What the other papers say this morning – 9 August 2013
FINANCIAL TIMES
Norway’s oil fund plans to turn active
Norway’s $760bn (£489bn) oil fund, the world’s largest sovereign wealth fund, is stepping up its efforts to be a more active investor by appointing a corporate governance advisory board. Having quadrupled in size in the past eight years, the vehicle is seeking to play a bigger role in selecting board directors at its biggest shareholdings such as Sweden’s Volvo Group. Norway’s oil fund has grown at a dizzying pace, and now owns on average about 2.5 per cent of every listed European company and is often in a group’s top 20 shareholders.
RAF base for Heathrow overspill
Heathrow airport’s capacity crunch could be solved temporarily by using RAF Northolt in west London as a base for landing short-haul passenger jets, according to a former RAF officer who used to run the military airfield.
Chinese bank takes step towards IPO
One of China’s top investment banks has taken a step towards going public with China International Capital Corporation preparing the early ground work for an initial public offering to raise capital. The chief executive has commissioned an internal study to look into listing, said people familiar with the matter.
THE TIMES
Carney calls for women economists
The new Governor of the Bank of England continued his modernisation drive yesterday by challenging George Osborne to appoint more women to work alongside him at Threadneedle Street.
China crisis eases for Prada
Prada appeared to brush off concerns in the luxury industry about slowing growth in the Chinese economy, saying demand from the country helped to drive a 12 per cent rise in sales for the past six months.
The Daily Telegraph
Npower blasts British Gas
Npower chief Paul Massara said the smart meter trial being carried out by his rival, where customers are being offered free power between 9am and 5pm on a Saturday, would only end up confusing customers if launched nationwide.
Credit card creator sues bank
A 42-year old Russian man, Dmitry Argarkov, was unsuccessfully sued by Tinkoff Credit Systems after he scanned a contract for a credit card into his computer, changed the terms and sent it back. Tinkoff signed the agreement, which contained a zero per cent interest rate.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Pope decree on money laundering
Pope Francis has issued a decree to reinforce the Vatican’s crackdown on money-laundering. The executive order strengthens the Financial Information Authority created by then-Pope Benedict XVI in 2010.
Italy moves to lift growth
With Italy pulling out of a two-year recession, the government now seeks to eke out further growth by lightening the tax burden on the country’s struggling companies and creating a new body tasked with reducing public-sector waste, said the economy minister Fabrizio Saccomanni