Business News
News stories from the Business and Finance category.
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| The Retreat From Moscow Analysts suspect BP's Russian venture is a sinking dream and even question firm's vulnerability to takeover |
Tchenguiz and Tata Go Green Billionaire investor is in talks with Indian conglomerate about investing in a new $10bn environment fund |
| Wall Street Plunges As Oil Price Jumps Leading auto industry expert is calling on Congress to act to prevent a market crash following $10 a barrel jump |
O'Brien Attacks In&m's Management Style Irish entrepreneur, who has a 23% shareholding, to publish damning report criticising the way the company is run |
| Yahoo Delays Meeting to Avoid Showdown As talks continue with Microsoft over possible tie-up, internet company grapples with prospect of shareholder rebellion |
Weak Dollar and Supply Worries Push Oil to Fresh High of $128 Crude oil price increased sixfold in past eight years, fueling debate about dwindling resources |
| Oil Hits New Record World oil prices jump to a fresh record of $127.82 a barrel on the back of a weaker dollar and fears over a shortage of... |
Tycoon Shocks With 'noodle Salesman in Nagasaki' Comment The Blackstone private equity tycoon Stephen Schwarzman has shocked investors by comparing the failure of a buyout deal to... |
| Nintendo's Wii Makes Yamauchi Japan's Richest The 80-year-old's personal fortune has leaped to £4bn, thanks mainly to the extraordinary global success of the Wii and DS... |
Oil Breaks $122 on Forecasts for Further Rises Oil prices broke new records today when they passed the $122 a barrel mark, bringing renewed fears of rising costs for... |
| Junk Debt Puts Countrywide Rescue in Jeopardy US' biggest mortgage lender suffers deterioration in stricken loan portfolio and downgrade in debt to junk status |
Lawyer Barbie Takes Rival Bratz to Court Dollmaker Mattel is taking legal action against MGA, claiming it owns the copyright of rival's designs |
| The View From Omaha: Devotees Flock to Hear World's Richest Man His homespun investment strategy has made him $10bn profit from the credit crunch |
Wall Street Journal Committee Claims Murdoch Broke Agreement A special independent committee accused the press baron of breaking agreement to protect editorial integrity |
| Mars and Warren Buffett Join Forces for $23bn Takeover of Wrigley Deal puts pressure on Cadbury to seek merger partner as British group loses top slot |
Microsoft to Get Tough With Yahoo Wall Street expects Microsoft to enter protracted period of 'trench warfare' in attempt to buy Yahoo |
| US Economy Awaits Stimulation From Bush's Tax Rebate Americans urged to spend $168bn cash injection to provide 'bridge' until rate cuts have impact |
Microsoft Threatens Hostile Yahoo Bid The software group may approach shareholders if offer deadline passes |
| Starbucks Warns of Falling Profits As Us Consumers Tighten Belts Chairman blames homes crisis and energy costs as coffee firm's shares dip 11% to four-year low |
Bank of America Profits Fall 77% Credit crunch sees quarterly profits plunge after weak trading on Wall Street and in retail banking |
| Credit Crunch Causes Plunge in Bank of America Profits Quarterly profits fall by 77% after weak trading on Wall Street and in retail banking |
Citigroup Cuts 9,000 Jobs After $5bn Loss America's largest bank announces a dramatic $5.1bn (£2.55bn) first quarter loss and plans to slash 9,000 posts |
| Google Makes Gains During Credit Crunch The internet company has defied predictions of economic doom by delivering a 31% surge in quarterly profits |
Merrill Lynch to Cut 4,000 Jobs The US investment bank at the center of the sub-prime mortgage crisis is to cut one in 10 of its workforce |
| Oil Hits Fresh High on Summer Supply Fears Oil rose to a fresh record on the world's commodities markets today, trading at above $115 a barrel |
Uneasy Riders: Harley-davidson Sales Slump Harley-Davidson forced to cut more than 700 jobs and slash shipments of its powerful bikes |
| Hedge Fund Managers Reap Billions Amid Slump Hedge fund league table compilers astonished by 'the greatest display of individual wealth creation in any year in the... |
Fourth-largest Us Bank Resorts to Emergency Fundraising Decision comes as speculation mounts that UK banks will have to take action to bolster their balance sheets |
| Big Oil to Big Wind: Texas Veteran Sets Up $10bn Clean Energy Project Billionaire oil tycoon hatches audacious plan to erect enough turbines across Texan panhandle to supply one million homes |
Bank Chief Blames Rumours and Market Fixers for Bear's Collapse Senate committee told of threat to America's financial stability and of Fed's pressure on JP Morgan to agree deal |
