Companies News Headlines - Yahoo! News UK

Dotcom decries 'largest data massacre' after company deletes files

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 06:22:26 +0100

WELLINGTON (Reuters) - The founder of the outlawed Megaupload file-sharing site denounced on Thursday "the largest data massacre in the history of the internet", after a European firm wiped out private photos, videos and documents stored on servers used by the site. Dutch firm LeaseWeb said it had in February erased 630 servers rented by Megaupload, about a year after U.S. authorities closed the site and charged its operators with facilitating online piracy, racketeering and money laundering. ...

Asia assets hammered on China fears, Fed upset

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 06:18:55 +0100

By Chikako Mogi and Wayne Cole TOKYO/SYDNEY (Reuters) - Asian markets buckled badly on Thursday after the Federal Reserve heralded an eventual end to free money and China turned the screw on credit even as factory activity in the world's second largest economy hit a nine-month low. Shares, currencies and commodities all crumbled as spooked investors rushed to unwind crowded trades in emerging markets. ...

Raghuram Rajan to brief press on rupee fall

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 06:09:21 +0100

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's chief economic adviser Raghuram Rajan said he will brief the media at 11:15 local time on Thursday after the rupee fell to a record low level. The rupee has fallen to 59.9350 to the dollar, a day after the U.S. Federal Reserve indicated a tapering of its monetary stimulus, and data showed China's factory activity weakened to a nine-month low in June. Reacting to the rupee's fall, Rajan said the U.S. Quantitative Easing programme can not continue indefinitely. (Reporting by Anurag Kotoky; Editing by Supriya Kurane)

SNB welcomes UBS, Credit Suisse capital steps, warns on housing market

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 05:58:40 +0100

ZURICH (Reuters) - The Swiss National Bank welcomed measures by Credit Suisse and UBS to bolster their capital, and warned it could take further action to prevent what it sees as lax mortgage lending in Switzerland. "Over the past year, the Swiss big banks have substantially increased their risk-weighted capital ratios," the SNB said in its annual financial stability report published on Thursday. "In this respect, both banks are now very well placed in an international peer comparison. ...

Britain, France face EU action over high Eurostar charges

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 05:34:54 +0100

By Ethan Bilby BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Commission has given France and Britain two months to respond to a request to lower charges for passenger and freight trains to use the Channel Tunnel, or face possible court action, it said on Thursday. The Commission said the illegally high track access charges result in higher ticket prices for passengers of the high-speed Eurostar service linking London with Paris and Brussels. ...

China June flash HSBC PMI hits nine-month low on weak demand

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 05:19:01 +0100

By Kevin Yao BEIJING (Reuters) - China's factory activity weakened to a nine-month low in June as demand faltered, a preliminary survey showed, heightening risks that a second quarter slowdown could be sharper than expected and raising the heat on the central bank to loosen policy. The flash HSBC Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 48.3 in June from May's final reading of 49.2, drifting further away from the 50-point level demarcating expansion from contraction. It was the weakest level since September. ...

Rupee slumps to record low; bonds, stocks slump

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 04:54:59 +0100

MUMBAI (Reuters) - The rupee slumped to a record low on Thursday, while stocks and bonds were hit, after the Federal Reserve signalled a tapering of its monetary stimulus, highlighting the country's dependence on foreign capital inflows to fund its current account deficit. Market were also hit by data showing China's factory activity weakened to a nine-month low in June. The rupee fell to a record low of 59.9350 to the dollar, breaching past its all-time low of 58.98 on June 11. The rupee was trading at 59.82/81, down from its 58.71/72 close on Wednesday. ...

Sony pressed for response on spin-off plan at shareholder meet

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:37:07 +0100

By Mari Saito TOKYO (Reuters) - Sony Corp shareholders pressed its chief executive on Thursday for a response to a proposal by hedge fund Third Point to spin off its profitable entertainment business, aiming to invigorate its struggling electronics business. Sony CEO Kazuo Hirai told an annual shareholders' meeting that the company would carefully consider the proposal by Daniel Loeb, the billionaire hedge fund manager of Third Point and Sony's top shareholder. "Our entertainment division will remain an important part of Sony's business," Hirai said. ...

