Financial Times

• 
  Financial Times - UK Homepage

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India’s biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Health bill poised to pass US Senate test

  21 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  A broad healthcare overhaul was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle as the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need

• Heritage to sell Ugandan fields to Eni

  21 Nov 2009 | 2:52 pm

  Heritage, the UK-listed oil company, has agreed to sell its Ugandan oil fields to Eni, the Italian energy group, in a deal worth about $1.3bn

• Conservatives want army pull-out from Germany

  21 Nov 2009 | 11:03 am

  Britain should withdraw its army from Germany so it can take on “expeditionary roles” elsewhere under a strategic Nato overhaul, the British opposition defence spokesman said

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia’s hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party’s annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods ‘backwards’ and saying it must ‘get rid of bad political habits’

• 
  Financial Times - US homepage

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India’s biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Health bill poised to pass US Senate test

  21 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  A broad healthcare overhaul was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle as the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia’s hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party’s annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods ‘backwards’ and saying it must ‘get rid of bad political habits’

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner’s management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods’ hostile $16.2bn offer

• Barnier set to win EU financial role

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  Michel Barnier, former French foreign minister, is set to be put in charge of the EU’s single market, in a contentious move that followed a night of political horse-trading over top jobs in Brussels

• 
  Financial Times - Europe homepage

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India’s biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Heritage to sell Ugandan fields to Eni

  21 Nov 2009 | 2:52 pm

  Heritage, the UK-listed oil company, has agreed to sell its Ugandan oil fields to Eni, the Italian energy group, in a deal worth about $1.3bn

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia’s hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party’s annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods ‘backwards’ and saying it must ‘get rid of bad political habits’

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner’s management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods’ hostile $16.2bn offer

• Barnier set to win EU financial role

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  Michel Barnier, former French foreign minister, is set to be put in charge of the EU’s single market, in a contentious move that followed a night of political horse-trading over top jobs in Brussels

• 
  Financial Times - Asia homepage

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India’s biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia’s hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party’s annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods ‘backwards’ and saying it must ‘get rid of bad political habits’

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner’s management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods’ hostile $16.2bn offer

• Barnier set to win EU financial role

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  Michel Barnier, former French foreign minister, is set to be put in charge of the EU’s single market, in a contentious move that followed a night of political horse-trading over top jobs in Brussels

• Arrests made in €10m match-fixing probe

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:39 pm

  Police and sport officials have dismantled a criminal ring suspected of unprecedented match-fixing and betting in European professional football

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  Financial Times - Middle East Homepage

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India’s biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia’s hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party’s annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods ‘backwards’ and saying it must ‘get rid of bad political habits’

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner’s management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods’ hostile $16.2bn offer

• Barnier set to win EU financial role

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  Michel Barnier, former French foreign minister, is set to be put in charge of the EU’s single market, in a contentious move that followed a night of political horse-trading over top jobs in Brussels

• Arrests made in €10m match-fixing probe

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:39 pm

  Police and sport officials have dismantled a criminal ring suspected of unprecedented match-fixing and betting in European professional football

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  FT.com - Companies

• Heritage to sell Ugandan fields to Eni

  21 Nov 2009 | 2:52 pm

  Heritage, the UK-listed oil company, has agreed to sell its Ugandan oil fields to Eni, the Italian energy group, in a deal worth about $1.3bn

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Local connections key for Hershey

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:40 pm

  The chocolate company is contemplating entering the battle for Cadbury

• Carlyle joins Gas Natural asset race

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pm

  Carlyle has teamed up with Spain's Magnum Capital, and is likely to bid through its joint venture with Riverstone Holdings, for assets put up for sale by the Spanish gas company

• Closing credits roll for Oprah

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pm

  A tearful Oprah Winfrey said she had decided 'after much prayer and months of careful thought' that the Oprah Winfrey Show would finish in 2011

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  FT.com - Energy

• Investors must ask about shale gas cost

  22 Nov 2009 | 2:37 am

  Doubt over the true potential of shale gas production has filtered through to some of the institutional investors in energy companies, writes John Dizard

• Heritage to sell Ugandan fields to Eni

  21 Nov 2009 | 2:52 pm

  Heritage, the UK-listed oil company, has agreed to sell its Ugandan oil fields to Eni, the Italian energy group, in a deal worth about $1.3bn

• Putin eases European gas supply fears in Yalta talks

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Fears that European gas supplies could be disrupted this winter have eased after Russia's prime minister agreed to waive financial sanctions against recession-battered...

• Shale gas investors need to sift the valid claims from the hot air

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  A squabble in the energy industry about the true potential for shale gas, discussed in this column this month, has filtered through to the attention of some of the...

• Rio Tinto bolstered by US coal sale

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:57 pm

  Gobal mining company that faced huge debt burden a year ago continues recapitalisation drive and nets $741m by spinning off US coal assets

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  FT.com - Mining

• Rio Tinto bolstered by US coal sale

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:57 pm

  Gobal mining company that faced huge debt burden a year ago continues recapitalisation drive and nets $741m by spinning off US coal assets

• Polyus fails to sell 5 per cent stake

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:48 am

  Russia's top gold miner, said on Friday its two main owners had decided not to sell a 5 per cent stake in the company 'due to market conditions'

• Royal Mint cashes in as gold market coins it

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:38 pm

  Production of gold coins has been dramatically ramped up as demand for the precious metal continues to surge

• Rio / BHP

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:03 am

  Rhetoric on both sides suggests the joint venture is still on, but if resolve were weakening in the Rio camp, it would be entirely understandable

• BHP chief says big mining will meet demand

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:45 am

  Big mining houses have the capacity to meet rising demand for fuels and ores, says Marius Kloppers, downplaying fears by industrialising nations over 'resources security'

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  FT.com - Oil & Gas

• Heritage to sell Ugandan fields to Eni

  21 Nov 2009 | 2:52 pm

  Heritage, the UK-listed oil company, has agreed to sell its Ugandan oil fields to Eni, the Italian energy group, in a deal worth about $1.3bn

• Carlyle joins Gas Natural asset race

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pm

  Carlyle has teamed up with Spain's Magnum Capital, and is likely to bid through its joint venture with Riverstone Holdings, for assets put up for sale by the Spanish gas company

• Total cleared of blame for accident

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:51 pm

  A French court rules that the energy group was not responsible for one of the country's worst industrial disasters in which 31 people were killed

• Iraq woos French investors

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:50 am

  The Iraqi government has stepped up its efforts to encourage French business to invest in the oil-rich country, telling Total it could expect favourable treatment

• Glencore fires up to recapture Prodeco coal

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:38 am

  The financial position of Glencore continues to improve, giving it more firepower to repurchase prized coal assets from Xstrata, an affiliated mining company

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  FT.com - Utilities

• Pennon weathers worst of crisis

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:17 pm

  The water and waste management group saw half-year profits rise 13% on the back of a strong performance by its two subsidiaries

• GE's bid for Areva arm poses questions

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:38 pm

  The sale of Areva's power transmission and distribution subsidiary sparks speculation about whether France really is ready to choose a foreign bid over a home-grown solution

• National Grid profits rise despite drop in demand

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:30 am

  The supplier of electricity and gas in the UK and US reported a 16% rise in interim pre-tax profits despite a fall in demand from energy customers due to the recession

• New EDF chief voices dissent

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:08 pm

  Henri Proglio has sparked a controversy just days before he takes over at France's state-controlled nuclear operator by claiming the country's showcase atomic industry is not working

• Doosan focuses energy on renewables

  16 Nov 2009 | 11:30 am

  Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction, South Korea's biggest power plant and equipment maker, is investing Won700bn to develop wind turbines and other green technologies

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  FT.com - Industrials

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India's biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Staffline earnings to exceed expectations

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:48 pm

  Shares rise almost 20% as the UK recruitment agency is buoyed by the completion of a number of acquisitions and implementation of a cost-cutting programme

• DR Horton narrows loss as orders surge

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:02 pm

  DR Horton, the second biggest homebuilder in the US, sees its losses narrow in the latest quarter as house orders surged, but says market conditions remain challenging

• VW green light for Porsche tie-up

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:54 am

  Volkswagen's supervisory board gave the go-ahead for the takeover of Porsche and agreed on a €25.8bn three-year investment programme

• Chemring raises $280m to help fund deals

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:15 am

  The military decoy and pyrotechnic device group has placed $280m of loan notes with institutional investors, giving it renewed firepower for further acquisitions

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  FT.com - Chemicals

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India's biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Mitsubishi Chemical bids $2.4bn for former division

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:00 am

  Japan's biggest chemicals manufacturer offers $2.4bn to acquire acrylic resin maker Mitsubishi Rayon, a former division spun off from the parent company in 1950

• EU fines consultant for alleged cartel role

  11 Nov 2009 | 2:46 pm

  Europe's competition regulator slaps Zurich-based AC Treuhand with a substantial fine amid its alleged role in organising the operational framework for cartels

• Reliance looks to buy LyondellBasell assets

  9 Nov 2009 | 4:44 pm

  The bankrupt international petrochemical group has assets that could be worth as much as $6bn and would mark the first large-scale overseas foray by Mukesh Ambani

• Carr's Milling profits slide

  9 Nov 2009 | 9:02 am

  Profits fell at Carr's Milling Industries after the fertiliser division that gave a significant boost 12 months ago fell into the red this year

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  FT.com - Basic Resources

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India's biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• BHP chief says big mining will meet demand

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:45 am

  Big mining houses have the capacity to meet rising demand for fuels and ores, says Marius Kloppers, downplaying fears by industrialising nations over 'resources security'

• Lonmin hit by strength of rand

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:15 pm

  The platinum mining group swung to a pre-tax loss after metals prices slumped and it was forced to take action to restructure the company. But the group said prices were expected to rise over the next two years

• Asian exporters told to adapt to poor demand

  8 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm

  Asia's export-focused companies must adapt to continued sluggish global consumer demand, says a leading business advisory firm

• Cost cuts deliver for Deutsche Post

  5 Nov 2009 | 4:42 am

  German mail and logistics group reports that cost cuts have helped its underlying earnings for 2009 come in higher than expected

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  FT.com - Construction

• DR Horton narrows loss as orders surge

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:02 pm

  DR Horton, the second biggest homebuilder in the US, sees its losses narrow in the latest quarter as house orders surged, but says market conditions remain challenging

• Housebuilders believe worst may be over

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:32 pm

  The number of homes being built has risen to its highest level for more than a year

• Wolseley continues to see 'tough' markets

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:29 pm

  The building materials group continues to experience 'extremely tough' market conditions as it reported falling revenues and a rise in net debt to £1.2m for the three months to November

• Bovis Homes upbeat

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:24 pm

  The Kent-based housebuilder says the number of private reservations has risen by 83% this year. It expects to see a gradual improvement of the housing market

• Barratt cautious on housing market

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:16 am

  Britain's largest housebuilder says it does not expect any short-term improvement in the subdued level of activity in the housing market

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  FT.com - Industrial Goods

• Staffline earnings to exceed expectations

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:48 pm

  Shares rise almost 20% as the UK recruitment agency is buoyed by the completion of a number of acquisitions and implementation of a cost-cutting programme

• UK Mail lifts profits

  18 Nov 2009 | 7:06 pm

  The postal and parcel delivery company has seen some uplift in business as consumers sought alternatives to Royal Mail's service, but revenues fell as the recession dragged on demand

• Bombardier chosen by SNCF

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The Canadian train and aircraft maker confirmed that the French rail group had picked it as the preferred bidder for a contract to supply suburban and regional train sets

• Capita sees rate of outsourcing slowing

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:15 pm

  UK's largest support services group insists there was no let-up in the trend for businesses to outsource back office jobs, but the shares fell amid concerns over slowing rate of contract wins

• Case Studies: Made in Britain

  17 Nov 2009 | 11:31 am

  Peter Marsh looks at the experiences of a servi-manufacturer, a high-value manufacturer and a virtual manufacturer, all companies striving to design and create better products

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  FT.com - Aerospace & Defence

• Chemring raises $280m to help fund deals

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:15 am

  The military decoy and pyrotechnic device group has placed $280m of loan notes with institutional investors, giving it renewed firepower for further acquisitions

• Nuts and bolts team regains command

  18 Nov 2009 | 1:04 pm

  Boeing renews its commitment to engineering and execution following a management reshuffle last month

• Rocket scientist promotes open culture

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:43 pm

  Jim Albaugh, the new head of Boeing's commercial aircraft division, holds regular meetings with workers where he seeks to reassure them that it is important to highlight problems

• Deadline clouds Boeing's horizon

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:15 pm

  The question on everyone's lips at the Dubai air show was whether Boeing would get its 787 Dreamliner airborne by the end of the year or whether the troubled programme would miss yet another deadline

• Dubai's air traffic defies downturn

  18 Nov 2009 | 7:34 am

  Aviation has remained one of the city's few upbeat sectors with traffic through the airport rising for five months

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  FT.com - Automobiles

• New model to rise from the ashes of Karmann

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Volkswagen yesterday said it would buy land, machinery and equipment from Karmann, the insolvent contract manufacturer that became one of the most prominent victims of...

• White weddings become catalyst for platinum recovery in China

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Fu Qingyun is recently married and a poster bride for a turnround in the world platinum market, powered, as are so many other economic sectors these days, by China. Ms...

• VW green light for Porsche tie-up

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:54 am

  Volkswagen's supervisory board gave the go-ahead for the takeover of Porsche and agreed on a €25.8bn three-year investment programme

• GM data mask the difficult times ahead

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  General Motors' revelation this week that it is sitting on a pile of cash and will soon start repaying US and Canadian government loans masks a more sobering message...

• MAN looks to build in the Brics

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:23 pm

  The German truckmaker has bought a 25 per cent stake in China's largest lorry manufacturer, bought the top lorry business in Brazil and launched a joint venture in India

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  FT.com - Transport

• AirAsia seeks dual listing in Asean

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:39 am

  South-east Asia's largest low-cost airline is considering a secondary listing in Thailand, which could lead to a merger of AirAsia with its Thai and Indonesian affiliates

• Emirates forced to raise prices by Berlin

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The German government has forced Dubai's Emirates airline to charge more for business class tickets on flights out of Germany to destinations in Asia and South Africa...

• Berlin forces up Emirates' business fares

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:57 am

  Berlin has forced Emirates to raise the prices of business class tickets on flights out Germany as concerns about the Middle East's largest airline grow as it expands into continental Europe

• Computer glitch causes US flight delays

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:11 am

  A glitch in the computer system that processes US flight plan data causes delays in the US but safety has not been compromised, according to the FAA

• Bombardier chosen by SNCF

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The Canadian train and aircraft maker confirmed that the French rail group had picked it as the preferred bidder for a contract to supply suburban and regional train sets

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  FT.com - Airlines

• AirAsia seeks dual listing in Asean

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:39 am

  South-east Asia's largest low-cost airline is considering a secondary listing in Thailand, which could lead to a merger of AirAsia with its Thai and Indonesian affiliates

• Berlin forces up Emirates' business fares

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:57 am

  Berlin has forced Emirates to raise the prices of business class tickets on flights out Germany as concerns about the Middle East's largest airline grow as it expands into continental Europe

• Computer glitch causes US flight delays

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:11 am

  A glitch in the computer system that processes US flight plan data causes delays in the US but safety has not been compromised, according to the FAA

• Fuel hedges weigh on Air France

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:05 pm

  Air France-KLM, Europe's largest airline, unveils a net loss of €147m in its second quarter after suffering a further drop in revenues from its cargo operations and large hedging losses

• JAL

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am

  Delta and American Airlines are jostling to throw money at the perennial problem that is Asia's largest airline

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  FT.com - Shipping

• CMA CGM to restructure debts

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:54 am

  The world's third-largest container shipping line still needs an urgent restructuring of its debts and supplier contracts in spite of returning to profit on a key route, said a senior executive for Marseilles-based CMA CGM

• Capesize bids push Baltic to high

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:40 pm

  The benchmark for freight costs for dry bulk commodities hit a 2009 high as bids rose for vessels that transport iron ore and coal to China

• Tankers store oil as futures prices rocket

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:25 pm

  A research by a London shipbroker reveals that one in 12 of the world's largest crude oil tankers are being used to store oil rather than move it from place to place

• Short View: Baltic Dry Index's green light?

  16 Nov 2009 | 10:19 am

  The BDI's upturn may just indicate a short-term economic boost, and cannot be seen as a reliable sign of smooth sailing ahead, writes Aline van Duyn

• Maersk hits out at container line rescues

  12 Nov 2009 | 3:45 pm

  The head of the company that owns the world's largest container carrier has criticised rescues of struggling container lines by governments and shipowners, accusing them of 'inflicting damage on the healthy part of the industry'

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  FT.com - Rail

• Bombardier chosen by SNCF

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The Canadian train and aircraft maker confirmed that the French rail group had picked it as the preferred bidder for a contract to supply suburban and regional train sets

• Rail fares set to rise by average of 1.1%

  16 Nov 2009 | 6:04 pm

  The Association of Train Operating Companies says the increases slated for January are the lowest since the industry's privatisation, but passengers on some routes see above-average rises

• Rail chief urges caution on competition

  15 Nov 2009 | 10:57 am

  The chairman of Spain's state-owned train operator said it should retain its monopoly over aspects of rail operation

• New East Coast rail operator in service pledge

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:41 pm

  The chairman of the company that will run the franchise insists that it will run like a normal commercial operation and pay a 'substantial' sum to government to operate the service

• East coast rail takes the public route

  12 Nov 2009 | 3:46 pm

  In a week in which hundreds of trains have been cancelled on FirstGroup's FirstCapital Connect service, the notion that all rail services may be better off in the public sector may have crossed weary commuters' minds.

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  FT.com - Retail & Consumer

• The big stories

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Glass half full? The mixed fortunes of the drinks industry were highlighted this week by results from Enterprise, the tenanted pub chain, and Majestic Wine. Clearly...

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Local connections key for Hershey

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:40 pm

  The chocolate company is contemplating entering the battle for Cadbury

• Reclusive Ferrero has financial wherewithal

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:59 pm

  The Italian confectionery group may not be glamourous but it has annual revenue of €6.2bn and net profit of €371m

• Man in the News: Marc Bolland

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:18 pm

  Markets have signalled high hopes in the 'billion-dollar' Dutchman who will lead the British high-street retailer Marks and Spencer

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  FT.com - Food & Beverage

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Local connections key for Hershey

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:40 pm

  The chocolate company is contemplating entering the battle for Cadbury

• Reclusive Ferrero has financial wherewithal

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:59 pm

  The Italian confectionery group may not be glamourous but it has annual revenue of €6.2bn and net profit of €371m

• Fullers highlights sector split

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:10 am

  Fuller Smith & Turner provided further evidence that the pub sector is split between successful managed operators and struggling leased and tenanted ones after it delivered robust first-half results

• Wm Morrison

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:31 pm

  The pace of like-for-like sales growth at the retailer slowed from 7 per cent to 4.3 per cent in the third quarter. How will Morrison regain its growth?

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  FT.com - Personal Goods

• Luxury goods

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm

  Recovering economies, asset prices and bonuses are beginning to breathe life back into the market for expensive trinkets

• Sony hopes SOS offering will be a saviour

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:07 am

  The Sony Online Service is the electronic company's attempt to make Sony televisions and devices stand apart from the competition by delivering movies, games and music to them

• Reckitt merger reports doubted

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:13 pm

  Speculation that the household cleaning products group could be close to a merger with Colgate-Palmolive is greeted with scepticism by analysts

• Europe's appliance industry makes the grade

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:47 pm

  Appliance makers have won changes to a new European energy efficiency labelling scheme after they warned that an earlier rescaling plan could have cost them more than €1.5bn ($2.2bn, £1.4bn) in lost sales

• Burberry retrenches via social network

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:48 am

  Burberry is hoping for a boost to sales of trenchcoats after it launched its social networking site based round the distinctive garment

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  FT.com - Retail

• Man in the News: Marc Bolland

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:18 pm

  Markets have signalled high hopes in the 'billion-dollar' Dutchman who will lead the British high-street retailer Marks and Spencer

• Mortgages before current accounts at Tesco

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:33 am

  The supermarket chain, which has pledged to become the 'people's bank', has indicated that it could look to introduce mortgages by the end of next year, but may not begin offering current accounts until 2011

• Discounters rush to grab Woolies inheritance

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:46 am

  Discount retailers have been the major beneficiaries of Woolworths' collapse, with 39% of stores now let taken by Poundland, B&M Bargains and other value chains

• First Quench to shed more jobs and stores

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:19 am

  The administrators of First Quench, owners of Threshers and Wine Rack chains, said it would cut almost 1,900 jobs and close hundreds more stores

• US retailers turn to power of the app

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:56 pm

  Leading US retailers are this year expanding their Christmas sales drive by targeting smartphone users through the new generation of mobile devices such as the Apple iPhone, the Palm Pre and BlackBerry's Storm

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  FT.com - Travel & Leisure

• The big stories

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Glass half full? The mixed fortunes of the drinks industry were highlighted this week by results from Enterprise, the tenanted pub chain, and Majestic Wine. Clearly...

• Fullers highlights sector split

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:10 am

  Fuller Smith & Turner provided further evidence that the pub sector is split between successful managed operators and struggling leased and tenanted ones after it delivered robust first-half results

• Cheap does not mean cheerful, says Toys R Us

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  This year's hard-to-find Christmas toy in the US, the Zhu Zhu Pets robotic hamster, costs about $10. But as he flips through Toys R Us's annual catalogue at the...

• Lloyds takes stake to bail out Admiral

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:48 pm

  Admiral Taverns completes debt-for-equity swap in which Lloyds Banking Group takes an almost 50% holding

• Enterprise tumbles and offers little cheer

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:16 am

  Ted Tuppen, the pub group's chief executive, told investors: 'Trade will not be a lot easier next year even if the sun comes out and the recession ends'

• 
  FT.com - Health

• J&J stays true to its diversified model

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:39 pm

  Johnson & Johnson defends its strategy, with its three broad divisions of medical devices, consumer health and pharmaceuticals, even as the approach fails to shield it from industry pains

• Philip Morris ordered to pay $300m to smoker

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:33 pm

  A Florida jury orders cigarette maker Philip Morris USA to pay $300m in damages to a 61-year-old ex-smoker who is wheelchair-bound by emphysema

• Under-fives get swine flu jabs

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Children under five will be the next group to be given priority in receiving the swine flu vaccine, Sir Liam Donaldson, the chief medical officer, said yesterday. The...

• Cheap does not mean cheerful, says Toys R Us

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  This year's hard-to-find Christmas toy in the US, the Zhu Zhu Pets robotic hamster, costs about $10. But as he flips through Toys R Us's annual catalogue at the...

• Regulations trim growth at United Drug

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:54 pm

  Reduced prices in its main Irish markets have crimped sales growth at the healthcare products supplier, in spite of strong growth in its contract sales and drug packaging businesses

• 
  FT.com - Health Care

• NHS contractors in blackmail probe

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:53 pm

  Three managers have been arrested over an alleged immigration scam after a raid on the offices of ISS Mediclean at Kingston Hospital in Surrey, where the organisation is responsible for cleaning, catering, car parking and security

• Property concerns prompt NHS probe

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:15 pm

  An inquiry is being opened into how far the health service should retain control of its property when it puts services out to tender or allows mergers and takeovers

• Care UK profits up 25%

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:04 pm

  The pressures on local authority budgets will result in more business for private sector care services, Care UK says, as the health and care group reports a 25 per cent rise in full-year profits

• Isis drug stake set for solid returns

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:35 pm

  ScriptSwitch, the drug comparison software company, has been acquired by US-based UnitedHealth, generating a four-fold return for the Coventry-based group's private equity backers

• ACS pushes for patient testing in pharmacies

  9 Nov 2009 | 6:29 pm

  Working with UK pharmacies is likely to form part of the future organic growth of Advanced Computer Software, which has plans to help consolidate the primary care market of the NHS

• 
  FT.com - Pharmaceuticals

• J&J stays true to its diversified model

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:39 pm

  Johnson & Johnson defends its strategy, with its three broad divisions of medical devices, consumer health and pharmaceuticals, even as the approach fails to shield it from industry pains

• Regulator plays down fake medicine threat

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:43 pm

  The watchdog reassures consumers that it is 'extremely rare' to receive counterfeit drugs from a registered pharmacy or other legitimate outlet

• Regulations trim growth at United Drug

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:54 pm

  Reduced prices in its main Irish markets have crimped sales growth at the healthcare products supplier, in spite of strong growth in its contract sales and drug packaging businesses

• GSK deal draws smokers' vaccine closer

  16 Nov 2009 | 2:32 pm

  The NicVAX vaccine moved closer to the market after a deal between GlaxoSmithKline and the US biotech company Nabi Pharmaceuticals, which developed the product

• GSK plans to cut drug production waste

  15 Nov 2009 | 2:23 pm

  The UK-based pharmaceutical group has set a target to cut by two-thirds the waste generated by medicines production

• 
  FT.com - IT

• E-readers in short supply for holidays

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:04 pm

  Barnes & Noble and Sony failed to establish supply chains robust enough to meet demand because they brought their newest models to market prematurely, say analysts

• Sony hopes SOS offering will be a saviour

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:07 am

  The Sony Online Service is the electronic company's attempt to make Sony televisions and devices stand apart from the competition by delivering movies, games and music to them

• Oracle wins more time for Sun merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:39 am

  The European Commission extends the deadline for approval of Oracle's proposed $7.4bn merger with rival Sun Microsystems

• Raymarine encounters rough waters

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Shares in Raymarine sunk 40 per cent to 6.91p yesterday after the marine electronics specialist warned that shareholders were likely to lose their money. The group...

