Finance

Moody’s: Iceland investment grade rating under review

Iceland could lose its investment grade rating if it fails to resolve debt claims from Britain and the Netherlands, Moody’s Investors Service said as it cut the country’s credit outlook to negative. The ratings agency has warned the country might lose its Baa3 rating – which stands just one notch above junk level – if […]

ECB’s Trichet says euro solution for Greece workable

The financial aid mechanism for Greece agreed by euro zone leaders on March 25 is workable but unlikely ever to be activated, European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet said. “I am extraordinarily happy that the government of the euro area found a workable solution,” Trichet told an unscheduled news conference after a euro zone leaders’ […]

AIB may need $12bn more state help

Nationalised Anglo Irish Bank will need between 6 billion and 9 billion euros ($12.1bn) in further state investment to remain afloat, Chief Executive Mike Aynsley told the Irish Times newspaper. The state, which has already given AIB 4 billion euros in capital, would have to spend far more, up to 35 billion euros, if it […]

Bailed-out UK banks to lend £94bn to business

That would mark an almost 20 percent rise from gross levels the banks – which both failed to meet 2009/10 business lending targets – said they made available over the past 12 months. “In return for support during the financial crisis, we have made banks accept their obligation to lend more,” Darling told parliament in […]

German business morale up, eurozone factories hum

German business sentiment surged in March to its highest level since June 2008, and activity in the broader Eurozone’s manufacturing and services sectors accelerated sharply

EU’s Almunia warns of protectionist subsidies

European Competition Commissioner Joaquin Almunia urged countries outside the EU to adopt rules to monitor such subsidies. “All of us here today recognise the benefits of open markets and the downsides of protectionism. Subsidies can be an instrument of protectionism, countering the benefits of trade liberalisation,” Almunia said in a speech at an OECD conference. […]

WTO tells EU to stop illegal Airbus subsidies

A World Trade Organisation panel a called on the European Union to end illegal subsidies to Airbus, ratcheting up the stakes in the multi-trillion-dollar large aircraft market. The call came in a confidential 1,000-page ruling by the WTO panel in one of two cases in the trade dispute involving arch-rivals Boeing and EADS subsidiary Airbus. […]

French unions protest, capitalise on Sarkozy woes

French trains, schools and public services were hit on Tuesday by protests over pensions and wages, with unions looking to capitalise on a hefty defeat for President Nicolas Sarkozy at weekend regional elections. Up to half of all regional trains weren’t running and a third of high speed services were cancelled, while unions said that […]

Bulgaria to introduce “luxury” tax to fight crisis

Bulgaria plans to introduce a tax on the rich and put a limit on public salaries as it battles a deepening recession and tries to keep down its fiscal deficit, Prime Minister Boiko Borisov has announced. The centre-right government focused its austerity measures on the wealthy, after its ideas to raise the healthcare tax drew […]

Irish finance regulator to double staff, up fines

Ireland’s beefed-up financial regulator needs the authority to levy stiffer fines, its new chief said as he announced plans to double staff numbers over the next two years. Matthew Elderfield, hired to lead an overhaul of Ireland’s antiquated regulatory infrastructure, said he was surprised how poorly resourced the system was since taking over as head […]

Swiss upper house approves five bank data deals

The Swiss parliament’s upper house has approved deals with the US and four other countries to share data on potential tax dodgers, bringing the Alpine state closer in line with international standards. Under the deals Switzerland will have banking data sharing arrangements with France, Britain, the US, Denmark and Mexico in cases of tax fraud […]

Four banks to be tried in Milan derivatives case

An Italian judge has ordered four foreign banks to stand trial for aggravated fraud stemming from a 2005 derivatives swap for a 1.68 billion euro ($2.32bn) bond issued by Milan, legal sources said. UBS, Deutsche Bank, Germany’s Depfa and JPMorgan Chase & Co have been ordered to stand trial in a test case for billions […]

TC Invest mean business

Turks and Caicos Islands investment agency TCInvest helps wise investors discover their best opportunities

A postcard from Finland

Finland was named as a world leading innovation hot spot by the Economist Business Intelligence Unit and Harvard Business Review in 2009. At the heart of Finnish originality is Otaniemi, a district in the south bordering the capital Helsinki. This is the world’s newest Silicone Valley. So what makes it so different? Well, to start […]

Becoming an “A” player

Finance author Kenneth H. Marks provides a report on how to position your business to sell at a premium – don’t read at your own peril

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