Dell purchases US cloud computing firm Boomi November 2, 2010 DELL will buy US cloud-computing services company Boomi to shore up its ability to provide software over computer networks. The world’s second-largest PC maker did not disclose terms of the deal for Boomi, which counts Salesforce.com among its clients and helps integrate so-called cloud-based applications and smooth data transfers between programs. Boomi raised $4m (£2.5m) [...]
Investments to fit your social views December 15, 2010 THE idea that you can change the world through what you buy has been around for a while now. In 1977, the Swiss food producer Nestle endured a boycott over claims its baby-milk products were killing children in third world countries. More recently, the “fair trade” movement has explicitly charged consumers a premium so as [...]
Bank of America scare hits stocks October 19, 2010 U stocks posted their biggest loss in two months yesterday on fears banks might be on the hook for billions of dollars in souring mortgage bonds. The afternoon selloff hit investors already reeling from an unexpected credit tightening by China and disappointing financial results from Apple and IBM. The biggest scare came on news that [...]
SAP remains cautious despite solid profits October 27, 2010 GERMAN business software maker SAP AG stuck to its full-year targets in third-quarter results, dashing investor hopes that had been raised by solid results from North American peers. SAP said third-quarter operating profit rose 16 per cent to €716m. Software and software-related service revenue (SSRS) rose 20 per cent to €2.32bn. Operating profit was forecast [...]
Silicon valley is being flooded through by a torrent of cash December 20, 2010 CALIFORNIA itself may be on the brink of bankruptcy, but its most famous Silicon Valley firms very much are not. By one estimate, the top 15 most capitalised technology firms have $316bn (£203.6bn) of cash and short term investments racked up. Apple, now the world’s second largest company by market capitalisation, has about $50bn in [...]
CITY MOVES | WHO’S SWITCHING JOBS October 25, 2010 Lazard The financial advisory and asset management firm has hired Fotis Hasiotis as co-head of the European financial sponsors group, based in London. Hasiotis joins from Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where he was head of EMEA financial sponsors. He originally joined Merrill’s New York team in 2004 from CIBC World Markets, later moving to [...]
Wall St rises, S&P makes strong gains September 20, 2010 The S&P 500 closed at a four-month high yesterday as a long-awaited break above a technical range and a flurry of positive corporate news increased investor optimism. The break came a day before a Federal Reserve meeting in which the central bank is expected to renew a promise to keep its portfolio from shrinking but [...]
Wall Street is lifted by robust Citigroup earnings October 18, 2010 US stocks advanced yesterday as stronger-than-expected profit from Citigroup helped financial shares shake off worries that the foreclosure mess could threaten the stability of the housing market. Apple, which hit an all-time high during the regular session, disappointed investors after reporting gross margins and iPad shipments. Its shares skidded five per cent in after-hours trading [...]
Dell to buy 3PAR for $1.5bn August 16, 2010 Dell plans to buy data storage company 3PAR for $1.15bn (£730m) in cash, expanding its cloud computing business to compete with other technology services companies like IBM. Dell said it would pay $18 a share for 3PAR, an 87 per cent premium over Friday’s closing price. The deal would further expand Dell’s presence in technology [...]
Google keeps top ranking as best employer September 27, 2010 GOOGLE is the most attractive employer in the world, according to new research, which shows that fewer students and graduates are turning to the financial services industry for work. Up to 130,000 job seekers with either a business or engineering background have voted the internet giant into the top spot in employment consultancy Universum’s annual [...]