Facebook has never been stronger since IPO, Sandberg says

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 03:20:18 +0100

By Alexei Oreskovic SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A year after Facebook Inc's fumbled IPO, Wall Street remains slow to recognize what Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg argues has been an across-the-board improvement in its business. Facebook's ability to deliver ads to mobile phones, improvements in measuring the effectiveness of its ads and increasing user engagement have all put the world's largest social network in a better position than before the IPO, Sandberg told the Reuters Global Technology Summit on Wednesday. ...

Rocket's Lazada gets $100 million in bid to be Southeast Asia's Amazon

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:29:40 +0100

By Jeremy Wagstaff (Reuters) - Lazada, the Southeast Asian online retail company founded by Germany's Rocket Internet Gmbh, has secured another $100 million from investors in its bid to lift the region from its status as an e-commerce backwater. While online shopping is big in Europe, the United States and even in China, where it is likely to account for 6 percent of all retail business this year, Southeast Asians still prefer to do 99 percent of their shopping offline, the company estimates. ...

John McAfee resurfaces as ranting video star, mocks McAfee software

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:20:51 +0100

By Jim Finkle BOSTON (Reuters) - Eccentric software pioneer John McAfee is back in the spotlight - lashing out at the anti-virus software that bears his name in a profanity-laced video. McAfee, an American who helped create the anti-virus software industry, generated a media frenzy at the end of last year when he fled his home on a tropical island in Belize, claiming that police in the Central American nation wanted to frame him for murder. ...

Euro ministers to decide direct bank recapitalization rules on Thursday

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:11:35 +0100

By Jan Strupczewski BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Euro zone finance ministers will decide on Thursday when and how their bailout fund can invest in a bank to save it from failure, laying a cornerstone of the banking union seen as vital to restore economic growth. Ministers from the 17 countries using the euro will also set guidelines for how much a government would have to contribute to such a bank rescue, which banks would be eligible, and who would lose money in the process. ...

Euro ministers to decide direct bank recapitalisation rules on Thursday

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:10:13 +0100

Yahoo rejects fears hackers will exploit old user IDs

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 01:52:17 +0100

By Alexei Oreskovic SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Yahoo Inc on Wednesday downplayed concerns that its plans to recycle inactive user IDs could leave users exposed to hackers, saying only 7 percent of those IDs are tied to actual Yahoo email accounts. The Internet company, which announced last week it would release user IDs that have been inactive for more than 12 months so that other people can claim them, was pressed to defend the plan after critics warned that hackers who take control of inactive accounts could also assume the identities of the accounts' previous owners. ...

SandRidge ousts CEO Ward, Bennett takes the helm

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:58:18 +0100

By Anna Driver and Michael Erman (Reuters) - SandRidge Energy Inc's board of directors removed the energy company's founder and chief executive, Tom Ward, on Wednesday after a months-long struggle with activist investors who accused him of strategic mistakes and self-dealing at the expense of shareholders. Ward, who was also under fire for his high pay, will receive a severance payment of more than $90 million in cash and stock. The oil and gas company's board named its president, James Bennett, to replace Ward as CEO, citing a need for new leadership. ...

Ex-Kleiner partner wants day in court in discrimination lawsuit

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:55:46 +0100

By Sarah McBride SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - A high profile sex discrimination lawsuit in Silicon Valley should be taken private via arbitration, lawyers for venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers argued on Wednesday, but the plaintiff, former partner Ellen Pao, wants the chance to tell her story before a judge. A lawyer for Kleiner told a panel of state court appellate justices on Wednesday that one reason the firm preferred arbitration to litigation was to avoid disclosing the relative compensation of Kleiner partners. Another reason, he said, was to spare embarrassment to Pao. ...