• Fragile recovery warning by Infineon

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Shares in Infineon fell 7 per cent yesterday after Europe's second-largest chipmaker gave a downbeat assessment of its prospects, warning investors to continue to...

• 
  FT.com - Media

• E-readers in short supply for holidays

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:04 pm

  Barnes & Noble and Sony failed to establish supply chains robust enough to meet demand because they brought their newest models to market prematurely, say analysts

• Closing credits roll for Oprah

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pm

  A tearful Oprah Winfrey said she had decided 'after much prayer and months of careful thought' that the Oprah Winfrey Show would finish in 2011

• Push starts to make 'Digital Britain' law

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:01 am

  The government has put forward legislation to tackle illegal file-sharing and abuse of internet domain names, protect local news provision and add age ratings to video games

• Stake valuations hit Comcast deal for NBC

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:53 pm

  General Electric and Vivendi are at least $1bn apart in their valuation of the French group's stake in NBC Universal, damping hopes of a quick resolution to a stand-off that is holding up Comcast's planned bid for a majority stake in the US broadcast, cable and film group

• Axel Springer in Dogan Yayin deal

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:01 pm

  The German publisher plans to buy a 29% stake in Dogan Yayin, provided the Turkish media group settles its troubles with regulators

• 
  FT.com - Telecoms

• Orange and T-Mobile stubborn over merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:28 pm

  Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom say they see no reason to bow to Ofcom, the telecoms watchdog, to gain regulatory approval for the merger of their UK operations

• Anite pins hopes on renewed LTE spending

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:59 am

  The telecommunications testing group is pinning its hopes for a second-half upturn on renewed spending on next-generation networks

• Vodafone vexed by Verizon stance

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The chief executive of Vodafone yesterday said that the question of dividend payments from Verizon Wireless, its US joint venture, was one of the most pressing items...

• Orascom to challenge $596m tax bill

  19 Nov 2009 | 5:01 am

  Egyptian teleco says it will dispute an Algerian demand for $596.6m in back taxes and penalties against its subsidiary Orascom Telecom Algeria

• 'Go global', Japanese mobile makers told

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:19 am

  The country's handset companies are warned that they may have only two years left to expand abroad or risk being left behind in the technology race

• 
  FT.com - Financials

• Mixed picture on property funds

  22 Nov 2009 | 2:00 am

  Europe's real estate fund industry increased its assets under management last year, but the picture seems to have soured this year

• Dollar peps up after low point

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The dollar stabilised this week as the recent rally in risky assets appeared to falter and the Federal Reserve made rare comments on the value of the currency. The...

• Bank urges restraint in boom times

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The financial crisis "might plausibly have been less costly for the real economy" if authorities had had an effective way of damping the credit boom, the Bank of...

• Government-owned deposit takers competitive but lack consistency

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  State-backed savings providers have in some cases become more competitive in the past year, according to analysts, but there is little evidence to suggest they...

• Germany warns US on market bubbles

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Germany's new finance minister yesterday echoed Chinese warnings that low US interest rates and a weak dollar are raising the threat of fresh global asset price...

• 
  FT.com - Banks

• Sarasin goes big on equities

  22 Nov 2009 | 2:26 am

  Burkhard Varnholt says Sarasin is taking a contrarian view and has doubled its equities exposure and implemented a 'sustainability filter'

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• A suburban salesman

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pm

  The K1 affair: In detaining Helmut Kiener, German prosecutors have provoked much intrigue over the hedge fund operator with big banks as clients but a history of regulatory run-ins

• Nationwide lashes out at rescued banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  The head of Nationwide, Britain's biggest building society, accuses government-backed companies of seriously distorting the savings market as its profits fall more than 60%

• Nationwide seeks help in new rash of acronyms

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  The building society sector, led by the leading operator, approaches regulators about a CoCo-based model that could buttress their stressed capital bases

• 
  FT.com - Insurance

• L&G set to appoint John Stewart as chairman

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:16 pm

  The UK's third largest life and pensions company is on the verge of appointing John Stewart, the former head of National Australia Bank, as its new chairman, pending FSA approval

• L&G close to finding chairman

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:53 pm

  The life and pensions group, has identified its preferred candidate to become chairman and hopes to make an appointment within days

• Chinatrust to buy Nan Shan Life stake

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  Taiwan's Chinatrust Financial is set to pay $660m for a 30 per cent stake in Nan Shan Life Insurance, just a month after it was defeated in its bid to buy the AIG subsidiary

• Rising inflows boost Fortis

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:42 am

  Belgian insurance group Fortis, broken up as one of Europe's largest victims of the financial crisis, reports net profit of €196m and says it expects 2009 inflows to at least match last year's levels

• Geithner under fire over AIG payments

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:20 pm

  The New York Federal Res­erve under Tim Geithner 'severely limited its ability' to extract ­concessions from AIG's counter­parties in talks that ended with $27.1bn of public money transferred to the likes of Société Générale and Goldman Sachs, according to a government watchdog

• 
  Financial Times - Property

• Gold rush hits prime property

  22 Nov 2009 | 1:43 am

  Some say European commercial real estate is near its peak and is in danger of overheating

• Survey brands stamp duty cut a failure

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  The stamp duty holiday has helped fewer than a quarter of the homebuyers that government estimates predicted would benefit from it, according to a study by a leading...

• Land Securities seeks growth viadevelopment

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Land Securities, the UK's largest property company, is pinning medium-term growth on development as it seeks to differentiate itself from other cash-rich investors...

• Housing market suffers setback

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  New US residential construction plunged last month, falling for the first time since April, so taking the wind out of the housing market's fragile recovery, figures...

• Ambac surge fails to offset housing setback

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  A rally among bond insurers was not enough to lift Wall Street out of the red in early trading yesterday after the release of disappointing housing figures. The...

• 
  Financial Times - Financial Services

• Sarasin goes big on equities

  22 Nov 2009 | 2:26 am

  Burkhard Varnholt says Sarasin is taking a contrarian view and has doubled its equities exposure and implemented a 'sustainability filter'

• Soul-searching has much further to go

  22 Nov 2009 | 2:24 am

  Truly responsible asset management means much more than having a desire to create and foster good governance at investee companies

• Hedge funds plan onshore versions

  22 Nov 2009 | 1:49 am

  More than half of European hedge fund companies plan to launch regulated, onshore versions

• Gold rush hits prime property

  22 Nov 2009 | 1:43 am

  Some say European commercial real estate is near its peak and is in danger of overheating

• Ohio sues three ratings agencies

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:23 pm

  The top three US credit ratings agencies are accused of 'wreaking havoc' on US financial markets by providing inflated ratings and costing state funds hundreds of millions of dollars

• 
  FT.com - Companies US & Canada

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India's biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Ohio sues three ratings agencies

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:23 pm

  The top three US credit ratings agencies are accused of 'wreaking havoc' on US financial markets by providing inflated ratings and costing state funds hundreds of millions of dollars

• E-readers in short supply for holidays

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:04 pm

  Barnes & Noble and Sony failed to establish supply chains robust enough to meet demand because they brought their newest models to market prematurely, say analysts

• Local connections key for Hershey

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:40 pm

  The chocolate company is contemplating entering the battle for Cadbury

• 
  FT.com - Companies, Europe

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• Orange and T-Mobile stubborn over merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:28 pm

  Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom say they see no reason to bow to Ofcom, the telecoms watchdog, to gain regulatory approval for the merger of their UK operations

• KKR

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:03 pm

  The age of transparency is upon the private equity firm whose third-quarter results are its first since its merger with its Amsterdam listed co-investor

• Reclusive Ferrero has financial wherewithal

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:59 pm

  The Italian confectionery group may not be glamourous but it has annual revenue of €6.2bn and net profit of €371m

• Carlyle joins Gas Natural asset race

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:26 pm

  Carlyle has teamed up with Spain's Magnum Capital, and is likely to bid through its joint venture with Riverstone Holdings, for assets put up for sale by the Spanish gas company

• 
  FT.com - Companies UK

• Heritage to sell Ugandan fields to Eni

  21 Nov 2009 | 2:52 pm

  Heritage, the UK-listed oil company, has agreed to sell its Ugandan oil fields to Eni, the Italian energy group, in a deal worth about $1.3bn

• Staffline earnings to exceed expectations

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:48 pm

  Shares rise almost 20% as the UK recruitment agency is buoyed by the completion of a number of acquisitions and implementation of a cost-cutting programme

• Government-owned deposit takers competitive but lack consistency

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  State-backed savings providers have in some cases become more competitive in the past year, according to analysts, but there is little evidence to suggest they...

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Orange and T-Mobile stubborn over merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:28 pm

  Deutsche Telekom and France Telecom say they see no reason to bow to Ofcom, the telecoms watchdog, to gain regulatory approval for the merger of their UK operations

• 
  FT.com - UK Smaller companies

• Anite pins hopes on renewed LTE spending

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:59 am

  The telecommunications testing group is pinning its hopes for a second-half upturn on renewed spending on next-generation networks

• Highland Spring buys Greencore's water arm

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:28 pm

  The Scottish company has agreed to acquire the bottled water division of the Dublin-based group for up to £17.5m

• Aquarius invests in Conformetrix

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:05 am

  Aquarius makes its first investment in Conformetrix, a company offering a new way to design drugs to treat incurable diseases

• LSE fines Regal over Aim rule breaches

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:34 am

  Oil group Regal Petroleum is fined £600,000 and issued with a formal censure by the LSE for breaches in the rules on market-moving announcements by Aim companies

• Renold raises £27m as chain demand slips

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:10 am

  The Manchester-based industrial chain company, which also makes a range of gears and couplings, sees sales slip to £75.5m as its global customer base destocked parts and trimmed orders

• 
  FT.com - Companies Asia-Pacific

• Reliance offers about $10bn for Lyondell

  22 Nov 2009 | 12:24 am

  Reliance Industries, India's biggest-listed group, is planning to offer $10bn to acquire a controlling stake in LyondellBasell, the bankrupt Dutch-based petrochemical giant, in what would be one of the largest offshore acquisition by an Indian company, said people familiar with the matter

• Rare earth elements

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  China has cornered the market in commodities that are arguably as important as oil to a modern economy

• Japan, deflating

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:22 pm

  Buying stocks has proved an effective strategy everywhere except in the only developed market in negative territory in the year to date

• Sony hopes SOS offering will be a saviour

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:07 am

  The Sony Online Service is the electronic company's attempt to make Sony televisions and devices stand apart from the competition by delivering movies, games and music to them

• Minsheng bid block was 'costly mistake'

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  US authorities blocked the Chinese bank Minsheng from acquiring an American lender in a decision that may have cost almost $300m of taxpayers' money and $1.4bn from an...

• 
  FT.com - Companies Africa

• British drinkers console SABMiller

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:43 pm

  Emerging markets fail to compensate for decline in beer sales in the developed world for world's second-largest brewer, but UK bucks the trend

• Investec looks to UK for 10% growth

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:25 pm

  The South African financial services group plans to increase its lending to UK customers,

• Dubai air show deals starting to trickle in

  17 Nov 2009 | 11:56 am

  The third day of the Dubai air show ends much as the first two did, with just a handful of extra order announcements from the main aircraft manufacturers, which organisers said brought the total value of air-show deals to $8.3bn

• Crisis deepens at South African energy group

  11 Nov 2009 | 10:51 am

  Eskom chief still refusing to quit after chairman resigns and fears increase of supply troubles to come after next year's football World Cup

• SingTel eyes opportunities in Africa to boost growth

  10 Nov 2009 | 9:27 pm

  Southeast Asia's top telecoms group plans to muscle in on the fast-growing markets of Africa after it gave a cautious outlook for its core Singapore and Australian markets

• 
  FT.com - Companies - Middle East

• GE prices Islamic corporate bond

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:06 pm

  GE has taken a move that will help open up a niche market to a broader non-Muslim investor base

• Berlin forces up Emirates' business fares

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:57 am

  Berlin has forced Emirates to raise the prices of business class tickets on flights out Germany as concerns about the Middle East's largest airline grow as it expands into continental Europe

• Orascom to challenge $596m tax bill

  19 Nov 2009 | 5:01 am

  Egyptian teleco says it will dispute an Algerian demand for $596.6m in back taxes and penalties against its subsidiary Orascom Telecom Algeria

• Dubai's air traffic defies downturn

  18 Nov 2009 | 7:34 am

  Aviation has remained one of the city's few upbeat sectors with traffic through the airport rising for five months

• Emirates eyes $1bn profit next year

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:23 pm

  The Middle East's biggest airline should make a $1bn profit next year, its chairman says, brushing aside the global aviation crisis that has seen rivals post record losses

• 
  FT.com - Companies Americas

• Goldman Sachs

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  The bank's most precious asset – its awesome reputation – is turning as toxic as a pile of rotting collateralised debt obligations

• JAL

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am

  Delta and American Airlines are jostling to throw money at the perennial problem that is Asia's largest airline

• Dubai air show deals starting to trickle in

  17 Nov 2009 | 11:56 am

  The third day of the Dubai air show ends much as the first two did, with just a handful of extra order announcements from the main aircraft manufacturers, which organisers said brought the total value of air-show deals to $8.3bn

• Vivendi criticised for high GVT price

  16 Nov 2009 | 2:25 pm

  Vivendi's €2.8bn takeover of GVT, the Brazilian broadband operator, failed to impress investors

• Vivendi / GVT

  16 Nov 2009 | 1:04 pm

  The knockout bid is all the more reason for Vivendi to get a full price for NBCU, a necessary move to win a bidding war with rival Telefónica

• 
  FT.com - World

• Health bill poised to pass US Senate test

  21 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  A broad healthcare overhaul was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle as the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need

• UK's Conservatives want army pull-out from Germany

  21 Nov 2009 | 11:03 am

  Britain should withdraw its army from Germany so it can take on "expeditionary roles" elsewhere under a strategic Nato overhaul, the British opposition defence spokesman said

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia's hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party's annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods 'backwards' and saying it must 'get rid of bad political habits'

• Ohio sues three ratings agencies

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:23 pm

  The top three US credit ratings agencies are accused of 'wreaking havoc' on US financial markets by providing inflated ratings and costing state funds hundreds of millions of dollars

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• 
  FT.com - US

• Health bill poised to pass US Senate test

  21 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  A broad healthcare overhaul was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle as the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need

• 'Civilian surge' to help Afghanistan

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  As training for 36 officials begins in the US, questions about political goals remain

• Closing credits roll for Oprah

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pm

  A tearful Oprah Winfrey said she had decided 'after much prayer and months of careful thought' that the Oprah Winfrey Show would finish in 2011

• Outside Edge: A woman's fight to air her dirty laundry

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:41 pm

  Carin Froehlich of Perkasie (home town of Miss Pennsylvania 1971, apparently) has been warned not to dry her laundry on a clothesline outside, following two complaints from neighbours, writes Matthew Engel

• Obama healthcare drive faces critical vote

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:25 pm

  Barack Obama faces the next big test of its push for healthcare reform Saturday evening when the Senate meets to decide whether to proceed to a debate on its $848bn draft legislation

• 
  FT.com - World, Canada

• Canada to stay course on stimulus

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:58 pm

  Canada's minority Conservative government will put off moves to restore a balanced budget until economic recovery has taken firm hold, Jim Flaherty, finance minister, said

• GM to begin repaying government loans

  16 Nov 2009 | 10:00 am

  General Motors reported a further loss in its first quarter since leaving bankruptcy, but said it would begin repaying its bail-out loans to the US and Canadian governments next month

• Obama rules out Copenhagen treaty

  15 Nov 2009 | 10:43 am

  Barack Obama conceded that December's Copenhagen summit would not produce a legally binding agreement to tackle global warming, in a move that prompted groans of disappointment from environmental groups

• Transcript: George Soros interview

  23 Oct 2009 | 3:32 pm

  Interview with fund manager on the state of the global economy, relations between the US and China, his investment performance and regulating bankers' compensation

• Bank of Canada renews pledge to hold rates

  20 Oct 2009 | 7:51 pm

  The bank reiterates that it will not raise interest rates before mid-2010, saying that subdued exports due to the surging currency will more than offset a recent recovery in domestic demand

• 
  FT.com - US and Canada, Economy & Fed

• Deficit attention

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:07 pm

  The political class on both sides of the Atlantic must come to terms with the fact that success over the next decade will be defined by saving money, not spending it

• Germany warns US on market bubbles

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am

  Germany's new finance minister has echoed Chinese warnings about the growing threat of fresh global asset price bubbles, fuelled by low US interest rates and a weak dollar

• Army beckons in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  Aided by the economic downturn, this year marked the Pentagon's best recruiting effort since 1973, when the US military became an all-volunteer force

• Local woes spark fears of US double-dip recession

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:21 am

  Government props are still essential, not least in the housing markets. Sustaining these is not easy, writes Aline van Duyn

• Block on Minsheng deal costs US $1.7bn

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:27 pm

  US authorities blocked Minsheng, the Chinese bank, from acquiring a Californian lender in a deal that could have saved almost $300m of taxpayers' money and $1.4bn from an industry insurance fund, say people familiar with the matter.

• 
  FT.com - US and Canada, Politics

• Health bill poised to pass US Senate test

  21 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  A broad healthcare overhaul was poised to clear its first US Senate hurdle as the last wavering senators said they would vote to begin debate on the legislation, giving Democrats the 60 votes they need

• 'Civilian surge' to help Afghanistan

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  As training for 36 officials begins in the US, questions about political goals remain

• Deficit attention

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:07 pm

  The political class on both sides of the Atlantic must come to terms with the fact that success over the next decade will be defined by saving money, not spending it

• Obama healthcare drive faces critical vote

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:25 pm

  Barack Obama faces the next big test of its push for healthcare reform Saturday evening when the Senate meets to decide whether to proceed to a debate on its $848bn draft legislation

• Foreign policy tests Obama-Clinton bond

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:14 am

  A bond between president and the secretary of state helps when it comes to executing foreign policy. While Mrs Clinton's relationship with Mr Obama is cordial, one would be hard-pressed to call them buddies

• 
  FT.com - US and Canada - Society

• Closing credits roll for Oprah

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:05 pm

  A tearful Oprah Winfrey said she had decided 'after much prayer and months of careful thought' that the Oprah Winfrey Show would finish in 2011

• Outside Edge: A woman's fight to air her dirty laundry

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:41 pm

  Carin Froehlich of Perkasie (home town of Miss Pennsylvania 1971, apparently) has been warned not to dry her laundry on a clothesline outside, following two complaints from neighbours, writes Matthew Engel

• Obama healthcare drive faces critical vote

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:25 pm

  Barack Obama faces the next big test of its push for healthcare reform Saturday evening when the Senate meets to decide whether to proceed to a debate on its $848bn draft legislation

• Army beckons in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  Aided by the economic downturn, this year marked the Pentagon's best recruiting effort since 1973, when the US military became an all-volunteer force

• China's banks face overseas pitfalls

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:06 pm

  Torture case brought in the US reveals the perils that could threaten the overseas' expansion dreams of China's government-owned entities

• 
  FT.com - UK News

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Tax dodgers prove robust in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  Britain's black economy is proving far more robust than its official counterpart, according to an authoritative study across developed countries

• Opposition threatens digital reform bill

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:54 pm

  The two main UK opposition parties on Friday threatened to block regulatory reforms affecting broadband, internet piracy and broadcasting unless the government made concessions

• Reclusive Ferrero has financial wherewithal

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:59 pm

  The Italian confectionery group may not be glamourous but it has annual revenue of €6.2bn and net profit of €371m

• Nationwide lashes out at rescued banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  The head of Nationwide, Britain's biggest building society, accuses government-backed companies of seriously distorting the savings market as its profits fall more than 60%

• 
  FT.com - UK Business news

• Tax dodgers prove robust in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  Britain's black economy is proving far more robust than its official counterpart, according to an authoritative study across developed countries

• Man in the News: Marc Bolland

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:18 pm

  Markets have signalled high hopes in the 'billion-dollar' Dutchman who will lead the British high-street retailer Marks and Spencer

• First Quench to shed more jobs and stores

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:19 am

  The administrators of First Quench, owners of Threshers and Wine Rack chains, said it would cut almost 1,900 jobs and close hundreds more stores

• Push starts to make 'Digital Britain' law

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:01 am

  The government has put forward legislation to tackle illegal file-sharing and abuse of internet domain names, protect local news provision and add age ratings to video games

• UK regulator faces pensions dilemma

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:40 pm

  Transactions by British Airways and Cable and Wireless have left questions over which assets are available to repair the huge deficits that schemes of both employers now carry

• 
  FT.com - UK Economy news

• Tax dodgers prove robust in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  Britain's black economy is proving far more robust than its official counterpart, according to an authoritative study across developed countries

• Cash-in-hand worth two in the books

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  You hardly need to don a trench coat and sleuth around back alleys in Glasgow to see that the informal economy is in full swing. Signs of the cash-in-hand culture abound in one of the city's smartest suburbs

• Deficit attention

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:07 pm

  The political class on both sides of the Atlantic must come to terms with the fact that success over the next decade will be defined by saving money, not spending it

• Opposition threatens digital reform bill

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:54 pm

  The two main UK opposition parties on Friday threatened to block regulatory reforms affecting broadband, internet piracy and broadcasting unless the government made concessions

• UK regulator faces pensions dilemma

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:40 pm

  Transactions by British Airways and Cable and Wireless have left questions over which assets are available to repair the huge deficits that schemes of both employers now carry

• 
  FT.com - UK Politics & Policy news

• UK's Conservatives want army pull-out from Germany

  21 Nov 2009 | 11:03 am

  Britain should withdraw its army from Germany so it can take on "expeditionary roles" elsewhere under a strategic Nato overhaul, the British opposition defence spokesman said

• Ambition behind Ashton's elevation

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:36 pm

  Nobody was more surprised to discover that Lady Ashton was Europe's new foreign policy chief than the baroness herself

• Opposition threatens digital reform bill

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:54 pm

  The two main UK opposition parties on Friday threatened to block regulatory reforms affecting broadband, internet piracy and broadcasting unless the government made concessions

• Tory plan to elect police officials criticised

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:56 am

  Conservative plans to bring in locally elected police commissioners could spark resignations by chief constables round the country, according to the man in charge of the lobbying group representing senior officers

• Army beckons in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:00 am

  Aided by the economic downturn, this year marked the Pentagon's best recruiting effort since 1973, when the US military became an all-volunteer force

• 
  FT.com - UK News

• Hershey weighs $17bn bid for Cadbury

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 pm

  The charitable trust that controls Hershey has encouraged the US confectioner's management to pursue a $17bn bid for Cadbury, topping Kraft Foods' hostile $16.2bn offer

• Tax dodgers prove robust in hard times

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  Britain's black economy is proving far more robust than its official counterpart, according to an authoritative study across developed countries

• Opposition threatens digital reform bill

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:54 pm

  The two main UK opposition parties on Friday threatened to block regulatory reforms affecting broadband, internet piracy and broadcasting unless the government made concessions

• Reclusive Ferrero has financial wherewithal

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:59 pm

  The Italian confectionery group may not be glamourous but it has annual revenue of €6.2bn and net profit of €371m

• Nationwide lashes out at rescued banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  The head of Nationwide, Britain's biggest building society, accuses government-backed companies of seriously distorting the savings market as its profits fall more than 60%

• 
  FT.com - World, Americas

• Nations try to cool hot money

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  A string of countries have edged towards imposing capital controls to stop short-term speculative inflows driving their currencies higher amid concerns about the...

