Facebook has priced its shares ahead of one of the most eagerly-anticipated share flotations in recent stock market history. The social network said on Thursday that it valued shares at $38 (£24) each, and that its shares would begin trading in New York on Friday.
At this price the eight-year-old firm would be worth $104bn (£66bn).
Demand is set to be high; earlier this week Facebook said it would be selling 25% more shares than planned.
But questions remain about the firm’s ability to generate profits and take advantage of mobile phone platforms.
There are also concerns that once the company has to answer to shareholders, there may be a greater emphasis on advertising to generate profits.
(BBC)
May 18, 2012 at 9:27 am
Facebook says it will sell 25% more shares than first planned in its flotation in response to strong demand. The move comes one day after the social networking giant said it would raise the price of the shares by 21% to between $34-$38 a share.
It also comes despite doubts about the profitability of the site, which is largely used for social updates.
Car giant General Motors added to those doubts by saying on Tuesday it would no longer pay to advertise on the site.
However, rival Ford said it would continue its social media strategy. A spokesman said: “You just can’t buy your way into Facebook. You need to have a credible presence and be doing innovative things.”
(BBC)
May 17, 2012 at 10:08 am
The euro has hit a fresh four-month low against the dollar as political uncertainty in Greece fuels speculation the country could be forced to leave the single currency. The euro fell more than a half a cent to $1.27. Against the pound, the euro slipped slightly to 79.6 pence.
The eurozone crisis also pushed Asian stocks lower and knocked oil prices.
On Tuesday, Greek politicians failed to form a coalition, meaning the country will go the polls again next month.
In elections earlier this month, the majority of Greeks voted against those parties backing drastic austerity measures agreed with the EU.
(BBC)
May 16, 2012 at 12:22 pm
JPMorgan Chase, the biggest US bank, has revealed a surprise trading loss of $2bn (£1.2bn) on complex investments made by its traders.
Overall, after accounting for other gains, losses at its chief investment office (CIO) are estimated to come in at $800m in the second quarter.
The loss could be as big as $1bn, chief executive Jamie Dimon said in an unscheduled conference call.
JPMorgan shares fell 6% after-hours, with other bank stocks following.
Goldman Sachs, Citigroup and Bank of America also suffered heavy losses in electronic trading after the market close.
(BBC)
May 11, 2012 at 9:13 am
The leader of Greece’s left-wing Syriza bloc has said he will try to form a coalition based on tearing up the terms of the EU/IMF bailout deal.
Alexis Tsipras, whose bloc came second in Sunday’s vote, said Greek voters had “clearly nullified the loan agreement”.
He has three days to reach a coalition deal and has told the two major parties to end their support for the austerity terms if they want to take part.
The European Commission and Germany say countries must stick to budget cuts.
(BBC)
May 9, 2012 at 8:53 am
A shareholder seeking the dismissal of Yahoo’s chief executive has demanded the search firm allow access to documents relating to his recruitment. In January, Yahoo named Scott Thompson, the president of online payments firm Paypal, as its new head.
But investment firm Third Point discovered that Mr Thompson did not hold a degree in computer science as had been claimed.
Third Point had set a Monday deadline for Yahoo to fire Thompson.
Mr Thompson graduated from Stonehill College and was said by Yahoo to hold a degree in accounting and computer science – though the college did not offer the latter subject at the time.
Yahoo has acknowledged the “inadvertent error” and has said it will conduct a review.
(BBC)
May 8, 2012 at 10:14 am
Asian markets have dipped on fears that the eurozone may have to rein in austerity measures that some see as key to solving the region’s debt crisis. It follows the election of Francois Hollande as French president and parliamentary elections in Greece.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 index fell 2.6%, South Korea’s Kospi shed 1.7% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng dropped 2.5%.
Mr Hollande has said he wants Europe’s economies to focus on growth rather than austerity to reduce debt burdens.
The fear among investors is that the newly elected governments in the two countries may pursue spending increases in a bid to boost growth.
That could see debt levels rise, especially in Greece, once again triggering concerns about whether the region’s economies will be able to solve the ongoing debt crisis.
(BBC)
May 7, 2012 at 10:31 am
The US economy created 115,000 jobs during April, down on the previous month and fewer than analysts had expected, official figures have shown. However, the unemployment rate fell slightly to 8.1% from 8.2% in March, the Labor Department said.
Employment has been rising for the past eight months, but the jobless rate has been stuck above 8% since early 2009.
The weak report pushed US and European shares lower, with the Dow Jones index falling 168 points to 13,038.
(BBC)
May 5, 2012 at 9:03 am
Toyota’s sales in the US rose 11.6% in April from a year earlier as the firm continues to regain its market share in the world’s biggest economy, according to research firm Autodata Corp.
The carmaker had seen its sales in the US dip after production was hit by last year’s quake and tsunami in Japan.
Fears of a slowdown in the US economy have also hurt car sales generally.