| Bear Stearns Lost $10bn in Just One Disastrous Day, Admit Top Officials Senate committee told of threat to America's financial stability and of Fed's pressure on JP Morgan to agree deal |
Wal-Mart Drops Bid to Sue Brain-damaged Former Shelf-stacker World's biggest retailer, owner of Asda, faced a public outcry after it tried to recoup $400,000 in health care costs from... |
| Silicon Valley Meetings Go Topless Companies are urging employees to leave laptops on their desks when attending office meetings and engage in human interaction |
Banker Turns Policeman to Overhaul Us Financial Regulation Paulson to hand sweeping role to Fed in safeguarding market stability |
| Lehman Sues Over £177m Fraud US investment bank Lehman Brothers files lawsuit against Japanese trading house Marubeni over bogus ¥35bn (£177m)... |
Bear Says Outgoing Boston Head Tried to Poach Clients A senior Bear Stearns executive has been accused of defecting to rival Morgan Stanley with so many print-outs of... |
| 20,000 Wall Street Jobs at Risk More than 20,000 people are forecast to lose their jobs on Wall Street as the credit crunch hits business at financial... |
Sharing the Bear Stearns Pain It's considered uncool on Wall Street to lose nearly $1bn (£504m). So perhaps it's understandable that the biggest... |
| British Billionaire Loses Estimated $1bn in Bear Stearns Bust Joe Lewis splashed out millions on Bear Stearns shares just a few hours before the troubled investment bank ran out of... |
Bear Stearns Bid Faces Challenges As Backlash Intensifies The management team at Bear Stearns faces a backlash over the its capitulation to JP Morgan's $280m rescue takeover bid,... |
| US Mortgage Giant Needs $1bn to Survive High-end home loan firm Thornburg Mortgage needs to raise $948m in seven days to keep creditors at bay. By Andrew Clark in... |
Morgan Stanley Results Better Than Expected The investment bank today revealed a 42% slump in first-quarter profits to $1.55bn, but the fall was an improvement on a... |
| London Shares Back Under Pressure Shares in Halifax-owner HBOS plummet on rumors the bank is in trouble |
Markets Bounce Back Asia continues rally after Wall Street staged its biggest one-day rise in more than five years following an aggressive... |
| Economy Struggles, Tory Fortunes Soar Michael White: No Conservative leader has enjoyed a 42:29:21% poll lead over labor and the Lib Dems since Margaret... |
The Week the Fed Tried to Save the World From Financial Meltdown Fed's decision to cut US interest rates marks climax of seven days of crisis management |
| Court Backs Chávez in Row With Oil Giant Chávez scores victory over Exxon Mobil as British court lifts $12bn (£6bn) freeze on Venezuelan assets |
Federal Reserve Cuts Rates Three-quarters of a Point Fed bids to ward off global economic slump with sixth cut in American interest rates since the financial crisis began last... |
| Fed Cut Brings Markets Back From the Brink After cutting interest rates to 2.25%, US Federal Reserve pressures Bank of England and other central banks to follow its... |
Lawyers and Media Circle While Staff Reflect on Their Place in Limbo Bear Stearns staff arrive at the bank's headquarters to hear of the firm's fire sale to JP Morgan for a giveaway price |
| We Won't Be Next to Fall, Says Lehman Lehman Brothers tries to reassure customers about its financial stability as market value falls by a third |
US Bank Crisis Sparks Panic in Markets Financial markets fear collapse of Bear Stearns could trigger global financial and economic meltdown |
| Bear Stearns Shares Plummet As It Seeks Emergency Funding Wall Street investment bank's future is hanging in the balance after it was forced to ask the US Federal Reserve for an... |
Going Down in Spades While Bear Stearns was burning, Jimmy Cayne, the Wall Street firm's chief executive, was playing bridge |
| How Feverish Market Pulled the Lifeline From Falling Giant Markets hit upon Bear because it is more exposed to bond markets than rivals - and does not have other operations to negate... |
FSA Hopeful That Malaise Will Not Spread Financial Services Authority keeping a close watch on financial markets after the US-orchestrated bailout of Bear Stearns |
| Surprise Punt on Wall Street Could Cost Billionaire $750m Legendary British currency trader is estimated to be sitting on paper losses of $750m (£370m) after his punt on Bear Stearns |
Credit Crunch Woes Claim America's Fifth-biggest Bank Credit crunch claims biggest victim yet when the US Federal Reserve orchestrated an emergency bail-out for Bear Stearns |
| Rising Prices and Anxiety Cause Surprise Drop in Us Retail Sales Treasury secretary berates banks and demands changes in market practices |
Liquidity Rumours Unleash Bears on Bear Stearns Wall Street brokerage's shares dive to a five-year low after losing more than $1.9bn on mortgage-linked securities last year |