• Brazil court rules to extradite former Italian guerrilla

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:41 am

  Brazil's top court rules to extradite former Italian guerrilla Cesare Battisti on murder charges but leaves the final decision to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who granted him refugee status early this year

• Recession hits Venezuela

  18 Nov 2009 | 4:51 pm

  As its neighbours recover, the country has posted a contraction in the third quarter of 4.5% year on year after a second quarter decline in economic activity of 2.4%. Inflation is forecast to exceed 26%

• Report hits at Cuban regime on human rights

  18 Nov 2009 | 4:25 pm

  Cuba's regime has failed to improve its dire record on human rights under the leadership of Raúl Castro with Cubans continuing to be stripped of basic rights and freedoms, a Human Rights Watch report said

• Deal nears to end 'banana wars'

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  European and Latin American trade officials are close to a deal over bananas that would end the longest-running dispute in the history of the World Trade Organisation and could lead to lower prices for consumers

• 
  FT.com - Americas, Business

• Transport hampers Brazil's booming farms

  15 Nov 2009 | 11:36 am

  Brazil has become the world's biggest exporter of a basket of foods, but analysts say output is reaching its limit and the investment needed for growth is falling short

• Caterpillar move adds to hopes of US recovery

  26 Oct 2009 | 3:58 pm

  The world's biggest maker of earth-moving equipment and heavy duty engines is rehiring workers

• Credit Suisse settles Brazilian insider trading case

  20 Oct 2009 | 5:23 pm

  Credit Suisse has offered to pay R$19.2m to Brazil's securities commission to end an action over alleged insider dealing in shares of Embraer

• Brazil sets 2% tax on capital inflows

  19 Oct 2009 | 5:28 pm

  Brazil has imposed a 2% effective from Tuesday on money entering the country to invest in equities and fixed income instruments. Direct investment in the productive economy will not be affected

• Banamex dilemma for Citigroup

  19 Oct 2009 | 10:51 am

  When Washington bailed out Citigroup last year, few could have foreseen that it would eventually put the bank's Mexican subsidiary at the centre of a political storm

• 
  FT.com - Americas, Economy

• Recession hits Venezuela

  18 Nov 2009 | 4:51 pm

  As its neighbours recover, the country has posted a contraction in the third quarter of 4.5% year on year after a second quarter decline in economic activity of 2.4%. Inflation is forecast to exceed 26%

• Deal nears to end 'banana wars'

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  European and Latin American trade officials are close to a deal over bananas that would end the longest-running dispute in the history of the World Trade Organisation and could lead to lower prices for consumers

• Transport hampers Brazil's booming farms

  15 Nov 2009 | 11:36 am

  Brazil has become the world's biggest exporter of a basket of foods, but analysts say output is reaching its limit and the investment needed for growth is falling short

• Geithner seeks to reassure on dollar

  11 Nov 2009 | 5:41 am

  US Treasury secretary tells reporters in Japan he believes in the need to maintain a strong dollar and that the US is determined to get its budget deficit down

• Lula calls on leaders to attend climate talks

  5 Nov 2009 | 3:00 pm

  Brazil's president has challenged other world leaders to attend next month's climate talks in Copenhagen to break the deadlock in negotiations to cut greenhouse gas emissions

• 
  FT.com - Americas, Finance

• Transport hampers Brazil's booming farms

  15 Nov 2009 | 11:36 am

  Brazil has become the world's biggest exporter of a basket of foods, but analysts say output is reaching its limit and the investment needed for growth is falling short

• Muni bond sector thawing with a little help from BAB

  15 Nov 2009 | 1:44 am

  Investors are responding to the Obama administration's Build America Bond programme, but concerns about the health of municipals and the market environment in general continue

• US bond yields

  30 Oct 2009 | 3:02 am

  Buyers of US Treasuries appear to be taking a sober view of recent economic events

• Argentine fantasy

  26 Oct 2009 | 3:24 pm

  The government has created an economic wonderland that cannot survive if the country is to return successfully to international capital markets

• The Fund should help Brazil to tackle inflows

  25 Oct 2009 | 12:23 pm

  Helping Brazil to moderate inflows of foreign capital rather than issuing a negative response would signal that the IMF is taking a less doctrinaire approach, write Arvind Subramanian and John Williamson

• 
  FT.com - Americas, Politics & Policy

• Report hits at Cuban regime on human rights

  18 Nov 2009 | 4:25 pm

  Cuba's regime has failed to improve its dire record on human rights under the leadership of Raúl Castro with Cubans continuing to be stripped of basic rights and freedoms, a Human Rights Watch report said

• Peru demands response on alleged spying

  17 Nov 2009 | 6:45 am

  Peru's president demands that Chile addresses allegations that it paid a Peruvian air force officer to supply it with military secrets, blaming 'Pinochet-like' forces

• Obama rules out Copenhagen treaty

  15 Nov 2009 | 10:43 am

  Barack Obama conceded that December's Copenhagen summit would not produce a legally binding agreement to tackle global warming, in a move that prompted groans of disappointment from environmental groups

• Locals suffer in spat over US-Colombia pact

  13 Nov 2009 | 8:59 am

  The political crisis in the violent region has hit businesses and people hard

• Bolivarian bully

  10 Nov 2009 | 12:09 pm

  Hugo Chávez should call off mobilisation plans. Colombia and the US should respond with guarantees that the bases will be used to battle insurgents and drug trafficking within Colombian territory

• 
  FT.com - Americas, Society

• Brazil court rules to extradite former Italian guerrilla

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:41 am

  Brazil's top court rules to extradite former Italian guerrilla Cesare Battisti on murder charges but leaves the final decision to President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who granted him refugee status early this year

• Locals suffer in spat over US-Colombia pact

  13 Nov 2009 | 8:59 am

  The political crisis in the violent region has hit businesses and people hard

• Narco-bling overdose leaves museum in a fix

  9 Nov 2009 | 5:13 am

  Mexico's overflowing drugs museum's litany of colourful exhibits lifts lid on President Calderón's three-year war on narcotics and the industry's less-than-modest characters

• Chávez fails to deliver power to the people

  30 Oct 2009 | 11:02 am

  Venezuelans in the capital are bracing themselves for drastic rationing as public services in the oil-rich nation sink ever deeper into crisis, threatening to undermine President Hugo Chávez's support

• Venezuela arrests Colombian 'spies'

  28 Oct 2009 | 11:47 am

  Venezuela's capture of Colombian 'spies', which it accuses of being part of a US-backed plot to undermine its socialist government, has escalated a simmering conflict between the neighbouring Andean nations

• 
  FT.com - International economy

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• Transcript: View from the Top with Robert Zoellick, president of the World Bank

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:14 pm

  Interview with the president of the World Bank on Obama's trip to China and the effects of the Chinese currency being pegged to the dollar

• China can build on the base of its sound banks

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:51 pm

  Only with proper firewalls between them can banks and capital markets function as two engines of economic growth. If one fails, the other can still carry on, writes Liu Mingkang

• Tackling systemic risk is no job for the status quo

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:44 pm

  Supervision must be free of regulatory and administrative conflicts in order to ensure the safety and soundness of the financial system, write William Donaldson and Arthur Levitt

• EU plan to extend shoe duties rejected

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:31 pm

  In an unusual show of defiance, EU member states reject a European Commission recommendation to extend anti-dumping duties against Chinese and Vietnamese footwear imports

• 
  FT.com - World, Asia Pacific

• 'Civilian surge' to help Afghanistan

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  As training for 36 officials begins in the US, questions about political goals remain

• Japanese deflation fuels calls for action

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:32 am

  Japan said for the first time since 2006 that the economy was back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• Chinese white weddings help platinum recover

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:59 am

  Chinese brides, who value platinum partly because it goes so well with a white wedding dress, are on course to snap up enough of the metal to make up for a fall in demand from the auto components industry

• Mekong's turbulent fight for survival

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:03 am

  The region faces a difficult balancing act between development and conservation

• India 'should fund environment projects'

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:28 am

  India's government should tap some of the $400bn it has locked up in state enterprises to invest in projects to clean up its environment and combat global warming, a top economic official said

• 
  FT.com - Africa

• Pretoria probes Guinea mercenary reports

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:12 am

  Investigation follows allegations South Africans are illegally training and equipping militias loyal to the military junta

• Ghana pledges tough curbs on spending

  18 Nov 2009 | 8:15 am

  Ghana has pledged tough new checks on spending as it wrestles with a record budget deficit inherited from the former administration

• Spanish opposition questions pirate ransom

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:52 am

  Spain's decision to pay up to $4m to Somali pirates to secure the release of a fishing ship and its crew is fuelling a controversy over how best to deal with kidnapping

• UN to regulate farmland grab deals

  17 Nov 2009 | 5:34 pm

  The United Nations is developing a voluntary code of conduct for investors in agricultural land overseas, the first attempt to control a growing international trend

• Hutu leaders arrested in Germany

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:25 pm

  German police have arrested two exiled leaders of the Rwandan Hutu militia alleged to have been behind a long campaign of atrocities in eastern Congo

• 
  FT.com - World, Middle East

• Dubai ousts financial chief over debt troubles

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:38 pm

  Dubai has removed the high-profile governor of the Dubai International Financial Center as a political power struggle caused by the emirate's financial troubles continues to build

• Alabbar upbeat on Dubai growth prospects

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  Dubai's economy could grow by about 5 per cent this year, says one of the emirate's top officials, in one of the most upbeat recent forecasts about the city's prospects

• Why Saudi Arabia should rethink its Yemen strategy

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:17 pm

  Governments far beyond Yemen's borders should also be alarmed at the deteriorating security in a country that has long been a breeding ground for the religious extremists of al-Qaeda, writes Roula Khalaf

• Obama warns of Iran sanctions 'within weeks'

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:52 am

  US President Barack Obama has said that world powers could have a package of measures against Iran "within weeks", warning Tehran of consequences for its failure to respond to an offer of a nuclear deal

• A town torn on the Afghan dilemma

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  While the world waits for Barack Obama to decide whether to send more troops to Afghanistan, there are few places with as much interest in the US president's dilemma...

• 
  FT.com - World, Middle East - Finance

• Qatar formalises tax changes

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:20 am

  The gas-rich peninsular plans to slash the corporate tax rate levied on foreign companies to boost international investments and help diversify its economy away from hydrocarbons

• Qatar's emerging economy bond record

  17 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Qatar has issued the world's biggest emerging market bond as the small Gulf emirate seeks to boost its capital markets by building a government yield curve

• Sharjah companies set fair for recovery

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:38 am

  Sharjah's vibrant community of small and medium-sized businesses has found plenty of opportunities over the past decade but its close economic link with Dubai has proved less beneficial of late

• Inflation rears its head again in Egypt

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  The country's central bank has blamed the 'transitory' problem of rising fruit and vegetable prices caused by a poor harvest for a surge in the headline rate

• Candy brothers turn sour on Qatari royals

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  Nick and Christian Candy, the developers, are heading for a high court clash with the Qatari royal family following the withdrawal of plans for the UK's most expensive residential scheme at Chelsea Barracks

• 
  FT.com - World, Middle East - Economy

• Alabbar upbeat on Dubai growth prospects

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:00 am

  Dubai's economy could grow by about 5 per cent this year, says one of the emirate's top officials, in one of the most upbeat recent forecasts about the city's prospects

• Iraq woos French investors

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:50 am

  The Iraqi government has stepped up its efforts to encourage French business to invest in the oil-rich country, telling Total it could expect favourable treatment

• Sharjah companies set fair for recovery

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:38 am

  Sharjah's vibrant community of small and medium-sized businesses has found plenty of opportunities over the past decade but its close economic link with Dubai has proved less beneficial of late

• Inflation rears its head again in Egypt

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  The country's central bank has blamed the 'transitory' problem of rising fruit and vegetable prices caused by a poor harvest for a surge in the headline rate

• Ultra-orthodox protesters target Intel

  15 Nov 2009 | 3:32 pm

  Crowds of ultra-orthodox Jews protest at Intel's new Jerusalem site over its operating on the Sabbath, posing a threat to the city's hopes of attracting high-tech companies

• 
  FT.com - Arab-Israel conflict

• Israel shrugs off boycott effort

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:19 am

  Despite Israel's proven resilience, the strategy of targeting the country's economic welfare in order to raise political pressure on the country is again gaining momentum

• Israel defies US on settlements

  18 Nov 2009 | 7:59 am

  Israel has defied US pressure by approving a plan to construct 900 new housing units in a suburb of Jerusalem built on occupied Palestinian land in a move that could stoke regional tensions

• Mideast brinksmen

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:06 pm

  Obama can still retrieve this situation by publishing a blueprint of a two-states solution and a Palestinian homeland on most of the West Bank and Gaza, and placing it before the UN Security Council

• Ankara pursues lead role in Middle East

  16 Nov 2009 | 10:38 am

  Simple formula of romantic television drama and an anti-Israeli stance has enabled Turkey to make a comeback as an influential power in the Middle East

• Fatah signals change of direction if Abbas quits

  12 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Shaken by the prospect of losing their veteran leader, senior Palestinian officials have started debating new strategies in their long-running conflict with Israel in the hope of galvanising international support

• 
  FT.com - Iran

• Obama warns of Iran sanctions 'within weeks'

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:52 am

  US President Barack Obama has said that world powers could have a package of measures against Iran "within weeks", warning Tehran of consequences for its failure to respond to an offer of a nuclear deal

• Iran rejects demand of nuclear compromise

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  Manouchehr Mottaki, Iran's foreign minister, has rejected a US-backed confidence-building measure that required Tehran to ship enriched uranium out of the country

• Beijing remains guarded on Iran

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:28 am

  Barack Obama, the US president, sought to convince China to increase pressure on Iran's nuclear programme – but received no public commitment that Beijing would support sanctions

• Iran told to reveal all nuclear facilities

  16 Nov 2009 | 11:25 am

  Revelation of undeclared enrichment plant near Qom has reduced IAEA's confidence in Tehran's declarations

• Ankara pursues lead role in Middle East

  16 Nov 2009 | 10:38 am

  Simple formula of romantic television drama and an anti-Israeli stance has enabled Turkey to make a comeback as an influential power in the Middle East

• 
  FT.com - Iraq

• Veto puts timeline for Iraq poll in jeopardy

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:18 pm

  Iraq's Sunni Arab vice-president has vetoed part of a law over the allocation of seats to displaced Iraqis, throwing fresh doubt over plans for elections in January

• Killings reignite al-Qaeda fears

  16 Nov 2009 | 5:50 pm

  A Sunni politician and 12 other men were killed after being kidnapped from their homes as US troops withdraw from Iraq and the ranks of local paramilitary forces thin out

• Britain probes new claims of abuse by troops in Iraq

  14 Nov 2009 | 8:22 am

  Britain's defence ministry said it was investigating fresh complaints that its troops had abused prisoners in Iraq

• A new era as Turks and Kurds learn to co-operate

  10 Nov 2009 | 12:42 pm

  Turkey will guarantee security in Iraqi Kurdistan because it enables her to shape the balance of power in Iraq, writes David Phillips

• Bush officials lead Iraq business push

  9 Nov 2009 | 3:10 pm

  Senior Bush administration figures including Zalmay Khalilzad, former US ambassador to Baghdad, and Jay Garner, the retired general who led reconstruction efforts immediately after the war, are leading a new business push into Iraq

• 
  FT.com - World, Europe

• Medvedev criticises United Russia political practices

  21 Nov 2009 | 7:35 am

  Russian president Dmitry Medvedev harshly criticised Russia's hegemonic United Russia political party for allowing dirty election practices at the party's annual congress in St Petersburg, calling its methods 'backwards' and saying it must 'get rid of bad political habits'

• Putin eases European gas supply fears in Yalta talks

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Fears that European gas supplies could be disrupted this winter have eased after Russia's prime minister agreed to waive financial sanctions against recession-battered...

• Moscow lawyer buried in a hurry

  20 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  Sergei Magnitsky, the lawyer who died in a Moscow jail after informing on police corruption, was buried in a hurry yesterday after prosecutors refused an independent...

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• Barnier set to win EU financial role

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  Michel Barnier, former French foreign minister, is set to be put in charge of the EU's single market, in a contentious move that followed a night of political horse-trading over top jobs in Brussels

• 
  FT.com - Brussels

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• Ambition behind Ashton's elevation

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:36 pm

  Nobody was more surprised to discover that Lady Ashton was Europe's new foreign policy chief than the baroness herself

• Barnier set to win EU financial role

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  Michel Barnier, former French foreign minister, is set to be put in charge of the EU's single market, in a contentious move that followed a night of political horse-trading over top jobs in Brussels

• A pitiful exercise in Euro-minimalism

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  By lasering in on the lowest common denominator in this way, leaders of the big member-states are united in their unwillingness to be overshadowed by figures of calibre and clout

• Leaders turn their back on Giscard's vision

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:37 pm

  Valéry Giscard d'Estaing had no doubt that the president would be a towering figure on the world stage. But on Thursday Europe's leaders turned their back decisively on Mr Giscard d'Estaing's vision

• 
  FT.com - Brussels, Competition

• A pitiful exercise in Euro-minimalism

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  By lasering in on the lowest common denominator in this way, leaders of the big member-states are united in their unwillingness to be overshadowed by figures of calibre and clout

• Oracle wins more time for Sun merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:39 am

  The European Commission extends the deadline for approval of Oracle's proposed $7.4bn merger with rival Sun Microsystems

• Business seeks freeze on labour laws

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  The British Chambers of Commerce is asking the government for a three-year moratorium on labour legislation amid fears that small companies in particular will struggle to absorb a concentrated wave of regulation

• Europe's appliance industry makes the grade

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:47 pm

  Appliance makers have won changes to a new European energy efficiency labelling scheme after they warned that an earlier rescaling plan could have cost them more than €1.5bn ($2.2bn, £1.4bn) in lost sales

• Ombudsman raps EU probe after Intel claim

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:14 am

  European competition officials have been criticised for failing to properly record a meeting with Dell during their investigation into antitrust abuses by Intel

• 
  FT.com - Brussels, Finance & Markets

• ECB unwinds liquidity support for banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:37 pm

  The surprise announcement of tougher standards for asset-backed securities used as collateral highlights how far the bank is planning its 'exit strategy' to dismantle measures taken after last year's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• Trichet warns on bank bonuses

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:27 am

  Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, has issued his strongest warning yet that banks must keep pay and bonuses 'contained' and prepare for withdrawal of emergency support

• Germany covets ECB presidency, say diplomats

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  A German deputy foreign minister has stirred much attention when he appeared to hint at a link between the two posts of EU president and foreign policy chief and the ECB presidency

• Brussels holds off on sales reform

  15 Nov 2009 | 1:56 am

  A pan-European retail distribution review is not yet in the offing and will only be considered by a newly elected Commission, whose time of appointment is unknown

• Funds of funds dive into hedgie Ucits pool

  15 Nov 2009 | 1:23 am

  Regulated Ucits III-compliant funds with hedge fund strategies are attracting a host of new players, but experts worry they will be costly for investors

• 
  FT.com - Brussels, Economy

• A pitiful exercise in Euro-minimalism

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  By lasering in on the lowest common denominator in this way, leaders of the big member-states are united in their unwillingness to be overshadowed by figures of calibre and clout

• Oracle wins more time for Sun merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:39 am

  The European Commission extends the deadline for approval of Oracle's proposed $7.4bn merger with rival Sun Microsystems

• Business seeks freeze on labour laws

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:30 pm

  The British Chambers of Commerce is asking the government for a three-year moratorium on labour legislation amid fears that small companies in particular will struggle to absorb a concentrated wave of regulation

• Europe's appliance industry makes the grade

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:47 pm

  Appliance makers have won changes to a new European energy efficiency labelling scheme after they warned that an earlier rescaling plan could have cost them more than €1.5bn ($2.2bn, £1.4bn) in lost sales

• Ombudsman raps EU probe after Intel claim

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:14 am

  European competition officials have been criticised for failing to properly record a meeting with Dell during their investigation into antitrust abuses by Intel

• 
  FT.com - Brussels, Trade

• Anti-anti-dumping

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:21 pm

  European Union trade officials have rejected a plan to extend the 'anti-dumping' duties levied on shoe imports from China and Vietnam. The episode points up the opaque and arbitrary nature of EU trade laws

• EU struggles to stamp on shoe dumping

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:39 am

  European Commission is struggling to secure enough support among member states for a controversial plan to extend 'anti-dumping' duties against imported Chinese and Vietnamese footwear

• EU and Russian executives fear protectionism

  17 Nov 2009 | 5:26 pm

  Business leaders warn that rising trade barriers, imposed in response to the global economic crisis, threaten economic relations between the European Union and Russia

• Deal nears to end 'banana wars'

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  European and Latin American trade officials are close to a deal over bananas that would end the longest-running dispute in the history of the World Trade Organisation and could lead to lower prices for consumers

• Mandelson steps back from Asian shoe duties

  8 Nov 2009 | 3:35 pm

  Extending anti-dumping duties against footwear from China and Vietnam risks Europe's long-term commercial relations with both countries, the UK business secretary has warned

• 
  FT.com - Lex

• KKR

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:03 pm

  The age of transparency is upon the private equity firm whose third-quarter results are its first since its merger with its Amsterdam listed co-investor

• Bonus windfall tax

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  'Try it: millions will love it,' writes Martin Wolf, the FT's chief economics commentator. In the UK, the mob is once again baying for blood

• Luxury goods

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm

  Recovering economies, asset prices and bonuses are beginning to breathe life back into the market for expensive trinkets

• Rare earth elements

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  China has cornered the market in commodities that are arguably as important as oil to a modern economy

• Japan, deflating

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:22 pm

  Buying stocks has proved an effective strategy everywhere except in the only developed market in negative territory in the year to date

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Alternative investments

• KKR

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:03 pm

  The age of transparency is upon the private equity firm whose third-quarter results are its first since its merger with its Amsterdam listed co-investor

• TPG scales back

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:00 pm

  By helping out their investors, TPG encourages them to stay on the hook for future funds

• Hedge funds and shorting

  13 Nov 2009 | 7:20 am

  Hedge funds specialising in shorting have been suffering this year, but they have just had their best month

• 3i

  12 Nov 2009 | 8:36 am

  A 1p-per-share dividend awaits investors in 3i, the UK's oldest private equity company

• Matalan

  26 Oct 2009 | 3:52 pm

  The most basic rule of business may be about to net the founder and majority shareholder of the UK discount store chain a big reward

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Consumer & Retail

• Luxury goods

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm

  Recovering economies, asset prices and bonuses are beginning to breathe life back into the market for expensive trinkets

• Wm Morrison

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:31 pm

  The pace of like-for-like sales growth at the retailer slowed from 7 per cent to 4.3 per cent in the third quarter. How will Morrison regain its growth?

• SABMiller

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:23 pm

  The brewer's compelling geographic reach across emerging and developed markets saved it from the toughest economic conditions for decades

• Marks and Spencer

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:29 pm

  By naming Marc Bolland chief executive, the retailer has pulled several rabbits at once out of its sensibly-priced hat

• Cadbury

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:13 pm

  Word that Hershey of the US and Italy's Ferrero are thinking of putting in bids hardly constitutes a Kinder Surprise

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Drugs & healthcare

• Takeda / Amylin

  2 Nov 2009 | 3:02 pm

  A commitment to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on developing obesity drugs is the latest move by a Japanese drugmaker to shore up growth by expanding abroad

• US health insurers

  30 Oct 2009 | 12:00 pm

  For the managed care companies at the centre of America's health system, the political horse-trading has sent their shares gyrating

• Novo Nordisk

  29 Oct 2009 | 3:22 pm

  Bosses of most drug companies must wish they had the Danish drugmaker's problems. What is the secret of its success?

• Obamacare

  14 Oct 2009 | 2:19 pm

  Now that one version of the healthcare reform has passed a key Senate committee, supporters face a determined new opponent – one another.

