Lebedev Found Guilty Over TV Chat Show Brawl

Media magnate Alexander Lebedev has been found guilty of battery over a brawl on a TV chat show in his native Russia.

The financial backer of Britain's Independent and Evening Standard newspapers was sentenced by a court in Moscow to 150 hours of community service, avoiding a prison term.

He had claimed the case against him was politically motivated, depicting the trial as President Vladimir Putin's revenge on him for criticising the government.

Last week, the opposition surprisingly dropped the main charge against Lebedev, of "hooliganism motivated by political hatred", which carried the threat of several years in prison.

Instead, they asked for his movements to be restricted for 21 months and for him to be banned from large public gatherings.

Alexander Lebedev has been convicted of assault over the TV punch up

Speaking after sentencing, Lebedev's lawyer, Genry Reznik, said his client was "ashamed" of the verdict, which his team would appeal.

Lebedev, a former London-based KGB agent, punched property tycoon Sergei Polonsky on a Russian political chat show in September 2011, knocking him to the floor.

He claimed he was protecting himself and that the subsequent charge of hooliganism was disproportionate. 

Last week, Mr Polonsky called for Lebedev - who is estimated to be worth more than £700m - to be forgiven.

Lebedev is rare among oligarchs in speaking out against the Kremlin since the imprisonment of oil tycoon Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who was arrested in 2003 after falling out with Mr Putin. Khodorkovsky's Yukos oil company was broken up and sold off, mainly into state hands.

Lebedev, who co-owns a campaigning Russian newspaper critical of Putin, also portrayed the case as part of a broader crackdown on the opposition since the former KGB spy returned to the presidency in May 2011 following protests.

Mr Polonsky spent three months in jail in Cambodia this year for allegedly attacking the crew of a boat after a dispute erupted during a New Year's Eve outing.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Business Confidence 'Back At 2007 Level'

British business confidence has hit its highest level since 2007, in fresh evidence that the economy is recovering from the financial crisis.

The finding, in the British Chambers of Commerce's quarterly economic survey, was backed by a pick-up in exports and a strong rise in firms' domestic and overseas sales over the past three months, boding well for official data due later this month.

Other surveys have shown a similar pattern.

Markit's June manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) was the highest in more than two years, as was last week's GfK consumer confidence barometer.

"The UK economy is slowly strengthening," said David Kern, the BCC's chief economist.

"If recent progress can be sustained, there are realistic hopes that growth forecasts will be revised up further," he added.

Britain's recovery since the 2007-08 financial crisis has been the slowest since modern records began, and weaker than in any Group of Seven economy apart from Italy.

At the end of May the BCC forecast that the economy would grow 0.9% this year, but based in part on Tuesday's data, it now expects growth of 0.6% in the second quarter alone.

This compares to 0.3% growth in the first three months of the year.

The BCC survey showed that in the service sector, domestic sales and orders were growing at the fastest pace since the fourth quarter of 2007, while export sales had grown at the fastest rate since the survey began in 1989.

For manufacturers, domestic sales growth was the strongest in two years and export order growth the best in a year.

The data is seen as easing immediate pressure on new Bank of England governor Mark Carney to restart asset purchases through the bank's quantitative easing programme.

Separate data released on Tuesday backed that assessment as activity in the construction sector was found to have grown for the second month in a row.

The PMI for June was at its highest level since May 2012.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Banks To Unleash Ad Blitz In Switching War

Britain's biggest banks are preparing to unleash an advertising blitz costing tens of millions of pounds in an attempt to protect their market share as new rules are introduced to encourage speedier account transfers between rivals.

Sky News has learnt that the big five high street banks - Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds Banking Group, Royal Bank of Scotland and Santander UK - have booked huge volumes of media space during the late summer as they brace for a new seven-day current account-switching system.

The Government and the industry have agreed a mid-September launch for the initiative, which ministers hope will accelerate switching levels to the benefit of new entrants such as Metro Bank.

All of the big five are preparing to spend significant sums on marketing in September, with one advertising executive estimating that they could fork out as much as £20m in that month alone.

Lloyds is understood to be planning a major outlay on continuing to position its Halifax subsidiary as a "challenger" bank, while Santander UK is expected to spend a large sum on its 1-2-3 current account offer.

RBS, which is 81% owned by British taxpayers, is thought to be preparing a major campaign focused on customer service improvements.

"You can't book advertising space anywhere," the head of one major UK retail bank said.

"It's all gone already."

