VIDEO: Eurozone troubles worry Australia

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
4 October 2011 Last updated at 01:21 GMT Help

View the original article here

UK needs eurozone safeguards - PM

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
4 October 2011 Last updated at 09:04 GMT Mr Cameron says he is a "practical Eurosceptic" David Cameron has said UK interests must be protected should eurozone countries seek closer integration as a result of the debt crisis in Europe.

The prime minister told the BBC it was "logical" that countries using the single currency would move closer to a single economic policy.

But he said the UK and nine other EU states which are not in the eurozone would need "certain safeguards".

The BBC understands UK officials are preparing for such an eventuality.

The BBC's political editor Nick Robinson said the Treasury and Foreign Office were already discussing how to protect British interests, in areas such as the City of London and the single market, should there be a fundamental change in the shape of the EU.

As the eurozone economic crisis shows no sign of abating, some of its 17 members have been talking about greater fiscal union to bolster the single currency in future and support weaker members.

At the same time, Mr Cameron is facing calls from many of his MPs for a fundamental change to the UK's relationship with Europe. Some want the UK to claw back powers from the EU while others are seeking a referendum on the UK's membership.

'Not naive'

The prime minister, who calls himself a "practical eurosceptic", has said the UK must work within the current EU framework to get the best deal for Britain and that any talk of repatriating powers must wait to a later date.

He told the BBC he believed closer co-operation between eurozone members was "necessary" to prevent a repeat of the current crisis and denied he had changed his view, since before the debt crisis began in 2009.

Continue reading the main story

This is not some naive view that they go off on their way and we are intensely relaxed about it”

End Quote David Cameron on the eurozone "I have always argued that the logic of a single currency is more of a single economic policy," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"It is one of the reasons I never wanted to join it.

"As eurozone countries move to co-ordinate more, as I believe they should, those outside the eurozone will need certain safeguards to make sure that what the eurozone countries are agreeing separately does not affect the single market."

He added: "This is not some naive view that they go off on their way and we are intensely relaxed about it. There are safeguards we need and the Liberal Democrats completely agree with that."

Deputy PM Nick Clegg, whose Liberal Democrats are the most pro-European of the three biggest UK parties, has said the eurozone crisis should not be used as a justification to radically alter the UK's relationship with the European Union.

But, with 40% of UK trade going to Europe, Mr Clegg has said the single market - which is supposed to guarantee free movement of goods across Europe - must work more effectively and British firms must be able to compete on a level-playing field.

The deputy prime minister has warned that allowing eurozone states to act against the interests of other EU members would create a "divisive and weaker" Europe.

'Held back'

As EU finance ministers meet in Luxembourg to discuss the crisis, Mr Cameron said it was in the UK's interest that the "fire" in the eurozone was put out as quickly as possible.

"The eurozone crisis is holding back the whole world economy, Britain included," he said. "Clearly the Greek situation needs to be resolved one way or another and extremely quickly."

The future of Europe is not on the official conference agenda and one of Mr Cameron's closest allies has warned party members against obsessing about the issue during the event.

But Nick Robinson said it was the dominant issue for many MPs and party members while the PM's advisers believed the EU could be set for a once-in-a-generation transformation due to the current crisis.

This begged the question whether the UK should seeker a closer or more distant relationship with the EU or leave altogether - a possibility rejected by the government.

View the original article here

Ford strikes deal with union

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
4 October 2011 Last updated at 17:21 GMT Ford says it plans to transfer work to the US from overseas if the pay deal is ratified US carmaker, Ford, says it has agreed in principle to a four-year pay deal with the United Auto Workers union.

Ford says the settlement will make it more competitive in its home market.

Exact details are being withheld until the UAW's members have a chance to review the contract.

However Ford has already announced it plans to invest an additional $4.8bn (￡3.1bn) in its US factories and to create 5,750 jobs by 2015.

It says the move will include transfering work to the US that is currently carried out in Mexico, China and Japan.

The pledge adds to the 7,000 new posts the firm previously promised to introduce by the end of 2012.

The UAW also revealed that workers are set to receive improved profit-share bonus payments.

Following GM

The announcement comes less than a week after the UAW secured a separate deal with Ford's rival, General Motors.

GM agreed to pay workers a $5,000 bonus for signing the agreement, an extra $1,000 a year to cover inflation and a further pay rise for entry level workers. Ford's agreement is expected to at least partly mirror these points.

UAW's president, Bob King, said the deals signal that "the American auto industry is on its way back".

A statement from the union notes that negotiations continue with the third biggest US carmaker, Chrysler.

View the original article here

Yahoo! surges on takeover rumour

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
5 October 2011 Last updated at 21:40 GMT Yahoo is one of the internet's best-known brands Shares in the internet portal firm Yahoo have leapt 10% on rumours that Microsoft is considering a second attempt at a takeover.

Microsoft, which last bid in 2008, joins a host of other companies which are considering buying Yahoo, one of the internet's best-known brands.