• Long-term care insurers

  9 Oct 2009 | 12:51 pm

  In the US, decay is often more ruinous than death and some insurers are more ill than their customers

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Energy, Utilities & Mining

• Rare earth elements

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  China has cornered the market in commodities that are arguably as important as oil to a modern economy

• Rio / BHP

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:03 am

  Rhetoric on both sides suggests the joint venture is still on, but if resolve were weakening in the Rio camp, it would be entirely understandable

• Peak gold?

  12 Nov 2009 | 12:24 pm

  The impulse to hoard bullion as a hedge against inflation is one that many seem to find hard to resist, but the notion the world is running out of the stuff is not

• World Energy Outlook

  10 Nov 2009 | 1:07 pm

  There are just so many moving parts involved that making forecasts is a mug's game

• US oil refiners

  9 Nov 2009 | 11:51 am

  Capacity utilisation is now barely above 80 per cent and may go lower next year as huge and efficient new refineries, mostly in Asia, worsen the glut

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Finance & governance

• Bonus windfall tax

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  'Try it: millions will love it,' writes Martin Wolf, the FT's chief economics commentator. In the UK, the mob is once again baying for blood

• Goldman Sachs

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  The bank's most precious asset – its awesome reputation – is turning as toxic as a pile of rotting collateralised debt obligations

• Apollo

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:22 pm

  Leon Black's private equity group is planning to take advantage of the market recovery with a listing

• Bernanke blowing bubbles

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:37 pm

  Finally a central banker has admitted he is as clueless as everyone else, but arguing over the rally is short-sighted – powerful shifts are occurring

• Ukraine

  16 Nov 2009 | 1:16 am

  Europe is on tenterhooks over whether Russia will shut off gas to Ukraine and leave it shivering in January

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Financial services & property

• Regulators inside banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:31 am

  Self-sufficiency is becoming another victim of the crisis – whether in risk oversight, due diligence, or the wisdom of reading banks' fine print

• Minsheng IPO

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:01 pm

  The initial public offering of China's eighth largest lender by assets has witnessed the largest haul by any local debutant this year

• Land Securities

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:35 pm

  Property optimism is flavour of the month but investors' choice may depend on their view of the speed and shape of the recovery

• Mitsubishi UFJ

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:54 am

  Japan's largest lender by assets plans to raise up to $11.2bn of common stock, the country's biggest ever secondary offering from a non-corporate

• KBC

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:27 am

  The Belgian bank, which took €7bn from the Belgian and Flemish governments, has escaped lightly compared to Dutch bank ING

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Industrials

• New & improved GM

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:41 pm

  Post-bankruptcy financials show a viable company but little chance of recouping bail-out investment.

• Sodexo

  10 Nov 2009 | 10:08 am

  Life looks tough for specialised catering and facilities management providers, though their diversified peers are expected to fare better

• Fiat / Chrysler

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:24 am

  Sergio Marchionne, now boss of both Fiat and Chrysler, has announced ambitious plans for a turnround

• Fertiliser companies

  5 Nov 2009 | 6:30 am

  Big producers are jockeying to position themselves for recovery with demand set to pick up next year after the bumper US harvest

• Auto technology grab

  30 Oct 2009 | 3:49 pm

  The financial crisis has given emerging market carmakers chances to obtain previously closely-guarded western technology – and at knockdown prices

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Macroeconomics & markets

• Japan, deflating

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:22 pm

  Buying stocks has proved an effective strategy everywhere except in the only developed market in negative territory in the year to date

• Commodity prices

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:42 pm

  It has taken less than a year for noise surrounding commodities to return to full volume but ignore the wailing analysts

• The Philippines

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:33 pm

  Not even Filipino boxer Manny Pacquiao could avert the impending funding crunch in Asia's 13th largest economy

• California

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:27 pm

  The Golden State faces a cumulative shortfall of $21bn between the rest of this fiscal year and the one starting next July

• US small businesses

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:31 pm

  While the economy appears to be recovering, many small businesses are suffering

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Technology, media & telecoms

• AOL

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  A business cannot be anaesthetised, so in cases of corporate gangrene it is best to cut quickly and decisively

• ITV

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:21 pm

  The appointment of Archie Norman is a coup for a broadcaster that had seemed stuck in a never-ending governance crisis

• Vivendi / GVT

  16 Nov 2009 | 1:04 pm

  The knockout bid is all the more reason for Vivendi to get a full price for NBCU, a necessary move to win a bidding war with rival Telefónica

• Canon / Océ

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:53 pm

  Canon made much of its fortune from copiers – now it hopes to profit from copying

• Liberty Global / Unitymedia

  13 Nov 2009 | 9:55 am

  The US cable magnate John Malone has picked up a bargain of sorts in Unitymedia, Germany's second-biggest cable company

• 
  FT.com - Lex, Transport & Infrastructure

• JAL

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am

  Delta and American Airlines are jostling to throw money at the perennial problem that is Asia's largest airline

• EADS

  16 Nov 2009 | 11:38 am

  In spite of signs the slump in passenger numbers and cargo is stabilising, especially in emerging economies, carriers are still deferring deliveries

• British Airways

  13 Nov 2009 | 7:37 am

  British Airways and Iberia have done little to resolve the outstanding issue of BA's calamitous pension deficit during their long negotiations

• TPG / Japan Airlines

  12 Nov 2009 | 1:25 am

  US interest in JAL is based on the fact that an 'open skies' policy with Japan may soon be agreed

• British Airways

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:46 pm

  Chief executive Willie Walsh is fighting for the airline's survival but, in spite of merger hopes, strong headwinds abound

• 
  FT.com - Best of Lex

• Goldman Sachs

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  The bank's most precious asset – its awesome reputation – is turning as toxic as a pile of rotting collateralised debt obligations

• Cadbury

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:13 pm

  Word that Hershey of the US and Italy's Ferrero are thinking of putting in bids hardly constitutes a Kinder Surprise

• Taiwan / China

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:56 pm

  If they cannot agree on ways to address President Obama, what chance a satisfactory agreement on cross-strait liberalisation of the financial sector?

• Bernanke blowing bubbles

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:37 pm

  Finally a central banker has admitted he is as clueless as everyone else, but arguing over the rally is short-sighted – powerful shifts are occurring

• US small businesses

  17 Nov 2009 | 2:31 pm

  While the economy appears to be recovering, many small businesses are suffering

• 
  View from Europe

• Nov 16: Christine Lagarde, rule breaker

  16 Nov 2009 | 1:35 pm

  French finance minister, speaks to Lionel Barber, FT editor

• Nov 16: A starring role in the crisis

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:35 pm

  Ralph Atkins from Paris on FT Euro finance minister of the year

• Nov 16: Bank mergers in Spain imminent

  15 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  Central bank governor on slimming down of financial sector

• Nov 16: Spain 'ready for recovery'

  15 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  Governor of the Bank of Spain on need to reform labour market

• Nov 9: The race for European president

  9 Nov 2009 | 6:40 am

  Quentin Peel on the runners and riders for both new EU jobs

• 
  View from the Markets

• Nov 13: John Ryding on the inflation versus deflation debate

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:27 pm

  Signals from the dollar and commodities markets provide a clearer view of inflation risks, than what the Fed is saying

• Nov 13: John Ryding on the US employment outlook

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:27 pm

  A bottom for the labour market looms early next year

• Nov 13: John Ryding on Fed policy

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:27 pm

  Easy monetary policy fueled the previous bubble and we are back at the same point

• Nov 9: Buy Brazil, sell eastern Europe

  8 Nov 2009 | 3:00 am

  Nigel Rendell says Brazil remains the pick of the bunch outside Asia

• Nov 9: Searching for yield in emerging markets

  8 Nov 2009 | 3:00 am

  RBC's Nigel Rendell on whether fears of a fresh bubble are justified

• 
  Short View

• Short View: Gold rush

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:42 pm

  Aline van Duyn on the popularity of gold exchange-traded funds

• Nov 18: US housing market

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:43 pm

  Aline van Duyn on the uncertain recovery in US housing

• Nov 17: Leveraged borrowing

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:38 pm

  Aline van Duyn on leverage in the financial system

• Nov 16: Baltic Dry Index

  16 Nov 2009 | 2:40 pm

  Aline van Duyn on BDI's recent rise

• Nov 12: Laggard Eurofirst

  12 Nov 2009 | 10:39 am

  Jennifer Hughes on whether European stocks have run out of steam

• 
  UK Daily View

• Nov 20: Relative unknowns take centre stage

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:35 am

  Tony Barber on the new EU appointments

• Nov 19: JPMorgan in $1bn Cazenove deal

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:34 am

  'Cementing' five-year-old joint venture

• Nov 18: Archie Norman to be new ITV chairman

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:32 am

  Salamander Davoudi on the task the ex-Asda chief faces

• Nov 17: Petrol prices fuel inflation

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:34 am

  Chris Giles explains the rise is no surprise

• Nov 16: FSA gains extra clout

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:34 am

  More powers to fight City crime and excessive bonuses

• 
  US Daily View

• Nov 30: Oprah's move

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:28 pm

  Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson on Oprah's decision to end her show

• Nov 19: Changing media landscape

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  Kenneth Li on AOL's spin-off vs Comcast's bid for NBC Universal

• Nov 18: Goldman's PR problem

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:28 pm

  Francesco Guerrera on reaction to the bank's $500m donation

• Nov 17: Lazard's new chief

  17 Nov 2009 | 1:28 pm

  Justin Baer on the appointment of Kenneth Jacobs as the CEO of Lazard

• Nov 16: New and improved GM

  16 Nov 2009 | 3:28 pm

  Spencer Jakab's on GM paying back the US government

• 
  FT World News

• Nov 20: Relative unknowns take centre stage

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:24 am

  Tony Barber on the new EU appointments

• Nov 19: LIU THAI-KER on Asia's urban renewal conundrum

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  Architect-planner on threat of Asia's rapid urbanisation

• Nov 19: Asia's urban renewal - road to recovery or money pit?

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  Hong Kong's experience may offer an answer

• Nov 19: CHRISTINE LOH on urban renewal's social cost

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:25 am

  Hong Kong activist urges more government accountability

• Nov 18: Oceanside torn over Afghanistan

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:24 am

  How sending more troops will hit a small town in California

• 
  FTfm

• Nov 13: James Bevan on equities and the Church of England

  13 Nov 2009 | 9:32 am

  He hotly defends the Church's stewardship

• Nov 6: David Jane's bullish views on equities (part1)

  6 Nov 2009 | 9:33 am

  'Free' money demands action, he says

• Nov 6: David Jane (2) on China, Asia and UK equities

  6 Nov 2009 | 9:33 am

  China is benefiting from its dollar peg

• Oct 30: Jonathan Horton on indices' role in alpha

  30 Oct 2009 | 11:33 am

  Tailoring to aid outperformance

• Oct 23: Ian Simm on the growth of green investment

  23 Oct 2009 | 10:42 am

  Government support points to future strength

• 
  Business School

• The business school experience

  13 Nov 2009 | 10:22 am

  Easyjet's Stelios Haji-Ioannou on the benefits of an MBA

• Interview: Dean of MIT Sloan part 1

  5 Jun 2009 | 6:08 am

  Dean Schmittlein explains why he thinks the MBA is not the future of business education

• Interview: Dean of MIT Sloan part 2

  5 Jun 2009 | 6:08 am

  David Schmittlein defends MBA education against charges that it contributed to the current financial crisis

• Interview: Dean of MIT Sloan part 3

  5 Jun 2009 | 6:08 am

  Dean Schmittlein suggests how can business education help resolve the problems caused by the financial crisis

• MIT Sloan: Distributed leadership

  13 May 2009 | 5:35 am

  Professor Ancona explains why leadership is required at every level of an organisation

• 
  Listen to Lucy

• For better or for worse, but not for work

  8 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  To allow husbands and wives to co-work has always been a bad idea financially, socially, practically and emotionally, says Lucy Kellaway

• When a longer working life is good for us all

  1 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Work is a bit like taking exercise. It can be boring and stressful while you are doing it but it is preferable to not working, says Lucy Kellaway

• Why ‘chillaxing’ isn’t cool

  18 Oct 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Chilling is seen by today’s children as the natural order of things. However, taking it easy in the office is not a good idea, says Lucy Kellaway

• Taboo or not taboo? Some new office guidelines

  11 Oct 2009 | 9:00 pm

  A search for the sacrosanct subjects of the workplace was almost fruitless as most of the old strictures at work are on the way out, but there are still some no-go areas, says Lucy Kellaway

• The perils of opening your medicine cabinet at work

  4 Oct 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Gordon Brown’s questioning over whether he takes pills to cope with the pressure reveals the new taboo in the workplace, says Lucy Kellaway

• 
  Martin Wolf

• Grim truths Obama should have told Hu

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Obama should have made clear the need for China to revalue its currency and rebalance the global economy when he met Hu Jintao, says Martin Wolf. He could reasonably threaten punitive action, such is the need for change

• Victory in the cold war was a start as well as an ending

  9 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Has capitalism failed, as communism did? No. Some transition countries are in crisis; but transition itself is not. Liberal democracies and market economies can reform and adapt. They have shown these qualities before. They must do so again, says Martin Wolf

• Time for a debate on immigration

  4 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Diversity brings social benefits, but also costs, arising from declining trust and erosion of a sense of shared values, says Martin Wolf

• Private behaviour will shape our path to fiscal stability

  2 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  It is idiotic to discuss the reduction of the huge fiscal deficits, without considering the nature of the offsetting adjustments in the private and external sectors. Some adjustments would be desirable, but others would be extremely perilous, says Martin Wolf

• How mistaken ideas helped to bring the economy down

  27 Oct 2009 | 9:00 am

  The era when central banks could target inflation and assume that what was happening in asset and credit markets was no concern of theirs is over. Not only can asset prices be valued; they have to be, argues Martin Wolf

• 
  FT Money Show

• Signs of life in the buy to let market

  18 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Inflation is making a come back - but should savers really care? Signs of life in the buy to let market but should you be cautious? And do financial advisers owe you a rebate of trail commission?

• House prices rise again

  11 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  House prices rise again - so is now the time to invest in residential property? Pension deficits are getting worse - what can you do to protect your retirement income? And can you still rely on share dividends?

• Adventurous investor: Dylan Grice interview

  5 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  David Stevenson interviews Dylan Grice, strategist at Société Générale, on stockmarket bubbles, China and geo-politics

• The big bank sell-off

  4 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  What will happen to Lloyds and RBS customers? Lloyds shareholders are asked to invest another £13bn - but should you pay up? And who's the most trustworthy source of advice on IHT?

• Can the government curb credit card limits?

  29 Oct 2009 | 7:00 am

  Are you due compensation on structured products? The government gets tough on credit card companies, but will it save you money? Plus who is behind the new best-buy savings bond?

• 
  FT Digital Business

• Are mainframes dead? And how should companies use social media?

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Who says the mainframe is dead? Plus - social networks are affecting businesses, so how should they engage customers?

• Public sector, clouds and avatars

  10 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  Mike Laphen, chief executive of CSC talks to Peter Whitehead about the public sector, cloud computing and virtual worlds; plus Toby Redshaw of Aviva on business process management

• Digital Olympics

  3 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  With just under 1,000 days to the London games, it isn't just the facilities that need to be finished - there is a whole IT project as well. Peter Whitehead finds out.

• How to save energy in the IT industry

  26 Oct 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Power management in IT - Stephen Pritchard speaks to Sumir Karayi, the chief executive of 1E; plus: John Swainson, chief executive of CA, on software innovation

• IBM's private social network; plus connecting bobbies on the beat

  19 Oct 2009 | 9:00 pm

  Why IBM created its own social network, and how it's being used; Moore's law and enterprise IT; and how the police are connecting officers on the street

• 
  FT.com - Financial Markets News

• Bullion's record run lifts other metals

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:22 pm

  Gold's advance helps silver, platinum, palladium and copper reach fresh 2009 highs

• Tech sector pulls Wall Street lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pm

  US stocks edged lower on Friday after disappointing results from Dell added to fears this week that the economic recovery was faltering

• Thomas Cook leads way lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  Holiday companies led the way lower on Friday as the FTSE 100 slipped for a fourth consecutive day

• Banks held back by loss worries

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:09 pm

  Concerns over growing loan losses plagued banks this week as institutions with exposure to Europe's developing economies were told they may have been too slow in recognising possible losses

• Risk fatigue sparks correction speculation

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:28 am

  Global Markets Overview: Talk that the dollar could be near its nadir leads to a growing sense of caution ahead of what could be a pivotal trading session.

• 
  FT.com - Equities

• Strong finale to year possible

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:42 pm

  Christmas has come early in the Square Mile. Trading volumes have fallen to levels usually seen during the festive period.

• Asset price rally spurs Gartmore to action

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:41 pm

  The fund manager is hoping that this year's robust growth figures will prove attractive to investors, but all bets will be off if the market slips into reverse

• Tech sector pulls Wall Street lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pm

  US stocks edged lower on Friday after disappointing results from Dell added to fears this week that the economic recovery was faltering

• Thomas Cook leads way lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  Holiday companies led the way lower on Friday as the FTSE 100 slipped for a fourth consecutive day

• Banks held back by loss worries

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:09 pm

  Concerns over growing loan losses plagued banks this week as institutions with exposure to Europe's developing economies were told they may have been too slow in recognising possible losses

• 
  FT.com - US Equities Market Data

• Ohio sues three ratings agencies

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:23 pm

  The top three US credit ratings agencies are accused of 'wreaking havoc' on US financial markets by providing inflated ratings and costing state funds hundreds of millions of dollars

• Tech sector pulls Wall Street lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pm

  US stocks edged lower on Friday after disappointing results from Dell added to fears this week that the economic recovery was faltering

• DR Horton narrows loss as orders surge

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:02 pm

  DR Horton, the second biggest homebuilder in the US, sees its losses narrow in the latest quarter as house orders surged, but says market conditions remain challenging

• J&J stays true to its diversified model

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:39 pm

  Johnson & Johnson defends its strategy, with its three broad divisions of medical devices, consumer health and pharmaceuticals, even as the approach fails to shield it from industry pains

• Oracle wins more time for Sun merger

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:39 am

  The European Commission extends the deadline for approval of Oracle's proposed $7.4bn merger with rival Sun Microsystems

• 
  FT.com - European Equties

• Thomas Cook leads way lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  Holiday companies led the way lower on Friday as the FTSE 100 slipped for a fourth consecutive day

• Banks held back by loss worries

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:09 pm

  Concerns over growing loan losses plagued banks this week as institutions with exposure to Europe's developing economies were told they may have been too slow in recognising possible losses

• VW green light for Porsche tie-up

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:54 am

  Volkswagen's supervisory board gave the go-ahead for the takeover of Porsche and agreed on a €25.8bn three-year investment programme

• GE's bid for Areva arm poses questions

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:38 pm

  The sale of Areva's power transmission and distribution subsidiary sparks speculation about whether France really is ready to choose a foreign bid over a home-grown solution

• Axel Springer in Dogan Yayin deal

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:01 pm

  The German publisher plans to buy a 29% stake in Dogan Yayin, provided the Turkish media group settles its troubles with regulators

• 
  FT.com - UK Equities

• Nationwide lashes out at rescued banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  The head of Nationwide, Britain's biggest building society, accuses government-backed companies of seriously distorting the savings market as its profits fall more than 60%

• Thomas Cook leads way lower

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  Holiday companies led the way lower on Friday as the FTSE 100 slipped for a fourth consecutive day

• L&G set to appoint John Stewart as chairman

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:16 pm

  The UK's third largest life and pensions company is on the verge of appointing John Stewart, the former head of National Australia Bank, as its new chairman, pending FSA approval

• Discounters rush to grab Woolies inheritance

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:46 am

  Discount retailers have been the major beneficiaries of Woolworths' collapse, with 39% of stores now let taken by Poundland, B&M Bargains and other value chains

• First Quench to shed more jobs and stores

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:19 am

  The administrators of First Quench, owners of Threshers and Wine Rack chains, said it would cut almost 1,900 jobs and close hundreds more stores

• 
  FT.com - Asia Pacific Equities Market Data

• Japanese deflation fuels calls for action

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:32 am

  Japan said for the first time since 2006 that the economy was back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• Bank stocks drag Nikkei

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:18 am

  Hefty losses for Japanese banking stocks helped condemn the Nikkei 225 Average to a fourth successive weekly decline for the first time in more than a year.

• Japan says economy back in deflation

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:18 am

  Japan says that for the first time since 2006 the economy is back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• Fresh setback for Asian IPOs

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:20 pm

  A high-profile Chinese fund has cancelled a proposed investment in Hong Kong's largest initial public offering of 2009 in a sign of waning appetite for Asian listings

• CIC buys 20% stake in solar operator

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:30 am

  China Investment Corp said it has bought a 20 per cent stake in GCL-Poly Energy, a Hong Kong-listed solar power plant operator, for HK$5.5bn (US$705m) as the sovereign wealth fund takes a bet on new energy

• 
  FT.com - The Trading Room

• Grupo Bolsa in co-location push

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:54 am

  Grupo Bolsa, which owns the Mexican stock exchange, and MexDer, the Mexican derivatives exchange, say the new service offers trading 'latencies' below one millisecond

• Electronic rival for convertible bonds planned

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:00 pm

  The launch of Vega-Chi, which marks the first attempt to provide a facility for block trades, is likely to be met with resistance by dealer-banks that control the telephone-based market

• ISDA names Voldstad as new chief

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:33 pm

  The International Swaps and Derivatives Association has appointed Conrad Voldstad as its new chief executive officer as the industry body seeks to boost its profile at at time when legislative changes could curtail the use of derivatives and profits for banks and investors in the sector

• Canada TMX gets upstart help

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:42 pm

  Yet competition remains, even as observers question how many rivals may survive

• Net falls on FX derivatives

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:37 am

  The FX market did not actually seize up during the financial crisis so the clearing platforms move is causing resentment

• 
  FT.com - Currency Markets News and Data

• Dollar peps up after low point

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:37 am

  The dollar recovered later in the week as the recent rally in global asset prices appeared to run out of steam

• Worried nations try to cool hot money

  19 Nov 2009 | 1:13 pm

  Move to curb foreign inflows via American Depositary Receipts loophole puts Asian currencies under pressure amid speculation about copycat action in the region

• Asia currencies fall on capital control fears

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:48 am

  Fresh concerns about the imposition of capital controls by Asian countries have triggered falls in a number of currencies against the dollar, with senior officials in India, Indonesia and Thailand speaking publicly about the possibility

• Forex bankers alarmed by clearing plans

  18 Nov 2009 | 4:19 pm

  Bankers fear new systemic risk if companies face higher costs for hedges under centralised clearing and potentially be required to post extra collateral

• Capital control fears rattle rupiah

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:28 pm

  The rupiah dropped sharply on Wednesday on speculation that Indonesia was preparing to implement capital controls to limit the appreciation of the currency and support the export sector

• 
  FT.com - Capital Markets News and Data

• Roger Bartley: looking to steer the way on global credit

  22 Nov 2009 | 2:20 am

  Roger Bartley, head of active fixed income at LGIM, tells Pauline Skypala he hopes investors can be weaned off their focus on UK credit and persuaded to embrace global credit

• ASB urges bond pensions benchmark

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:08 pm

  Company pension liabilities should be discounted by an interest rate equal to that on risk-free government bonds

• Japanese deflation fuels calls for action

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:32 am

  Japan said for the first time since 2006 that the economy was back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• Local woes spark fears of US double-dip recession

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:21 am

  Government props are still essential, not least in the housing markets. Sustaining these is not easy, writes Aline van Duyn

• Japan says economy back in deflation

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:18 am

  Japan says that for the first time since 2006 the economy is back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• 
  FT.com - Commodities News and Market Data

• Gold rush hits prime property

  22 Nov 2009 | 1:43 am

  Some say European commercial real estate is near its peak and is in danger of overheating

• Bullion's record run lifts other metals

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:22 pm

  Gold's advance helps silver, platinum, palladium and copper reach fresh 2009 highs

• Rare earth elements

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  China has cornered the market in commodities that are arguably as important as oil to a modern economy

• Moves to mine gem potential

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:33 am

  De Beers and others in the gem industry are exploring how to create a viable market for diamond investment

• Soyabeans lead strong advance

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:20 pm

  Soyabeans and freight costs were points of strength for markets which surrendered some recent gains

• 
  FT.com - Emerging Markets News

• Fresh setback for Asian IPOs

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:20 pm

  A high-profile Chinese fund has cancelled a proposed investment in Hong Kong's largest initial public offering of 2009 in a sign of waning appetite for Asian listings

• China says Fed policy threatens global recovery

  15 Nov 2009 | 6:14 pm

  The US is fuelling 'speculative investments' and endangering recovery through loose monetary policy, Beijing warned ahead of President Barack Obama's arrival

• Optimistic on the merits of India

  15 Nov 2009 | 1:40 am

  Kotak Mahindra is planning to capture growing investor interest by building a platform of Luxembourg-domiciled funds, starting off with infrastructure and property, to be launched shortly

• Kazakhstan to launch international bond

  12 Nov 2009 | 6:20 am

  Kazakhstan is to launch its first international bond in a decade to bolster its public finances and set a benchmark for companies to return to the capital markets

• Emerging nations act to curb dollar impact

  11 Nov 2009 | 9:56 am

  A fall of as much as a 40 per cent in the greenback against emerging market currencies such as the South African rand and the Brazilian real is hurting those countries' exporters

• 
  FT.com - Investor's notebook

• Asset price rally spurs Gartmore to action

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:41 pm

  The fund manager is hoping that this year's robust growth figures will prove attractive to investors, but all bets will be off if the market slips into reverse

• India's bullion buy starts gold bull-run

  18 Nov 2009 | 8:05 am

  India's recent decision to buy International Monetary Fund gold could just herald the start of a new bull market in bullion, says Dylan Grice, strategist at Société Générale.