| Norway's Pension Fund Publishes Vote Data, Revealing Stand on Ethical Issues State-owned investment fund exerts influence on boardroom pay, global warming, labor standards and freedom of access to the... |
After 13 Years of Gates, Enter the New Richest Man in the World: The Sage Warren Buffett tops Forbes list with $62bn fortune, while survey shows there are 49 billionaires living in Britain |
| Hedge Funds Wither As Banks Call Their Bluff Richard Wachman: Last week, margin calls triggered the implosion of London hedge fund Peloton Partners |
Rose Won't Bloom Without a Pr Coup Richard Wachman: M&S chief executive is struggling to maintain his reputation as the turnaround king |
| Ask Scraps Plans to Take on Search Giants Website to reinvent itself as female-focused online query specialist. |
Wall Street Stocks Plummet Figures from the US commerce department revealed that spending was essentially flat in January with a 0.4% rise wiped out... |
| Lacklustre High Street Spending Figures Send Wall Street Plummeting New year sales in American shopping malls fail to budge mood of caution among consumers |
No Fans of Stan It has been a long time since Wall Street witnessed a display of bitch-slapping and back-stabbing quite as spectacular as... |
| Some Are More Equal Than Others Revelations about wages for union workers at chemicals giant BASF have caused a stir |
Gloom-mongers Have Their Day Here consumers are becoming tetchy, with half of all Americans feeling as if the nation is in recession |
| Bundesbank Looks Frail at 50 The Deutsche Bundesbank turned 50 this week but job cuts and branch closures have left it looking vulnerable |
What Does 'the Warren Buffett of Europe' Have in Store? An inveterate deal-maker who has made a fetish of discretion, 'Nickel Neelie' and corporate social responsibility |
| Stage Set for Final Barnstorming Act The out-going president of a key European court could make a dramatic exit with a one-sided verdict on the Microsoft... |
Bank Chief Prepares to Face the Music Is WestLB, the state-backed bank based in Düsseldorf, a byword for scandal? |
| Hug a Hedgie Nobody seems to like hedge fund managers much, and the public seems to enjoy stories about their mishaps. Are they really... |
Life's Tough When You're Dead Andrew Clark's US diary: the credit rating nightmare of a housewife from Minnesota who is officially dead, and just what... |
| Money Worries How globalisation is making German banks nervous, and why Italian meat producers are regaining their appetite |
Lafarge Lays the Foundations A French cement maker is betting on a quick return from emerging markets, while Corsica Ferries finds itself in choppy waters |
| The Natwest Three Are, in Reality, Arthur Daleys in Suits As this week's guilty plea demonstrated, they have nothing in common with the Birmingham Six or the Guildford Four except... |
Life and Death Decisions Investors who lose money can be 'nasty and belligerent', says one stockbroker. But could they become homicidal? |
| Credit Card Crunch Could surging credit cards bills become the next sub-prime crisis? |
Picture of Wealth, If a Little Sub-prime Goldman Sachs boss is the latest target as artist entertains Wall Street with his wry portraits |
| Wal-Mart's Orgy of Corporate Self-satisfaction It is seven o'clock on a stormy Friday morning in an obscure corner of Arkansas and several hundred people in red T-shirts... |
Rich Pickings for the World's Media The battle for the soul of Carlos Slim, airline passengers suffer more indignities, and why Lord Black seems to be enjoying... |
| Enron's Skilling Completes Six Months Behind Bars Does a similar fate await Conrad Black, whose trial is entering its final stages? With the jury due to go out early next... |
Dow Jones Boss Drives Into a Battle Zone War reporters go ballistic over their boss's new car, Smith & Wesson has a bad week at the office, and why the super-rich... |
| Wall Street Meltdown A great summary of recent months with a picture montage featuring all our favourite crunch characters |
Listen, Acknowledge, Take Action Starbucks outlets across the nation closed their doors on Tuesday for a mass barista training session, where staff were... |
| Mobile Phone Sales Pass the One Billion Mark Over a billion mobile phones were sold worldwide last year, the first time the global appetite for new devices has passed... |
Kids Helping the Big Boys, Not the Other Way Round Microsoft made a modest piece of history last week, says Keith Stuart, when the Xbox 360 became the first console to host... |
| Starbucks Closes to Learn How to Make Coffee Rivals mock as American stores prepare to shut to give staff lessons |
Starbucks Takes a Coffee Break Starbucks to shut its 7,100 company-owned stores in US for a few hours on Tuesday for a nationwide barista training session |
