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KFC Owner Yum Hurt By China Food 'Scares'

Written By Unknown on Kamis, 10 Oktober 2013 | 00.11

Profits at KFC's parent company Yum Brands fell 68% in the third quarter as it continues to endure the effects of a series of controversies surrounding food in China.

Shares fell more than 7% in after-hours trading when the firm warned it would take some time to rebuild sales in China - its most important growth market - following an 11% fall in like-for-like sales over the period.

China accounts for more than 40% of Yum's operating profit, but sales at its restaurants began nose-diving after a TV report late last year said some of the company's suppliers were giving chickens unapproved levels of antibiotics.

A few months later, the chain's recovery efforts were derailed by a bird flu scare.

It also announced a writedown of £258m (£161m) on its Little Sheep business in China, which suffered from bad publicity over lamb quality issues - which were later dismissed by food safety regulators.

The Kentucky-based company, which also owns Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, cut its full-year outlook as a result of the continuing issues.

Chief executive David Novak said: "Even with our recent challenges, KFC is unquestionably the category leader in China and we remain confident sales will fully recover from the adverse publicity surrounding the December poultry supply incident."

The sluggish economy has forced fast-food chains worldwide to focus on dangling discounts and deals to attract customers, a strategy that pressures profit margins.

Yum said its profits for the quarter ending September 7 fell to $152m (£95m) compared with $471m (£294m) last year.

It is planning an "aggressive" marketing campaign to arrest the slide in Chinese revenues, the company added.


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Fed Reserve: Yellen Secures Obama Nomination

Male domination of central banking is set to be blown away as a woman is nominated for the most powerful monetary policy position in the world.

President Barack Obama will formally nominate Federal Reserve vice chair Janet Yellen to succeed Ben Bernanke as chairman of the US central bank on Wednesday.

It would make Ms Yellen the first woman to head the Fed.

Mr Bernanke will serve until his term ends on January 31, completing a remarkable eight-year tenure in which he helped pull the US economy out of the worst financial crisis and recession since the 1930s.

Under Mr Bernanke's leadership, the Fed created extraordinary programmes after the financial crisis of 2008 that are credited with helping save the US banking system.

U.S National Economic Council Chairman Larry Summers Visits China Larry Summers quit the Fed Chair race

The Fed lent money to banks after credit markets froze, cut its key short-term interest rate to near zero and bought trillions in bonds to reduce long-term borrowing rates.

Ms Yellen, 67, emerged as the leading candidate after Larry Summers, a former Treasury secretary who Mr Obama was thought to favour, withdrew from consideration last month in the face of rising opposition.

A close ally of the current chairman, Ms Yellen is seen as a so-called dove as she has been a key architect of the Fed's efforts to keep interest rates near record lows.

The White House announcement comes amid a confrontation between Mr Obama and congressional Republicans, particularly those in the House, over the partial government shutdown and the looming breach of the nation's $16.7trn borrowing limit.

Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics, said that the administration probably decided to go ahead with the announcement to send a signal of policy stability to financial markets, where investors are growing increasingly nervous over the partial shutdown and what they perceive as the much bigger threat of a default on Treasury debt.

He said: "Markets are very unsettled and they are likely to become even more unsettled in coming days.

Ben Bernanke Ben Bernanke's term ends in January 2014

"Providing some clarity around who will be the next Fed chairman should help at least at the margin."

As vice chair since 2010, Ms Yellen has helped manage both the Fed's traditional tool of short-term rates and the unconventional programmes it launched to help sustain the economy after the financial crisis.

These include the Fed's monthly bond purchases and its guidance to investors about the likely direction of rates.

Senator Tim Johnson, a Democrat who heads the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee, which must approve Ms Yellen's nomination, said he would work with the panel's members to advance her confirmation quickly.

"She has a depth of experience that is second to none, and I have no doubt she will be an excellent Federal Reserve chairman," Mr Johnson said.

Sen Chuck Schumer, a Democratic committee member, called her "an excellent choice" and predicted she would be confirmed by a wide margin.

Mr Obama's choice of Ms Yellen coincides with a key turning point for the Fed. Within the next several months, it is expected to start slowing the pace of its Treasury and mortgage bond purchases if the economy strengthens.

While economists saw Mr Obama's choice of Ms Yellen as a strong signal of continuity at the Fed, analysts said the difficult job of unwinding all of the Fed's support without causing major financial market upheavals would fall to her.

Ms Yellen has long been considered a logical candidate for the chairmanship in part because of her expertise as an economist, her years as a top bank regulator and her experience in helping manage the Fed's polices.

