WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
TESCO PUSH ON MUSIC GROUPS’ CD DEALS
Tesco is pushing music companies to accept minimal upfront payments for the compact discs they ship to the Uk retailer, in a renegotiation that will test how record labels’ bargaining power has diminished in line with shoppers’ interest in CDs. Instead of paying £7 or £8 upfront for a typical album, Tesco wants to pay just 50p initially, with the remainder handed over when it sells the disc, Rob Salter, Tesco’s entertainment director, told the Financial Times.
TRADERS “SHORT” DOLLAR AS CURRENCY LOSES ATTRACTION
Hedge funds and forex dealers are betting record amounts against the dollar, reflecting a growing belief that the US currency has lost its haven appeal and that Eurozone interest rates will soon rise. As the crisis in the Middle East has worsened, the latest exchange data show that traders are selling “short” the currency. The big US fiscal deficit and concerns about the effect of rising oil prices have been blamed by some for the dollar’s slide.
BAE BRACED FOR TOUGH US CURBS
BAE Systems is braced for the imposition of strict curbs on its business by the US, as it moves closer to resolving a year-long review by the State Department of its guilty plea to a conspiracy charge last year.
RUSSIA SETS UP $10BN FUND TO ATTRACT PRIVATE EQUITY INVESTMENT
The Russian government is setting up a $10bn fund to co-invest with leading international private equity firms in an effort to attract foreign capital to the country, and has asked Goldman Sachs informally to guide the project, according to people familiar with the matter.
THE TIMES
INVESTIGATORS STUDY CADBURY INDIA BRIBERY ALLEGATIONS
Kraft Foods has been subpoenaed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission over accusations of bribery at Cadbury’s operations in India. The world’s second-largest food company, which acquired the British confectioner last year in a controversial £11.9bn deal, said that it had received the subpoena on February 1 as part of an investigation by the SEC under the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, which bans the payment of bribes to foreign officials.
SPOTLIGHT FALLS ON GROCERS’ GRAND JOB CREATION CLAIMS
Britain’s leading supermarkets have been accused of misleading planning authorities by claiming to create tens of thousands of jobs when they employ fewer workers than two years ago. they did two years ago.
The Daily Telegraph
ED BALLS AND YVETTE COOPER REFERRED TO WATCHDOG OVER CHILDRENS’ EXPENSES
Ed Balls and Yvette Cooper have been referred to the parliamentary standards watchdog over £14,000 of expenses made in relation to their children. Although they have not breached the regulations, Andrew Bridgen, Tory MP for North West Leicestershire, has written to John Lyon, the standards commissioner. He has asked him to investigate the shadow chancellor and shadow work and pensions secretary.
BUFFETTOLOGY COMES TO BRITAIN
It sounds like an American cult, but later this month, UK investors can take advantage of the science of Buffettology for the first time. Buffettology is the name of a 1999 book written by Mary Buffett, who was married to Peter Buffett.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
EUROPE
HEFNER TAKES PLAYBOY PRIVATE
A partnership led by Hugh Hefner has succeeded in taking Playboy private. Playboy Enterprises Inc. said that its acquisition by Mr. Hefner’s Icon Acquisition Holdings LP has closed. The $6.15-per-share deal was funded with $195m of debt and $185m from the private investment firm Rizvi Traverse and Playboy management, including Hefner. Under the deal, Rizvi Traverse will own about 60 per cent of the company. Mr. Hefner will own about 37 per cent, and other executive management will have the remaining three per cent.
NICKELODEON GIVES NEW KICK TO NINJA TURTLES
Viacom’s Nickelodeon is betting that the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles still have some fight left in them. The cable channel spent $60m to acquire the global rights to the franchise.