| US Stocks Continue Falling Amid Growing Recession Fears American stocks tumbled today as Wall Street's worries over an imminent recession were aggravated by a warning from Merrill... |
Mars Bar Billionaire Loses Court Battle to Stop Gas Firm Drilling on His Ranch An attempt by the reclusive billionaire heir to the Mars chocolate bar fortune to ban drilling for natural gas on his... |
| Starbucks Boss Sacked After Sales Take Whipping The troubled coffee chain Starbucks tonight dumped its chief executive and promised a radical overhaul of its business to... |
China Censorship Damaged Us, Google Founders Admit Google's decision to censor its search engine in China was bad for the company, its founders have admitted. By Jane... |
| American Banks Rush to Take Up Fed's Offer of Emergency Funds American banks fell over themselves to get their hands on $20bn (£10bn) of short-term liquidity provided by the Federal... |
Banks Act on Meltdown Fear Joint move by UK, US, Swiss, Europeans and Canadians · Unprecedented action to ease global credit crisis · Bank of... |
| Lo, Murdoch Did Bring the Good News and Stored Up Riches on Earth Rupert Murdoch is out to prove that you can serve God and mammon after all. The media tycoon's Fox Entertainment has bought... |
Computer Game Giant Born in £9bn Deal Merger brings together firms behind top titles· Activision Blizzard will have earnings of $3.8bn |
| Blackstone Says Deals Will Get Harder The US private equity company Blackstone has predicted a slowdown in multibillion dollar 'mega-deals' because of the... |
Vodafone Faces Court Case in 'bugging' Row Parents believe their son was murdered before he could blow the whistle. |
| US Subprime Mortgage Crisis Causes Lurches on Wall Street America's sub prime mortgage crisis caused nervous lurches on Wall Street yesterday as two leading home loans companies... |
Britons Buy Slice of Big Apple The sliding dollar draws an army of UK buyers as dream homes in America go for bargain prices |
| Starbucks Turns to Tv to Perk Up Sales Struggling against rising costs and a slowing economy, the coffee giant Seattle-based will today launch its first ever... |
Fed to Emulate Boe By Issuing Quarterly Report on Economy The US Federal Reserve yesterday announced sweeping changes to the way it communicates with investors and the markets, by... |
| The Power of Advertising How the prospect of vanishing ad revenue forced CBS to take a stand against racism, and why it's time to sell your shares... |
A Family Farce Christopher Bancroft said 'bite me' and Murdoch duly did - the comic tale behind the capitulation of Wall Street Journal's... |
| No Fans of Stan It has been a long time since Wall Street witnessed a display of bitch-slapping and back-stabbing quite as spectacular as... |
Hug a Hedgie Nobody seems to like hedge fund managers much, and the public seems to enjoy stories about their mishaps. Are they really... |
| Fighting the Motown Blues No Macy's, no Gap and deserted streets ... Andrew Clark looks for signs of hope in depressed Detroit |
Spare a Thought for the Hedgies US bankers start fretting about their numbers, and a chatshow host gets Richard Branson's goat |
| Hedgies on the Back Foot With private equity now top of the pecking order, hedge fund firms are having to learn a little humility |
Rich Pickings for the World's Media The battle for the soul of Carlos Slim, airline passengers suffer more indignities, and why Lord Black seems to be enjoying... |
| Sitting at the Feet of the Sage Andrew Clark puts on a Warren Buffett T-shirt and gets down with the disciples at the Berkshire Hathaway annual investor... |
Inside the Googleplex Japanese massage chairs, scooter parking in the corridors, a room dedicated to lego and a plethora of purple lava lamps. It... |
| Disastrous Sale Sends Sotheby's Shares Falling By 37% in One Day The auction house Sotheby's suffered an almost 40% slump in its share price yesterday in the wake of a disappointing sale... |
Frenzy in the Markets As Oil Heads for $100 a Barrel Crude futures hit record $97.07 as traders fear sharp fall in reserves. |
| Bananas to Uk Via the Channel Islands? It Pays for Tax Reasons Analysis of the global trade in commodities shows how corporations legally engineer their finances, increasingly depriving... |
Revealed: How Multinational Companies Avoid the Taxman Elaborate structures to move profits offshore· International investigation into banana firms |
| 'Retirement' of Merrill Chief Causes Jitters on Wall Street Losses of $7.9bn in credit crunch lead to departure· Interim reshuffle as bank begins hunt for new CEO |
Facebook Goes From Zero to $10bn in Three Years · Microsoft wants 5% of networking site - reports· Valuation would dwarf $1.6bn paid for YouTube |