Sony spin-off plan off agenda but looms over shareholder meet

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:28:32 +0100

By Mari Saito TOKYO (Reuters) - A proposal by Sony Corp's top investor to partially spin off the Japanese company's lucrative entertainment business will be the elephant in the room at an annual shareholders meeting on Thursday. Daniel Loeb, who heads New York-based hedge fund Third Point, will miss the gathering and those attending will not consider his suggestion, sources familiar with the matter said. They gave no reason why Loeb would not attend. ...

Analysis: Sprint should raise Clearwire bid to avoid Dish tension

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:16:50 +0100

By Sinead Carew and Liana B. Baker NEW YORK (Reuters) - Sprint Nextel Corp should consider raising its offer price for Clearwire Corp or risk being saddled with a contentious relationship with Dish Network Corp, controlled by feisty billionaire Charlie Ergen. Shareholders of Clearwire, already majority owned by Sprint, will vote on June 24 on Sprint's $3.40-a-share offer to buy the rest of the company. But Clearwire's board has recommended shareholders instead accept a higher, $4.40-a-share tender offer from Dish. ...

Microsoft reverses position on Xbox One Internet, game sharing

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:12:52 +0100

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp said on Wednesday that users of its forthcoming Xbox One game console will be able to play games offline without establishing an Internet connection, and will be able to lend or sell used disc-based games. The announcement reverses the company's position when it unveiled the console in May, causing consternation among hardcore gamers. ...

New bookkeeping rule to prise open insurers' "black box" accounts

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:04:44 +0100

By Huw Jones LONDON (Reuters) - An international bookkeeping regime being unveiled on Thursday will iron out national variants in insurers' "black box" balance sheets although the transition will take several years and the United States will keep its own, very different rules. The International Accounting Standards Board's (IASB) third try at a new rule will be unchanged from the previous draft: each reporting period insurers must update policy values based on prevailing market conditions rather than at historic cost. ...

New bookkeeping rule to priprizese open insurers' 'black box' accounts

Thu, 20 Jun 2013 00:04:18 +0100

Asian stocks brace for fall, China data eyed

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:42:59 +0100

By Ian Chua SYDNEY (Reuters) - Asian stock markets were braced for a fall on Thursday in line with Wall Street after the U.S. central bank confirmed that it would begin to withdraw stimulus this year if the economy continued to recover as it expected. Tokyo's Nikkei futures in Chicago and Australia's share price index futures fell, pointing to weaker openings for two of Asia-Pacific's main markets, following a 1.4 percent slide in the U.S. S&P 500 index. ...

Magnitude 5.7 quake hits central Chile, no damage reported

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 23:13:37 +0100

SANTIAGO (Reuters) - A magnitude 5.7 earthquake hit the central Chilean region of Valparaiso at 5:30 p.m. (2130 GMT) on Wednesday, causing buildings to sway in the nearby capital of Santiago but no reports of damage. The quake struck 68 miles (110 km) north-northeast of Santiago at a depth of 62 miles (100 km), the U.S. Geological Survey said. It hit close to the border with Argentina's Mendoza region. Chile's ONEMI emergency office originally qualified the quake as 'minor,' but said later it was 'moderate.' Most of Chile's huge copper mines are in the north of the country. ...

Wall St. drops after Bernanke hints at slowing stimulus

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:48:32 +0100

By Ryan Vlastelica NEW YORK (Reuters) - Stocks fell more than 1 percent on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank would start to reduce its stimulus measures later this year if the economy is strong enough. Equities have been closely tethered to ultra-loose monetary policy, which has been key to the S&P's climb of more than 14 percent so far this year. Benchmark 10-year U.S. bond yields jumped to a 15-month high on expectations the Fed will reduce its bond buying. ...

Italian designers Dolce and Gabbana convicted of tax evasion

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:38:55 +0100

By Manuela D'Alessandro MILAN (Reuters) - Fashion designers Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana were handed a 20-month suspended prison sentence and a heavy fine on Wednesday for hiding hundreds of millions of euros from the Italian tax authorities. The design duo, who are nearly as famous as the stars they dress, were not present in court in Milan and will lodge an appeal against their conviction on charges that they have always denied. "We will read the reasons for the verdict, and we will appeal," Massimo Dinoia, one of the pair's defense lawyers, said after the hearing. ...