China's giant internet company Alibaba has already said it might buy Yahoo.

Rumours of a bid from Vodafone also pushed shares in BlackBerry maker, Research in Motion, 12% higher.

Yahoo shares jumped 10.1% to close at $15.92 and Microsoft shares ended 2.2% higher at $25.89.

Yahoo's current market value is $20bn (￡13bn), compared with Microsoft's previous bid of around $45bn.

Neither party has made any official comment.

Microsoft is said to be divided as to whether it would make sense to mount such a bid.

Reasons in favour include the ability to beat AOL as a competitor by creating a stronger web portal.

Market share

Microsoft already has an agreement with Yahoo involving its Bing internet search engine, which powers Yahoo's search but gives 88% of advertising revenue back to Yahoo.

Combing the two could give Yahoo 30% of the US search market, according to analysts.

According to the latest figures from research firm comScore, Google has 64.8% of the US search market, Yahoo has 16.3% and Microsoft 14.7%.

But Yahoo is seen as lacking in growth potential.

Early last month, Yahoo fired its chief executive in a row over the company's future direction.

It said last month that it had received "inbound interest" from a number of parties.

Sid Parakh, analyst at fund firm McAdams Wright Ragen, told the Reuters news agency: "There are many reasons why this thing probably makes sense.

"If you strip out the variety of assets Yahoo owns, you are pretty much paying nothing for the core business."

View the original article here

Where are the Occupy Wall Street protests heading?

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
3 October 2011 Last updated at 22:58 GMT By Laura Trevelyan BBC News, New York Commentators are wondering if this movement could become a "Tea Party" for the left As a man known as Mercury puts the finishing touches to his corporate zombie make up, he explains why he's joined the anti-capitalist protests here in the shadow of Wall Street.

"We are inspired by the Arab Spring. Americans have rights but they're too often apathetic."

Welcome to Zuccotti Park, where the leaderless protest is now entering its third week.

Sophie is here to protest about the execution of a Georgia man, Troy Davis.

Will Estrella believes this is his generation's revolution.

And Brian Phillips, a marine turned housing community official, wants to see the Federal Reserve abolished.

The protesters aren't unified in their motivations or their demands, but they're tapping into discontent about inequalities in an America still struggling after one recession and fearful about entering a second.

'We're the 99%'

Brian Phillips, who wears his marine dog tags round his neck, says he has been lied to all his life by officialdom and he's had enough.

The protesters want a change in political and economic culture

That's what made him leave Washington state and his job at a low-income housing unit to come here.

Now Brian is efficiently dealing with media requests.

I tell him that I want to speak to one of the 700 arrested on Brooklyn Bridge on Sunday.

"Arrested Sunday!" calls Brian. Two young men step forward for me to interview.

That's how we communicate, Brian explains, with marine-like efficiency, as to his left a group start the day with yoga.

Police officers stand at the edges of the protesters' encampment, and today at least relations seem cordial enough.

But on Saturday the demonstrators say the police ushered them on to a roadway section of the Brooklyn Bridge rather than the pedestrianised walkway, fenced them in and then arrested them for disorderly conduct.

The NYPD says this isn't correct, and has released a video of the police telling the protesters not to go on the roadway section of the bridge.

Freelance photographer Will Estrella says the police clearly guided him and others on to the bit of the bridge they weren't meant to be on.

The NYPD's tactics for policing this protest have been called into question after a high ranking officer was seen on a YouTube video using pepper spray on demonstrators the weekend before last.

Will Estrella wants this to be a peaceful protest, a theme echoed across Zuccotti Park.

Most of the protesters I saw camping out at Zuccotti Park were young - in their mid-20s. Many have gone from job to job since graduating.

They have known difficult economic times in young adulthood, and they don't like a system which to them seems to reward what they call the "1%" of society.

"We're the 99%", they say.

Their manifesto supports the people of the world against corporate greed, and calls for people to assert their power and create a process to address the problems we face.

In the centre of Zuccotti park, amid the sleeping bags, is the communal food area.

Ange, a 24-year-old redhead who does freelance art work in Manhattan, is helping organise the food for the protesters.

"I like communal decision making, something that comes from the bottom up," she explains. Ange isn't sure how long she'll be here, but she's pleased to be part of a grassroots movement.

Where will this lead? No-one knows. But the protesters say their enthusiasm won't fade with the autumn sunshine.

The question is whether this ad hoc group of protesters - who feel they're getting the short end of the stick while corporate America hoards money - could morph into a political movement, a kind of left wing Tea Party.

The city's unions are now starting to back the protesters, something they didn't at first, suggesting they see the potential here.

Jesse Cooper Levy, a bearded 24-year-old, hopes this movement will influence politics.

His particular concern is what he sees as the corrupting influence of corporate lobbyists on Washington DC.

"What do you want?" I ask the protesters. "Change", comes the answer - a change in political and economic culture.