Her understanding of the financial system is widely respected: Before the crisis struck, she was among a minority of top economists who had warned correctly that subprime mortgages posed a severe threat.


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Curved Samsung Galaxy Round Launched

Samsung Electronics has launched the world's first smartphone with a curved screen - the Galaxy Round - but it will only be available in South Korea.

The phone, a variant of the Galaxy Note, moves the Asian giant a step closer to achieving devices with flexible and potentially unbreakable screens.

The Galaxy Round's 5.7-inch (14.4cm) display has a slight horizontal curve and weighs less than the Galaxy Note 3, allowing a more comfortable grip than other flat-screen models on the market, Samsung said.

Its key features include a tilt function which allows users to check information such as missed calls and battery life, even when the home screen is off.

Curved displays are on the frontline of Samsung's innovation war with rivals such as Apple and LG, as the South Korean firm seeks to expand its lead in the slowing market for high-end smartphones.

Samsung's cross-town rival LG Electronics is planning to introduce a smartphone with a vertically curved display in the first week of November, a source familiar with the matter said this week.

Hana Daetoo Securities analyst Nam Dae-jong said of the Galaxy Round: "It's a step forward for having unbreakable gadgets and flexible devices eventually. But for now, the new phone is more of a symbolic product.

"It is Samsung's attempt to gauge consumer appetite for curved phones although its lack of other eye-catching features means it is unlikely to be a hit. I don't think it'll be massively compelling enough for gadget buyers."

He added that Samsung did not yet have capacity for large-scale production of curved touch screens for the new Galaxy Round.

The phone initially will be available only in South Korea and no decision has been made about releasing it in other markets.

It will be available through South Korea's biggest mobile carrier SK Telecom Co Ltd and cost 1.089 million won (£632).


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Alitalia Could Be Grounded Over Unpaid Bills

Italian airline Alitalia is running the risk of being refused fuel for its planes as the company battles to secure its future.

Alitalia, which employs 14,000 staff, has been told by Italian provider ENI that its taps will be turned off unless unpaid fuel bills are settled.

The airline, which has a mountain of debt, is trying to raise £85m from shareholders as part of efforts to shore up its finances.

ENI's chief executive Paolo Scaroni said the firm "cannot provide credit to a company whose future seems no longer assured.

"If Alitalia doesn't get the support of its shareholders, we cannot keep it alive with our gas," he warned.

The investor vote is scheduled for Monday October 14 while Italian authorities work to find a solution with the prospect of receivership looming large.

Talks, which have included the country's prime minister, have yielded nothing so far and a decision may be taken by aviation authorities in the coming days on whether Alitalia is a viable company.

Alitalia has not made a profit in years and in September posted net losses of £249m for the first half of the year.

At the same time its plea for a capital increase was met with opposition from its biggest shareholder.

Air France-KLM took a 25% stake in Alitalia in 2008 as part of a compromise after-then Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi blocked a proposed takeover.

Italy's current prime minister Enrico Letta has since said that decision was an error "that we are paying for today."

Air France-KLM has problems of its own - this week announcing a huge restructuring involving about 1,800 lost jobs.


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Union Loses EU Battle Over Pilot Hours

A pilots union has lost its battle to persuade MEPS to vote against new European regulations for flying hours which it considers "unsafe and discredited".

Last week the European Parliament's transport committee voted by 21-13 to reject the EU plans.

But the British Airline Pilots Association (Balpa) has revealed that the full European Parliament voted on Wednesday not to confirm the committee's decision.

This means the rules can now be implemented, unless the EU Council of Ministers decides to discuss and vote on them to confirm the rejection, Balpa said.

Balpa has said the new rules could mean pilots landing planes after being on duty for as long as 22 hours. The organisation has recently published details of extreme fatigue among cockpit crew.

It said that the MEPs vote today had followed "intensive lobbying from the airline industry and dodgy last-minute backroom deals".

However, the UK Government and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) have backed the new regulations.

Stephen Rooney from the CAA told Sky News the changes are a "positive step forward" and will "increase safety standards".

He added that standards in other European countries and on EU airlines would be also raised which is important for UK passengers.

Balpa general secretary Jim McAuslan said: "British pilots want to make every flight a safe flight and are deeply concerned that these unsafe new EU rules will put the lives of passenger at risk.

"The UK Government and flight safety regulator (the CAA) have helped the EC force through these rules by dodgy last-minute backroom deals, which have been made up as they have gone along."

