News

Strauss-Kahn resigns as head of IMF

Dominique Strauss-Kahn has resigned as head of the IMF according to a statement issued late on Wednesday by the global finance body. Strauss-Kahn, who faces charges of sexual assault and attempted rape in New York, said in his resignation letter: “I deny with the greatest possible firmness all of the allegations that have been made against…

Dell profits triple

Texas-based technology company Dell reported late on Tuesday that its Q1 profits had almost tripled due to stronger than expected big business sales. Net income according to the company jumped to $945m from $341m a year earlier and revenue rose 1 percent to $15bn. The technology stalwart saw operating income reaching $1.2bn, while enterprise solutions…

BP-Rosneft £10bn deal collapses

BP’s attempt to gain a grip in Russia’s Arctic oilfields through a £10bn share swap deal with state controlled company Rosneft has collapsed after BP failed to address a dispute and reach an agreement with its partner TNK before the midnight Monday deadline. The Russian half of the Russian-British TNK-BP joint venture had threatened in April…

Japanese government to help pay plant victims

The Japanese government endorsed a scheme on Friday to help Tepco, Asia’s largest utility company, compensate victims of the disaster at its tsunami-stricken nuclear power plant and save it from financial collapse. Naoto Kan, Japan’s prime minister, approved the plan to create a new body to facilitate funds to utilities companies expecting to pay nuclear…

Microsoft on the verge of buying Skype

US software giant Microsoft is in late stage negotiations to buy Internet phone service provider Skype in a deal that could be worth 8.5bn dollars, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday. Confirmation of the deal is expected later on Tuesday but sources warned the deal may still fall apart. Microsoft and Skype declined to…

Apple brand world’s most valuable at $153bn

International consumer electronics giant Apple has beaten search engine Google to the top spot as the most valuable global brand, according to a key study published by Millward Brown. Apple, which produced products including the iPad, iPod and iPhone, moved up from third place in 2010 to the top position after its brand value grew year-on-year…

Vale posts record Q1 net profits

Rio de Janeiro based Vale SA, the globe’s biggest iron ore producer, announced record Q1 net profits as revenue doubled due to higher sales of metals such as copper and nickel, the company said on Friday. According to analysts Vale was expected to post per-share profit of $1.11 on an adjusted basis, the average of 12…

SocGen sees net profit decline of 13.8%

France’s second largest listed bank by market value, Societe Generale, announced on Thursday lower than anticipated first quarter results due to a charge tied to its own debt and provisions resulting from political turmoil in the Middle East. Group net profit for the quarter fell 13.8 percent to €916m from €1.063 the year before. The average…