose 2.5 per cent on an analyst's upgrade and rival Microsoft rose 2 per cent. Regional bank Comerica rose 2.9 per cent on an analyst's upgrade.
Asia
Bloomberg: Asian stocks fluctuated in morning trade, as a better-than-estimated revenue prediction from Intel, the chipmaker, countered declines by energy shares after oil prices fell. Elpida Memory, Japan's biggest computer-memory chipmaker, rose 1 per cent on an analyst's upgrade. Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering rose 8 per cent in Seoul on reports of a potential buyer for the shipbuilder. Santos, Australia's No.3 oil and gas producer, fell 1.4 per cent on an analyst's downgrade and lower oil prices. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed at 126.27 in morning trade.
Michael Beh
michaelwbeh@gmail.com
London
Bid speculation lifted Fenner to the top of the FTSE 250 yesterday as the wider market rebounded.
Shares in the conveyor belt maker gained 6.4 per cent amid market rumours that Melrose, down 1.5 per cent, could be considering a bid.
The gossip comes as the industrial buyout group searches for its next big acquition after buying FKI, the engineer, for just under £1 billion in 2008.
Melrose is believed to have considered looking at Fenner last year but since decided not to pursue the group.
The FTSE 100 gained 24.72 points to 5,498.20 led by gains for the mining sector, buoyed by higher metal prices. Xstrata rose 4 per cent.
Home Retail Group was the biggest faller, down 6.2 per cent, after it predicted a tough 2010.
Peter Stiff
Peter.Stiff@the-times.co.uk