However, its production has returned to normal and there have also been signs of a pick up in the US economy.
Autodata said it expects its sales to increase further in the coming months.
(BBC)
May 2, 2012 at 11:17 am
Spanish unemployment has hit a new record high, official figures have shown. The number of unemployed people reached 5,639,500 at the end of March, with the unemployment rate hitting 24.4%, the national statistics agency said.
The figures came hours after rating agency Standard & Poor’s downgraded Spanish sovereign debt.
Official figures due out on Monday are expected to confirm that Spain has fallen back into recession.
(BBC)
April 29, 2012 at 10:48 am
Illegal logging generates $10-15bn (£7.5-11bn) around the world, according to new analysis from the World Bank.
Its report, Justice for Forests, says that most illegal logging operations are run by organised crime, and much of the profit goes to corrupt officials.
Countries affected include Indonesia, Madagascar and several in West Africa.
The bank says that pursuing loggers through the criminal justice system has made a major impact in some nations, and urges others to do the same.
It also recommends that aid donors should fund programmes that strengthen the capacity of law enforcement and legal authorities to tackle the illegal timber trade.
(BBC)
March 21, 2012 at 10:40 am
The Fitch credit ratings agency has joined Moody’s and put the UK’s top AAA rating on “negative outlook”.
Fitch Ratings warned on Wednesday that it could downgrade the UK in the next few years if the government does not contain the level of public debt.
The warning comes as Chancellor George Osborne puts the finishing touches to this year’s Budget, which will be delivered next week.
A credit rating in theory determines a country’s borrowing costs.
Fitch said that while the UK had a strong commitment to reducing the budget deficit and had an economy that was underpinned by a “high-income, diversified and flexible economy”, it had “very limited fiscal space to absorb further adverse economic shocks”.
(BBC)
March 15, 2012 at 12:52 pm
In its latest statement on a simmering dispute over the iPad brand name, Apple Inc. said Tuesday that Proview Electronics’ insistence that it still owns the mainland China iPadtrademarks is misleading and unfair.
Proview Electronics insisted on the terms of the 2009 purchase of the iPad brand name with the understanding that the mainland Chinese-registered trademarks were included in the worldwide rights to use the name, Apple spokeswoman Carolyn Wu said in reading the statement.
“Proview is misleading Chinese courts and customers with claims that the iPad trademarks cannot be transferred, or that mistakes were made in handling the transaction,” the statement said.
“We respect Chinese laws and regulations, and as a company that generates a lot of intellectual property we would never knowingly abuse someone else’s trademarks,” it said.
Financially ailing Proview and Apple are sparring in courts in China and the U.S. over the issue, while the Chinese maker of computer screens and LED lights is seeking to have iPad sales and exports blocked.
(AP)
March 13, 2012 at 9:18 pm
Car giant Volkswagen says 2012 could be another record year.
Vehicle sales could surpass last year’s total of 8.3 million, VW said as it detailed its 2011 results.
The company also said that 2012 profits could match 2011. Last year, the firm reported a net profit of 15.8bn euros (£13.4bn; $21.2bn), double the surplus it made in 2010.
VW says its goal is to become the world’s biggest and most profitable carmaker by 2018.
(BBC)
March 12, 2012 at 2:03 pm
Greece took an important step towards its second bailout after it managed to win a crucial debt swap, European leaders have said. The Greek deal with banks and other lenders is the largest restructuring of government debt in history.
Some lenders who lost money as a result of the debt swap will be compensated.
That is after the International Swaps and Derivatives Association classified the deal as a “credit event”, triggering insurance payments.
Under the debt swap, banks and other financial institutions have agreed to exchange their existing Greek government debt for new bonds, which are worth much less and pay a lower rate of interest.
(BBC)
March 10, 2012 at 6:42 am
More private sector lenders have signed up to a Greek debt swap deal that may determine whether or not the country can remain in the euro.
The banking group leading negotiations said that 39.3% of bondholders have agreed to swap their Greek government bonds for new debt.
But 75% in total is needed for the deal to pass.
The deal is a condition for Greece’s new bailout and a failure to clinch it would probably lead to a debt default.
Investors have until 2000 GMT on Thursday to agree to the debt swap.
(BBC)
March 7, 2012 at 9:08 pm
Moody’s has cut Greece’s credit rating again, citing a risk of default despite a recent debt write-off deal.
Moody’s cut Greece’s rating to “C” from “Ca”, the lowest level on its scale.
The firm said on Friday: “Today’s rating decision was prompted by the recently announced debt exchange proposals for Greece, which imply expected losses to investors in excess of 70%.”
The deal writes off 107bn euros ($141.3bn; £89bn) of Greece’s debt.
Moody’s said the planned debt exchange, which involves private investors of Greek debt writing off much of the 206bn euros in Greek bonds they hold, “would constitute a distressed exchange, and hence a default”.
(BBC)
March 3, 2012 at 7:04 am