| Oil Price Hits Record of More Than $80 a Barrel As Us Stocks Fall The price of oil last night broke through the $80 a barrel level for the first time on fears of winter supply shortages. |
Germany's Image of Probity Shattered By Us Mortgage Crisis Banking sector is given a rude awakening - and faces a huge shakeup. |
| Bank Tries to Soothe Financial Markets The Bank of England yesterday broke its silence on the turmoil sweeping global markets as it said it was prepared to relax... |
United States Could Go Into Recession, Warns Oecd West's leading thinktank urges Federal Reserve to cut interest rates as housing market crisis deepens. |
| Leading Lender Likens Us Credit Crisis to Great Depression The US financial industry displayed fresh signs of distress from the credit crunch afflicting global money markets yesterday... |
Corporate Chiefs Ride High Without Shareholders' Reins Even in the land of free enterprise, patience with boardroom pay is wearing thin. Top corporate bosses in America earn... |
| US Gambling Ban Pushes Partygaming to £23m Loss Online gambling group PartyGaming yesterday recorded a $47m (£23m) half-year loss as it continued to rebuild in the wake of... |
Wall Street-on-sea Feels the Chill Amid Talk of Shake-out Only the fittest investment houses will remain when market volatility subsides. |
| US Woes Slash $2bn From Price of Home Depot Supply Business · Buyers renegotiate deal in face of tighter credit · Housing sales fall for five successive months |
Gazprom Seeks Bp's Help to Break Into American Energy Supply Russia's Gazprom is trying to muscle its way into the American energy market by encouraging BP to share a stake in its... |
| Dubai World Invests $5bn in Las Vegas Casinos The state-controlled investment vehicle of Dubai is betting on the glitzy fortunes of Las Vegas by pumping $5bn (£2.5bn)... |
US Mortgage Crisis Spreads to Luxury Home Builders America's top builder of luxury homes has revealed that cancellations are at an all-time high as a crisis gripping the... |
| Fed Chairman Signals Us Interest Rate Cut · 'I will use all available tools' to calm markets· UK institutions forced to borrow at punishing cost |
While the West Takes a Battering, China Weathers the Global Storm Stampede to Shanghai shows strength of far east market but analysts wonder how long it will last. |
| US Job Cuts Add to Cost of Loans Fiasco The sub-prime mortgage crisis claimed more victims yesterday as an Arizona-based lender with 300 branches filed for... |
Crisis May Force Fed to Slash Rates Emergency intervention could come 'within days'. |
| How Turbulence Turned to Calamity on Wall Street After a panic-stricken week and fearing a downturn in the US economy, the Fed was forced to step in. But has it done enough? |
Property Crisis in Us Deepens · Home sales slump and builders lose confidence· Late plunge hits Wall St after day of wild swings |
| Central Banks Pour in Billions - But Global Slide Goes on · Panic spreads despite $323bn injection· All this year's FTSE gains lost· US, Europe, Asia badly hit |
World Markets Sent Tumbling 11.30am update: Stock markets across Europe were left reeling from a global credit crisis this morning, with the FTSE 100... |
| FTSE Takes More Punishment 10am update: Stock markets across Europe were left reeling from a global credit crisis this morning, with the FTSE 100... |
Asian Markets Feel the Heat 10am: The Bank of Japan today pumped one trillion yen (£4.2bn) into the country's money markets to boost liquidity amid the... |
| Markets Go Red As Contagion Spreads Europe's central bank releases £64bn emergency funds as US bad debt crisis takes hold around the globe. |
Bad Call From a Wall Street King The US mortgage fiasco claims a top operator but will the Fed step in? |
| Sales Slump As Fashion Gives Timberland the Boot The fickle forces of fashion have hurt the American bootmaker Timberland, which is facing a $100m (£49m) shortfall in sales... |
Worries Over Oil and Interest Rates Send Markets on Rollercoaster Ride · US buyers pile into shares after week of price falls · Surveys point to inflation build-up amid credit crisis |
| Dow Jones Braces for Murdoch News Corp's imminent takeover polarizes board members, readers and staff. |
Financial Times Explores Tv Deals to Fight Murdoch · News Corp-owned Wall St Journal poses threat · Paper's publisher in talks with CNBC and others |
| Risky Lending in America Claims Victims Worldwide The crisis in sub-prime lending in the US caused problems for lenders on both sides of the Atlantic yesterday as the... |
French Bosses Dominate List of 20 Highest Paid Executives Half of the top 20 highest-paid corporate executives in Europe last year were running French companies, according to a... |
