What the other papers say this morning – 19 July 2013
FINANCIAL TIMES
Sheikh in Barclays rescue sells stake
The Abu Dhabi sheikh who came to the rescue of Barclays Bank with a £3.5bn capital injection at the height of the financial crisis, has sold his stake in the UK bank. The sale of the seven per cent stake – which took place three weeks ago but has gone largely unnoticed – is an important symbolic moment for Barclays five years after it came close to collapse.
China puts tariffs on US polysilicon
China has issued harsh anti-dumping duties for imports of polysilicon, a solar panel ingredient, from the US and South Korea, further escalating trade tensions that have fissured the global solar panel industry.
Chevron employees sentenced
Two environmental managers at Chevron, the US oil and gas group, have been jailed for two years on corruption charges in Indonesia in a hotly-contested case that has compounded investor concerns about legal uncertainty in the vital energy sector. Jakarta’s corruption court found Endah Rumbiyanti and Kukuh Kertasafari guilty of corruption in separate verdicts handed down on Wednesday and yesterday.
THE TIMES
Bain to pump into plasma supplier
The private equity firm once headed by the former US presidential candidate Mitt Romney has taken control of the state-owned plasma supplier to the NHS.
Ofwat drama puts consultants fees up
The leadership crisis at Ofwat has sent fees paid to external consultants soaring by 77 per cent, pushing operating costs to record levels. The drama at the heart of the water regulator prompted Regina Finn, its £170,000-a-year chief executive, to quit in May.
The Daily Telegraph
Britain’s most and least loved banks
The Bank of Ireland UK has come last in a bank customer satisfaction survey compiled by Which. First Direct, meanwhile, came top in the bi-annual study of current accounts conducted by Which, a consumer group. It was the eighth time that First Direct has won the title.
Lib Dems suspend David Ward MP
The Liberal Democrats have suspended the whip from MP David Ward until mid-September after he “questioned the continuing existence of Israel”.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
High-frequency traders’ safeguards come under scrutiny
Regulators are ratcheting up their focus on the complex computer systems deployed by high-frequency trading firms, with an eye on whether the systems have adequate safeguards against chaotic trading that can destabilise markets and harm investor confidence. The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority is conducting a probe of high-speed firms’ trading algorithms—the computer formulas that juggle the firms’ rapid-fire trades—and the controls surrounding their trading technology.