• Fund managers in call for capital spending

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:46 am

  Growing numbers of investors are calling on companies to prioritise investment over repairing balance sheets in what could be a sign of a further rally in share prices

• Europe's money markets regain their poise

  16 Nov 2009 | 11:18 am

  Central bankers are poised to begin unwinding a range of 'monetary loosening' measures launched after last September's collapse of Lehman Brothers

• Grameenphone soars on debut

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:08 am

  Bangladesh's biggest cell phone operator more than doubled in value on the first day of trading since its $71m initial public offering

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  FT.com - FTfm

• Gartmore to cut debt with £250m IPO

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:20 am

  The asset management group says the offering will cut net debt to £150m. Managers are expected to sell up to 20% of their shares

• Trichet warns on bank bonuses

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:27 am

  Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, has issued his strongest warning yet that banks must keep pay and bonuses 'contained' and prepare for withdrawal of emergency support

• Electronic rival for convertible bonds planned

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:00 pm

  The launch of Vega-Chi, which marks the first attempt to provide a facility for block trades, is likely to be met with resistance by dealer-banks that control the telephone-based market

• Informant says Galleon tips came from Asia

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:58 pm

  The scope and complexity of the alleged insider trading ring involving Galleon are thrown into relief after it emerges that one informant was given trading tips by a source in Asia

• Rising portfolio value bolsters KKR

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:44 pm

  The private equity group reported economic net income of $356m for the third quarter, underscoring the extent to which the sector has benefited from the rally in the stock and debt markets

• 
  FT Alphaville

• The Weekender

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:58 pm

  Selected reads from FT Alphaville this week, -  Weird waterfalls and the synthetic CDO stumper. - A Minskian roadmap to the next gold mania. - The Daily Mail discovers contango. - The Daily Mail re-discovers contango. - T-bill terror. - All roads lead to retranching in CRE crunch. - Cazenove,...

• Deutsche funds hurt by rising life expectancies

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:19 pm

  Betting on life expectancy, as investors in so-called life settlements do, is fraught with risk - not least that people will live longer than models suggest they will.  Investors in two Deutsche Bank funds -- db Kompass Life 1 and 2  --  that invested in US life settlements have learnt this lesson to their cost....

• CDS report: Is Greece the only sovereign on a slippery slope?

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:41 am

  Gavan Nolan of Markit wrote this CDS report The difference between sovereign and corporate CDS spreads in Europe this week reached its smallest level since February as public finances came under increasing scrutiny. The Markit iTraxx SovX Western Europe hit 65bp on Thursday, its widest level since it began trading in September....

• It’s a financial blogwar!

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:06 am

  The pixels are flying: Felix Salmon at Reuters on Thursday took a gratuitous swipe at The Business Insider's Henry Blodget, over the latter's alleged failure to disclose the details of his past wrangles with the SEC and Eliot Spitzer, which involved a $4m "disgorgement" by Blodget. The former Merrill Lynch analyst promptly suffered a sense of humour failure,...

• My big fat dollar finger

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:18 am

  Here's a Friday mystery. Presenting  December ICE dollar index futures as traded on November 20: So what could that peculiar spike be down to? We're not sure. As MarketWatch reports, the exchange is at least on to it: LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The IntercontinentalExchange is probing trades in U.S....

• 
  FT Alphaville

• Cadbury-Hershey merger: the Carnival solution

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:20 am

  The hurdles to a Hershey-Cadbury tie-up are by now well aired. Hershey has a smaller market cap than Cadbury, would need to take on crippling amounts of debt to finance a deal, and the Hershey Charitable Trust would be loath to relinquish control in any new company. Yet the industrial logic of a Cadbury-Hershey merger is compelling;...

• Further reading

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:55 pm

  Elsewhere on Friday, - Investing fads and themes by year, 1996 to present. - Unintended consequences on Wall Street. - Chart of the day: How the old gold bugs lost control. - Analyst date night: Honey let's hit that BofA protest. - The unbearable pain of 0.01%. - Wall Street's Grinch speaks to Gasparino....

• Snap news

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:28 pm

  Breaking pre-market news on Friday, - Gartmore announces intention to list on the LSE - statement. - Nationwide Building Society posts half-year PBT of £143m - statement. - Big shareholders ask Goldman Sachs to cut bonuses - WSJ (via Reuters). - Intertek in discussions with Det Norske Veritas to acquire the majority of its Business Assurance division - statement....

• Blackstone in $1.3bn Birds Eye deal

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:25 pm

  Birds Eye Foods is being sold by its private equity owners for $1.3bn to Blackstone’s Pinnacle Foods, it was announced on Thursday. The deal, to be funded with $300m in additional equity from Blackstone and $1bn in debt, provides fresh evidence of a thaw in the long freeze in global dealmaking - at least for consumer brands promising steady cash flows....

• Matalan draws buy-out groups

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:19 pm

  Five private equity groups are among the first-round bidders for Matalan, the privately owned UK discount clothing retailer that is being auctioned with an estimated price tag of about £1.5bn. TPG, Blackstone, Warburg Pincus and BC Partners have all submitted indicative bids. Advent International, US buy-out specialist and owner of discount retailer Poundland,...

• 
  FT Alphaville

• Further reading

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:55 pm

  Elsewhere on Friday, - Investing fads and themes by year, 1996 to present. - Unintended consequences on Wall Street. - Chart of the day: How the old gold bugs lost control. - Analyst date night: Honey let's hit that BofA protest. - The unbearable pain of 0.01%. - Wall Street's Grinch speaks to Gasparino....

• Blackstone in $1.3bn Birds Eye deal

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:25 pm

  Birds Eye Foods is being sold by its private equity owners for $1.3bn to Blackstone’s Pinnacle Foods, it was announced on Thursday. The deal, to be funded with $300m in additional equity from Blackstone and $1bn in debt, provides fresh evidence of a thaw in the long freeze in global dealmaking - at least for consumer brands promising steady cash flows....

• KKR sees Q3 profit amid rebound

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:22 pm

  KKR, the US buy-out firm run by Henry Kravis and George Roberts, on Thursday reported a Q3 profit of $656.6m in its first results after becoming a publicly listed company, amid a rebound in buy-outs, reports Bloomberg. But the impact of the Oct 1 merger with its publicly traded European fund included “certain adjustments” that would lower total net income to about $300m,...

• Matalan draws buy-out groups

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:19 pm

  Five private equity groups are among the first-round bidders for Matalan, the privately owned UK discount clothing retailer that is being auctioned with an estimated price tag of about £1.5bn. TPG, Blackstone, Warburg Pincus and BC Partners have all submitted indicative bids. Advent International, US buy-out specialist and owner of discount retailer Poundland,...

• Hands warns governments on banks

  18 Nov 2009 | 8:30 pm

  Guy Hands, head of UK buy-out group Terra Firma, has warned that unless governments push banks to restructure $7,000bn of leveraged loans due to mature by 2014, the US and Europe could face the “Japanese problem” of zero growth. Hands, speaking on the sidelines of a conference in Paris, is negotiating with Citigroup to restructure the £2.6bn debt of EMI,...

• 
  FT Alphaville

• Further reading

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:55 pm

  Elsewhere on Friday, - Investing fads and themes by year, 1996 to present. - Unintended consequences on Wall Street. - Chart of the day: How the old gold bugs lost control. - Analyst date night: Honey let's hit that BofA protest. - The unbearable pain of 0.01%. - Wall Street's Grinch speaks to Gasparino....

• Paulson to launch gold fund

  18 Nov 2009 | 8:52 pm

  Billionaire hedge fund manager John Paulson is launching a new gold fund from Jan 1 that will include $250m of his own personal investment, reports the WSJ. The fund will focus on shares of gold miners and other bullion-related investments, according to three investors. Paulson discussed the new fund at a meeting with his investors in New York on Tuesday....

• Just rip ‘em off LLC

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:55 am

  By way of a resuscitated campaign to have Ben Stein sacked from his various writing and promotion jobs, Felix Salmon at Reuters discusses a story about US consumers being deceived by dodgy online sign-up pitches and leads us to this:  the relevant full blown staff report for Senate commerce committee chairman Jay Rockefeller....

• Further reading

  17 Nov 2009 | 11:55 pm

  Elsewhere on Wednesday, - The madness of the inflation hawks. - IPOs are back. - Adam Smith in 10 minutes. - Can options spikes be a coincidence? - Faber on gold, and just about everything else. - And then he took his pants off... - The most powerful financiers. - Australia, what recession? - Banking in a state....

• [Galleon] alpha quadrant

  16 Nov 2009 | 1:15 am

  The aim of this document is to show the real life application of the 'Style Analysis' feature applied to a hedge fund claiming delivering alphas. We will show how to analyze a fund in terms of its alpha and sector selection skills. Galleon has been selected as fund in order to show how the 'Style Analysis' can be used as part of the due diligence process by highlighted anomalous monthly alphas....

• 
  FT Alphaville

• Deutsche funds hurt by rising life expectancies

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:19 pm

  Betting on life expectancy, as investors in so-called life settlements do, is fraught with risk - not least that people will live longer than models suggest they will.  Investors in two Deutsche Bank funds -- db Kompass Life 1 and 2  --  that invested in US life settlements have learnt this lesson to their cost....

• CDS report: Is Greece the only sovereign on a slippery slope?

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:41 am

  Gavan Nolan of Markit wrote this CDS report The difference between sovereign and corporate CDS spreads in Europe this week reached its smallest level since February as public finances came under increasing scrutiny. The Markit iTraxx SovX Western Europe hit 65bp on Thursday, its widest level since it began trading in September....

• My big fat dollar finger

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:18 am

  Here's a Friday mystery. Presenting  December ICE dollar index futures as traded on November 20: So what could that peculiar spike be down to? We're not sure. As MarketWatch reports, the exchange is at least on to it: LONDON (MarketWatch) -- The IntercontinentalExchange is probing trades in U.S....

• ‘Verify borrower income’, and other blindingly obvious proposals for mortgage reform

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am

  Alright, blindingly obvious is a tad harsh. But it surprised us that the proposals for improving mortgage underwriting standards made by John Dugan, US comptroller of the currency, were not already in force. In a speech in Tokyo, Dugan proposed that "regulators around the world should address the problem that sparked the financial crisis of the past two years by establishing minimum underwriting standards for all mortgages made in their respective countries."...

• The insecurity of the unsecured creditor

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:45 am

  How do you solve the problem of excessive risk-taking and systemic risk? FDIC chairman Sheila Bair had an idea back in October: ISTANBUL (Reuters) - Ensuring secured creditors face losses when a financial institution fails could help rein in excessive risk-taking and strengthen the financial system,...

• 
  FT Alphaville

• It’s a financial blogwar!

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:06 am

  The pixels are flying: Felix Salmon at Reuters on Thursday took a gratuitous swipe at The Business Insider's Henry Blodget, over the latter's alleged failure to disclose the details of his past wrangles with the SEC and Eliot Spitzer, which involved a $4m "disgorgement" by Blodget. The former Merrill Lynch analyst promptly suffered a sense of humour failure,...

• ‘Verify borrower income’, and other blindingly obvious proposals for mortgage reform

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:00 am

  Alright, blindingly obvious is a tad harsh. But it surprised us that the proposals for improving mortgage underwriting standards made by John Dugan, US comptroller of the currency, were not already in force. In a speech in Tokyo, Dugan proposed that "regulators around the world should address the problem that sparked the financial crisis of the past two years by establishing minimum underwriting standards for all mortgages made in their respective countries."...

• Are we witnessing contagion of outrage?

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:23 am

  On Thursday, the Federal Reserve became the latest institution to feel a sudden, aggressive backdraft. A joint ambush by Republicans and Democrats of the House Financial Services Committee left America's central bank facing a comprehensive audit of its activities for the first time, and, by extension,...

• Further reading

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:55 pm

  Elsewhere on Friday, - Investing fads and themes by year, 1996 to present. - Unintended consequences on Wall Street. - Chart of the day: How the old gold bugs lost control. - Analyst date night: Honey let's hit that BofA protest. - The unbearable pain of 0.01%. - Wall Street's Grinch speaks to Gasparino....

• Goldman promotes 272 to MD

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:21 pm

  Goldman Sachs said it would promote 272 employees to managing director, a title that brings them closer to the coveted partnership and, for many, a bigger slice of the bank's prized compensation pool. The new class of MDs, whose number exceeds last year's total but falls short of the record 299 in 2007,...

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  FT.com - Comment and analysis

• Europe risking irrelevance as world moves on

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:59 pm

  The appointments of the EU's first full-time president and foreign minister suggest it is not adapting fast enough to profound changes that are eroding its influence, writes Tony Barber

• France and the culture wars

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:54 pm

  For novelist NDiaye's defenders, it is not enough that politician Eric Raoult be wrong – he must be Hitler, writes Christopher Caldwell

• Outside Edge: A woman's fight to air her dirty laundry

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:41 pm

  Carin Froehlich of Perkasie (home town of Miss Pennsylvania 1971, apparently) has been warned not to dry her laundry on a clothesline outside, following two complaints from neighbours, writes Matthew Engel

• Inside the dreams of Mullah Omar

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:53 am

  The Taliban leader's actions are often determined by night visions, making the future of fighting in Afghanistan hard to predict, writes Kenneth Ballen

• Politicians must tell the truth: immigrants help society

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:03 pm

  Governments have created a bureaucratic and human rights mess in which asylum seekers can be detained indefinitely, writes Eamonn Butler

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  FT.com - Opinion

• Europe risking irrelevance as world moves on

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:59 pm

  The appointments of the EU's first full-time president and foreign minister suggest it is not adapting fast enough to profound changes that are eroding its influence, writes Tony Barber

• Outside Edge: A woman's fight to air her dirty laundry

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:41 pm

  Carin Froehlich of Perkasie (home town of Miss Pennsylvania 1971, apparently) has been warned not to dry her laundry on a clothesline outside, following two complaints from neighbours, writes Matthew Engel

• Inside the dreams of Mullah Omar

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:53 am

  The Taliban leader's actions are often determined by night visions, making the future of fighting in Afghanistan hard to predict, writes Kenneth Ballen

• Politicians must tell the truth: immigrants help society

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:03 pm

  Governments have created a bureaucratic and human rights mess in which asylum seekers can be detained indefinitely, writes Eamonn Butler

• China can build on the base of its sound banks

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:51 pm

  Only with proper firewalls between them can banks and capital markets function as two engines of economic growth. If one fails, the other can still carry on, writes Liu Mingkang

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  FT.com - Editorial

• A pitiful exercise in Euro-minimalism

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  By lasering in on the lowest common denominator in this way, leaders of the big member-states are united in their unwillingness to be overshadowed by figures of calibre and clout

• The Gaul of it

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  Sometimes football unites us in a common humanity, and sometimes it helps people of different nationalities remember their differences

• Deficit attention

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:07 pm

  The political class on both sides of the Atlantic must come to terms with the fact that success over the next decade will be defined by saving money, not spending it

• Karzai now needs to move to deeds

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:25 pm

  Afghanistan is still largely a feudal society hostile to any form of central government. One facet of feudalism, however, is that it implies a two-way contract

• Anti-anti-dumping

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:21 pm

  European Union trade officials have rejected a plan to extend the 'anti-dumping' duties levied on shoe imports from China and Vietnam. The episode points up the opaque and arbitrary nature of EU trade laws

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  FT.com - Analysis

• A suburban salesman

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:29 pm

  The K1 affair: In detaining Helmut Kiener, German prosecutors have provoked much intrigue over the hedge fund operator with big banks as clients but a history of regulatory run-ins

• Man in the News: Marc Bolland

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:18 pm

  Markets have signalled high hopes in the 'billion-dollar' Dutchman who will lead the British high-street retailer Marks and Spencer

• A wary willingness

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:29 pm

  China and America: While Barack Obama may have won Beijing's agreement to collaborate on world problems, his hosts are reluctant to take on the costs of leadership

• Goldman Sachs: Losing its glister

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:10 am

  Goldman Sachs: On course to pay out bumper bonuses, the bank is drawing sharp public criticism – with potential damage to its brand, if not future earnings

• Ports in a storm

  17 Nov 2009 | 6:40 pm

  Tax havens: With offshore centres such as Guernsey under pressure to tighten up on evaders, what will count most is where not only their deposits but also political backing come from

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  FT.com - John Authers

• OK, I called the rally wrong - and here's why

  30 Oct 2009 | 7:00 pm

  I did not believe US banks could muddle through and did not imagine China could rebound as strong as ever, writes John Authers

• Short View: GDP grows, but pain remains

  29 Oct 2009 | 11:19 am

  US GDP numbers were a good enough reason to halt the return of risk aversion, but the key to whether risk appetite can return depends on US employment data, writes John Authers

• Short View: Synchronised markets

  28 Oct 2009 | 12:36 pm

  Judging whether this week's retreat in world markets is merely a necessary breather or a decisive reversal of the rally trend is tricky, writes John Authers

• Short View: A decoupled world

  27 Oct 2009 | 11:42 am

  Asian economies are already at the point where overheating is the main danger, while US consumers, for all the money thrown at them, are still not feeling any better, writes John Authers

• Short View: Amazon is ba-ack

  26 Oct 2009 | 10:50 am

  Buying an overhyped bubble stock at its peak can make sense – if you pick a winner, can withstand a paper loss of 95 per cent and can bear to wait a decade, writes John Authers

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  FT.com -Columnists, David Blackwell

• Regal's fine puts focus on Aim regulation

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:40 am

  The record £600,000 fine for numerous, serious breaches of Aim rules has turned the spotlight on to the junior market's regulation

• Kewill eyes growth with liquidity message

  12 Nov 2009 | 3:26 pm

  It is not just the companies on the junior market that suffer over lack of liquidity, all quoted companies below a certain size are affected

• Don't get too carried away about unleashing brilliance

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:01 pm

  The Aim conference agenda looks like a return to basics for the exchange, which has diverted energy to recruiting overseas companies in recent years rather than focusing on British business

• Roller coaster ride to get Venue Solutions off ground

  22 Oct 2009 | 8:42 am

  Oliver Iny is anxious to hang on to the Aim quote for Venue Solutions, where he is chief executive, convinced that, once the company is on an even keel, institutional investors will see the potential value

• Indian companies seek funds at home

  15 Oct 2009 | 3:05 pm

  Indian companies with Aim quotes appear to be returning to the domestic market to raise money – however, there are only two Aim-listed business in the country

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  FT.com - Samuel Brittan

• Simple truths about the economy

  12 Nov 2009 | 12:13 pm

  The hole in the world economy can only be filled by deficit spending by the stronger western governments. If this is inhibited by fiscal tightening, recovery will be strangled, writes.Samuel Brittan

• Freedom for Sale

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:24 pm

  John Kampfner studies the US, Italy, Russia, China and India as he attacks the thesis that capitalism leads to personal and political freedom, writes Samuel Brittan

• Goodbye to the pre-crisis trend line

  29 Oct 2009 | 4:15 pm

  The latest IMF World Economic Outlook points out that much of the loss of output in a severe recession is permanent, writes Samuel Brittan

• Whatever happened to imbalances?

  15 Oct 2009 | 2:25 pm

  In dollar terms the sums seemed huge. In relative terms they are less frightening. At their 2008 peak, on IMF estimates, global imbalances amounted to 2½ per cent of world gross national product, writes Samuel Brittan

• A cool look at the current deficit hysteria

  1 Oct 2009 | 2:24 pm

  In the early Victorian period the debt ratio was nearly 200 per cent and almost reached that level again in the early 1920s, notes Samuel Brittan

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  FT.com - Christopher Caldwell

• France and the culture wars

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:54 pm

  For novelist NDiaye's defenders, it is not enough that politician Eric Raoult be wrong – he must be Hitler, writes Christopher Caldwell

• Enemies need not be insane

  13 Nov 2009 | 2:25 pm

  In Major Hasan's case, bureaucrats were too scared of giving offence to speak their minds, writes Christopher Caldwell

• Doubt in the Age of Obama

  6 Nov 2009 | 2:15 pm

  Democrats must wrap themselves in the mantle of Obama's programme. But what is that, asks Christopher Caldwell

• The return of rulings on faith

  30 Oct 2009 | 1:12 pm

  The French case against the Church of Scientology indicates that western authorities are less content to leave actions done under colour of religion undisturbed, writes Christopher Caldwell

• The state and journalism

  23 Oct 2009 | 2:18 pm

  The authors of a recent report call upon the government to support journalism, but in that case the taxpayer ought to have a say in what he pays for, writes Christopher Caldwell

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  FT.com - Clive Crook

• American dream needs repair

  15 Nov 2009 | 11:25 am

  The great virtue of this book – a comprehensive policy manual and the outline of a new social contract – is not just in recognising that upward mobility is less than it should be, but is in calling for action, and in insisting on fiscal discipline, writes Clive Crook

• Obama has lost sight of the centre

  8 Nov 2009 | 11:21 am

  Last week's elections went badly for the Democrats. Victory in New York was the exception – unless Democrats expect their opponents to field two warring candidates in every seat. The Republican party is leaderless and incompetent, but not insane – and not, by the way, as divided as the Democrats. For the Republicans the New York loss was salutary, and the lesson inescapable: unite or lose, writes Clive Crook

• Congress misses the point of reform

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:38 am

  More than a year after the US financial emergency went critical, the underlying causes have yet to be addressed. When it comes to improving financial regulation, the crux of the matter, there has been a lot of talk – usually about the wrong things – and next to no action, writes Clive Crook

• Levon Helm's new musical life

  30 Oct 2009 | 3:41 pm

  The multi-instrumentalist is playing again for tiny audiences at his Woodstock home – and he's as good as ever, writes Clive Crook

• Obama is dithering on Afghanistan

  25 Oct 2009 | 12:17 pm

  Mr Obama must choose a strategy on the war in Afghanistan and persist with it – and to persist with it he must sell it to the American and Afghan people and to the rest of the world. Delay and indecision will make that harder, writes Clive Crook

• 
  FT.com - European View

• Ferrero boys should stay cool as Cadbury talk hots up

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:48 am

  With the group in the spotlight over a possible bid for Cadbury it should remember that a benefit of being a successful private company lies in controlling one's own destiny

• Vivendi's turbulent party picks up a guest in Brazil

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  There seems to be a party atmosphere at Vivendi these days – at least according to one veteran director who says of sitting on the French entertainment and telecoms conglomerate's board: "C'est du fun." And the company is now taking the party to Brazil

• France's new generation seeks to make its own mark

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:32 pm

  Gilles Pelisson and François-Henri Pinault, chief executives of Accor and PPR, respectively, are both trying to give their companies a new look by disposing of or splitting off some of their traditional businesses and becoming pure players

• Hand-finished jumbo is a luxury too far for Airbus

  16 Nov 2009 | 10:21 am

  Airbus has still not managed to industrialise the complex electrical wire and harness systems of the aircraft. As a result, each jumbo – like an expensive hand-sewn crocodile handbag – has to be hand finished before it can be delivered to its customer

• Peugeot cannot remain a French bachelor for ever

  12 Nov 2009 | 12:03 pm

  Peugeot Citroën boss Philippe Varin unveiled a new three-year strategy but his real goal may be in engineering a longer-term solution for the French carmaker

• 
  FT.com - John Gapper

• How Wall St family was torn apart by greed and jealousy

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:39 pm

  Charlie Gasparino, author of 'The Sellout', was as close as anyone to the Street's big, wayward figures before they met their downfall

• How to reinvent China's growth

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:15 pm

  China faces a complex and perilous transition phase as it tries to transform from a middle-income, high-growth, very big developing economy into an advanced economy with a diversified industrial base writes John Gapper

• How not to take care of a brand

  11 Nov 2009 | 12:30 pm

  Amputations from a stroller?! When Farzad Rastegar, chief executive of Maclaren in the US, had lunch with John Gapper in New York, he sounded shaken. Maclaren has done a poor job of telling its story. What are the lessons for companies facing similar crises?