The disclosure that the major banks are preparing mass advertising campaigns in the run-up to the deadline will stoke fears that the dominant players will simply use their greater financial firepower to continue to shut out smaller banks.

Between them, the five largest lenders account for an overwhelming share of the current account market, with last month's report by the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards criticising the industry's treatment of customers and the speed with which the Government has imposed change upon it.

The technology required to support the new switching system has cost approximately £750m.

If it is not judged to be successful, the commission recommended that a full account portability model be considered, which banks have warned privately would cost many billions of pounds.

New entrants to the retail banking market have been buoyed by moves to ease onerous capital and liquidity requirements set by the industry regulator, but they have warned that these will be insufficient to trigger a genuine shift in the competitive landscape.

Sky News understands that the big banks have been operating a "buddy system", which pairs rival banks to help test systems' readiness ahead of the September deadline.

A working group overseen by the Payments Council, the body which oversees payment systems, has been supervising the changes for months.

Insiders at some of the big banks have, though, privately expressed concerns about the readiness of their competitors to meet the deadline.

RBS alone has around 500 staff working on the project, many of whom are contract employees.

"The industry is only going to be as strong as the weakest link on this," said one banker last month.

Concerns about the banks' readiness has been exacerbated by their poor track record at implementing and maintaining sophisticated IT systems in recent years.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Heywood: 20-Year Battle To Fix UK Economy

Britain is in a "20-year generational battle" to rescue the economy, according to the country's most senior civil servant.

Cabinet Secretary Sir Jeremy Heywood has suggested drastic austerity measures implemented by the coalition may have to go further.

In a speech to officials at a Civil Service Live event in west London, he reportedly declared there was still an "enormous amount of work to be done" to tackle the deficit.

His stark comments come after Chancellor George Osborne unveiled a further £11.5bn in spending cuts, extending his austerity regime into the next parliament.

They will take the edge off increased optimism sparked by new figures showing Britain never sank into a double-dip recession.

Sir Jeremy Heywood warned full economic recovery will take decades

"This is not a two-year project or a five-year project. This is a 10-year project, a 20-year generational battle to beef up the economy in ways that we have not seen for many, many decades," Sir Jeremy said.

The mandarin cited last week's economic figures indicating UK plc was still 4% smaller than in 2008 showed there was a "very, very long way to go", according to The Daily Telegraph.

"Five years on from the bottom of the recession we have still not even near recovered all the output we lost in that terribly deep recession that we suffered in 2007-08," he added.

"Those are really daunting numbers that just show the size of the challenge; there is no alternative."

Sir Jeremy said that rebalancing the economy away from financial services towards manufacturing was "much easier said than done".

"All the civil servants in the room will be well aware that the last three or four years have been tough," he said.

"There have been years of austerity, years of pay freezes, of pay restraint; every part of government has been told by ministers - and rightly so - to hunt out waste and tackle inefficiencies.

"But despite all these efforts we have made over the last three years ... our debt/GDP ratio is still rising, debt interest payments are rising.

"There is still an enormous amount of work to get that deficit down to a balanced level to get the debt/GDP level falling rather than rising."

Sir Jeremy praised the "remarkably smooth" spending round for 2015-16, unveiled by Mr Osborne last week.

Measures in the Chancellor's statement included more swingeing cuts to Whitehall departments, a welfare cap and further action to curb public sector pay.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

RBS Orders Lending Review Over Untapped £20bn

Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) is reviewing its small business lending practices and standards after uncovering £20bn in untapped cash.

The excess money, RBS said, was a result of having £20bn more in small business deposits than being loaned out to such firms.

The group - which is 81% owned by the taxpayer - said it wanted to put this surplus to use by supporting small and medium-sized companies and playing its part in "securing the recovery".

The investigation - to be led by former Bank of England deputy governor Sir Andrew Large and management consultancy Oliver Wyman - will take in both RBS and Natwest and follows widespread criticism that the lenders are not doing enough to support economic recovery.

The banking sector is subject to a separate probe by the Office of Fair Trading into small business lending.

It was demanded by the Parliamentary Commission on Banking Standards which found that a lack of competition was leaving firms with little or no choice in accessing finance.

The bank's net lending fell by £1.6bn in the first quarter of 2013, despite tapping the State's Funding for Lending Scheme (FLS) for £750m worth of cheap finance.

Sir Andrew said: "There is a disconnect between what the bank says it is doing on lending, and what many businesses say they experience on the ground.

"That is why we have been asked to conduct an independent review to establish what is going on, and what steps can be taken."