He went on: "This has been a botched process by the EC from start to finish.

"Passengers and pilots deserve flight safety rules based on rigorous science and evidence, not secret dodgy deal-making in Strasbourg, which will mean that Britain no longer has the safest skies in Europe."

Balpa now wants the UK Government and the CAA "to carry out and publish an immediate scientific review of the impact of the botched new EU rules and demand that they are discussed and voted on by UK ministers in the EU Council".


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PMQs: PM And Miliband Clash Over Energy Bills

PMQs: PM And Miliband Clash Over Energy Bills

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How Sky's team saw events in the Commons as the two leaders met for the first time since their conferences.

Video: Joey Jones Analyses PMQs

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  • Video

    Joey Jones Analyses PMQs

  • Video: Joey Jones Analyses PMQs


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Rail Fare Price Increases To Be Curbed In 2014

The Government is announcing new measures to curb train operators' ability to increase ticket prices in the new year.

Rail companies are able to add an additional 5% to some individual fares - as long as the average rise of regulated fares is maintained at 1% above RPI inflation - but that will now be limited to just 2%.

This means that in January 2014, no regulated fare - which includes season tickets - can go up by more than 6.1%, with the average, as already announced, being limited to 4.1%.

With the new year rise being based on the July 2013 RPI inflation rate, which was 3.1%, some season tickets could have gone up by as much as 9.1% under the old "flexible" system.

The reduction in "flex" is part of the Government's fares and ticketing review published today by Transport Secretary Patrick McLoughlin.

"By capping fares we are protecting passengers from large rises at a time when family incomes are already being squeezed," he said.

"We will need to wait for the rail industry to calculate individual ticket prices for next year, but this cap could save some commuters as much as £200 a year."

As well as curbing the rise in fares, the review opens the door for future innovations such as the end of paper tickets, a code of conduct for train companies to give passengers the confidence that they are getting the best deal for their journey and a flexible approach to season tickets which could benefit part-time workers.

Mr McLoughlin said: "Today is just the start of a Government-wide programme to help hardworking people and reduce the cost of living.

"The Government will be announcing a range of initiatives to help put money back in people's pockets over the next few weeks.

Campaigners Campaigners protested against fare hikes in August

"Alongside this, the Government is investing over £16bn to transform our rail network, which will make sure we can respond to increasing passenger demand and drive forward economic growth that will help strengthen our economy."

Anthony Smith, chief executive of rail customer watchdog Passenger Focus, said: "Passengers will be pleased to hear that the amount train companies can raise individual regulated fares by has been limited.

"We have been calling for this to happen for years - it is a step towards a fairer system.

"This will allow passengers to plan with a bit more certainty and have confidence that actual regulated fare rises will bear more relation to the figures set by government."

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said: "Like all these things, the devil is in the detail, but we are pleased the Government has responded to concerns raised by unions and passenger groups over ticket office opening hours and runaway fares.

"However, ministers are still failing to deal with the elephant in the room - the market failure of rail privatisation. This is wasting millions in taxpayers' money every year and is one of the main reasons why fares have become so eye-wateringly expensive."

Shadow transport secretary Mary Creagh said: "Over the last three years David Cameron has failed to stand up for working people, allowing train companies to hit passengers with inflation-busting fare rises of up to 9%.

"Far from addressing his failure, this is cold comfort for commuters - it has taken 18 months, delivers fare increases of up to 6% and is too little too late.

"This announcement doesn't go as far as Labour's plans, which would prevent train companies from increasing fares beyond 1% above inflation."

The rail fare announcement applies to England. In Scotland, the January 2014 regulated fare rise will be 3.1%, based on the formula of RPI plus 0%.

Unlike England, Scotland has no "flex", so no regulated fare can go up by more than 3.1%. The Welsh new year fare rise has yet to be announced.


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Royal Mail: More Than 500,000 Seek Shares

By Mark Kleinman, City Editor

The Government received well over half a million applications to buy shares in Royal Mail ahead of last night's deadline, confirming the status of the £3.3bn sell-off as the biggest privatisation for decades.

Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, told MPs on Wednesday that there had been 700,000 applications for shares, with the retail element of the initial public offering (IPO) seven times oversubscribed.

Tens of thousands of people are understood to have applied within the 48 hours prior to the cut-off point alone, encouraged by City speculation that the postal operator's shares could soar in the aftermath of its historic flotation.

Ministers will make final decisions about the allocation of shares during the next 36 hours. The final number of applicants from members of the public is expected to be confirmed on Friday alongside the announcement of the price at which the shares will be sold.