• Safe signals from Buffett's train deal

  4 Nov 2009 | 12:01 pm

  Buying a railroad is a sound way to gain cash dividends, and broad exposure to companies that need coal and freight, but not to invest in innovation, writes John Gapper

• Omaha's sage makes 'all-in' bet on BNSF

  3 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  Size aside, Berkshire Hathaway's proposed acquisition of Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad is about as typical a Warren Buffett deal as they come, writes John Gapper

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  FT.com - Columnists, Jonathan Guthrie

• No soft soap from Lord Sugar

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:11 pm

  The government's enterprise champion was particularly exasperated by young people whom Enterprise Week is supposed to encourage, writes Jonathan Guthrie

• Charter of the blindingly obvious

  12 Nov 2009 | 2:42 pm

  Cast out of the earthly Eden of public approval, benighted bankers are shielding themselves from criticism with the fig leaves of customer charters, writes Jonathan Guthrie

• Hacked off with strike-offs

  5 Nov 2009 | 11:58 am

  Frequent fliers simply demonstrate a wider problem: the state is unable to enforce adequately all the laws created by politicians, writes Jonathan Guthrie

• Arise Mr Liquidity and Little Miss Integrity

  21 Oct 2009 | 12:11 pm

  Business types often wind up as the baddies in fiction because the profit motive is a convenient shorthand for selfishness. But for a fee, I will write some lovable characters, writes Jonathan Guthrie

• Punning salons will still be hair tomorrow

  14 Oct 2009 | 3:22 pm

  Cheap local hairdressers, known in the trade as 'Sweaty Betties', have received an influx of customers trading down, says Jonathan Guthrie

• 
  FT.com - Tim Harford

• Dear Economist: I love Walmart: my wife hates it. Help!

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:27 pm

  I have tried to convince her that not only does the chain offer the lowest prices, it is also a force of good. But she complains about its policies. Who is right?

• It's not just Scrooge who wants Christmas abolished

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:27 pm

  Resources that go into Yuletide gifts often result in products that nobody wants, but Tim Harford says these findings omit the warm glow we get from giving and receiving

• Dear Economist: How can I be fair to my grandchildren?

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:39 pm

  My son has two children and my daughter four. I propose to give £5,000 to each grandchild in my will. Would this be equitable?

• Given the choice, how much choice would you like?

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:39 pm

  Having more options seems to be counterproductive under certain circumstances, but we don't yet know much about what they are, writes Tim Harford

• Dear Economist: Why a 'pointless' tax cut really counted

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:31 pm

  As VAT returns to 17.5%, some retailers say that the increase will have a negative impact. This doesn't sound logical, but is it true?

• 
  FT.com - Tony Jackson

• Bank regulators should learn from health and safety

  15 Nov 2009 | 9:00 am

  Regulatory reform of the world's banks is becoming a painful thing to watch. The main object is disappearing under a mass of suffocating detail. Perhaps policymakers should turn for guidance to an unlikely source – health and safety

• Addicts left in charge of fixing the system

  8 Nov 2009 | 12:11 pm

  It is by now apparent that we are in another asset bubble. The chief cause, is action by governments to repair the damage from last time round. Though the pattern has become familiar, it is chilling that this outbreak should come so soon after the biggest bubble in living memory

• Take the lead on regulation to call the bankers' bluff

  1 Nov 2009 | 10:10 am

  Britain's banks, the chairman of Barclays said recently, would be harmed if the UK imposed tough regulation not applied elsewhere. This is a deft application of the principle of divide and rule

• Age-old problem of pensions and a shrinking workforce

  25 Oct 2009 | 10:07 am

  In 25 years, the UK will have 2.8 people of working age to every one retired, versus 3.2 today. An old story, you might think. Except that the story keeps getting worse

• Hired guns' bonus expectations shoot industry in the foot

  18 Oct 2009 | 6:22 am

  The bank bonus culture, so sumptuously on display last week at Goldman Sachs, remains under fire from politicians

• 
  FT.com - Luke Johnson

• Ten easy ways to murder a business

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  Luke Johnson puts together a top 10 "not-to-do" list for entrepreneurs. Among them? Take on too much debt, get sick, never evolve and forget your customers.

• Stress and risk – the secret of happiness

  10 Nov 2009 | 2:38 pm

  Most successful businesspeople live contrary to the view espoused by many philosophers that contentment means stability and tranquillity, writes Luke Johnson

• Actors who create drama of business

  3 Nov 2009 | 3:11 pm

  Making sales, hiring new staff, generating a profit are all very well – but what really excites the boardroom is corporate intrigue, writes Luke Johnson

• The leader who falls will emerge stronger

  27 Oct 2009 | 12:19 pm

  While we are suspicious of someone who has suffered a serious setback, we also respect hard-won experience, writes Luke Johnson

• Politics is a dangerous game

  20 Oct 2009 | 2:57 pm

  Politics is a dangerous game for business leaders, warns Luke Johnson , as they are unlikely to find what they are looking for

• 
  FT.com - John Kay

• How the market proved no panacea for BT

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:09 pm

  The verdict must be that privatisation provided a route for the managed decline of a business whose historic purpose was disappearing, writes John Kay

• Powerful interests are trying to control the market

  10 Nov 2009 | 12:34 pm

  'Rent-seeking' is found whenever economic power is concentrated – in the state, in large private business, in groups of co-operating and colluding firms. America has a new generation of rent-seekers: investment bankers and corporate executives, writes John Kay

• Uncommon Sense

  6 Nov 2009 | 3:28 pm

  This compilation of essays from the blog of Gary Becker and Richard Posner covers a range of topical issues including gay marriage, terrorism and traffic congestion, says John Kay

• Chaotic evolution defines the market economy

  3 Nov 2009 | 2:26 pm

  Markets are not a well-oiled machine: they are a constantly changing, adaptive biological systemn, writes John Kay

• 'Too big to fail' is too dumb an idea to keep

  27 Oct 2009 | 2:36 pm

  While regulators may be at fault in not having acted sufficiently vigorously, to say they caused the crisis is as ludicrous as saying that crime is caused by the indolence of the police, writes John Kay

• 
  FT.com - Lucy Kellaway

• The return of managerial bone-headedness

  15 Nov 2009 | 2:37 pm

  The bear market in bull may be over but the bear market in courage is not. Fear and paranoia are even more a part of corporate life, writes Lucy Kellaway

• Don't work with your spouse

  8 Nov 2009 | 10:46 am

  To allow husbands and wives to co-work strikes me as a bad idea financially, socially, practically and emotionally, writes Lucy Kellaway

• When a longer working life is good for us all

  1 Nov 2009 | 2:02 pm

  Work is a bit like taking exercise. It can be boring and stressful while you are doing it but it is preferable to not working, writes Lucy Kellaway

• Why 'chillaxing' isn't cool

  18 Oct 2009 | 2:23 pm

  Chilling is seen by today's children as the natural order of things. However, taking it easy in the office is not a good idea, writes Lucy Kellaway

• Taboo or not taboo? Some new office guidelines

  11 Oct 2009 | 1:31 pm

  A search for the sacrosanct subjects of the workplace was almost fruitless as most of the old strictures at work are on the way out, but there are still some no-go areas, writes Lucy Kellaway

• 
  FT.com - Roula Khalaf

• Turkey moves back into the limelight

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:12 am

  Ankara's political and cultural charm offensive has for the first time gained it a leading role in the Middle East as the power of other leading players has waned

• Abbas hits out from the shadows

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:02 pm

  Mahmoud Abbas's decision not to contest the next Palestinian presidential election is a reflection of how quickly and dramatically the hopes for peace that accompanied the election, a year ago, of US president Barack Obama have been extinguished, writes Roula Khalaf

• Iran risks overplaying nuclear hand

  2 Nov 2009 | 8:13 am

  Western powers might run out of patience with Tehran's negotiating tactics and demand a complete end to the country's uranium enrichment activities

• IMF urges region to cut cloth to fit straitened times

  12 Oct 2009 | 8:45 am

  Indicators such as oil prices and stock markets suggest a recovery is underway, writes Roula Khalaf. However, it will be some time until the effect is passed on to citizens in the form of eased lending conditions

• Forgotten Yemen slides towards the brink

  28 Sep 2009 | 9:23 am

  Anti-government violence in the north, a secession movement in the south and fugitive jihadis throughout the country, allied to failing oil production, mean the southern Gulf state is destabilising quickly

• 
  FT.com - Lombard

• Ernie and friends are too popular for our own good

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:12 pm

  The shadow of unfair competition has loomed over the retail banking market since the nationalisation of Northern Rock. But could the biggest threat really come from old Ernie and his friends at National Savings and Investments

• Colgate-Reckitt: a kitchen colossus that makes sense

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:25 pm

  The market frisson about a potential merger between the UK's Reckitt Benckiser and US toothpaste king Colgate-Palmolive has a certain logic

• Good to grow: why Bolland is right choice for M&S

  18 Nov 2009 | 1:33 pm

  Simultaneous resolution of succession questions at Marks and Spencer and ITV is like being blitzed by retailers' pre-Christmas advertising campaigns

• Regal fine punishes victims of scandal again

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:43 pm

  There's a palpable sense that justice has not been done at Regal Petroleum. The oil and gas group has been censured and fined for misleading the market about its Greek oil interests between 2003 and 2005

• Mayhew is the key to keeping Cazenove's culture safe

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:10 pm

  If JPMorgan makes Cazenove's bankers nervous, the seniors, such as David Mayhew, the evergreen Cazenove chairman, may simply step aside, while the juniors will be fair game for headhunters

• 
  FT.com - Wolfgang Munchau

• A Franco-German marriage of convenience

  15 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  The need for France and Germany to pull together is ever more obvious to an increasing number of people in both countries, writes Wolfgang Münchau

• How to pick a new leader for Europe

  8 Nov 2009 | 11:41 am

  The job thus defined is going to be very hard, perhaps impossible, to fill. It would require an exceptional political figure, and I struggle to put forward a name. I have my doubts about all the names in public discussion, writes Wolfgang Münchau

• We must not be too late with starting the Big Exit

  1 Nov 2009 | 9:51 am

  If we stick to the zero interest rate policy for too long, we risk a degree of economic instability much more extreme and costly than the recent financial crisis, writes Wolfgang Münchau

• A polite discourse on bankers and bubbles

  25 Oct 2009 | 12:25 pm

  I suspect we are in another bubble in the global equity, bonds and commodity markets. Central banks should be prepared to prick them before they cause calamity, writes Wolfgang Münchau

• Countdown to the next crisis is already under way

  18 Oct 2009 | 10:42 am

  We should not see inflation and deflation as opposite scenarios, but as sequential ones. We could be in for extreme price instability, in both directions, as central banks lose control, says Wolfgang Münchau

• 
  FT.com - Quentin Peel

• Getting Our Way

  15 Nov 2009 | 11:19 pm

  Sir Christopher Meyer writes a history book, a retelling of '500 years of adventure and intrigue' in British diplomacy, and pleads for a coherent foreign policy, says Quentin Peel

• Britain sets a high bar for incomprehension in Europe

  30 Oct 2009 | 12:57 pm

  If Downing Street and the Foreign Office are tone deaf on European politics, the UK Conservative party seems to be stone deaf, writes Quentin Peel

• Nato's dilemma in face of Russian muscle

  26 Oct 2009 | 10:04 am

  In the long run, the alliance's key question is how to deal with Moscow. This has the potential to open up divisions not only between the US and Europe but within Europe – between its east and west

• Global Insight: dog that does not bark

  15 Oct 2009 | 12:45 pm

  Nato and the Shanghai Co-operation Organisation – China and Russia, plus several central Asian states – have every reason to co-operate on stabilising Afghanistan but neither wants to make the first move

• Global Insight: Merkel to stay the course

  8 Oct 2009 | 10:51 am

  The German chancellor is a 'marathon runner': she does deals, and forges coalitions, but never loses sight of her goals. Getting Lisbon approved is a big one, writes Quentin Peel

• 
  FT.com - John Plender

• Insight: Redesigning a flawed system

  10 Nov 2009 | 9:42 am

  John Plender asks whether any lessons can be learnt from the hedge fund business model for redesigning a flawed narrow banking system

• Insight: Rethinking capital structures

  27 Oct 2009 | 9:33 am

  We are in an interregnum where investors are circumspect about leverage, says John Plender. Now's the time for companies to think again about capital structures

• Insight: No confidence in state ownership

  29 Sep 2009 | 9:51 am

  Bank's actions to pay off government stakes reflects zero confidence in state ownership and growing confidence in the future of banking, writes John Plender

• US and China must guard against their fatal embrace

  15 Sep 2009 | 12:05 pm

  Interdependence hurts. That is one of several uncomfortable messages arising from the trade spat between the US and China over tyres, poultry and car parts, writes John Plender

• Insight: Bias against innovation

  1 Sep 2009 | 8:14 am

  Some innovation is beneficial. But, writes John Plender, there are not many innovations in finance that do not have malign as well as benign effects

• 
  FT.com - Gideon Rachman

• Europe does not need a big shot

  26 Oct 2009 | 1:29 pm

  There are two problems with nominating an EU president. First is the job's shaky legitimacy. Second is a lack of unity that bedevils efforts to create a European foreign policy. Both issues would be made worse by appointing Tony Blair, writes Gideon Rachman

• How small nations were cut adrift

  19 Oct 2009 | 12:11 pm

  After the Great Recession, the economic and political tide has turned against small nations. It is the smalls that have fared worst – Iceland, Ireland, the three Baltic states. Iceland has not only suffered a catastrophic economic and banking collapse. It is also being bullied by Britain and the Netherlands into paying back billions lost by their citizens when Icelandic banks collapsed, writes Gideon Rachman

• Obama must start punching harder

  12 Oct 2009 | 2:11 pm

  The notion that Mr Obama is a weak leader is spreading in ways that are dangerous to his presidency, writes Gideon Rachman. The Nobel Peace Prize will not help. Peace is all very well. But Mr Obama now needs to pick a fight in public, and win it quickly.

• A triumph of hope over achievement

  9 Oct 2009 | 12:01 pm

  It will take more than a few months of his presidency to judge if it is worthy of a Nobel prize, writes Gideon Rachman

• Europe's plot to take over the world

  5 Oct 2009 | 1:48 pm

  The realisation that the G20 is Europe's Trojan horse struck me at the G20's last summit in Pittsburgh. The surroundings and atmosphere were strangely familiar. And then I understood; this was just a global version of a European Union summit, writes Gideon Rachman

• 
  FT.com - Lina Saigol

• Caution needed in IPO queue

  15 Nov 2009 | 10:05 am

  Over the next few months buy-out groups are expected to dump as many highly leveraged companies as they can on the stock market. Trouble is, mature companies coming to market with their cost structure finely tuned leave little room in the after-market for growth

• Cash is king in the book of Bob

  8 Nov 2009 | 6:00 pm

  A reading from the book of Robert E Diamond III:Chapter One; Verse One: In the beginning there was Bob

• Delayed payments bringing bigger rewards

  25 Oct 2009 | 11:17 am

  In a market where sellers do not want to offload assets for a low price and buyers are reluctant to pay top dollar, offering a deferred payment consideration can keep both sides happy

• Tiring of fast and loose ploy

  18 Oct 2009 | 7:06 am

  It's the due diligence, stupid! That's the familiar cry from CVC almost every time it launches a high-profile bid only to walk away

• Bear hugs lose clout without financial firepower

  11 Oct 2009 | 9:49 am

  The old-fashioned bear hug – whereby a bidder publishes an open letter outlining a takeover proposal to pressure the target board into negotiating – is in vogue again

• 
  FT.com - Michael Skapinker

• Muddling through with money and morals

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:04 pm

  The certainties of the two sides in the debate on morality and free markets are misplaced, writes Michael Skapinker. Regulation provides the middle way

• Why chief executives struggle as politicians

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:12 pm

  The real difference between business and government is that government does not go out of business, writes Michael Skapinker

• Unions need to focus on jobs of the future

  26 Oct 2009 | 3:23 pm

  Young, dynamic and ambitious people are far less likely to be union members than their elders because they are not interested in time-consuming internal committees, writes Michael Skapinker

• Brazil is the 21st-century power to watch

  19 Oct 2009 | 12:01 pm

  For all its problems with crime, the country has outstanding potential, a welcoming and richly diverse people and several world-class companies, writes Michael Skapinker

• Leaders' spouses make the best truth-tellers

  12 Oct 2009 | 2:24 pm

  Who better to moan to about cabinet colleagues and ungrateful voters – or about the board, shareholders and staff? Who better to advise you to cancel the furious e-mail? Michael Skapinker recommends executives consult their spouses

• 
  FT.com - Mike Southon

• Take the free and easy route

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:44 am

  Mike Southon claims that the concept of "free" business models represents a great entrepreneurial opportunity.

• Follow directions for surfing

  13 Nov 2009 | 9:36 am

  A very straightforward business plan is the best starting place for a successful internet business, according to Mike Southon.

• Lessons litter memory lane

  6 Nov 2009 | 10:01 am

  We all occasionally look back and wonder what might have happened had we done things differently. But there is no point in dwelling on the past.

• Circus tricks and business skills

  30 Oct 2009 | 11:23 am

  There is no reason why an introvert cannot be a very successful entrepreneur, according to Mike Southon.

• Don't send your audience to sleep

  23 Oct 2009 | 8:55 am

  Sponsor presentations at the start of conferences often send a cold chill through the audience. It does not have to be this way.

• 
  FT.com - Philip Stephens

• How to make a successful failure out of Copenhagen

  12 Nov 2009 | 12:29 pm

  The climate change conference next month is bound to fail, as the US is not ready to accept any of the elements needed for success. But negotiators must remain committed to an eventual deal and avoid the twin dangers of denial and despair, says Philip Stephens

• The open question in Obama's Afghan plan

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:04 pm

  Friends of the US president are already warning Afghanistan is shaping up as the biggest potential threat to his hopes of re-election in 2012, says Philip Stephens

• Relax, Mr President. There's no need to rush

  5 Nov 2009 | 12:04 pm

  For Obama's critics on the right, diplomacy and engagement have become synonyms for vacillation and weakness. He should stand firm: many of the problems he faces, foreign policy in particular, will not be harmed by leaving some time to consider them, writes Philip Stephens

• Pay parliamentarians the rate for the job

  2 Nov 2009 | 12:52 pm

  The uproar about MPs' expenses threatens more serious damage than holding up the nation to ridicule. It promises to rob politics of the people it needs, writes Philip Stephens

• The future or the museum? Europe's moment of choice

  29 Oct 2009 | 3:38 pm

  The debate about who should be chosen as the first president of the European Council has become a proxy for this more fundamental choice. Economic power is now shifting eastwards on a scale and at a speed beyond our previous experience, writes Philip Stephens

• 
  FT.com - Columnists, Stefan Stern

• Open your mind to the idea of innovation

  16 Nov 2009 | 2:37 pm

  Only complacent leaders believe their way of doing things cannot be improved, an attitude that can lead many astray, writes Stefan Stern

• Fond farewell to a brilliant thinker

  9 Nov 2009 | 3:21 pm

  The death of Russ Ackoff at the age of 90 has provoked an outpouring of regret and admiration for a management thinker who remained a too well-kept secret, writes Stefan Stern

• Big lessons we can learn from Little Chef

  2 Nov 2009 | 2:03 pm

  What happens at branches of Little Chef when Blumenthal and his camera crew are not there? That is the question that matters, writes Stefan Stern

• Living strategy and death of the five-year plan

  26 Oct 2009 | 4:12 pm

  Strategy has changed. While eternal truths – about market position and scale – endure, a more dynamic approach is needed, writes Stefan Stern

• Failing to cope with change?

  19 Oct 2009 | 3:35 pm

  Managers can underestimate the difficulties of turning around business practices writes Stefan Stern

• 
  FT.com - Columnists, Paul Taylor

• Sound solution for music fans

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:22 pm

  Olive's digital home audio system marries the convenience of the electronic format with playback of audiophile quality. It can also stream tracks, writes Paul Taylor

• The Droid joins the battle

  12 Nov 2009 | 2:07 pm

  Motorola's new smartphone is the best Android handset so far, with a big touchscreen and slide-out keyboard that make it is a serious challenger, writes Paul Taylor

• Your eyes away from home

  5 Nov 2009 | 3:13 pm

  Video security systems for monitoring your home when you are not there can be sophisticated and do not need to be a nightmare to set up, writes Paul Taylor

• Plaything with a purpose

  29 Oct 2009 | 3:55 pm

  A useful alternative to lugging around a laptop, the MPro120 may help pico-projectors shed their image as mere gimmicky gadgets, writes Paul Taylor

• Just relax and recharge

  22 Oct 2009 | 3:22 pm

  Keeping track of a myriad of chargers is a major headache. Wireless charging systems are still in development, but offer some help, writes Paul Taylor

• 
  FT.com - Gillian Tett

• Philanthropy and bank bashing

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:50 am

  It is difficult to imagine what was going through the brain of Goldman Sachs boss Lloyd Blankfein when the bank announced a $500m initiative to help small US businesses

• Flood initiative shows cross-border risk

  9 Nov 2009 | 12:28 pm

  The way that scientists in Reading are trying to measure flood risk has fascinating parallels with a topic now confronting G20 leaders – namely, macroprudential regulation

• Insight: The clearing house rules

  5 Nov 2009 | 8:19 am

  Don't let the fact that no clearing house has failed before create complacency, writes Gillian Tett

• Insight: Lessons learned in Singapore

  29 Oct 2009 | 9:26 am

  What is being quietly tried in Singapore's property market may yet spread to western markets, writes Gillian Tett

• Michael Moore must leave US to find new elite

  16 Oct 2009 | 10:04 am

  Global equity strategists do not often star in Hollywood films. Right now, however, that fate has befallen Ajay Kapur, an analyst who formerly worked for Citi

• 
  FT.com - World View

• Ferrero boys should be kept cool

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:20 am

  The mention of Ferrero's name in connection with a possible role in countering the bid by Kraft for Cadbury highlights the fact that not much is known about the company

• Vivendi won't let a little hangover spoil a good party

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:36 am

  There seems to be a party atmosphere at Vivendi these days – at least according to one veteran director who says of sitting on the French entertainment and telecoms conglomerate's board: "C'est du fun." And the company is now taking the party to Brazil

• India's morale receives boost from Michelin's new plant

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:35 am

  With the French manufacturter pledging to create 1,500 jobs by 2012, when the plant is expected to open, the investment should provide not just a lift to the local economy but also a much-needed boost to workers' morale

• China drives BMW chiefs into a position of comfort

  12 Nov 2009 | 11:01 am

  As BMW's senior management made their way to the Great Hall of the People in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, they were pleased to notice that their police escort was driving in a convoy of China-made BMW 5-series sedans

• World View: Taiwan's chip industry woes

  11 Nov 2009 | 10:59 am

  The Taiwan government's efforts to restructure its $24bn dynamic random access memory industry have came to naught

• 
  FT.com - Martin Wolf

• Tax the windfall banking bonuses

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:39 pm

  The case for generous subventions to banks is to restore the financial system to health. It is not to enrich bankers, particularly not those engaged in the sorts of trading that destroyed the system in the first place, writes Martin Wolf

• Grim truths Obama should have told Hu

  17 Nov 2009 | 12:06 pm

  Obama should have made clear the need for China to revalue its currency and rebalance the global economy when he met Hu Jintao, writes Martin Wolf. He could reasonably threaten punitive action, such is the need for change

• Victory in the cold war was a start as well as an ending

  10 Nov 2009 | 1:03 pm

  Has capitalism failed, as communism did? No. Some transition countries are in crisis; but transition itself is not. Liberal democracies and market economies can reform and adapt. They have shown these qualities before. They must do so again, writes Martin Wolf

• Time for a debate on immigration

  5 Nov 2009 | 12:25 pm

  Diversity brings social benefits, but also costs, arising from declining trust and erosion of a sense of shared values, writes Martin Wolf

• Private behaviour will shape our path to fiscal stability

  3 Nov 2009 | 1:59 pm

  It is idiotic to discuss the reduction of the huge fiscal deficits, without considering the nature of the offsetting adjustments in the private and external sectors. Some adjustments would be desirable, but others would be extremely perilous, writes Martin Wolf

• 
  Brussels Blog

• FT video: Relative unknowns take EU centre stage

  FT

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:54 am

  function doLoad() {var mp = new MavenPlayer('mp_blogs');mp.setParameter('checkSystemId', 'systemRequirementsHTML'); mp.setQueryParamsAsVariables(false);mp.setVariable("GEO_CODE","USA");mp.setVariable("referralObject", "11763331");mp.setVariable("CHANNEL","Brussels Blog");mp.setVariable("CHANNEL_URL", "http://www.ft.com/cms/885d7916-e3aa-11dc-8799-0000779fd2ac.html?_i_referralObject=11763331&fromSearch=n");mp.write('flashParentHTML');}function doContextMenu() {return maven.PlayerObjectUtil.doContextMenu();}doLoad();

• Cathy Ashton: 10 things to know

  FT

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:45 am

  From the FT’s Westminster blog Cathy Ashton is Europe’s new foreign policy supremo. Even friends are stunned that someone so low key could have been elevated to such a high profile job. To date she has served as EU trade commissioner, leader of the Lords, and as a junior justice and education minister. Here are 10 [...]