View the original article here

AUDIO: Euro fund 'like a Ponzi game'

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
30 September 2011 Last updated at 16:11 GMT Help

The euro bailout fund cannot work because already indebted countries like Spain and Italy are contributing to it.

That's the view of Satyajit Das, author of "Extreme Money - Masters of the Universe and the Cult of Risk".

Speaking to the BBC's Mike Johnson, Mr. Das, a derivatives trader in Sydney for 30 years, said the European Financial Stability Facility is like 'a ponzi game', and that Europe's financially troubled countries will end up borrowing from themselves.

Transcript is below

Satyajit Das: What they have been trying to do is replace the lenders. So because the commercial lenders, which is banks and investors, will no longer buy debt issued by Greece, Ireland or Portugal and increasingly are questioning Spain and Italy, they had to find somebody else to give them the money. The problem is who is going to give them the money?

So they have patched together this European Financial Stability Fund which is a very tenuous process, because it doesn't have any money either, but it's guaranteed by a bunch of countries. But the problem here is that those countries themselves are in need of the money from the funds. It's almost a surreal secularity.

Then there is now the suggestion which was foisted on the Europeans by Timothy Geithner, the U.S. Treasury's Secretary that they ought to take the European Financial Stability Fund and the catch phrase being leverage. So we take a vehicle which doesn't have any money backed by dodgy guarantees, but then they will go and borrow even more money. So, basically, it's almost like a Ponzi game on a large scale.

Mike Johnson: It's an extraordinary thing to get your head around. Let me just get this clear, what we are going to have is a situation where countries which are on the verge of bankruptcy are going to be borrowing money effectively from themselves?

Satyajit Das: That's exactly what's going to happen. I will give you the picture. The European Financial Stability Fund is guaranteed by a whole bunch of countries including, interestingly enough, Spain and Italy. Spain and Italy between them make up 30% of the guarantee of the European Financial Stability Fund.

Now what they are going to do is then the European Financial Stability Fund is going to borrow from the European Central Bank, which has also obviously got support from Spain and Italy, and then lend the money to Spain and Italy. It's almost self dealing raised to an art form. It's abstraction on a level of money which is almost incomprehensible.

Mike Johnson: And is there anyone out there who think this is actually going to work?

Satyajit Das: The only people I think who think that are the politicians in Brussels and a few policymakers because to be very honest they don't have any solutions, and they are now playing almost confidence games to try to actually convince people that this will work. And ultimately it won't work because it all boils down to a simple fact.

At the end of the day, if you are going to do the shuffling of debt, you are going to have to have somebody who is good for the debt and we all know who that is, it is Germany. So they have to actually step up and their taxpayers, their savings have to be used to prop up these other countries. Now the body politic in terms of voters aren't willing to do that.

Mike Johnson: You think Germany, the German people will run out of patience with all of this before long, do you?

Satyajit Das: Well, before they run out of patience, they will run out of money because in the end if you actually look at the amount needed just to get through the next two or three years, if you take Greece, Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Italy, they have maturing debt. This is debt they have issued, about $1.5 trillion between now and the end of 2013.

So all of that money has to be found and at the end if Germany and France and the stronger countries start to take on that burden, their own credit worthiness will be called into question. And if they lose their triple-A ratings, well then the whole game starts to unravel yet again, and it's very difficult to see this having what could be called a happy ending.

If you liked this, why not sign up for the World Business Report podcast here

View the original article here

Games journey times 'may double'

AppId is over the quota
AppId is over the quota
2 October 2011 Last updated at 17:00 GMT TfL has said Games Lanes will contribute to increased traffic in some areas of London Journey times on some of London's roads could more than double during the Olympics next year, Transport for London (TfL) has admitted.

The information was in a brief sent to businesses about the Games.

Commuters have been warned of huge delays as an extra 5.3 million visitors are expected in London for the event.

Transport Minister Theresa Villiers said she was confident about the preparations being carried out by TfL to cope with the extra demands.

In an interview with the BBC's Politics Show on Sunday she said: "TfL are focused on keeping London moving during what is going to be the largest event ever hosted in this country.

"It will mean some transport disruption and there will be pressure on the transport system but we will adapt to minimise disruption."

She said businesses were actively engaging with TfL but admitted there was more to do.

A TfL spokesman said: "We have been clear that at certain times and places the transport network will be much busier than usual, which is why we are already working with businesses to ensure they can keep on running and make the most of the great financial opportunities offered by the Games.

"While the transport network will be very busy, we are confident that we will keep London moving while delivering a hugely successful Games."

Commuters have already been warned there could be huge delays to get into large stations such as London Bridge because of the extra pressure on the transport network.

In April a London Assembly report claimed transport problems remained "one of the biggest risks" to the 2012 Olympics.

And in July TfL admitted the "Games Lanes" - dedicated lanes for Olympic athletes and VIPs - would put greater traffic demands on certain parts of the network during the Olympics.

View the original article here