WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
CHOPPY MARKETS THREATEN EMI SALE
Turbulent financing markets could derail Citigroup’s attempt to sell EMI, according to people close to the $3bn-plus auction who warned that the US bank could abandon the sale if it cannot squeeze higher offers from bidders. The bidding process remains fluid, with Citigroup expected to decide within two weeks whether to sell EMI in one piece, break the UK music company in two, or put the sale on hold.
ETIHAD IN TALKS TO BUY AER LINGUS STAKE
Etihad, the fast-growing Middle Eastern airline, has approached the Irish government to buy its 25 per cent stake in flag-carrier Aer Lingus, people with knowledge of the move said. The approach comes after the Irish sovereign said in September it would sell its stake in the carrier.
DREYFUS LOOKS TO LISTING OR SALE
Louis Dreyfus Commodities has hired bankers to prepare for a potential listing or a partial sale to a sovereign wealth fund after the privately-held 160-year-old trading house failed to reach a merger deal with rivals Olam, Glencore and Bunge. Margarita Louis-Dreyfus, the heir of the trading empire, has hired Credit Suisse to advise her trust and the company in the clearest sign that the trader could abandon its private status. But people familiar with the talks warned that a deal was unlikely until late 2012.
STUDENT DEBT IS LIKE SUBPRIME CRISIS
US university students and graduates are facing a double whammy of ballooning debt loads and high unemployment, raising worries that a potential delinquency crisis could bleed into the wider economy. Student debt has increased nearly sevenfold from $80bn in 1999 to $550bn at the end of June 2011, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
THE TIMES
WOMEN DESERT TORIES AS ECONOMIC PAIN HITS HOME
Millions more women than men think that the economy is headed in the wrong direction, have become deeply pessimistic about their children’s futures and are suspicious of the coalition. That is the conclusion of extensive internal research by the Conservative Party that sources have revealed to The Times. It lays bare the scale of the task facing David Cameron if he wants to win back disaffected female voters.
TESCO’S NOT-SO-BIG PRICE DROP
Dozens of the savings offered by Tesco in its “Big Price Drop” — the £500m campaign that started a supermarket price war three weeks ago — are on foods that were only briefly sold at the higher price, research by The Times has shown. Tesco has promised “never-ending” discounts.
The Daily Telegraph
BARROSO PROPOSES PENALTIES FOR ROGUE BANKERS
Financiers accused of skulduggery could become subject to criminal sanctions under laws set to be proposed by the president of the European Commission. Jose Manuel Barroso has said he will this week propose “individual criminal responsibility for financial players to be recognised in European law”. The plans for an EU-wide directive would focus on curbing high frequency trading.
COUNCIL BOSSES USE CREDIT CARDS FOR LAVISH LIFESTYLES
Council bosses presiding over the deepest cuts since the Second World War are using their taxpayer-funded expenses and credit cards to fund a lifestyle of five-star hotels, Michelin-starred restaurants and golf resorts and spas, The Daily Telegraph reveals.
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
EUROPE
CHALLENGERS TAKE AIM AT CREDIT-RATING TITANS
Several underdogs in the credit-rating business are stepping up their challenge to the industry’s three giants. The credit-rating arm of Morningstar, best known for mutual-fund research, yesterday launched ratings of bond deals backed by home mortgages. The rating firm already rates commercial-mortgage bonds and is in the early stages of developing municipal-bond ratings.
NISSAN WEIGHS CUT IN DOMESTIC OUTPUT
Nissan may shift production of more models from Japan to factories overseas and could see domestic output fall below one million vehicles a year if the yen continues to strengthen against the dollar, said Toshiyuki Shiga, chief operating officer of Nissan.