• Van Rompuy and Ashton: big enough for the big EU jobs?

  Tony Barber

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:09 am

  So it looks as if it is to be Herman Van Rompuy, Belgium’s prime minister, as the full-time president, and Catherine Ashton, Britain’s EU trade commissioner, as the foreign policy supremo.  This is the culmination of eight years of efforts, starting with the EU’s Laeken Declaration of 2001, to reform the bloc’s institutions and give the [...]

• Van Rompuy-Brit combination would signal EU disunity on Turkey

  Tony Barber

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:14 am

  The sun is shining in Brussels and the sky has an unseasonably blue, cloudless, late-November-in-Rome quality as European Union leaders make their way here for the summit of summits - the event where they will choose the EU’s first full-time president and new foreign policy chief.  I wonder if the weather will be so fine when the leaders finally [...]

• Scarcity of women candidates for EU jobs signals trouble ahead

  Tony Barber

  17 Nov 2009 | 5:18 am

  My colleague Philippe Ricard wrote a fine piece in Monday’s Le Monde about the scarcity of women candidates for top positions in the European Union - not just the first full-time president and the new foreign policy high representative, but the next 27-member European Commission. He made the point that if only a few women are nominated [...]

• 
  Clive Crook's blog

• How to do a second stimulus

  Clive Crook

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:27 pm

  My new column for National Journal looks at the case for a jobs bill. Speaking to the Economic Club of New York this week, Federal Reserve Board Chairman Ben Bernanke gave a gloomier assessment of the economy than many were expecting. The recession is over, he declared, but the Fed expects no more than “moderate” growth [...]

• What’s at stake in Afghanistan

  Clive Crook

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:51 pm

  Support for the war continues to slide in the US. Support for the war in Afghanistan has ebbed to a new low in ABC News/Washington Post polls, with concerns over strategy and broad doubts about the reliability of the Afghan government leaving Americans sharply divided on where to go from here. Just 44 percent now say the [...]

• Cultural curriculum

  Clive Crook

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:41 pm

  Further reading on the conditions for an opportunity society (see previous post). At his Senate confirmation hearing in February, Arne Duncan succinctly summarized the Obama administration’s approach to education reform: “We must build upon what works. We must stop doing what doesn’t work.” Since becoming education secretary, Duncan has launched a $4.3 billion federal “Race to [...]

• American dream needs repair

  Clive Crook

  15 Nov 2009 | 4:26 pm

  Sooner or later the US will find itself grappling with an immense fiscal problem. The recession and stimulus have combined to produce record-breaking deficits, and economic recovery will not come close to restoring balance. US voters have big questions to answer about the entitlements they demand and the taxes they are willing to pay. This dismal [...]

• Craig Brown channels Malcolm Gladwell

  Clive Crook

  11 Nov 2009 | 6:31 pm

  Perfect.

• 
  Dear Lucy

• Dear Lucy: On the move

  FT

  18 Nov 2009 | 8:03 am

  A note from FT.com: Thanks for your answers to the latest question - I’ve been cuckolded by my CEO. Should I leave my job? You can read Lucy’s answer to this question - and comment on the next problem put to Lucy - by going to Dear Lucy’s new home on FT.com. The direct address [...]

• My boss has cuckolded me. Should I resign?

  Lucy Kellaway

  3 Nov 2009 | 7:34 pm

  My wife, who works at the same company as me, has for some months been conducting an illicit affair with our chief executive. She has decided to leave me and to resign her position in order to move in with him. The affair, which has now been made very public, seems to have done no damage to him but has [...]

• Should I report an insane co-worker to human resources?

  Lucy Kellaway

  21 Oct 2009 | 5:21 pm

  My colleagues and I are convinced that one of our co-workers is insane. The details are bizarre and too numerous to go through, but as an example, when collecting clothes for needy children we found that this worker, who admitted to never having been in a relationship, mentioned that he had a basement full of [...]

• I’m worried about my unimpressive job title

  Lucy Kellaway

  14 Oct 2009 | 5:20 pm

  I’m looking for a new job, but fear that my unimpressive title may be holding me back. I am a senior compliance manager in a big bank but my title is merely “controller”. Other people in my bank who do less senior jobs have much grandersounding titles. For instance, “head of corporate liquidity management” is [...]

• Should I resent the fact that some positions are offered only to women?

  Lucy Kellaway

  7 Oct 2009 | 5:17 pm

  I am a level-headed, unsexist accountant who believes strongly in meritocracy, and I’m beginning to get hacked off at the treatment handed out to my female colleagues. One of them has just won a prize for being an “emerging leader” that was only open to women. Meanwhile, one of my female bosses has just got [...]

• 
  Don Sull's Blog

• Building operational agility: Getting the right information

  Don Sull

  21 Nov 2009 | 5:44 am

  Leaders recognize the value of agility in turbulent markets, but are often less clear on how they can enhance their own organization’s ability to identify and seize opportunities more effectively than rivals.  Over the past decade, I have analyzed more and less successful firms in some of the world’s most turbulent markets, including China, Brazil, [...]

• Agility to win in a turbulent world

  Don Sull

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:44 am

  With the worst of the economic crisis behind them, many executives look forward to a period of stability and predictability when companies can return to business as usual. They are likely to be disappointed. Market turbulence did not begin with the fall of Lehman Brothers, and it will not end when the global economy recovers. [...]

• Clear choices and messy situations

  Don Sull

  14 Nov 2009 | 4:44 am

  While trying to understand the sources of economic profit, the economist Frank Knight introduced a powerful distinction between risk and uncertainty. Knight’s distinction is more nuanced and interesting than the caricature view that his critics dismiss. In my view, the difference between risk and uncertainty hinges on the range of possible actions an investor, manager, [...]

• Frank Knight: An American Socrates

  Don Sull

  10 Nov 2009 | 6:25 am

  Market volatility has undermined the credibility of models in macro-economics and finance. Lacking accurate maps to navigate the current turbulence, investors, scholars, and managers are spending more time pondering uncertainty and risk. These topics can lure even hard-nosed thinkers into fuzzy rumination–recall Donald Rumsfeld’s distinction between known unknowns and unknown unknowns. In these unsettled times, [...]

• Good to global: Align your organization

  Don Sull

  7 Nov 2009 | 4:01 am

  The final stage in globalizing is less a step and more a long march. After adopting a global mindset and giving their commitment teeth, executives must make a series of organizational changes–large and small–required to execute on their global strategy. To succeed on the global stage, a company must align its organizational realities with its [...]

• 
  Dragonbeat

• Dragonbeat…on the move

  FT

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:57 am

  A note from FT.com Thanks for all your comments on Dragonbeat. It now has a new home on FT.com. To follow Dragonbeat from now on, please click here. Dragonbeat’s new home (www.ft.com/dragonbeat) also contains a link to this site so that you can view the archives.

• What TCL’s foreign foray says about China Inc going global

  Tom Miller

  2 Nov 2009 | 5:16 pm

  By Yuxin He Yuxin He is a corporate analyst for Dragonomics Advisory and is a guest contributor to Dragonbeat blog this week. Five years ago, a little-known electronics firm in Guangdong province – TCL – briefly became the world’s biggest television maker. Countless consultants announced the coming of age of China’s global consumer-electronics champions, following Japanese firms like [...]

• A blog pause

  Tom Miller

  19 Oct 2009 | 4:29 am

  Dragonbeat is off this week, but will return with some thoughts on Tuesday October 27.

• No ban on exports of rare-earth metals

  Tom Miller

  12 Oct 2009 | 9:46 pm

  By Will Freeman Will Freeman is a staff member of Dragonomics Advisory and is a guest contributor to Dragonbeat blog this week. China’s rare earth miners, if you believe a flurry of recent newspaper articles, have the world’s producers of high-tech equipment by the short and curlies. A draft plan by China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology [...]

• China’s NPLs: Another financial time-bomb?

  Arthur Kroeber

  5 Oct 2009 | 9:08 pm

  By Arthur Kroeber Is China’s credit binge a financial time-bomb waiting to blow the country’s much-vaunted economic miracle to smithereens? Beijing has long bet that the problem of bad loans can be solved by pushing off the day of reckoning into the future, with rapid economic growth reducing the size of the problem. So far that [...]

• 
  Economists' Forum

• Further reading - China, systemic risk

  FT

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:04 am

  From the FT: Tackling systemic risk is no job for the status quo - William Donaldson and Arthur Levitt From elsewhere: China, the Renminbi, and global imbalances: A quantative View - Econbrowser The Big Squander - Paul Krugman, NY Times Forecasting macroeconomic developments - VoxEU

• Tax the windfall banking bonuses

  Martin Wolf

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:36 pm

  Windfall taxes are a ghastly idea. They are a sop to prejudice, a burden on risk-taking and a form of arbitrary confiscation. No sensible person should support them. So why do I now find the idea of a windfall tax on banks so appealing? Well, this time, it really does look different. First, all the institutions [...]

• Further reading - Fiscal policy, China, Europe, Obama

  FT

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:40 am

  From the FT: Obama seeks change Beijing can believe in - David Pilling How to reinvent China’s growth - John Gapper Modesty would become Europe’s new duo - Jacques Delors From elsewhere: The effectiveness of fiscal and monetary stimulus in depressions - VoxEU A Yuan-sided argument - Economist Balancing fiscal support with fiscal solvency - IMFDirect

• Further Reading - Obama, China, trade

  FT

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:19 am

  From the FT: America must start treating China as a friend - Bill Owens How the market proved no panacea for BT - John kay From elsewhere: Uncertainty and the tale of two depressions - VoxEU Lecturing each other on trade - Michael Pettis

• Grim truths Obama should have told Hu

  Martin Wolf

  17 Nov 2009 | 4:52 pm

  Barack Obama, president of the US, met Hu Jintao, president of the People’s Republic of China, for a private meeting on Tuesday. The agenda was long, covering the world economy, climate change and non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. The last two are the most important, over the long run. But the first is the most urgent. [...]

• 
  FT Energy Source

• The Source: tech collaboration in mining and oil, China’s Saudi oil imports, coal king hails nuclear age, the Chevy Volt

  William MacNamara

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:45 pm

  On Energy Source: Rio Tinto and Codelco’s pragmatic cooperation Elsewhere: Chinese refiners agree 12 per cent rise in Saudi oil imports, topping 1m barrels per day (Reuters) Duke’s Jim Rogers slags off coal, reiterates support for nuclear (WSJ) Entertaining review of the Chevy Volt hybrid (NY Times) Oil prices fall for a second day (Bloomberg) Green Londoners can recharge their electric cars at Sainsbury’s (Treehugger) Scotland turns on wave energy device (BBC)

• Rio Tinto and Codelco’s pragmatic cooperation: a trend in mining that could spread to oil?

  William MacNamara

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:55 am

  A technology agreement between Rio Tinto and Codelco - two of the world’s biggest copper mining companies - raises the prospect that large resource companies might pool tech R&D, jointly funding and jointly benefiting from new ways of uncovering more geologically difficult deposits. Rio and Codelco’s “Rio de Cobre” alliance, announced last week, allows both companies absolute rights to ‘peer over the fence’ at each other’s copper-extracting technologies, said John McGagh, head of innovation at Rio, when talking to the FT yesterday. Rio has a…

• Spot news

  James Fontanella-Khan

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:23 pm

  Lex: Commodity prices In spite of analysts’ buy calls, oil, copper and cotton price halved (FT) CNPC, Sudan sign oil refining agreement China’s largest oil company to expand a refinery in Khartoum and swap assets (Bloomberg) CIC buys 20% stake in solar operator Chinese group bought GCL-Poly Energ for $705 (FT) Russia’s Putin says Ukraine gas deals ensure supplies Neighbours on freindlier terms (Reuters) Statoil says US drops bribery probe into Iran case Horton case brought down previous Statoil executives (Reuters) New California rules to make TVs greener State sets US first…

• The Source: Iraq woos the French, Total wins in court, California sets TV standards and finds secret rigs, Chavez blames Opec

  Carola Hoyos

  19 Nov 2009 | 9:30 am

  On Energy Source Iraq woos French investors Cera says no peak oil thanks to technology Elsewhere French court clears Total and its former boss in 2001 Toulouse explosion (France24/Reuters) California sets TV standards (WSJ) Premier cuts 2009 production guidance (Reuters) Oil tankers anger British tabloid (Daily Mail) Chavez blames economic woes on Opec cuts (Reuters) Trafigura says oil glut means prices are too high Marathon finds oil in North Sea (Houston Chronicle) More shale gas boom shows up in water treatment permits (Penn Live) Secret oil rigs uncovered in California (Huffington Post)…

• Iraq oil: Baghdad bats its eye lashes at France and Total

  Carola Hoyos

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:39 am

  The Iraqi government on Thursday stepped up its efforts to woo French business to invest in the oil-rich country, telling Total, the French oil group, it could expect favourable treatment. On a state visit to France, Jalal Talabani, the Iraqi president, sought to draw a line under differences over the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, telling French business leaders they should “show courage and invest in all sectors”. Mr Talabani directed his strongest entreaty at Total, suggesting that it could win forthcoming tenders to exploit Iraqi fields even if the company did not come [...]

• 
  FTfm blog

• Of interest in the FT

  Emma Boyde

  20 Nov 2009 | 5:40 am

  Gartmore confirms plans for IPO Rising portfolio value bolsters KKR UK regulator faces pensions dilemma Paulson starts gold fund amid record prices Ministers defend new FSA powers Informant says Galleon tips came from Asia Worried nations try to cool hot money Trichet warns on bank bonuses Electronic rival for convertible bonds planned

• Shale gas debate just won’t go away

  Emma Boyde

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:36 am

  FTfm columnist John Dizard was, apparently, just tapping into the global zeitgeist when he wrote of the debate surrounding shale gas reserves. In his November 1 column, Shale gas numbers may not add up, he described what sounded like the lone voice of a softly spoken shale sceptic, Art Berman. At the time that we went to [...]

• Ethical investing - who cares?

  Ruth Sullivan

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:22 am

  Post credit crunch, most people would expect investors - or would-be ones - to focus on how to gain returns from any financial product, while other considerations such as ethical concerns have headed out of the door. Not so, it seems. An Ipsos Mori/Eiris consumer survey that dropped into my email box today, showed nearly half of UK consumers are keen to find out about the ethical [...]

• Of interest in the FT

  Emma Boyde

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:04 am

  Guy Hands, head of private equity house Terra Firma, warns US and Europe could suffer ‘Japanese problem’ unless banks’ leveraged loans are restructured Goldman apologises for role in crisis and pledges $500m to help US small businesses Mark Lowe, who set up Nomos Capital Partners is being sued for discrimination by a former employee Doomed to repeat history? asks [...]

• Money for nothing

  Pauline Skypala

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:04 am

  The blog posts on websites read by UK independent financial advisers are alive with objections to comments by Andrew Fisher, outspoken chief executive of Towry Law. Mr Fisher runs a fee-based advice outfit, but revealed recently that his firm gets £6m a year in trail commission on legacy business it inherited from firms it has taken over. Towry [...]

• 
  John Gapper's Business Blog

• How to reinvent China’s growth

  John Gapper

  18 Nov 2009 | 5:22 pm

  My column in the FT this week is on Beijing’s rapid development: Shooting down the multi-lane highway from Qingdao airport to the centre of the coastal city this week, I had the usual impressions of a visitor to China. The roads were immaculate, the drive into town took a long time because of the sprawl of [...]

• Chinese censorship shifts towards social networks

  John Gapper

  17 Nov 2009 | 7:03 pm

  Sitting in Qingdao at the FT Chinese annual forum, I am confronting at first hand the shift in the pattern of Chinese censorship towards social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter. It is easy to access media sites such as the websites of the Financial Times and the Wall Street Journal. Twittering or adding an [...]

• Murdoch will relish a battle over online charging

  John Gapper

  13 Nov 2009 | 2:55 pm

  I’ve written a piece about Rupert Murdoch’s stand-off with Google for the Weekend FT, saying he ought to stop talking about it and go ahead and charge for access to newspapers such as The Times online. You can read it and comment on it here.

• The risky quoteability of Goldman’s Lloyd Blankfein

  John Gapper

  13 Nov 2009 | 11:19 am

  Do not be quotable is probably a good motto for bankers, one that was ignored by Chuck Prince, the former chairman and chief executive of Citigroup. Now Lloyd Blankfein, head of Goldman Sachs, appears to have fallen into the same trap. Mr Blankfein’s wry claim that Goldman is “doing God’s work” by financing companies and investors [...]

• When a product recall does not mean a recall

  John Gapper

  11 Nov 2009 | 4:29 pm

  In my FT column this week, I have written about this week’s recall of 1m folding pushchairs by Maclaren, the British company - and what we can learn from how it mishandled the event. FT.com has now introduced a comment facility on all articles so please add your comments there. Incidentally, the most confusing thing [...]

• 
  Gideon Rachman's Blog

• Europe’s computer-dating system malfunctions

  Gideon Rachman

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:48 am

  By Gideon Rachman If the answer is Herman Van Rompuy and Cathy Ashton, what the hell was the question? Europe’s choices for its new “president” and “foreign minister” are like the result of some sort of computer-dating programme that has gone badly wrong. If you fed in all the criteria for the jobs into your [...]

• Send veto, guns and money: the EU “presidency”

  Alan Beattie

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:29 am

  By Alan Beattie, the FT’s world trade editor Look, not my specialist subject, but here’s my eurocent’s-worth on the appointment of the Baroness High Representative and the Lord High Everything Else. (Incidentally, I’d have stuck with the classic original song for this blog post title, but if there’s one thing Brussels isn’t short of, it’s lawyers.) The biggest [...]

• Why Saudi Arabia should rethink its Yemen strategy

  Gideon Rachman

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:05 pm

  By Roula Khalaf, the FT’s Middle East editor It was a distinctly un-Saudi affair. The traditionally cautious kingdom, careful to the point where its diplomatic initiatives must be guaranteed to succeed before they are even launched, found itself militarily thrown into the internal conflict in neighbouring Yemen. In the past two weeks Saudi warplanes have bombed border [...]

• Afghanistan: Karzai’s commitment on Afghan army and police

  FT

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:20 am

  By James Blitz, defence and diplomatic editor, in Kabul President Hamid Karzai’s inauguration speech has long been seen as a critical moment for him to spell out his determination to improve Afghan governance in his second term of office and begin the fight against corruption. But the part of the speech that will make the headlines tonight [...]

• Obama makes final effort to reach out to Chinese

  demetrisevastopulo

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:50 am

  By Geoff Dyer, FT China bureau chief Barack Obama made one last final attempt to speak directly to ordinary Chinese people at the end of his three-day visit, giving an interview in Beijing yesterday to Southern Weekend, one of China’s more outspoken newspapers. Yet even that small gesture seems to have led to some minor skirmishes with [...]

• 
  Health Blog

• Trial by error

  Margaret McCartney

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:36 pm

  In September this year, a young woman fell ill and died, hours after she was injected with Cervarix, the vaccine intended to prevent cervical cancer. Several media reports questioned the safety of the vaccine and called for the schools vaccination programme to be scrapped. The batch of vaccine was quarantined until investigations could be completed, but [...]

• Underwhelming evidence for a heart screening programme

  Margaret McCartney

  17 Nov 2009 | 9:36 am

  And so, to my mail box this morning. “Dear Doctor We are writing to brief you about the British Heart Foundation’s forthcoming Atrial Fibrillation campaign [when the upper chambers of the heart beat in an unco-ordinated fashion]. The campaign aims to increase people’s awareness of asymptomatic AF and encourages them to check their pulse for an irregular rhythm…The campaign will [...]

• The real deal

  Margaret McCartney

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:54 pm

  It seems that people like enticements. Take the shimmering lures at make-up counters, where if you buy enough of one brand’s products, you’re promised a “gift”. Of course, these deals rarely look so good on closer inspection. Buying one and getting one free, for example, often applies to goods where buying large quantities is impractical. And [...]

• What’s wrong with wrinkles, anyway?

  Margaret McCartney

  13 Nov 2009 | 7:15 am

  Last Saturday, How To Spend It ran an interview with Professor Susan Greenfield, who is famous as a neuroscientist and a life peer. And she says that one of the “grooming staples I’m never without [is] Boots No 7 Protect and Perfect Intense Beauty Serum (£19.75) - it is, they tell us, clinically proven to reduce wrinkles. [...]

• Applause for the publishing of negative trial results

  Margaret McCartney

  12 Nov 2009 | 3:29 am

  I’m always perversely pleased when research comes out saying that an intervention we previously thought of as useful turns out not to be. The reason I’m pleased is that is shows that the necessary critical evaluation of what we are doing in healthcare is ongoing: it also means that genuine improvements in care can be made. I’m [...]

• 
  Management Blog

• Peter Drucker - yodelling down Mount Fuji

  Stefan Stern

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:47 pm

  Vienna A full day of debate, analysis, homage and, just occasionally, longueurs here at the inaugural Peter Drucker forum. Delegates heard about Drucker’s “integrity, humility and generosity” from Rick Warren, the priest chosen by Barack Obama to speak at his inauguration as President. It turns out that Dr Warren’s all-time best-selling book The Purpose Driven Life was [...]

• First global Peter Drucker forum 2009

  Stefan Stern

  18 Nov 2009 | 1:27 pm

  Vienna A wonderful gathering of the management clan is taking place here in the Austrian capital this week. CK Prahalad is in town, as is Charles Handy, Yves Doz and Philip Kotler, among many others. What is everyone doing here? They have come to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of the birth, in this city, of Peter [...]

• Ten easy ways to murder a business

  Luke Johnson

  17 Nov 2009 | 5:12 pm

  A recent New York Times blog and a business book published last year cover the same territory: the many ways you can kill off your business. The former is written from the perspective of the entrepreneur; the latter takes a corporate manager’s viewpoint. Entrepreneur Jay Goltz’s blog post – “Eleven easy ways to destroy your company” [...]

• Open your mind to the idea of innovation

  Stefan Stern

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:50 pm

  The three most dangerous words in management? “Not invented here.” Only complacent leaders believe that their way of doing things cannot be improved upon. But that attitude can lead apparently successful businesses astray. As Henry Chesbrough, executive director of the Center for Open Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley, has pointed out, senior management teams [...]

• Kraft - a customer writes

  Stefan Stern

  16 Nov 2009 | 9:39 am

  My children like Kraft’s Philadelphia soft cheese - the light version (got to think of their health, you know). But I have a question for the company. For many, many years - too many - the product was presented in the most flimsy, feeble packaging imaginable. If you dropped it the lid broke or the [...]

• 
  Science Blog

• A quiet restart for Cern’s LHC

  Clive Cookson

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:38 am

  Engineers at Cern near Geneva hope to restart the Large Hadron Collider, the world’s most powerful atom smasher, this weekend. Understandably it will be a low-key affair, with the media not invited, in contrast to the razzmatazz of the original start-up in September 2008. Nine days later the $8bn LHC suffered a serious electromagnetic failure and [...]

