The struggle to pick an owner for General Motors' Opel unit was set to come to a head on Thursday after the U.S. carmaker said it had made a decision and would communicate the verdict at a news conference. Following is a summary of recent events at Opel, founded in 1863 and bought by GM
More
European equities gained for a fifth straight session and hit a new 11-month peak on Thursday, led by technology and media stocks, with investors awaiting the Bank of England's decision on interest rates later in the day. At 0822 GMT the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares was up 0.4 percent at 991.49 points
More
“No” vote could mean apathy or multi-speed Europe The European Union will be plunged into a crisis that could delay integration, weaken the euro currency and reduce the bloc's global clout if Irish voters reject an EU reform treaty next month, analysts say. Opinion polls suggest Irish voters will approve the Lisbon treaty, intended to
More
Home Retail Group, Britain's biggest household goods retailer, on Thursday posted better than expected second-quarter sales at both its Argos and Homebase businesses. "Argos and Homebase performed well, delivering cash margin ahead of our expectations," said Chief Executive Terry Duddy. "Combined with exceptionally good cost management, this means we now expect group benchmark profit before
More
Steve Jobs stepped back into the spotlight for the first time in nearly a year on Wednesday, drawing a standing ovation before unveiling new and cheaper iPods for Apple Inc. But Apple's shares closed 1 percent lower after hitting a year's high in the session. Analysts said they dipped because investors took profits after a
More
The U.S. employment picture will stay bleak well into next year long after the recession ends, but the worst of the labor market crisis is over, top private economists said on Thursday. Private economists polled for the Blue Chip Economic Indicators September survey say the unemployment rate will reach at least 10 percent in early
More
South African central bank Governor Tito Mboweni warned on Wednesday the rand recent strength may be overdone and suggested a retracement may be due in the next few days. The rand ouched a fresh 13-month high of 7.4141 against the dollar earlier in the day, bolstered by a soft greenback, high commodity prices and speculation
More
USB Bank Plc (USB) decided to proceed with an increase of share capital via a rights issue. The potential amount of capital to be raised is approximately EUR15 mln. The Board also decided to proceed with the issue of a 10-year convertible bond of EUR10 mln with the option to extend the face value up
More
Cyprus President Demetris Christofias and Turkish Cypriot leader Mehmet Ali Talat will hold today the first meeting of the second round of the UN-led direct negotiations, which began a year ago, aiming to reach a solution of the Cyprus problem and reunify the country, divided since the Turkish invasion of 1974. The chapter of governance
More
Cyprus ranked 40th among 183 countries in the World Bank's ''Doing Business Report'' for 2010, covering the period June 2008 through May 2009. This is the first time Cyprus is participating in the evaluation of the World Bank, at the initiative of the Cyprus Investment Promotion Agency (CIPA). Economies are ranked on their ease of
More