Reuters: Business News

FTSE seen opening higher

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 06:58:55 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - The FTSE 100 is seen opening 19-23 points higher on Wednesday, after gains on Wall Street and in Asia with investor confidence buoyed by hopes Europe is close to bailing out debt-laden Greece.

Disney earnings beat expectations

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 06:13:32 GMT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A strong performance at its cable division and cost-cuts at its film studio propelled Walt Disney Co to better-than-expected earnings, but clouds remained over its theme parks.

"Robin Hood" tax campaign launched

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 06:10:42 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - A global tax on banks' financial transactions should be introduced to fight poverty, protect public services and tackle climate change, a group of nearly 50 organisations said in a letter to political leaders.

Greece rescue talk buoys stocks

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 06:04:59 GMT

HONG KONG (Reuters) - Asian stocks rose on Wednesday after reports that Europe was close to bailing out debt-strapped Greece, coaxing investors back to riskier assets, though uncertainty kept a lid on the euro.

BHP cautious on China demand

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 06:01:29 GMT

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Top global miner BHP Billiton signalled caution over a sustained global recovery and held off from a share buyback after reporting its weakest first-half profit in four years. BHP's July-December profit nevertheless beat market forecasts and was 24 percent stronger than in the previous half, spurring the miner to raise its dividend slightly, pushing its shares up more than 3 percent.

Bank to cut growth, raise inflation forecasts

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:49:43 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - The Bank of England will almost certainly revise down its growth forecasts for this year while ramping up its inflation profile when it unveils its quarterly Inflation Report on Wednesday, a Reuters poll showed on Friday.

Honda expands recall as more Toyotas probed

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 05:34:18 GMT

TOKYO/DETROIT (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co said it would recall another 440,000 cars around the world for faulty airbags as rival Toyota Motor Corp faced further probes over its largest-ever safety crisis.

European governments to help Greece

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 04:18:10 GMT

BERLIN (Reuters) - European governments have agreed in principle to help heavily indebted Greece, a senior German coalition source said on Tuesday, in what would be the first rescue of a euro zone member in the currency's 11-year history.

EU fund plan seen threatening economy

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 04:07:41 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - European Union plans to regulate managers of hedge funds and other alternative investments need changing to avoid damaging Europe's economy and curbing investor choice, a report from British MPs said on Wednesday.

Oil rises above $73 on dollar

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 03:54:17 GMT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Oil rose to settle more than 2 percent higher on Tuesday, buoyed by a weaker U.S. dollar, gains on Wall Street, and a storm approaching the U.S. Northeast.

Honda recalls 438,000 cars globally

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 03:44:20 GMT

TOKYO/DETROIT (Reuters) - Honda Motor Co said it would recall another 438,000 cars globally to replace an airbag deflator that could rupture and send shards towards the driver in an accident.

Greece rescue talk supports stocks

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 02:56:40 GMT

JPMorgan Cazenove CEO to step down

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:40:26 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - The chief executive of JPMorgan Cazenove is to step down next month as his short-term integration role comes to an end, the Financial Times reported in its Wednesday edition.

Defence must avoid axe in budget cuts - MPs

Wed, 10 Feb 2010 00:17:16 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - The next government should not commit to an ambitious deficit reduction plan until it has assessed the nation's future defence needs, MPs said Wednesday.

BHP cautious on China demand

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 23:53:19 GMT

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Top global miner BHP Billiton on Wednesday signalled caution over a sustained global recovery and held off from a share buyback after reporting its weakest first-half profit in four years. Its July-December profit nevertheless beat market forecasts by 11 percent, and the company was able to step up its dividend slightly -- sending its shares up 3 percent.

Gmail takes on Facebook, Twitter

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:41:58 GMT

MOUNTAIN VIEW, California (Reuters) - Google Inc injected social networking features into its popular Web email product as the world's No. 1 search engine seeks to fend off competition from Facebook and Twitter.

European governments agree to help Greece

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:40:01 GMT

Greece bailout hopes spur stocks, euro higher

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 22:30:00 GMT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. stocks and the euro on surged Tuesday on reports that euro zone countries decided in principle to come to the aid of debt-laden Greece, whose fiscal problems have soured risk appetite.

Inside Toyota's epic breakdown

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:39:20 GMT

TOYOTA CITY, Japan/DETROIT (Reuters) - Toyota Motor Corp , the world's most dominant and profitable automaker, was not accustomed to outsiders telling it what to do, let alone some obscure bureaucrat from the United States, whose own car industry was on taxpayer-funded life support.

Toyota recalls new Prius in latest safety fix

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 21:19:01 GMT

WASHINGTON/DETROIT (Reuters) - The spiralling crisis at Toyota Motor Corp deepened on Tuesday as the automaker said it would recall thousands of Camry sedans as well as nearly half a million new Prius and other hybrid cars to fix steering and braking problems.

Kraft confirms Cadbury's plan to shut Bristol plant

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 20:11:01 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - Kraft Foods Inc said on Tuesday it would not reverse a decision by Cadbury Plc to close a manufacturing plant near Bristol because the firm's plans were too advanced to change them.

Iceland wants new Icesave talks

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 19:56:28 GMT

REYKJAVIK (Reuters) - Iceland has recruited an American lawyer to lead potential new talks with the British and Dutch governments over the repayment of more than $5 billion (3.1 billion pounds) lost in Icelandic bank accounts during the financial crisis.

Eurozone agreed in principle to aid Greece - source

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:48:00 GMT

BERLIN (Reuters) - Euro zone countries have decided in principle to help debt-stricken Greece, a senior German ruling coalition source said on Tuesday.

Barclays CEO hits out at U.S. reforms

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:42:24 GMT

LONDON (Reuters) - A top banker condemned the United States for pushing ahead with its own financial regulatory reform which he said undermined attempts to set up a coordinated global framework for change.

German government denies decision on Greece aid

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 18:16:48 GMT

BERLIN (Reuters) - Reports that the euro zone has made a decision to help debt-stricken Greece were unfounded, a spokesman for the German government said on Tuesday.