Banks have been arguing that small business lending levels have continued to shrink due to low demand, but it is thought that firms are struggling to secure reasonable terms and cheaper rates in spite of the boost from the FLS.

Chris Sullivan, head of UK corporate banking at RBS, said: "Demand for lending remains a challenge, but we want to do more than just wait for demand to materialise.

A dedicated website will be set up for the duration of the RBS inquiry through which small business customers can provide their perspectives and experiences on the group's lending.

The review's recommendations are due to be published in the autumn.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Portugal: Markets Fall As Crisis Deepens

Portugal's financial crisis has reignited, triggering a stock market plunge and once again raising the spectre that its borrowing costs could soon become unsustainable.

Share prices plummeted 6% in early trading on Wednesday and other major stock markets, including the FTSE 100, also fell sharply.

Investors were reacting to growing political turmoil after Foreign Minister Paulo Portas resigned on Tuesday night, a day after the shock departure of Finance Minister Vitor Gaspar amid growing unrest against austerity.

Prime Minister Pedro Passos Coelho has defied calls to follow suit but the resignations at the top of the centre-right government have left deep concerns over not only the coalition's future but Portugal's ability to pursue the steep savings, demanded by creditors, in return for continued bailout support.

There has been a fierce public backlash against the austerity drive, in what is one of the poorest countries that uses the euro.

Values correct at 09:24 BST

But unease among investors about whether that tough savings programme will continue has forced up the country's borrowing costs too on bond markets.

The yield - the percentage Portugal pays to service its debts - on the country's benchmark 10-year bond spiked just below 8% on Wednesday.

A 10-year borrowing rate of about 8% is widely considered unsustainable.

Spanish and Italian yields jumped too while nervousness over the state of Greece's next tranche of bailout money also caused jitters on stock markets as well.

"With disorder and uncertainty over the political situation in Egypt threatening stability in the Middle East, and a Greek deadline looming to prove it can action its bailout conditions before receiving the next tranche of aid, volatility is likely to be high," Mark Ward, head of trading at Sanlam Securities, said.

Jose Manuel Barroso is monitoring developments with "concern"

The President of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso admitted the situation in Portugal was a worry.

He said: "The initial reaction of the markets shows the obvious risk that the financial credibility recently built up by Portugal could be jeopardised by the current political instability.

"If this happens it would be especially damaging for the Portuguese people, particularly as there were already preliminary signs of economic recovery.

This delicate situation requires a great sense of responsibility from all political forces and leaders. The situation should be clarified as soon as possible."

He concluded: "We trust that Portuguese democracy will deliver a solution ensuring that the sacrifices the Portuguese people have made until now will not have been in vain."

It later emerged that Portugal's president would meet the prime minister and leaders of political parties on Thursday in a bid to settle the uncertainty.

President Anibal Cavaco Silva has the power to call snap elections.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Electricity Theft: Ofgem Urges Crackdown

The energy regulator could force electricity suppliers to tackle power theft because of the growing cost to households.

Ofgem estimates that 25,000 cases of electricity theft annually cost law-abiding consumers £200m - or £7 per household - with a third of the loss blamed on cannabis farms.

The watchdog said its proposals would require energy suppliers to bring in measures to detect, investigate and prevent cases of theft - with fines for those companies which fail to comply.

A code of practice would be compiled, Ofgem said, through companies sharing information on investigations between themselves and agencies including the police, while a 24 hour public hotline is also planned to help identify offenders.

Andrew Wright, Ofgem's chief executive, said: "Ofgem wants to make sure that consumers are paying no more than they need to for their electricity, and lives are not put at risk.

"It's critical that suppliers do all they can to clamp down on electricity theft.

"The reforms build on similar obligations we introduced at the start of this year for suppliers to address gas theft more vigorously."

Energy UK, the trade association of the energy industry which represents more than 80 companies, welcomed the proposals.

A spokesman said: "Electricity theft is dangerous and illegal. Contact with live electricity cables can kill and tampered meters cause fires.

"Electricity theft also costs honest customers money which is why energy companies take this - and gas theft - very seriously."

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Olympus Scandal: Bosses Spared Prison

The former president of Olympus and two senior executives have received suspended jail terms for their roles in the £1.1bn accounting scandal at the camera and medical equipment-maker.

The fraud emerged in 2011 when the company's then-chief executive, Briton Michael Woodford, raised questions about dubious payments for financial advice and acquisitions.

He was subsequently sacked but later became a hero in Japan, where whistleblowers were routinely treated as outcasts.

Mr Woodford agreed to a reported £10m payout last year to settle a wrongful dismissal lawsuit.

