Archive for July, 2009

Making the coolest, sexiest new toy is no longer a recipe for profits among Japan’s electronics makers. Sony, Nintendo, and Sharp all announced faltering quarterly results on Thursday as the worldwide recession continued to erode both consumer and company budgets. It’s been a bad stretch for Japanese exporters as the strong yen has hurt their… »

It’s a tough time to be an integrated telecommunications company in Europe. Ten years after regulators here clawed through the fixed line sector, they’re now putting the pressure on mobile operators. For Telefonica of Spain and France Telecom, that means more regulatory headaches, but for BT Group, which sold its cellphone division to its Spanish… »

Oh, for the good old days of flying in style, with free wine and a motley array of food choices in one plastic tray. Yet travel on premium European airlines is becoming ever more spartan, as carriers cut back on costs to combat falling demand, and occasionally at the expense of their customers’ appetites. Deutsche… »

When France’s Alcatel bought America’s Lucent Technologies in 2006 for 13 billion, bringing together a fixed-line pro and a wireless champion, the deal seemed to make business sense. So far the opposite has been true: Alcatel-Lucent’s mounting losses since then have sent the network supplier’s stock down 80% and led to a management shake-up, with… »

It might not be selling as many cars as it wants, but it does have plenty of cash. Europe’s largest car maker, Volkswagen managed to beat expectations with second quarter profits as it gathered seemingly more than enough cash to buy Porsche ahead of its tie up with the sports car maker. Stuttgart, Germany-based Volkswagen… »

The view from the Federal Reserve’s art deco columns has brightened, if only a little, as the week brought a more self-assured attitude from its officials and a less-dour tone from its Beige Book.The week began with news that Fed chairman Ben Bernanke will speak before a general audience in a “town-hall” style discussion over… »

It’s not hard to find storm clouds on the horizon for aerospace and defense companies. Airlines are still under pressure from falling passenger traffic and rocky finances, making them less likely to place orders for new planes or engines. As for defense, the Obama administration in the United States is trying to extricate itself from… »

Luxury retailers may risk ruining their brand names as they struggle to cut costs to thwart slumping sales. Hugo Boss sparked some concern on this issue, despite announcing earnings that were broadly in line with expectations.The firm went all out to combat a drop in sales revenues, streamlining its operations and putting in place measures… »

Astrazeneca is in a hurry. The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker said it is rushing to produce as many as 200 million doses of swine flu vaccine next year, as it posted a 5.6% raise in second-quarter profit and increased its guidance for the year.Chief Executive David Brennan told Forbes he estimates his company can deliver 40 million… »

A night’s sleep wasn’t enough to calm Yahoo! investors unhappy with the terms of its deal with Microsoft.After sinking 12.1% on Wednesday, Yahoo! shares felllittle further on Thursday, pulling the poster-child of the 1990s Dotcom boom to 14.43 by midday trading, 16.2% down from its Tuesday close.”Investors are clearly disappointed with the terms of the… »