The number of retail applicants for Royal Mail shares has been narrower than some of the mega-privatisations of the 1980s, such as British Gas and BT, which saw stock sold to 1.5m and 750,000 small shareholders respectively.

Analysts pointed out that this could partly be explained by the fact that there had been no mass advertising campaign to promote the sell-off in the style of the 'Tell Sid' initiatives that were commonplace 30 years ago.

Michael Fallon, the Business Minister overseeing the privatisation, has pledged that retail investors will receive their "fair share" of Royal Mail shares.

The political row over Royal Mail's privatisation has escalated in recent days, with Vince Cable, the Business Secretary, accusing his Labour shadow, Chuka Umunna, of "irresponsibility" for claiming that the shares will be significantly undervalued when they start trading next week.

Around 150,000 Royal Mail staff will receive about £2,200 of free shares as part of the flotation, although they will have to hold onto them for up to five years to avoid triggering a tax liability on the sale.

BIS declined to comment on the number of applications it had received for shares from members of the public.


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IMF Issues $2.3trn Warning Over QE's End

By Ed Conway, Economics Editor, In Washington

Investors could be facing a potential loss of $2.3trn (£1.44trn) if the world's central banks cannot smoothly unwind the emergency measures carried out during the financial crisis, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned.

For the first time, the Fund put a number on the potential impact of a messy end to quantitative easing, as central banks, led by the Federal Reserve, bring their unconventional monetary measures to an end.

The calculation comes on the very day President Obama is to nominate Janet Yellen as the first female head of the Fed, the US central bank.

Yellen comes into the job with the Fed on the brink of bringing its latest phase of quantitative easing, under which it has been creating money and buying up $85bn (£53bn) of bonds each month, to an end.

In its Global Financial Stability Report, the IMF warned that if investors took fright at the end of QE, pushing up the interest rates on government bonds around the world by a percentage point, investors would suffer a 5.6% loss on their bond portfolios – equivalent to $2.3trn.

This equates to more than half the losses on assets faced during the height of the financial crisis.

Although the Fund said that such an outcome was less likely than a smooth, gradual increase in interest rates, which would not imply as great losses, its warning comes amid consternation at the scale of the task for the Fed – and indeed other central banks including the Bank of England – in the coming years.

Ms Yellen's nomination brings to an end one of the most testy and public appointment processes for a Fed chairman in history.

The other front-runner for the job, former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, withdrew last month after it emerged that, although he was favoured by President Obama, he was unlikely to get Congressional approval.

Ms Yellen, deputy to the current Fed chairman, Ben Bernanke, was widely seen as the favoured choice of economists – but the President had been less enthusiastic.

Her four-year term is likely to be among the most testy in Federal Reserve history, as the central bank attempts to deflate the bond bubble created around the world by quantitative easing.

In the wake of the crisis, the Fed and its fellow central banks pumped trillions of dollars worth of cash into the financial system.

This is thought to have lessened the immediate pain of the recession; however, economists fear it will be difficult to wean markets off the sugar high created by this money.

Ms Yellen, who is married to Nobel laureate George Akerlof, will become the first female chair since the Fed was created a century ago.


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Microsoft Pays First $100k Hacking 'Bounty'

Microsoft is paying out its first $100,000 (£63,000) "bounty" after a London hacking expert found security holes in Windows 8.

James Forshaw, a computer vulnerability researcher, discovered a new way to attack the flagship operating system.

Microsoft said it could not go into details until it had come up with a solution, but said it was "thrilled" to pay out the reward.

In a blog post, the company said finding out about the new "mitigation bypass technique" would help it protect users against a whole new class of attacks.

"Congratulations and well done," wrote Microsoft security expert Katie Moussoris. 

"You not only made history by receiving a total of $109,400 from our bounty programs, you're also helping us make our customers safer from entire classes of attack.

"On behalf of over a billion people worldwide - Thank you and way to go!!"

Microsoft unveiled the bounty programme four months ago to try to bolster anti-hacking efforts.

It has also already paid out $28,000 (£17,000), mainly to users who found flaws in its Internet Explorer 11 web browser, with some of the winners donating their money to charity.

Budding security experts can still bag a reward of up to $100,000 for finding further security problems with Windows, and up to $50,000 for coming up with a solution.

Windows 8, the company's latest operating system, launched in October 2012 with improved security features, but is still being refined.

It received mixed reviews on launch, with some saying it is confusing and not user-firendly.

The 8.1 update is due for public release on October 17.


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