• My play of the year: Inherit the Wind

  Clive Cookson

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:14 am

  I had my best theatrical experience of 2009 last night, seeing Inherit the Wind at London’s Old Vic. My expectations of this 1955 dramatisation of the 1925 Scopes ‘Monkey Trial’ were high, after its excellent reviews. And of course the political debate over teaching evolution and  creationism still very much alive. But I did not expect the [...]

• Purdue - insights from Indiana

  Clive Cookson

  17 Nov 2009 | 3:21 am

  A visit to Purdue, a state university in the cornfields of Indiana almost three hours drive from Chicago, shows the strength in depth of the US academic system. I’m just back from my third visit, courtesy of Purdue’s imaginative Science Journalism Laureates programme. On each occasion I have been struck by the intellectual quality of the [...]

• Blogging pause

  Clive Cookson

  10 Nov 2009 | 11:12 am

  I’m off to the US for a few days, to join the Science Journalism Laureates programme at Purdue University in Indiana. I may have time to blog from there. Otherwise I’ll resume when I get back next week. Thanks for reading.

• Animals with human genes and cells

  Clive Cookson

  9 Nov 2009 | 3:59 pm

  Britain’s Academy of Medical Sciences has launched an imaginative new study - on the use in research of animals containing human genes or cells. “This area of science has had very little public discussion, though it has been scientifically very important and has led to some important medical advances,” says Martin Bobrow, the Cambridge University medical [...]

• 
  Tech Blog

• Prettier in pink Pogoplug eases file-sharing

  Chris Nuttall

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:55 pm

  The photo and video sharing trend, coupled with the growing use of high-definition video and higher megapixel cameras, means big files and longer upload times for users. One way to avoid time-consuming transfers is to allow others to view files securely on a local hard-drive at home. Opera’s Unite, incorporated in its latest browser release last month, [...]

• Windows 7 (nearly) ate my computer

  Richard Waters

  20 Nov 2009 | 3:34 pm

  Like a lot of Windows Vista users, I couldn’t wait to upgrade to Windows 7 on my home PC. Finally, something from Microsoft that promised to make computing faster and easier. Since I was just moving from Vista Home Premium to 7 Home Premium I didn’t even bother backing up my files. That was nearly a [...]

• What’s happening? A lot, says Twitter COO

  Chris Nuttall

  20 Nov 2009 | 1:35 pm

  Look out for a “fascinating..completely non-traditional …really cool…awesome” advertising strategy on Twitter early next year, as the microblogging service finally begins to monetise directly its tens of millions of users. That sounds like sensational advertising, or self-promotion, in itself, from Dick Costolo, Twitter chief operating officer. He used all of those adjectives onstage on Friday in [...]

• LiMo grabs limelight from Android with Korea win

  Chris Nuttall

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:20 pm

  LiMo could do with a little of the limelight. The mobile Linux operating system has been almost forgotten as Google-led Android has become the open-source flavour of the year for handset makers and carriers. But on Thursday, LiMo recorded some progress in its adoption, with SK Telecom and Samsung  announcing South Korea’s first LiMo-compliant phone. The Samsung SCH-M510 [...]

• Google Chrome OS - an Android in the making?

  Chris Nuttall

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:05 am

  Google gave us a good first look at its Chrome operating system today. It has some interesting features, but is far from finished - the first devices using it are still a year away. Google’s ambitions for Chrome also seem modest at present - it will run on low-specification netbooks. But everyone seemed to have low [...]

• 
  The Undercover Economist

• It’s not just Scrooge who wants Christmas abolished

  Tim Harford

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:47 pm

  Nobody has done more to damage relations between the joyous commercial festival that is Christmas and the economics profession than Joel Waldfogel. Long-term readers of this column will be well aware of Professor Waldfogel’s research paper, “The Deadweight Loss of Christmas”. Ever since it was published in 1993 it has been taken out by economic [...]

• Dear Economist: I love Walmart: my wife hates it. Help!

  Tim Harford

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:44 pm

  My newlywed wife and I are deeply in love. There is, however, one issue that threatens the blissful fabric of our marriage. I absolutely insist upon shopping at Walmart. My wife, meanwhile, would rather avoid Walmart at all costs. I have recently tried to convince her that not only does Walmart offer the lowest prices known [...]

• Given the choice, how much choice would you like?

  Tim Harford

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:49 pm

  Is more choice better? Ten years ago the answer seemed obvious: Yes. Now the conventional wisdom is the opposite: lots of choice makes people less likely to choose anything, and less happy when they do choose. The most famous supporting evidence is an experiment conducted by two psychologists, Mark Lepper and Sheena Iyengar. They set up [...]

• Dear Economist: How can I be fair to my grandchildren?

  Tim Harford

  13 Nov 2009 | 3:46 pm

  My son has two children and my daughter four. I propose to give £5,000 to each grandchild in my will. Would this be equitable, given that £20,000 would go to my daughter’s side of the family and only £10,000 to my son’s? Mr Robinson Dear Mr Robinson, Let me be frank: at first glance I thought your dilemma [...]

• How a celebrity chef turned into a social scientist

  Tim Harford

  6 Nov 2009 | 4:21 pm

  I do not count myself as one of Jamie Oliver’s army of fans, but after looking at the chirpy chef’s antics through the eyes of an economist, I am starting to acquire a grudging respect for him. Yes, the recipe books are all but unreadable, but his “school dinners” campaign has been surprisingly successful. Oliver’s mission [...]

• 
  Westminster Blog

• Europe’s computer-dating system malfunctions

  FT

  20 Nov 2009 | 8:35 am

  From Gideon Rachman’s blog By Gideon Rachman If the answer is Herman Van Rompuy and Cathy Ashton, what the hell was the question? Europe’s choices for its new “president” and “foreign minister” are like the result of some sort of computer-dating programme that has gone badly wrong. If you fed in all the criteria for the [...]

• Cathy Ashton: 10 things to know

  Alex Barker

  19 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  Cathy Ashton is Europe’s new foreign policy supremo. Even friends are stunned that someone so low key could have been elevated to such a high profile job. To date she has served as EU trade commissioner, leader of the Lords, and as a junior justice and education minister. Here are 10 more details about her: – [...]

• Gove on “Jordan Balls”

  Alex Barker

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:52 am

  I’ve watched a very entertaining Commons exchange between Michael Gove and Ed Balls. This is Gove’s take on Balls requesting a big real terms increase in his budget: He’s the Katie Price of public spending, the Jordan of this government All he’s interested in is being on the front pages, so he’s massively inflated what he’s got [...]

• The rabbit: four guarantees but no price tag

  Alex Barker

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:13 pm

  Well, for those of you who missed it, Gordon Brown’s mangy fluffy rabbit turned out to be a clutch of “guarantees” for young jobseekers. There was a “January guarantee”, which he said was better than the “September guarantee”. Then there was a “one day guarantee” (which sounds dangerously like telling some that that they will get [...]

• FT video: UK general election starting gun fired

  FT

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:13 am

  function doLoad() {var mp = new MavenPlayer('mp_blogs');mp.setParameter('checkSystemId', 'systemRequirementsHTML'); mp.setQueryParamsAsVariables(false);mp.setVariable("GEO_CODE","USA");mp.setVariable("referralObject", "11712596");mp.setVariable("CHANNEL","Westminster Blog");mp.setVariable("CHANNEL_URL", "http://www.ft.com/cms/1644d08e-f450-11dc-aaad-0000779fd2ac.html");mp.write('flashParentHTML');}function doContextMenu() {return maven.PlayerObjectUtil.doContextMenu();}doLoad();

• 
  Willem Buiter's Maverecon

• Auditing the central bank: a jolly good thing!

  Willem Buiter

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:46 am

  What is so important about H.R. 1207: the Federal Reserve Transparency Act of 2009 aka the ‘Audit the Fed’ bill? This bill “To amend title 31, United States Code, to reform the manner in which the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System is audited by the Comptroller General of the United [...]

• Yapping away at gold: lessons from the last days of the Rai

  Willem Buiter

  15 Nov 2009 | 4:53 pm

  Mr Eliot Whitehead sent me the following e-mail message in response to my blog post ‘Gold - a six thousand year old bubble’: “Regarding your FT article, Gold - a six thousand year old bubble, it would interest you to learn that Rai, somewhat since the end of WWII in the Pacific, no longer has value [...]

• Gold - a six thousand year-old bubble

  Willem Buiter

  8 Nov 2009 | 10:02 am

  Gold is unlike any other commodity.  It is costly to extract from the earth and to refine to a reasonable degree of purity.  It is costly to store.  It has no remaining uses as a producer good - equivalent or superior alternatives exist for all its industrial uses.  It may have some value as a [...]

• Should central banks be quasi-fiscal actors?

  Willem Buiter

  2 Nov 2009 | 3:43 pm

  There are two reasons why the Fed, or any other central bank, should not act as a quasi-fiscal branch of the government, other than paying to the Treasury in taxes the profits it makes in the pursuit of its mandated macroeconomic stability objectives (maximum employment, stable prices and moderate long-term interest rates in the case [...]

• The proposed European Systemic Risk Board is overweight central bankers

  Willem Buiter

  27 Oct 2009 | 5:34 pm

  On September 25, 2009, the Commission of the European Communities produced a proposal for EU-level macro-prudential regulation and supervision, “Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on Community macro prudential oversight of the financial system and establishing a European Systemic Risk Board”. It looks as though the EU Presidency (Sweden) [...]

• 
  FT.com - Credit squeeze

• Trichet warns on bank bonuses

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:27 am

  Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, has issued his strongest warning yet that banks must keep pay and bonuses 'contained' and prepare for withdrawal of emergency support

• New US task force to step up fight against fraud

  17 Nov 2009 | 1:02 pm

  The Obama administration is to draw on dozens of government agencies in a "relentless" drive to avert another financial meltdown and tackle financial crime.

• China says Fed policy threatens global recovery

  15 Nov 2009 | 6:14 pm

  The US is fuelling 'speculative investments' and endangering recovery through loose monetary policy, Beijing warned ahead of President Barack Obama's arrival

• Insight: Corporates hold key to recovery

  9 Nov 2009 | 11:12 am

  The dominant contributing factor in this recession has been the collapse of corporate, rather than consumer, spending, writes David Bowers

• Q & A on Tobin tax

  8 Nov 2009 | 3:22 pm

  The Tobin tax was the brainchild of James Tobin, an American Nobel Prize-winning macroeconomist. As described by Tobin, the tax involves applying a small charge on foreign currency transactions to protect countries from exchange-rate volatility

• 
  FT.com - European banks

• Trichet warns on bank bonuses

  20 Nov 2009 | 4:27 am

  Jean-Claude Trichet, ECB president, has issued his strongest warning yet that banks must keep pay and bonuses 'contained' and prepare for withdrawal of emergency support

• ABN Amro and Fortis set for €4.4bn bail-out

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:53 pm

  The Dutch state plans to provide the two nationalised banks with further capital to keep their merger on track in what it says will be the groups' final bail-out

• Former head of Deutsche Bank faces charges

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:50 am

  State prosecutors in Germany level charges against Rolf Breuer, the bank's former chief executive, marking the latest phase of a long-running legal battle with Leo Kirch, the media entrepreneur

• Minister and AIB row over MD's pay

  17 Nov 2009 | 11:12 am

  Brian Lenihan, Ireland's finance minister, is engaged in a dispute with Allied Irish Banks in the first test of new remuneration guidelines for AIB and Bank of Ireland chief executives

• UBS sets out ambitious plans for return to growth

  17 Nov 2009 | 10:29 am

  After weeks of bad news encompassing regulatory fines and deep losses, UBS announces new growth targets, including ambitions to generate SFr15bn of pre-tax profits within three to five years

• 
  FT.com - Investment banking

• Rules on bankers' pay will 'distort profits'

  12 Nov 2009 | 3:40 pm

  Analysts at Credit Suisse have highlighted 'potential accounting confusion' arising from moves to defer bonuses following a decision by the G20 countries to order a global shift in remuneration structures

• Investment banks gain by going with the flow

  11 Nov 2009 | 2:25 pm

  Sales and trading of simple products such as fixed income and foreign exchange on behalf of clients – rather than riskier proprietary trading – are where the money is

• Investment banks breathe again

  4 Nov 2009 | 8:44 am

  Clear winners and losers are emerging as business begins to return for financial houses in the Middle East after a year of property crashes and financial upheaval

• Goldman holds stake in China group battling M Stanley

  2 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  A legal spat over a disputed hedging contract held by Haisheng Juice Holdings could have implications for both of the US investment banking rivals

• Future of Lazard remains uncertain

  28 Oct 2009 | 12:31 pm

  Lazard faced questions over its future after the recent death of Bruce Wasserstein, its high-profile chief, as the investment bank reported better-than-expected third-quarter results

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  FT.com - Hedge funds

• Paulson starts gold fund amid record prices

  18 Nov 2009 | 6:23 pm

  Funds run by Paulson & Co, the large New York hedge fund manager, are seen to now have more than a tenth of its assets in gold as prices for the metal hit record highs

• Investors welcome revised EU fund rules

  13 Nov 2009 | 8:20 am

  Revised European Union plans to clamp down on alternative investment funds have been broadly welcomed by investors as representing a workable compromise

• Clive closes door on new investors

  13 Nov 2009 | 7:08 am

  Clive Capital, the world's largest commodity hedge fund, is shutting its doors to new investors just two years after its launch as raw materials have regained allure.

• Hedge funds stars face big pay crackdown

  12 Nov 2009 | 3:11 pm

  European hedge funds face a more severe crackdown on pay than bankers, according to last-minute changes to forthcoming EU regulations

• SFO probes $550m hedge fund manager

  12 Nov 2009 | 5:19 am

  Serious Fraud Office opens investigation into Dynamic Decisions Capital Management, whose Cayman-domiciled flagship fund was liquidated this year

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  FT.com - Private equity

• Rising portfolio value bolsters KKR

  19 Nov 2009 | 6:44 pm

  The private equity group reported economic net income of $356m for the third quarter, underscoring the extent to which the sector has benefited from the rally in the stock and debt markets

• Matalan draws buy-out groups

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:48 pm

  Five heavyweight private equity groups are among the first-round bidders for the privately owned discount clothing retailer

• Hands warns governments on banks

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:08 am

  Terra Firma chief says US and Europe could face the 'Japanese problem' of zero growth unless governments push banks to restructure $7,000bn of leveraged loans

• Apollo sets sights on NYSE listing

  17 Nov 2009 | 4:00 pm

  Apollo Management, the big private equity firm, is planning to list on the New York Stock Exchange in the coming weeks, according to people familiar with the matter

• TPG investors can cut exposure to financial fund

  15 Nov 2009 | 2:39 pm

  TPG is giving its investors a chance to sharply reduce their commitments to its specialised financial fund, highlighting the difficulties that private equity firms seeking to buy distressed banks are facing in the wake of the financial crisis

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  FT.com - IPOs

• Gartmore to cut debt with £250m IPO

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:20 am

  The asset management group says the offering will cut net debt to £150m. Managers are expected to sell up to 20% of their shares

• Fresh setback for Asian IPOs

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:20 pm

  A high-profile Chinese fund has cancelled a proposed investment in Hong Kong's largest initial public offering of 2009 in a sign of waning appetite for Asian listings

• Minsheng raises $3.9bn from Hong Kong IPO

  18 Nov 2009 | 11:02 pm

  China Minsheng Banking Corp will raise at least $3.9bn with its Hong Kong initial public offering – but without the support of a high-profile Chinese private equity fund

• Merlin hopes to conjure IPO magic

  15 Nov 2009 | 3:06 pm

  Merlin Entertainment's chief executive knows that if the theme park operator behind the London Eye is to achieve his goal of a £2bn initial public offering he must overcome public market suspicions of private equity

• Sands IPO aims to resurrect Macao ambitions

  15 Nov 2009 | 2:36 pm

  Las Vegas Sands' $3.35bn Hong Kong initial public offering caps a remarkable comeback for Sheldon Adelson, the self-made billionaire chairman

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  FT.com - UK Banks

• Nationwide lashes out at rescued banks

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:56 pm

  The head of Nationwide, Britain's biggest building society, accuses government-backed companies of seriously distorting the savings market as its profits fall more than 60%

• Ministers defend new FSA powers

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:07 pm

  The economy will not suffer if legislation allowing bankers' bonus deals to be ripped up drives 'reckless' individuals from the City to other countries, says the government

• Santander offers fee-free account

  19 Nov 2009 | 11:34 am

  The owner of Abbey has launched a bank account that does not impose any fees – even if the holder exceeds their overdraft limit – in advance of a court decision into the fairness of penalty charges

• Politicians pursuing too many targets

  16 Nov 2009 | 3:07 pm

  Standard Chartered's Peter Sands criticises the reactionary atmosphere sweeping through financial services, saying there is a need to acknowledge lingering macro-economic problems

• StanChart chief rails at bank regulation

  16 Nov 2009 | 3:07 pm

  Peter Sands, chief executive of Standard Chartered, questions the direction of global regulation and warns of a 'real cost ... borne by the economy' if proposed reforms are implemented

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  FT.com - US banks

• Goldman boost from business aid fund

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:14 pm

  Goldman Sachs' programme for US small businesses could help it meet some of its duties under a law aimed at aiding low-income communities – a sign of the demands created by its conversion to a bank holding company last year

• Congress eyes bank tax to tackle unemployment

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:12 pm

  US lawmakers working on ways to pay for legislation to reduce unemployment are considering taxes on banks as a way to raise revenue – and exploit public anger ahead of elections next year.

• Wells Fargo agrees to buy back securities

  18 Nov 2009 | 4:53 pm

  The US bank has agreed to buy back about $1.4bn of auction-rate securities from investors as part of a settlement with regulators investigating the collapse of the market for the debt instruments

• BofA director called Merrill deal a 'mistake'

  17 Nov 2009 | 7:00 pm

  One of Bank of America's leading directors described the acquisition of Merrill Lynch as a 'bad mistake' that the bank was 'pressured' into completing by the government

• Lehman seeks $10bn clawback in Barclays suit

  16 Nov 2009 | 4:48 pm

  Attorneys representing the estate of Lehman Brothers filed a lawsuit against Barclays Capital, seeking to claw back as much as $10bn that it claims was transferred to the UK bank last year in the frenzied days following Lehman's bankruptcy

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  FT.com - France

• GE's bid for Areva arm poses questions

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:38 pm

  The sale of Areva's power transmission and distribution subsidiary sparks speculation about whether France really is ready to choose a foreign bid over a home-grown solution

• Iraq woos French investors

  19 Nov 2009 | 7:50 am

  The Iraqi government has stepped up its efforts to encourage French business to invest in the oil-rich country, telling Total it could expect favourable treatment

• Sarkozy unveils 'national bond' plans

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:18 pm

  The French president has unveiled a flagship initiative intended to mobilise public support around a spending programme to boost competitiveness at a time when public confidence in economic recovery is low

• New EDF chief voices dissent

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:08 pm

  Henri Proglio has sparked a controversy just days before he takes over at France's state-controlled nuclear operator by claiming the country's showcase atomic industry is not working

• France urges inquiry into competition abuse

  16 Nov 2009 | 3:04 pm

  Finance minister fears some institutions have become too powerful as the market has been consolidated by banking failures and industry mergers

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  FT.com - Germany

• Merkel holds coalition talks on tax reform

  17 Nov 2009 | 6:02 pm

  Germany's centre-right government meets to defuse an internal dispute over its tax reform plans, only three weeks after the new partners agreed their four-year policy road map

• German taxpayers should not bear Opel burden

  16 Nov 2009 | 12:10 pm

  The one-off financial burden for this necessary restructuring has to remain with GM. Not with German and European taxpayers, writes Kurt Lauk

• A Franco-German marriage of convenience

  15 Nov 2009 | 10:49 am

  The need for France and Germany to pull together is ever more obvious to an increasing number of people in both countries, writes Wolfgang Münchau

• SPD chief rejects calls to swing to the left

  13 Nov 2009 | 8:30 pm

  The designated chairman of Germany's Social Democratic Party vows to keep the party 'in the centre' in spite of an electoral debacle that sent it into opposition for the first time in 11 years

• Advisers lambast Merkel's policy on economy

  13 Nov 2009 | 9:07 am

  The German government's own advisers have criticised its tax cut plans as "not serious" and "unjustifiable", adding their voices to the mounting criticism of Angela Merkel's economic policy

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  FT.com - Japan

• Japan, deflating

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:22 pm

  Buying stocks has proved an effective strategy everywhere except in the only developed market in negative territory in the year to date

• Japanese deflation fuels calls for action

  20 Nov 2009 | 11:32 am

  Japan said for the first time since 2006 that the economy was back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• Bank stocks drag Nikkei

  20 Nov 2009 | 7:18 am

  Hefty losses for Japanese banking stocks helped condemn the Nikkei 225 Average to a fourth successive weekly decline for the first time in more than a year.

• Japan says economy back in deflation

  20 Nov 2009 | 2:18 am

  Japan says that for the first time since 2006 the economy is back in deflation, warning of the risk that price falls may put pressure on a fragile economy

• Financials push Nikkei to four-month low

  19 Nov 2009 | 8:38 am

  Concerns about further fundraising by Japanese banks kept the Tokyo stock market under pressure and undermined sentiment in the region.

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  FT.com - Russia

• Turkey cancels nuclear tender

  20 Nov 2009 | 9:46 am

  Turkey has cancelled a tender to build the country's first nuclear power station, despite pressure from Moscow to accept the sole bid from a consortium led by two Russian companies

• A lawless apparat

  18 Nov 2009 | 2:42 pm

  Russia would benefit from the discipline of joining the WTO, but there are grounds to doubt to what degree the organisation could restrain the country

• Gas fears to dominate Russia-Ukraine talks

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:14 pm

  Energy is not the only issue Ukraine and Russia need to iron out, and experts fear that strained relations between the two could lead to a repeat of January's gas crisis, which left tens of thousands of east Europeans without heat and power

• Russia raises its target for emissions cuts

  18 Nov 2009 | 10:56 am

  Diplomats said Moscow was willing to reduce emissions by 20-25 per cent from 1990 levels by 2020, compared with its previous commitment to cut by 10-15 per cent

• EU and Russian executives fear protectionism

  17 Nov 2009 | 5:26 pm

  Business leaders warn that rising trade barriers, imposed in response to the global economic crisis, threaten economic relations between the European Union and Russia

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  FT.com - China

• Rare earth elements

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  China has cornered the market in commodities that are arguably as important as oil to a modern economy

• Chinese white weddings help platinum recover

  20 Nov 2009 | 10:59 am

  Chinese brides, who value platinum partly because it goes so well with a white wedding dress, are on course to snap up enough of the metal to make up for a fall in demand from the auto components industry

• Block on Minsheng deal costs US $1.7bn

  19 Nov 2009 | 4:27 pm

  US authorities blocked Minsheng, the Chinese bank, from acquiring a Californian lender in a deal that could have saved almost $300m of taxpayers' money and $1.4bn from an industry insurance fund, say people familiar with the matter.

• China's banks face overseas pitfalls

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:06 pm

  Torture case brought in the US reveals the perils that could threaten the overseas' expansion dreams of China's government-owned entities

• China can build on the base of its sound banks

  19 Nov 2009 | 2:51 pm

  Only with proper firewalls between them can banks and capital markets function as two engines of economic growth. If one fails, the other can still carry on, writes Liu Mingkang

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  FT.com - China, Economy & trade

• Rare earth elements

  20 Nov 2009 | 12:27 pm

  China has cornered the market in commodities that are arguably as important as oil to a modern economy

• China's banks face overseas pitfalls

  19 Nov 2009 | 3:06 pm

  Torture case brought in the US reveals the perils that could threaten the overseas' expansion dreams of China's government-owned entities

• Chinese consumers embrace gold

  19 Nov 2009 | 12:11 pm

  Chinese consumers' demand for gold reached record levels in the third quarter but high prices affected demand in other areas of the world

• Fears of China property bubble

  18 Nov 2009 | 3:09 pm

  Asset price rises leading to rampant wasteful investment in the sector, undermining nation's long-term growth says Soho China head

• BHP chief says big mining will meet demand

  18 Nov 2009 | 12:45 am

  Big mining houses have the capacity to meet rising demand for fuels and ores, says Marius Kloppers, downplaying fears by industrialising nations over 'resources security'