Former Olympus president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa

The investigation revealed losses at Olympus dating back to the 1990s and the company was fined 700m yen (£4.6m).

The Tokyo District Court has ruled that former Olympus president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa and the other two executives were guilty of violating securities laws and falsifying financial statements.

The court ordered prison terms of three years for Kikukawa and one of the other men - an auditor - and two-and-half years for the third man.

But the terms were all suspended for up to five years when factors including their age and guilty pleas were taken into consideration.

Chief judge Hiroaki Saito said their actions at Olympus had undermined faith in the Tokyo stock market and shook corporate Japan's international credibility.

The company "systematically" carried out the cover-up in which executives took advantage of their authority and financial expertise, he said.

"Their failure to report the losses and falsification of financial statements is a totally unacceptable act for a socially responsible company," the judge said.

:: Michael Woodford will be a guest on Wednesday's edition of Jeff Randall Live, at 7pm on Sky News.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Nicole Farhi Goes Into Administration

Administrators have been appointed following the collapse of luxury fashion chain Nicole Farhi.

Restructuring specialists Zolfo Cooper confirmed the news, following a turbulent few years for the clothing, accessories and homewares retailer which was founded in 1982 by the designer Nicole Farhi.

The administrator said that it intended to find a buyer for the chain, which employs 114 staff across its head office and store network.

It would continue to operate as normal for the moment, the statement confirmed.

Peter Saville, partner at Zolfo Cooper added: "Nicole Farhi is a very powerful retail brand.

Nicole Farhi collections were popular at the top fashion shows

"Unfortunately, as with many other fashion retailers, the decline in high street spend coupled with rising costs has led to increased financial pressures on the business.

"We are already in discussions with a number of interested parties who value the strength of the Nicole Farhi brand.

"We intend to continue to trade the business and will be working hard to identify the best possible outcomes regarding preservation of jobs, the value of the business and returns to creditors. As this work continues we will make further announcements as appropriate."

Zolfo Cooper confirmed customers in possession of gift vouchers could continue to exchange them for goods as normal in any of Nicole Farhi's standalone or concession stores while anyone seeking refunds would be permitted to exchange their goods in-store though cash refunds would not be provided.

In addition to its flagship store on Conduit Store in London's Mayfair, Nicole Farhi has five standalone stores, ten concessions throughout the UK and Ireland, a website, and significant wholesale presence.

But it has been passed among a number of different owners and leading management figures in recent years at a time of consumer spending restraint.

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More

Seven Banks To Deliver Royal Mail Sell-Off

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

Ministers have finalised the line-up of City bankers working on the privatisation of Royal Mail, underlining the Government's determination to press ahead with the sale despite intensifying trade union opposition.

Sky News can reveal that Investec, Nomura and Royal Bank of Canada have been appointed to junior roles on the prospective initial public offering (IPO) of Royal Mail, 48 hours after unions dismissed as "unacceptable" a three-year pay and conditions proposal from the company.

The trio of newly-appointed investment banks will work alongside Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Barclays, Goldman Sachs and UBS, which were all hired at the end of May.

The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) declined to comment on the appointments but Whitehall insiders confirmed that the banks had been notified on Wednesday. The timing reinforces the intention of Michael Fallon, the Business Minister leading the sale, to press ahead despite the apparent hostility of the unions.

The seven-strong bank syndicate will share a smaller-than-usual pool of fees as ministers attempt to drive down the cost of a flotation. In total, the banks are expected to earn between £10m and £15m if the Government sells around £1bn of Royal Mail shares.

Lazard is also advising the Government on the privatisation plans.

Some storm clouds continue to hang over the privatisation, including volatility in financial markets which could be exacerbated by renewed troubles in the eurozone.

Royal Mail's employee relations also remain a key concern, with a pay offer earlier this week linking remuneration to an absence of industrial action.

Moya Greene, Royal Mail's chief executive, said on Monday: "Cooperation is central to the future success of the company. This offer represents Royal Mail's commitment to a long-term engagement strategy with the CWU and with our people.

"We have already built a stronger Royal Mail together through closer cooperation and trust in recent years. We are now offering a new long-term agreement with the CWU and our employees."

Dave Ward, the CWU deputy general secretary, responded to the offer by saying: "Postal workers want more security; what's on offer is less. With privatisation looming, the protections Royal Mail have put on offer are not worth the paper they're written on.

"Our members clearly voted – by a huge 99 per cent – for a pay rise without strings attached yet the company ignores them."

00.12 | 0 komentar | Read More