| Investors Hail Turkey Poll Result Turkey's stock market hit a record high today as business groups and European leaders applauded the ruling party's... |
Gulf States Target Britain So They Can Invest Their Cash Beyond the Oil Fields The Qatari Sainsbury's bid symbolizes a new kind of high-profile deal. |
| Billionaire Denies Building Secret Sex Lair America's 160th richest person, a billionaire who made his money from the 1990s hi-tech boom, has been accused of planning... |
Norway Tops Table of Dollar Millionaires It used to be a country of fishermen struggling through the Arctic winter but now Norway has turned itself into a land of... |
| Dollar Falls Again Amid Growing Us Fears Wall Street threatened by crumbling housing market - Pound hits its highest value in 26 years |
French Food Group Danone Bids £8.3bn for Dutch Rival French food group Danone last night launched a €12.3bn (£8.3bn) takeover bid for Dutch rival Numico, makers of baby foods... |
| Easy Money Hits Home With Lenders Facing £250bn Losses The collapse in sub-prime loans threatens the big banks that financed brokers. |
Mexico's Carlos Slim Becomes the World's Number One Heavyweight Tycoon from humble beginnings knocks out Bill Gates to takes the top spot in the global rich list. |
| State-backed Giants Who Want to Buy the World Government-controlled funds from China and elsewhere are snapping up Western companies, writes Oliver Morgan. Should we be... |
Shares Plunge As Us Justice Department Launches Inquiry Into Arms Firm's Saudi Deals Prosecutors demand files on Al Yamamah - Lord Goldsmith faces grilling from MPs today |
| BP Retreats From Russia With £400m BP yesterday caved in to months of pressure from the Kremlin and agreed to sell its stake in the Kovykta gas field to... |
Dow Jones Board to Oversee Murdoch Talks The board of the Wall Street Journal's publisher, Dow Jones, has taken control of negotiations over a possible sale to... |
| JP Morgan to Build 40-storey Tower at Ground Zero JP Morgan Chase is to invest $2bn (£1bn) in building a 40-storey tower on the edge of the World Trade Center site, a... |
The New Passage to India, Business Class Foreign executives pour in as salaries soar - Shortage of local talent for booming economy |
| Airline Industry 'weak' Despite $5bn Profit Chief executive of International Air Transport Association says small economic shock could be enough to cause serious... |
New Fears of State Takeover of Bp Gas Field Vladimir Putin turned up the pressure on Britain's biggest company yesterday saying it was intolerable that BP and its... |
| Russian Ban on Body Parts Exports Hits Drug Testing Firm The Russian government has cited fears of bioterrorism for a sudden decision to ban the export of body parts and human... |
A Multibillion Dollar Industry Built on the Most Dangerous Jobs in the World Since March 2004, when the charred bodies of four American security guards were dragged through the streets of Falluja,... |
| BP Marks Return to Libya With $900m Gas Deal Firm allowed to explore onshore and offshore sites - Agreement could help plug Russian gap |
Home Sales Surge in Us As Builders Cut Prices Sales of new homes in the United States jumped by their largest amount since 1993 last month - but only because... |
| Black Wanted to 'blow Asses Off' Shareholders Conrad Black threatened to "blow the asses off" discontented investors who complained of boardroom extravagance... |
China Flexes Financial Muscle With $3bn Stake in Us Private Equity Firm Beijing's first foray into booming buyout market - Investment likely to alarm protectionist politicians |
| Fortress Italy Pulls Up the Drawbridge to Keep Foreign Investors at Bay Failed US bid for telecoms giant has increased international frustration with alleged government meddling. |
Gloomy Greenspan Warns of Recession for Us Economy Weak housing market puts brake on retail spending - New Fed chairman may be forced to cut interest rates |
| Deal Frenzy: How the Media Became the Story Rupert Murdoch's audacious $5bn (£2.5bn) move on Dow Jones, owner of the Wall Street Journal, ushered in a week of merger... |
Sage Gets a Buffetting With Hard Questions for America's Favourite Multi-billionaire Under the gaze of 27,000 adulatory shareholders, a flicker of discomfort passed across the face of the world's... |
| Sales of New Homes Pick Up But Still Down By a Quarter on a Year Ago Fresh evidence of the severe downturn in the US housing market emerged yesterday with the release of figures showing that... |
Mexican Leapfrogs Buffett and Eyes No 1 Spot Telecoms magnate Carlos Slim is now the second-richest man in the world, and tantalisingly close to the top spot. By Andrew... |
| American Hedge Fund Trader Shrugs Off Enron Scandal to Earn £2.7m a Day Bet on gas price takes John Arnold out of obscurity - 93 of top 100 financiers are in low-profile sector |