Microsoft talked with Nokia about buying devices unit: report

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:27:44 +0100

SEATTLE (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp recently talked with Nokia about buying the Finnish phone maker's devices unit, but the discussions faltered and are not likely to be revived, the Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday in its online edition. The Journal reported that "advanced discussions" on a deal happened as recently as this month, according to unnamed sources it said were familiar with the matter. Microsoft rejected a deal because of price and Nokia's loss of market share to rising Asian competitors, the report said. Representatives of both companies declined comment. ...

Micron profit beats estimates as chip prices climb

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:23:54 +0100

By Sruthi Ramakrishnan (Reuters) - Micron Inc reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit due to higher prices for its memory chips used in personal computers, mobile handsets and tablet devices. The company said average selling prices of its dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips, mostly used in PCs and which accounted for 39 percent of revenue last year, rose 16 percent during the quarter. Memory supply constraints have driven up prices this year, with DRAM prices more than doubling, Jefferies & Co analysts said in a pre-earnings note. ...

Orders top $100 billion as Ryanair gives Boeing a boost

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:11:28 +0100

By Alwyn Scott and Maria Sheahan PARIS (Reuters) - Orders at the Paris Airshow surpassed $100 billion on Wednesday, as planemakers Boeing and Airbus cashed in on demand for fuel-efficient jets and growth in both budget carriers and emerging markets. Ryanair, Europe's biggest low-cost airline, finalized an order for 175 Boeing 737-800 aircraft worth around $15.6 billion at list prices on day three of the aerospace industry's showcase event, the largest single order ever placed by a European airline with the U.S. group. ...

SandRidge CEO Tom Ward ousted, Bennett takes job

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:09:03 +0100

(Reuters) - The board of directors of SandRidge Energy Inc on Wednesday said it removed Tom Ward as chief executive, and named its president, James Bennett, to replace him, citing a need for new leadership at the U.S. oil and gas company, which has under fire from investors. Activist investor TPG-Axon Capital has also made claims about land deals entered into by the Ward family. ...

Cliffs could halt Bloom Lake expansion if iron price falls

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:04:19 +0100

By Allison Martell NEW YORK (Reuters) - Cliffs Natural Resources Inc said on Wednesday that if iron ore prices fell further, it could scrap a key expansion at its Bloom Lake mine in Canada's iron-rich Labrador Trough region. The company already delayed the expansion, which will double production capacity to 16 million metric tons a year, after benchmark iron ore prices plunged from a peak of over $190 per metric ton in 2011 to below $90 in 2012. The price has since recovered to around $120 per metric ton. ...

Latest search for Jimmy Hoffa's body ends with no remains found

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 22:00:15 +0100

By Joseph Lichterman OAKLAND TOWNSHIP, Michigan (Reuters) - The latest search for the remains of former Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa ended on Wednesday in a field near Detroit, where federal agents had dug with heavy equipment and shovels for three days in the hope of answering the decades old question, "Whatever happened to Jimmy Hoffa?" Since Monday, 40 agents for the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Michigan state police and Oakland County sheriff's office, and forensic anthropologists from Michigan State University had combed an acre of the overgrown field not far from where Hoffa was ...

TSX slumps as Fed mulls stimulus exit

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:53:18 +0100

By John Tilak TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's main stock index slipped on Wednesday after comments by the U.S. Federal Reserve that it could begin rolling back its stimulus program this year weighed on investor sentiment and caused declines across most sectors. Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said the U.S. central bank expects to slow the pace of its bond purchases later this year and bring them to a halt around mid-2014. Financial shares took the biggest toll on the market, while the gold-mining sector posted the sharpest decline, falling with the price of bullion. ...

Budget cuts hit security checks for defense contractors

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:52:06 +0100

By Mark Hosenball WASHINGTON (Reuters) - A budget shortfall has forced a Pentagon security unit to sharply cut back on regular investigations used to update security clearances for defense contractor employees. In a little-noticed announcement posted on its website on June 7, the Defense Security Service said that "due to a funding shortfall," it has been obliged to suspend "most" routine re-investigations of defense contractor employers cleared at the "Top Secret" level, at least through the end of September. ...

