Fortescue to expand if iron ore prices hold
Fortescue Metals Group will go ahead with a major expansion project in Western Australia later this year, if the recent recovery in the iron ore price is sustained. Fortescue said…
Whirled slowdown
The best-known products of GKN are car drive shafts that maintain a steady speed despite external buffeting. Sadly, the FTSE 100 engineer cannot pull off the same trick. It is…
US battery maker defaults on loan notes
A123 Systems, a manufacturer of batteries for electric cars that was awarded a $249m grant by the US government, has failed to make a payment due on some of its…
British Legion president expresses regret
The president of the Royal British Legion stepped down on Monday as a scandal over defence lobbying took its toll. Lieutenant General Sir John Kiszely announced he was leaving the…
Great Portland cuts stake in City project
Great Portland Estates, the property developer, has sold three-quarters of its 50 per cent stake in a City of London skyscraper, as it pulls out of the Square Mile to…
Cemex losses narrow on demand in Americas
Cemex, one of the world’s largest cement manufacturers, reported a substantially smaller loss than in recent quarters as greater demand across the Americas boosted sales. The Mexican company said on…
Fiat Industrial / CNH Global
Simplicity, like minimalism, can be complex to achieve. Tell that to Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne. In an effort to further rationalise the unwieldy Fiat group structure, he wants to merge…
Japanese banks look to the skies
When Sumitomo Mitsui Bank closed its $7.3bn deal to acquire RBS Aviation Capital on Monday, it realised a dream going back many years. “It took us 15 years to get…
Orkla and Hydro to merge aluminium units
Orkla and Hydro, two of Norway’s biggest companies, are merging their aluminium products businesses to create the world’s largest such group amid massive industry overcapacity in Europe. The new company,…
Call for N Ireland corporation tax cut
Bombardier, Northern Ireland’s biggest private sector employer, has called for local politicians to be given the power to cut corporation tax, saying the phasing out of state employment grants threatens…
Siemens prepared to quit Italian deal
Siemens is prepared to walk away from its €1.3bn offer to buy Ansaldo Energia, a power-plant construction business majority-owned by Italy’s Finmeccanica, after a political backlash that triggered a competing…
Search and rescue bids due this week
Bids are due this week for the right to run the UK’s search and rescue helicopter service and introduce a new fleet of aircraft, with three operators narrowing in on…
Better Place seeks to broaden its range
Better Place, the electric car recharging company, wants to raise fresh capital, forge new partnerships, and broaden its pitch to clients beyond the battery-switch technology for which it is best…
Siemens warns of fragile global growth
The world faces two years of fragile growth in which economic activity refuses to show a marked pick-up, partly because of the weaker performance of the emerging countries, says Peter…
The man behind the brand
©Rex Brand Branson: since he launched Virgin Atlantic in 1984, Sir Richard has been used it as a beachhead to expand the company into new markets Sir Richard Branson enters…