Financial Collapse

Microsoft cuts 800 jobs, completes layoff plan

2009-11-05T02:47:00.002-05:00

Microsoft Corp said on Wednesday it is cutting a further 800 jobs across its operations, on top of 5,000 jobs already eliminated under a plan to reduce costs that was announced in January. A spokesman for the world's largest software firm said the latest job cuts are spread across the company's global operations, but about 200 are in and around its headquarters in Redmond, Washington. Microsoft

Nine US banks seized in largest one-day haul

2009-10-31T01:05:00.000-04:00

US authorities seized nine failed banks yesterday, the most in a single day since the financial crisis began and the latest stark sign that substantial parts of the nation’s banking industry are being crippled by bad loans. The move brought the total number of failed banks in 2009 to 115 — their highest annual level since 1992 — with analysts expecting more to come. Among the lenders seized

Time Inc. to cut US$100 m, and extensive layoffs expected

2009-10-29T22:10:00.002-04:00

Signalling that worse times are ahead for magazines, Time Inc. is expected to announce next week that it will cut US$100 million (RM340 million) from costs, including another big round of layoffs. Time Inc., the publisher of magazines like Time, Fortune, and People, has already cut costs drastically: a year ago, it announced it was dismissing 6 per cent of its work force, or about 600 people.

China has 130 billionaires

2009-10-13T22:18:00.000-04:00

China’s super-rich have bounced back from the financial crisis with a vengeance, and the country now has more known dollar billionaires than any other country except the United States, according to a new report. The annual Hurun Report released yesterday said China has 130 known US dollar billionaires, up from 101 last year.The number in the US is 359 while Russia has 32 and India 24, according

The Great Recession is Over

2009-10-13T05:35:00.001-04:00

The worst US recession since the Great Depression has ended, but weak household spending as the labour market struggles to create jobs will slow the pace of the economy’s recovery, according to a survey released yesterday. The survey of 44 professional forecasters released by the National Association for Business Economics, also known as the NABE, found that 80 per cent of the respondents

Wal-Mart chairman warns of lethargic economic recovery

2009-09-30T04:51:00.000-04:00

The chairman of Wal-Mart Stores Inc. warned Wednesday the global economic recovery will likely be lethargic, even as the retailing behemoth sees great growth potential in China and India. "The world recovery is going to be led by Asia although it's going to be very challenging. I think this recovery is going to be a slow one," Robson Walton told a global CEO business conference here.Walton said "

World economy improving, estimated crisis losses reduced by US$600bil

2009-09-30T04:49:00.001-04:00

Likely losses from the financial crisis in the three years to 2010 have been reduced by $600 billion to $3.4 trillion as the world economy grows faster than previously expected, the International Monetary Fund said Wednesday. The organization warned however that the impetus for far-reaching financial reforms risked being lost if the improving situation leads to complacency.In its half-yearly

US deficit US$1.58 trillion this year

2009-08-20T00:43:00.001-04:00

The deficit this year is three times that of last yearWASHINGTON: The White House plans to announce the federal deficit is about $262 billion less than officials predicted early this year, in part because the Obama administration has provided less aid than expected to Wall Street.The deficit still will be three times bigger than last year's.The federal deficit this year will total $1.58 trillion,

Billionaire Buffet urges US to stop 'printing' money and halt debt rise

2009-08-20T00:42:00.001-04:00

Now that the worst of the economic crisis is past and recovery is slowly under way, Congress must halt the mounting increase in U.S. debt to avoid damage to long-term growth and destruction of the dollar, Warren Buffett is urging. The plainspoken billionaire weighed in with his view in an Op-Ed piece published in The New York Times Wednesday, saying that once recovery is solidified, lawmakers

Numbers of poor in US projected to increase to 38.8mil

2009-08-20T00:41:00.001-04:00

The numbers of poor and uninsured Americans are likely rising - with more than 38.8 million believed to be in poverty. Rebecca Blank, the Commerce Department's undersecretary of economic affairs, spoke to The Associated Press in advance of next month's closely watched release of 2008 census data.Noting the figures are not yet final, Blank said the numbers will likely show a "statistically

Layoffs rise first time in 6 months; 97,000 job cuts in July

2009-08-18T21:47:00.000-04:00

Job cuts announced by US employers jumped 31 per cent in July to over 97,000, increasing for the first time in six months, warning of a further hike in downsizing activity by the last quarter of the year, a report said today.After falling to a 15-month low in June planned job cuts announced by US employers jumped to 97,373 in July. It was the first increase in monthly job cuts since January,

Lockheed Martin to Cut 800 Space Systems Jobs

2009-08-18T21:46:00.000-04:00

Lockheed Martin, the world's largest defense contractor, said it plans to cut about 800 jobs at its space systems division by the end of the year, as it anticipates flat budgets for space programs at NASA and the Pentagon in the coming decade. "We looked at the budget forecasts and new program starts looking at three to five years in the future and realized we need to be appropriately sized,"

Samsung files notice of 550 job cuts

2009-08-18T21:45:00.000-04:00

Samsung Austin Semiconductor plans to cut 550 jobs from its Northeast Austin manufacturing operations starting on or about Oct. 18, according to a notice submitted by the company to the Texas Workforce Commission Tuesday.The company did not immediately provide a list of job categories affected.Samsung has said that many of the job cuts would affect equipment operators at Fab 1, which will be shut

