November 2, 2013
Sony shares plunge as it cuts profit forecast
Shares in Japanese electronics giant Sony plunged 11% to 1,668 yen on the Tokyo Stock Exchange after the firm cut its profit forecast. The firm lowered its full-year profit forecast by 40% on Thursday as it reported a loss for the July-to-September…
November 2, 2013
RBS shares lose 7% after it decides against ‘bad bank’ split
Royal Bank of Scotland shares have lost 7.5% following news the 81% state-owned bank will not split itself into separate so-called good and bad banks. RBS will create an internal "bad bank", ring-fencing £38bn of poor quality assets, such as loans…
November 2, 2013
China’s manufacturing activity at 18-month high
China's manufacturing activity grew at its fastest pace in 18 months in October, adding to signs of a recovery in the world's second-largest economy. The official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), a gauge of the sector's health, rose to 51.4 from…
October 30, 2013
Rabobank fined $1bn over Libor
Dutch bank Rabobank says it has agreed to pay fines of 774m euros ($1bn; £662m) imposed by US, UK and Dutch regulators over the Libor interest rate-fixing scandal. The bank added that its chief executive, Piet Moerland, had stepped down. Libor…
October 30, 2013
Nokia telecoms division profits down by a third
Operating profit at Nokia's telecoms solutions and networks - its main business once its phones division is sold - fell 33% in the third quarter to 218m euros ($300m; £186.6m). The Finnish firm forecasts the business's profit margin will rise…
October 30, 2013
US shares hit fresh all-time highs
US shares hit fresh all-time highs on Tuesday, ahead of the conclusion of a Federal Reserve meeting that is expected to see economic stimulus measures maintained. On Wall Street the Dow Jones closed up 111 points at 15,680 - beating the previous…
October 30, 2013
India raises interest rates for the second month running
India's new central bank governor has raised interest rates for the second consecutive month by a quarter of one percent to 7.75% to try to fight inflation. The move applies to the benchmark repo rate - the rate at which the central bank lends to…
October 30, 2013
BP sees lower quarterly profits but beats forecasts
Oil giant BP has reported sharply lower profits for the third quarter of 2013. Underlying replacement cost profit, which strips out the effect of oil price movements, was $3.69bn (£2.29bn) - down from $5.02bn for the same period a year ago. BP said…
October 20, 2013
Caricom Has Ignored Invitation For Rum Talks, Says USVI Governor
US Virgin Islands Governor John de Jongh last Friday said Caribbean governments had refused to back away from plans to take ongoing rum dispute before the World Trade Organization (WTO). In March, de Jongh wrote to regional leaders urging them to…
October 20, 2013
China’s economic growth picks up speed in third quarter
China's economic growth picked up pace in the July-to-September period, the first rise in three quarters. The world's second-biggest economy grew 7.8% from a year earlier, up from 7.5% expansion in the previous quarter. The official figures also…