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
Wednesday, February 24, 0730 GMT
Top stories
The Times: Santander, the UK's second-biggest mortgage ban, to increase loan sizes for first-time buyers.
The Independent; Strikes across Europe threaten to cause paralysis as workers reject government attempts to cut spending and wages.
The Times: George Osborne to gamble by putting the reduction of debt at the centre of the election campaign.
Comment
David Wighton in The Times: If the economy relapses, jobs may be cut, reducing spare capacity, so the Bank should start easing as soon as possible.
David Prosser in The Independent: The Conservatives are in danger of slipping into another inheritance tax-style trap with their proposals for pension reform.
Richard Fletcher in Daily Telegraph: Maybe you shouldn't put your nest-egg in Anthony Bolton's China basket.
Upside
Wall Street Journal: Japanese exports rose more than expected in January, the latest positive sign as weakness persisted in domestic demand.
Daily Telegraph: AstraZeneca, the pharmaceutical group, to pay HM Revenue & Customs £505 million 9$780 million) to settle a long-running tax dispute.
Wall Street Journal: Passenger revenue on US airlines grew in January from a year ago, reversing 14 consecutive months of declines.
Downside
The Times: The pound lost more than a cent against the dollar in ten minutes after Governor Mervyn King spoke about releasing more money.
Wall Street Journal: Toyota's US chief told Congress the motor giant may not solve the cause of sudden acceleration; US to expand probe to other companies.
The Times: Watchdog accused Reckitt Benckiser of abusing its dominant market position by offering doctors only an expensive version of Gaviscon.
Mergers and shakers
The Times: 3i, which had been pursuing a float for Ambea, instead sold its stake in the Scandinavian healthcare group for €850 million (£745 million).
Wall Street Journal: Fitch Ratings downgraded Greece's four major banks to triple-B, or two notches above "junk" status.
The Times: Wall Street bankers' bonuses jumped 25 per cent to $123,850 on average; average pay at the top banks rose even faster to $340,000 per banker.
Around Asia
The Times: Toyota's president Akio Toyoda to admit tomorrow his company's pursuit of growth was put before technical expertise.
Wall Street Journal: No word yet on approval from Chinese regulators of Tengzhong's planned purchase of General Motors' Hummer unit.
The Times: Fidelity International could earn up to $30 million (£19 million) in fees from its new Chinese fund even if its value fell.
Look ahead
The Times: HSBC's board poised to deprive chief executive Michael Geoghegan of a 40 per cent salary increase and must also decide on his bonus.
Wall Street Journal: European antitrust authorities inquire into complaints against Google by three internet companies, including a Microsoft subsidiary.
The Times: Royal Dutch Shell to move staff next year from the Shell Centre at Waterloo to Canary Wharf.
MARKETS
FTSE 100 5,315.09 down 0.7% (Tuesday close)
Dow 10,282.41 down 1% (close)
S&P 500 1,094.60 down 1.2% (close)
Nasdaq 2,213.44 down 1.3% (close)
Nikkei 10,163.28 down 1.8% (latest)
Hang Seng 20,549.99 down 0.4% (latest)
Currencies
Sterling $1.5457/1.1411 euros (latest)
Euro $1.3546 (latest)
Commodities
Brent crude $77.59 up 34 cents (latest)
West Texas crude $79.24 up 38 cents (latest)
Gold $1,107.20 up $4 (latest)
New York
Reuters: US stocks suffered their biggest one-day decline in nearly three weeks on Tuesday after a sharp drop in consumer confidence heightened worries over one of the most vulnerable areas of the economy. Consumer confidence in February slumped to a 10-month low as the short-term outlook on jobs worsened. Results from retailers added little hope, as bellwethers such as Target forecast a tepid performance in the first quarter. Stocks associated with a strong cyclical upturn in the economy were hit. Top performers during last year's rally, including technology, materials and energy stocks, led the downside. Home Depot was a bright spot, reporting results that beat estimates and raising its profit forecast, but discount retailer Target fell 1.2 per cent after it gave a tepid view of its first-quarter outlook even as it posted a fourth-quarter profit slightly above expectations.
Asia
Bloomberg: Asian stocks declined in morning trade for the first time in three days and concerns about credit quality in the region rose as US consumer confidence fell to a 10-month low. Australian government bonds gained the most in almost a month. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index lost 1.4 per cent to 117.37 in morning trade. BHP Billiton, the world's largest mining company, dropped 2.2 per cent in Sydney on speculation a slowdown will dent demand for metals. Canon, a camera maker that gets 79 per cent of sales outside Japan, sank 3 per cent. Hyundai, South Korea's biggest carmaker, declined 2.6 per cent after AutoWeek magazine said the company halted US sales of some cars due to a door-lock problem.
Myles McIvor
mjclub@bigpond.com.au
London
The FTSE 100 eased 36.98 points to 5,315.09 as investors chewed over the latest glut of gloomy economic news. Mervyn King, the Governor of the Bank of England, warned that the UK recovery was fragile and still risked running out of steam. Meanwhile, figures from the British Bankers Association, which speaks for UK lenders, showed mortgage lending relapsed to its lowest for eight months in January, after hitting its best for 26 months in December. Even allowing for the bad weather and expiry of the stamp duty holiday, that made grim reading. For a tenth month running, Britons paid back more than they borrowed, fanning fears that consumer confidence remains brittle. All of which unsettled shops and pubs and other companies dependent on discretionary spending. Next, the fashion chain, was among the hardest hit, falling 52p to £18.32. Enterprise Inns, the tenanted pub group, eased 7.8p to 106.3p, despite positive comments from Deutsche Bank, its broker. With commodities priced in dollars, a stronger greenback hurt miners and oil companies.
Those shares to improve were largely targeted for their safer, more defensive qualities. Drug companies and cigarette makers were both marked higher.
Gary Parkinson
Gary.Parkinson@thetimes.co.uk