Gazprom Targets Key Uk Names in Drive for Expansion The Russian gas group, Gazprom, is making a determined effort to increase its influence in Britain by targeting landmark... |
| Nina Wang Obituary: Asia's richest woman, a Hong Kong property tycoon accustomed to living frugally. |
US Interest Rates Cut Less Likely After Jobs Increase By 180,000 A cut in US interest rates before the summer looked less likely yesterday after a sharp increase in the number of jobs... |
| Rosneft Outbids Bp in Auction for Bankrupt Yukos Assets An attempt by BP to strengthen its position in Russia by buying up assets of the bankrupt oil company Yukos has failed. |
Oligarch Buys Up French Hotels Yesterday the legendary Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, one of the world's most exclusive resorts, became the latest hotel to be... |
| We Want to Stay in Russia, Bp Boss Tells Putin Browne and Hayward hold key meeting in Kremlin - Assets of bankrupt Yukos to be auctioned next week |
Suffering From Dementia? Over 80? Need a Mortgage? No Problem Aggressive selling has plunged millions of badly-off Americans into financial disaster. |
| Fears of Us Mortgage Crisis As Homeowners Face 12% Interest Shares fall on worries for wider economy - Research predicts 2.2m defaults on homeloans |
Airbus to Cut 1,600 British Jobs in European Shakeup 10,000 job losses across continent - Plants to close in France and Germany |
| Obituary: Lord Forte Self-made tycoon who built a worldwide hotel and catering empire that stretched from Little Chefs to the Grosvenor House. |
Wall St Suffers Biggest Fall Since 9/11 Fears over Chinese and US economies trigger slump - Losses wipe out year's gains on main indices |
| Wal-Mart Invests in China The world's biggest retailer announces a takeover of a Chinese discount chain for an estimated $1bn (£500m) in China's... |
IBM Heirs Try to Cut Lesbian Ex-lover Out Daughter adopted partner in absence of civil union - Despite split, she claims fortune as 'grandchild' |
| Cadbury's Graveyard Stunt Falls Flat As a marketing promotion, it seemed like a splendid idea: hide a coin worth $10,000 in a well-known place, and tantalise... |
HSBC Executives in Us Fall on Their Swords Pair quit after mortgage losses dent balance sheet - Geoghegan seeks to limit fallout of profit warning |
| Yukos for Sale - Foreigners Need Not Apply The bankrupt Russian oil company Yukos, whose former owner is in a Siberian prison, is to be sold off next month in the... |
DaimlerChrysler Faces Break-up But Who Wants to Pick Up the Pieces? While shareholders want a demerger, there may be no buyer to bail them out. |
| Google Infringed Copyright, Belgian Court Rules Google could face daily fines of €25,000 (£17,000) after losing a court battle with Belgian publishers over the scope of... |
Klein Brand Ages Gracefully Once, when a designer died or retired, his label tended to slip away with him. But such romanticism seems quaint in the era... |
| We Can Work It Out - Everyone's a Winner As Peace is Declared in Apple v Apple Settlement of rancorous 30-year logo battle likely to herald charts comeback for the Beatles as tracks become available for... |
Guilty Verdict in Coca-cola Trade Secrets Trial A former Coca-Cola secretary was today convicted of conspiring to steal trade secrets from the world's largest drinks maker... |
| Guilty: Spy Who Tried to Sell Coke's Secrets A trusted former secretary at Coca-Cola faces up to 10 years behind bars for plotting to cash in on one of the business... |
Dell Founder Back in Charge of Ailing Computer Firm The founder of the troubled Dell computer company, Michael Dell, took back day-to-day control of the American manufacturer... |
| Google Profits Double to $3bn The world's favourite search engine, Google, saw its profits rocket by 110% to $3.07bn (£1.57bn) last year as the... |
How the Word on Wall Street Will Spread Around the World Overseas targets would include FT, says Journal - Website to be launched in range of foreign languages |
| Tata Celebrates Costly Victory in Corus Chase Indian company rejoices at £6.7bn 'milestone' - Shares fall as traders see price of deal as too high |
Ex-NBC Treasurer Charged With Embezzling $800,000 From Tv Firm A former treasurer of the American entertainment empire NBC Universal has been charged with embezzling $800,000 (£400,000)... |
| The New Gold Rush: How Farmers Are Set to Fuel America's Future Rush to grow corn for ethanol - but is it the best solution for environment? |
Siemens Tries to Head Off Shareholder Revolt Scandal-hit German industrial group announces 51% jump in operational earnings at its AGM. By >David Gow in Munich. |
| Scandal-hit Siemens Slapped With €400m Record Fine Market-fixing penalty follows bribery allegations - Shareholders up in arms for annual meeting today |
