News

Greece puts pressure on bondholders

Greece increased the pressure on its creditors late on Tuesday, as it looks to secure a bond swap deal that will help write off an estimated 53.5 percent of the country’s privately held debt. Athens informed creditors that it is reassessing its options concerning non-payment, saying it will default on any bondholders unwilling to participate…

Greece blames European Union for debt crisis

Greek Tourism Minister Pavlos Yeroulanos believes that the EU is responsible for Greece’s current economic situation. “People should remember that European institutions have been monitoring the Greek economy since 2004… What happened between 2004 and 2009? Either the EU was not doing its job correctly, or it knew what the situation was and hid it,”…

Glencore says $37bn deal “fair”

Glencore, the globe’s largest commodity trader, said on Monday that the $37bn offer for Xstrata is a fair deal, and is a “logical” next step for the two companies. There was no indication that it was willing to improve its offer to win over hesitant investors. Last month Glencore released estimated 2011 earnings together with…

Peugeot debt rating cut could hamper GM deal

Shares in Peugeot fell around 7.7 percent following a debt rating cut by Moody’s late on Thursday. The move saw the French car manufacturer’s rating drop to “junk” status, which may hinder a proposed deal with General Motors. According to Moody’s, a GM alliance would possibly weigh on earnings in the short term without yielding…

US Air Force cancels Embraer aircraft deal

The US Airforce late on Tuesday unexpectedly cancelled a $355m light aircraft contract granted to Sierra Nevada and Brazil’s aircraft manufacturer Embraer. The deal was scraped following objections from a rival US aerospace company. Hawker Beechcraft protested the award, saying its AT-6 plane was unjustly shut out from the competition. The deal for 20 Embraer…

Sluggish Indian GDP slows to three-year low

India’s economic growth in the three months to December was at its weakest in over three years due to a slowdown in agriculture, mining and manufacturing, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry said on Wednesday. Meanwhile, higher interest rates, a decline in domestic demand and an increase in input costs hampered investment,…