...the main headlines..........
Markets jump on economic hopes
In Asia today stocks rose across the board, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index advancing 3.6 per cent on hopes the financial crisis will be ended by government measures. In Tokyo the Nikkei 225 Stock Average gained 3.5 per cent following a holiday and all other markets in the region rose apart from Vietnam and New Zealand. In New York on Friday the benchmark Standard & Poor's 500 Index lost two per cent as analysts downgradedGeneral Electric's earnings, but futures on the index jumped 1.8 per cent in Asian trade this morning. In London the FTSE 100 Index was 1.4 per cent higher in early trade.
Calls for Dunfermline BS rescue
The Treasury was last night under pressure from Scottish MPs for it to "intervene" at Dunfermline Building Society, amid fears of a "cash crisis", reported the Independent. The society is set to reveal that it lost "up to £30m" last year on loans to commmercial property buyers that went bad. It may also write down the value of its assets by an evern larger amount. There has been a delay to the release of its latest acounts and it has been talking to Scottish National Party ministers in the Scottish government about its "precarious financial position".
Obama plan to buy $1tr of assets
The Obama administration is set to announce plans today to "expand" the $700bn financial support operation, reported Bloomberg.com. The plan will focus on "enticing" private investors to buy toxic assets and wil be unveiled by the US Treasury Secretary today. The approach is "crafted" to use up to $100bn of bail-out money to encourage investment funds to buy the illiquid loans and securities owned by the banks. Government bodies like the Treasury and Federal Reserve will work alongside these private investors to buy "between $500bn and $1tr" of assets.
Bid for Barclays iShares unit
Hellman & Friedman is assembling a group of private-equity companies that may bid "as much as $5bn" for Barclays' iShares unit, reportedBloomberg.com. Barclays - the UK's third-biggest bank - has set a deadline for offers of the end of this week, according to a source close to the company. The lender may be prepared to finance up to 80 per cent of the sale price, according to the Wall Street Journal. Barclays is looking at selling its fund management arm to boost its capital without turning to the government, and the sale would allow it to take part in the government's asset protection scheme.
MidEast fund takes Daimler stake
Aabar Investments, based in Abu Dhabi, is to take a 9.1 per cent stake in Daimler worth €1.95bn, in a move designed to "bolster" the German carmaker, reported the Financial Times. The fund would become the luxury auto company's "largest shareholder" with the purchase, as it struggles with the worst crisis in the industry for many decades. Daimler said Aabar would pay €20.27 per share for the holding and that it was "delighted" with the investment, which comes in the wake of its announcement that a "large operating loss" should be expected in the first quarter.
Gatwick may be worth just £1.3bn
A "secret report" commissioned by three of Gatwick Airport's biggest airline customers has indicated that it could be worth as little as £1.33bn, reported the Daily Telegraph. The amount is "far below" the £2bn-plus thatBAA initially wanted, according to the study by economic consultancy Frontier Economics and carried out on behalf of easyJet, Virgin Atlanticand TUI Travel. The report puts a value of £1.33bn to £1.78bn on the airport, but since it was completed in December, its value may have "since declined", with passenger traffic continuing to to fall.
...in brief..................
Daily Mail to cut 1,000 jobs and bidders emerge for LDV
Daily Mail and General Trust, the newspaper group, is set to make 1,000 people redundant in its local paper operations, said the Times. The newspapers have been "badly hit" by the advertising downturn, leading to a "slump" in revenues for the publishing group, which earlier in the year sold its Evening Standard title............
Sir Fred Goodwin may face "legal action" over his role at Royal Bank of Scotland, reported the Independent on Sunday. The bank's new board has two investigations running into what the former chief executive knew about sub-prime trading, with a view to building a case for "breach of duty" against him and possibly other management............
Australian flag-carrier Qantas will this week make a "second wave of redundancies" as part of its restructuring plans, reported the Financial Times. Staff and unions will be told the job cuts are needed in the light of "reduced capacity requirements", with revenues declining for airlines worldwide............
JJB Sports, the struggling sportswear chain, is "closing in" on the sale of its gym division to founder Dave Whelan, reported the Daily Telegraph. The £70m sale could come "within days", although it is thought that Mike Ashley, the owner of Sports Direct, is trying to derail the deal by urging landlords not to deal with him............
Take-up of new offices in the City has dropped to its lowest level for "more than 20 years", as the slowdown curbs financial companies' expansion, reported the Financial Times. There has been "just 220,000 sq ft" of new occupied space in London's Square Mile since the start of the year, half the low of 1991............
Mahindra & Mahindra, the Indian car group, is one of two companies trying to buy UK van manufacturer LDV, reported the Times. The Birmingham-based company is currently owned by Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, and the emergence of the bids will "help to fuel enthusiasm" over its future............
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