WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
CHAIRMAN OF HSBC HITS AT BIG BONUSES
Stephen Green, chairman of HSBC and British Bankers’ Association, has hit out at the inflated level and distorted structure of bonuses, predicting future pay-outs will be lower and more rationally calculated.
In a video interview with the FT, published on the eve of the World Economic Forum’s opening day in Davos, Mr Green said: “In banks’ remuneration, there’s been plenty of distortion.”
COMPUTER-DRIVEN TRADING BOOM RAISES MELTDOWN FEARS
An explosion in trading propelled by computers is raising fears that trading platforms could be knocked out by rogue trades triggered by systems running out of control.
Trading in equities and derivatives is being driven increasingly by mathematical algorithms used in computer programmes.
JABRE CAPITAL SET TO SHUT FLAGSHIP FUND AFTER 85 PER CENT RETURNS IN 2009
Jabre Capital, the Geneva-based hedge fund run by the former GLG Partners star trader Philippe Jabre, is to shut its flagship fund to new money from investors in a bid to ensure its returns are not curtailed by its size.
The fund – the $2bn (£1.2bn) Jabcap Multi Strategy – is to “hard close” for two years when it reaches $2.5bn in size.
GUINEA DEMANDS SHARE OF UC RUSAL OFFERING
The Guinean government has weighed in on UC Rusal’s $2.2bn initial public offering, demanding that part of the proceeds go towards clearing $860m it says it is owed in damages by the Russian aluminium company. It wrote to the Hong Kong stock exchange earlier this month.
THE TIMES
RECESSION IS OFFICIALLY OVER – BUT LEADERS REMAIN DIVIDED OVER RECOVERY
Britain will be declared to have emerged from the deepest recession for a generation today with political leaders more divided than ever about how to sustain recovery. On the eve of figures expected to show that the economy grew by 0.4 per cent in the last three months of last year, Gordon Brown and David Cameron ensured that the timing of spending cuts will dominate the coming election campaign.
CHURCH OF ENGLAND COUNTS COST OF NEW YORK PROPERTY DEAL
The Church of England has suffered a £40m loss on a disastrous investment in a New York apartment complex that was acquired by a consortium in 2006 for $5.4bn. The church has written off the investment.
The Daily Telegraph
BRITISH ECONOMY WILL TAKE YEARS TO RECOVER DESPITE END OF RECESSION, SAYS CBI
Britain’s economy will take until 2012 to get back to where it was before the financial crisis, despite the end of Britain’s worst recession since the 1930s, the CBI has warned.
Richard Lambert, director-general of the business group, said the country is now 10 per cent poorer than it would have been if the recession had never happened, and the UK will have to “generate as much growth as possible” over the next five years.
CHINALCO WANTS TO BUY COPPER MINES
China plans to cash in on the soaring copper price by using its substantial reserves to snap up global assets while prices are low. Lu Youqing, vice-president of Chinalco, said that the group was studying copper resources.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
KKR TO FORM CONSUMER-SERVICE VENTURE
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts is expected to announce the formation of a new company with Jonathan Grayer, the former chief executive officer of Kaplan, the education unit of the Washington Post. The company will be named Weld North and will look to acquire consumer-service businesses. That could include everything from education-publishing companies to tax-preparation operators to health and wellness services.
DISPUTE UNITES BOEING, AIRBUS
Airbus and Boeing are bitter rivals, but Canadian plane maker Bombardier Inc. has united them in opposing its plans for funding sales of a new jetliner. The flap has prompted many of the world’s richest countries to meet next week to revisit an earlier agreement.