WHAT THE OTHER PAPERS SAY THIS MORNING
FINANCIAL TIMES
COMPLEXITY IS KEY TO OVERCOMING RECESSION
Lord Mandelson, the business secretary, will today announce the allocation of £150bn to fund companies’ advance manufacturing development projects in areas such as aerospace, nuclear engineering components, electronics and microchip designs. Most of it will come from the £750m cash pot set aside by ministers this year to support “industrial projects of strategic importance.”
EUROZONE DATA POINT TO LENDING UPTURN
Eurozone banks are starting to step up lending as they respond to emergency policy steps aimed at countering continental Europe’s severe recession. Data from the European Central Bank pointed to a modest turnround in lending and a pick-up in banks’ purchases of longer-term assets, and provided the latest evidence of economic stabilisation across the 16-country eurozone.
DEEPER SINO-US TIES URGED BY OBAMA
Barack Obama yesterday sought to recast America’s relationship with China, urging Asia’s rising superpower to forge deeper ties with Washington on the economy, climate change and nuclear proliferation. The US president predicted Washington’s relationship with Beijing would “shape the 21st century.”
JAPAN SPENDING PITCH
Japan’s opposition Democratic party launched its manifesto for next month’s general election promising dramatic administrative reform and generous social spending. The DPJ is riding high in opinion polls ahead of next month’s general election and seems likely to win a historic victory over the long ruling Liberal Democratic Party.
THE TIMES
BAY GROUP SECURES DEBT-FOR-EQUITY RESTRUCTURING
Doubts over the future of Bay Restaurant Group, the company behind the La Tasca and Slug and Lettuce chains, will be allayed today when the company announces a financial restructuring involving a debt-for-equity swap. The group has agreed terms with Kaupthing, the Icelandic bank, and Commerzbank of Germany on a refinancing that will reduce its debt burden by an estimated £100m to £150m.
SIR RICHARD POURS £30M INTO VIRGIN BLUE
Sir Richard Branson is to bail out his Australian airline with a £30m injection of new funds. Virgin Blue, which is one quarter owned by Branson’s Virgin Group, said it will raise A$231.4 m in a rights issue after experiencing the most challenging period.
The Daily Telegraph
BT SIGNS VIDEO ON-DEMAND DEAL WITH SONY PICTURES
BT has signed an agreement with Sony Pictures Television for video-on-demand rights to a range of new and classic movies for its digital TV service, BT Vision. Customers can watch hit films including Terminator Salvation: The Future Begins, and Da Vinci Code follow up Angels & Demons. All Sony’s films on BT Vision will be available on a pay-per-view basis, without a subscription.
OFCOM ON TRACK TO APPOINT CHANNEL 4 CHAIRMAN
Ofcom, the communications regulator, said that it is on track to appoint a replacement to Luke Johnson, the chairman of Channel 4, when he leaves at the end of this year. Two or three headhunters have now been short-listed and the process is set to begin in September.
WALL STREET JOURNAL
UBS HIRES MERRILL’S MAGNUS TO RUN SINGAPORE BANKING TEAM
UBS yesterday hired Keith Magnus from Merrill Lynch to run the Swiss bank’s Singapore and Malaysia investment banking team, according to a person familiar with the situation – the latest blow to Bank of America’s efforts to keep its Asia investment banking team intact. Singapore is a key market for investment banks.
GM TREASURER EXPECTS TO GET ADDITIONAL ENERGY FUNDING
General Motors Treasurer Walter Borst said yesterday the auto maker expects billions in additional Energy Department funding now that the auto maker is “viable.” GM has applied for more than $10bn in Department of Energy funds. GM expects to receive most, but not all of that funding if the DOE approves GM’s loan request.