After nine decades of short stories, Reader's Digest turns to Chapter 11

2009-08-18T21:40:00.001-04:00

Reader's Digest Association, the venerable staple of doctors' waiting rooms and middle-class bedside tables, yesterday announced plans for voluntary bankruptcy as it became the latest victim of the advertising recession.Equity investors, led by Ripplewood Holdings, who announced the $2.4bn acquisition in November 2006, will lose their entire $600m investment.The pre-packaged Chapter 11 filing,

US stocks in biggest loss in two months

2009-06-22T20:46:00.000-04:00

A surprisingly bleak forecast for the world economy pushed stocks to their biggest loss in two months. Major stock indexes tumbled by more than 2 percent Monday, sending the Dow Jones industrial average down 201 points, after the World Bank estimated the global economy will shrink 2.9 percent in 2009. It previously predicted a 1.7 percent contraction.The grim assessment was the latest unwelcome

Fury as Lloyds closes Cheltenham & Gloucester branches and cuts 1,660 jobs

2009-06-10T22:20:00.001-04:00

All 164 branches of the 160-year-old building society to close Cuts come on day taxpayer's stake increases to more than 45%Lloyd Banking Group provoked a furious reaction from unions and MPs tonight over its plans to shut all 164 Cheltenham & Gloucester branches and cut a further 1,660 jobs.The decision, which came on the day the taxpayer's stake in the bailed out bank rose temporarily to 45.74%,

UK aerospace 'facing 10,000 job cuts'

2009-06-10T22:19:00.000-04:00

The UK aerospace sector is set to cut 10% of jobs, about 10,000 posts, in the next year, an industry body has said. The Society of British Aerospace Companies said falling passenger levels were hitting aircraft orders as well as spending on research and development. Demand for military planes was up by about 3% on the same time a year ago, it said, but this was partly thanks to orders placed

British Airways looks to 2,000 job cuts to stay airborne

2009-06-10T22:18:00.000-04:00

BRITISH Airways boss Willie Walsh has refused to rule out compulsory redundancies among the airline's 40,000 staff after setting a three-week deadline for an agreement on pay cuts and job reductions.BA is offering voluntary redundancy to its 14,000-strong cabin crew in an effort to cut 2000 jobs.Speaking at the annual meeting of the International Air Transport Association in Kuala Lumpur, the BA

Arcandor files for bankruptcy

2009-06-10T22:11:00.000-04:00

German retailer Arcandor AG filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday in an effort to salvage its department stores and its mail-order arm, a day after the government rejected its bid for state-backed emergency credit. Arcandor said in a statement it filed with the district court in Essen, where it is based."Through filing for protection, our aim is to continue restructuring the company and its

The St. Regis Monarch Beach schedule for a Foreclosure Auction!

2009-06-10T22:10:00.000-04:00

The St. Regis Monarch Beach, infamous as the hotel where American International Group sponsored a luxury retreat just days after accepting a federal bailout, has been scheduled for a foreclosure auction.The companies that own the resort are in default on a $70-million loan from Citigroup Global Markets Realty Group, people knowledgeable about the debt said Tuesday.Negotiations continue in an

FACTBOX-Banks, funds, insurers cut 382,880 jobs in crisis

2009-06-08T04:10:00.001-04:00

Banks, insurers and asset managers worldwide haveannounced 382,880 job cuts since August 2007 when the credit crisis began tointensify. Following is a list of the deepest job cuts at major companies: Company Jobs Headcount Latest cut before Aug 07* headcount**-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Airlines 'to lose $9bn' as they fight to survive recession

2009-06-08T03:52:00.001-04:00

Airlines will lose $9bn (£5.7bn) this year, nearly double previous forecasts, as carriers fight to stay afloat in the "most difficult" trading conditions they have ever faced, the industry's leading body has warned.Buffeted by a collapse in business traffic, falling fares and the threat of resurgent fuel costs, the industry is expected to come close to matching last year's losses of $10.4bn, said

General Motors to File for Bankruptcy

2009-06-01T04:15:00.002-04:00

GM - the biggest car manufacturer in the world until last year - will file for bankruptcy in the US courts as it seeks to restructure its stricken operations. The US government is said to be planning to take a 60% stake in the Detroit company under a deal to provide an additional £19 billion in aid to help GM emerge from bankruptcy. President Barack Obama is preparing to make a White House

Wall Street rescue: $2.3 trillion - the cost of US bank bailout

2009-02-10T19:27:00.002-05:00

President Barack Obama's administration placed an eye-watering $2.3 trillion price tag on its plan to bail out the US banking system yesterday, opening up what it called a second front in the battle to pull the country out of recession.As the $800bn economic stimulus plan finally passed the Senate, attention began shifting to the even bigger problem of fixing a financial system that has been on

Asia will be less affected by crisis

2009-02-10T19:23:00.000-05:00

Asia will have a less acute impact from the global financial and economic crisis but their recovery will also be slower than Western countries, said Morgan Stanley (Asia) chairman Dr Stephen Roach. He said Asia’s economies, which were largely export-led, would only recover after their main export markets, the US and Europe, recovered.“Export-led regions are followers, not leaders,” he said. “The