Finisar profit beats Street estimates, shares jump

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:44:07 +0100

(Reuters) - Network equipment maker Finisar Corp reported a quarterly profit that beat analysts' expectations as demand for its fiber optic products rose. Finisar shares rose 10 percent in trading after the bell. The stock closed at $14.52 on the Nasdaq on Wednesday. Net profit attributable to the company fell to $3.9 million, or 4 cents per share, in the fourth quarter from $18 million, or 19 cents per share, a year earlier. Operating costs rose 38 percent, mainly due to impairment charges of $7.6 million. Excluding items, the company earned 20 cents per share. Revenue rose 1. ...

As Tea Party rallies, FBI says IRS probe a top priority

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:36:41 +0100

By David Ingram and Patrick Temple-West WASHINGTON (Reuters) - More than a dozen FBI agents are assigned to a criminal probe into Internal Revenue Service scrutiny of conservative political groups, FBI Director Robert Mueller said on Wednesday. "It's a high-priority investigation and it needs to be handled with care, but it also needs to be pushed aggressively," he told the Senate Judiciary Committee at a hearing. Mueller spoke as Tea Party conservatives rallied outside the U.S. ...

Wall St slumps after Bernanke hints at slowing bond buying

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:36:41 +0100

By Ryan Vlastelica NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks fell more than 1 percent on Wednesday after Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke said the central bank would start to reduce its stimulus measures later this year if the economy is strong enough. Equities have been closely tethered to ultra-loose monetary policy, which has been key to the S&P's climb of more than 14 percent so far this year. Benchmark 10-year U.S. bond yields jumped to a 15-month high on expectations the Fed will reduce its bond buying. ...

Exclusive - Forest mulls bid for Irish drugmaker Elan: sources

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:32:20 +0100

By Jessica Toonkel and Soyoung Kim NEW YORK (Reuters) - Forest Laboratories Inc , the specialty drugmaker that counts investor Carl Icahn as a major shareholder, is among a handful of companies interested in bidding for Irish drugmaker Elan Corp Plc , two people familiar with the situation said. Elan, which has a market capitalization of nearly $7 billion (4.5 billion pounds), put itself up for sale last week in an effort to fend off a hostile offer from U.S. investment firm Royalty Pharma. Forest is among several mid-sized drugmakers considering an offer for Elan, the people said on ...

Britain to start sale of Lloyds soon, review RBS split

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:29:14 +0100

By Matt Scuffham and David Milliken LONDON (Reuters) - Britain is ready to start selling its shares in Lloyds Banking Group and will examine whether to break up Royal Bank of Scotland, Chancellor George Osborne said, admitting the re-privatisation of RBS remains a long way off. The government is keen to show Britain's part-nationalised banks are recovering from the 2008 financial crisis and a profitable sale of part of its 39 percent stake in Lloyds would allow it to claim at least partial success ahead of the next election in 2015. ...

Bank of England's King makes last call for more stimulus, bank reform

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:02:13 +0100

By David Milliken LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's economic recovery is not yet secure and more needs to be done to ensure the country's banks no longer pose a threat to taxpayers, Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said in his final speech on Wednesday. King steps down at the end of this month after more than 20 years at the bank, to be replaced by former Canadian central bank chief Mark Carney, and the 65-year-old stuck to familiar themes in an annual address to London's financial elite. ...

Brazil finance minister: Government unable to cut taxes for public transport

Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:00:40 +0100

BRASILIA (Reuters) - Brazil's federal government is unable to lower taxes for public transportation any further, Finance Minister Guido Mantega said on Wednesday as protests against a recent increase in bus fares and shoddy public services spread nationwide. The minister's remarks poured cold water on speculation that President Dilma Rousseff would provide financial help to municipalities trying to appease protesters who demand a reduction in transportation costs. (Reporting by Luciana Otoni; Writing by Walter Brandimarte)