Plenty of Gaps on the High Street - Just No Shoppers to Fill Them Retail fashion US chain's future uncertain as dismal Christmas sales follow decade of decline. |
| Apple Proclaims Its Revolution: a Camera, an Ipod ... Oh, and a Phone All purpose handset will reinvent telecoms sector, says Apple chief executive. |
For My Next Trick ... Devotees Wait to See What Steve Jobs Has Up His Sleeve iPod? iPhone? iTV? Apple's guru will try to dazzle fans and rivals in showcase event. |
| Vodafone Moves Closer to Clinching Indian Deal Vodafone's chances of buying India's Hutchison Essar, the country's fourth largest mobile phone operator, brightened... |
Apple Admits Board Minutes Were Falsified Over Jobs Options Apple Computer yesterday admitted that records of the board meeting that handed chief executive Steve Jobs 7.5m share... |
| Signs of Recovery in Us Economy Fears that the US economy is set to slump in 2007 were allayed yesterday by a rush of strong data from the manufacturing,... |
Micro-credit: Giving a Hand Up, Not a Handout Muhammad Yunus is an unusual banker: famous but not rich. His celebrity derives from his clients, Bangladesh's poor. |
| Thai U-turn Amid Fears of Meltdown in Asia 15% knocked off value of shares in a single session - Controls designed to halt rise in baht sparks crisis. |
1974 Ikea Chair, One Careful Owner, Not for Sale He is famous for eating in cheap restaurants, flying economy and going on the bus. But yesterday Ingvar Kamprad - the... |
| US Options Scandal Derails S&n Deal Health firm drops its $11bn takeover of joint maker - Private equity group steps in despite investigation |
EADS Invests in Battle to Take on Boeing on Home Territory EADS has launched a concerted drive to put aside political rows over its ownership and the financial troubles at European... |
| The Future for Orange Could Soon Be Google in Your Pocket The internet giant Google has held talks with Orange, the mobile phone operator, about a multi-billion-dollar partnership... |
World's Richest 1% Own 40% of All Wealth, Un Report Discovers First ever study of global household assets - 50% of world's adults own just 1% of the wealth |
| Pfizer Withdraws Heart Drug After Trial Shows Increased Risk of Death Shares plunge over loss of expected $9bn earnings - Failure is blow to new generation of medicines |
Fears for Us Industry Edge Dollar Closer to 50p Mark American currency sinks ever closer to 1992 low - City analysts warn about effects on UK exporters |
| Another Day, Another Fall in the Dollar The White House wants a strong greenback but the US deficit is weighing heavily. |
The Dollar is Overvalued and Will Fall Further The writing has been on Wall Street for years: the dollar is overvalued and probably has further to fall, writes William... |
| US Retail Fears and Weak Dollar Send Stock Markets Sliding Stock markets on both sides of the Atlantic lurched downward yesterday as retail anxieties clouded the American economy and... |
Barbarians at the Gate Once More As Merger Mania Grips the City Markets are cash-swollen but investors hope to avoid repeat of 2000 bust. |
| New Model Disney Roars Ahead Beset by problems only last year, the empire has been turned around by Robert Iger. |
Friedman, the Economist Who Inspired Thatcher, Dies at 94 Margaret Thatcher last night paid tribute to Milton Friedman, the US economist whose theories inspired her monetarist... |
| Monetarist Economist Friedman Dies Milton Friedman, the Nobel prize-winning economist and Margaret Thatcher's monetarist guru, died today at the age of 94. |
Nobel Prize-winning Economist Milton Friedman Dies at 94 Milton Friedman, the legendary but controversial American economist who inspired Margaret Thatcher's monetarist revolution,... |
| From Ethical Champion to Rogue Interloper - Bp's American Nightmare Accidents and allegations of market fixing destroy environmentalist image. |
LA Times for Sale As Tribune Decides to Break Up the Empire Venerable American newspapers, including the Los Angeles Times, Newsday and the Chicago Tribune, are up for sale after... |
| US Retailers Gloomy After Weak Housing Market Dents Sales · Talk of rate cut as growth slows to lowest since 2003 · Wal-Mart to lower price of toys before Christmas |
Utube to Sue Youtube Amid Site Confusion A company selling used tube machinery is to sue YouTube after its website - called utube.com - crashed repeatedly under the... |
| Suez and Gdf Agree Roles in €72bn Merger The French energy companies Suez and Gaz de France cleared one of the last significant hurdles to their €72bn (£48bn)... |
Starbucks, the Coffee Beans and the Copyright Row That Cost Ethiopia £47m Starbucks, the giant US coffee chain, has used its muscle to block an attempt by Ethiopia's farmers to copyright their most... |