PRESS DIGEST - British business - Dec 20

The Times

HIGHER COUNCIL TAXES FOR MILLIONS

Millions of families could face council tax increases of up to 2 percent in April after a decision to cut local government spending by 6 percent next year.

The Telegraph

UBS RATE RIGGING ON 'EPIC SCALE'

The corruption at the heart of the City of London was laid bare on Wednesday as UBS was hit with 940 million pounds ($1.5 billion) of nes after traders were found to have bribed rival bankers in a conspiracy to rig Libor and line their own pockets.

US MORTGAGE LENDERS COULD HAVE LOST $3 BLN IN LIBOR SCANDAL

The United States' two largest mortgage lenders could have lost more than $3 billion as a result of banks' alleged manipulation of Libor.

BAE PROFITS WARNING OVER DELAY IN SAUDI TYPHOON DEAL

BAE Systems has warned prots could fail to meet City of London expectations because the defence group has still not agreed a price with Saudi Arabia for its Typhoon ghter jets despite securing the order ve years ago.

INQUIRY INTO 'PLOT TO OUST MITCHELL'

London's Scotland Yard police on Wednesday opened a 30-ofcer investigation into whether there had been a police-orchestrated conspiracy to end the career of Andrew Mitchell, the Conservative Cabinet minister.

The Guardian

LAUGHING ALL THE WAY TO THE BANK

When he takes over at the Bank of England next year, Mark Carney will receive a 250,000 pounds housing allowance.

The Independent

ZUCKERBERG DONATES HALF A BILLION DOLLARS TO CHARITY

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is following in the footsteps of tech philanthropist Bill Gates, donating half a billion dollars of shares to charity.

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PRESS DIGEST-New York Times business news - Dec 20

Dec 20 - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages on Thursday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* The United States Patent and Trademark Office has dealt a blow to Apple Inc in its legal battle with Samsung Electronics Co Ltd over smartphone patents, declaring that a patent that helped Apple win $1.05 billion in damages against Samsung in a jury trial should not have been granted. ()

* UBS AG announced it would plead guilty to one count of felony wire fraud as part of a broader settlement. ()

* The owner of the venerable New York Stock Exchange is in talks to be acquired by an upstart commodities and derivatives trading platform IntercontinentalExchange, according to people briefed on the matter. The IntercontinentalExchange is expected to offer about $33 a share, with two-thirds of that in stock, one of these people said. ()

* Nearly four years after what became a $49.5 billion bailout, the Treasury Department announced that it would sell 200 million shares back to General Motors Co for $5.5 billion, then sell an additional 300 million shares by early 2014. ()

* Knight Capital Group Inc, the stock market-making firm that nearly collapsed last summer after a $440 million trading glitch, has reached an agreement to merge with Getco, the Chicago-based high-speed trading firm. ()

* On Wednesday, the sale of digital imaging patents was finally announced, but instead of bringing as much as $2.6 billion as Eastman Kodak Co once predicted, the selling price was far short of that amount, at about $525 million. ()

* The Markel Corp, a specialty insurer, said it had agreed to acquire a rival, Alterra Capital Holdings Ltd , for $3.13 billion. ()

* Ally Financial Inc, formerly General Motors Acceptance Corporation, said that it had repaid the last of the debt it had borrowed in response to the financial crisis under a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation program. ()

* American Electric Power Company Inc announced that it would shut its coal-burning boilers at the Big Sandy electric power plant near Louisa, Kentucky, a 1,100-megawatt facility that since the early 1960s has been burning coal that was mined locally. ()

* Lax leadership hampered by "rigid management chains" left the British Broadcasting Corp "completely incapable" of dealing with the sexual abuse crisis that has shaken the network, in the words of an exhaustive report released. ()

* In a move intended to give parents greater control over data collected about their children online, federal regulators broadened longstanding privacy safeguards covering children's mobile apps and websites. ()

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HIGHLIGHTS-Asia Q4 Business Sentiment Survey - by economy

n">Dec 19 (Reuters) - Asia's top companies were slightly more confident on their business outlook in the fourth quarter, despite lingering doubts about the global economy, according to the latest Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Survey, published on Wednesday.

The Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Index rose to 63 in December, halting two consecutive quarters of decline. The index had fallen to 62 in September, a 7-point drop from the June survey. A reading above 50 indicates an overall positive outlook.

AUSTRALIA: UPBEAT (INDEX AT 53 VS 50 IN Q3)

Corporate sentiment in Australia picked up for a second successive quarter, but global economic uncertainty remained the biggest concern. Of the 19 respondents, four were positive, 12 neutral and three were negative. In the last quarter, two were positive, two negative and 10 neutral.

Ten respondents said their new orders increased, while two said orders decreased. James Hardie, the world's largest manufacturer of fibre cement products, and Australian warehouse operator Goodman Group took part in the survey.

CHINA: SIGNIFICANTLY MORE UPBEAT (INDEX AT 64 VS 50 IN Q3)

Sentiment among Chinese companies rebounded in the fourth quarter from an all-time low in the previous quarter. Two companies were positive, while five were neutral and none reported negative sentiment, compared with one positive, four neutral and one negative in the third quarter of 2012.

Most were worried about the global economy, while one cited rising costs. Three out of seven respondents said employment levels were higher, a significant improvement compared with only one respondent in the previous quarter. Casino operator Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd was among the respondents.

INDIA: HIGHEST SINCE Q1 2011 (INDEX AT 100 VS 80 IN Q3)

Indian respondents grew significantly more upbeat and the country's sentiment index reached its highest level since the first quarter of 2011, with all of the seven companies surveyed positive about their outlook.

Economic uncertainty and rising costs were still the top risks cited by companies in Asia's No.3 economy.

India's YES Bank was among those taking part in the survey.

JAPAN: NEW LOW IN 2012 (INDEX AT 44 VS 48 IN Q3)

Sentiment among Japanese respondents, which included Toshiba Corp, Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal Corp. and Canon Inc, continued the pessimistic tone of the previous quarter.

None of the Japanese companies had a positive outlook for the first time since the survey started in 2009, with 15 out of 17 respondents neutral and two negative.

Foreign exchange volatility was seen as the biggest risk by three companies, while economic uncertainty worried the majority.

SOUTH KOREA: IMPROVEMENT (INDEX AT 50 VS 20 in Q3)

Sentiment improved after the country's sentiment index hit its lowest level since the third quarter of 2011 in September.

All of the 11 respondents were neutral about their outlook, an improvement compared with three negative respondents and two neutral in the previous quarter.

Global economic uncertainty was the top business risk for Korean companies, while one saw foreign exchange volatility as a concern. Hyundai Heavy was among those taking part in the survey.

TAIWAN: LOWEST SINCE Q3 2011(INDEX AT 33 VS 40 IN Q3)

The country's sentiment index hit its lowest level since the third quarter of 2011. Two of three respondents were neutral about their outlook, while one was negative.

All of the companies in the survey saw economic uncertainty as the biggest risk to their business outlook. Yuanta Financial Holdings Co. was among those taking part in the survey.

SOUTH EAST ASIA: MOSTLY OPTIMISTIC (PHILIPPINES, INDONESIA, MALAYSIA AT 100; SINGAPORE AT 50; THAILAND 75)

Corporate sentiment from Southeast Asia was mostly upbeat, with Malaysia, Indonesia and Philippines recording the highest scores. All of the 15 respondents from the three countries were positive about their business outlook.

Thai firms also grew more upbeat as the country's index improved from the last quarter, with three out of six companies reporting positive sentiment and three neutral.

However, Singapore's sentiment index fell to its lowest level since the fourth quarter of 2011. Nine of 11 companies surveyed were neutral, one was negative and one positive.

Notes:

** Companies sampled for the survey may change from one quarter to the next.

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HIGHLIGHTS-Asia Q4 Business Sentiment Survey - by sector

n">Dec 19 (Reuters) - Asia's top companies grew slightly more confident on their business outlook in the fourth quarter, reversing two consecutive quarters of declining confidence, according to the latest Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Survey, published on Wednesday.

The Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Index rose to 63 in December from 62 in September, when it saw a 7-point fall from the June survey. A reading above 50 indicates an overall positive outlook.

AIRLINES: MOST PESSIMISTIC (INDEX AT 0 VS 67 IN Q3)

The only carrier polled was negative in its outlook, making airlines the most pessimistic sector. Global economic uncertainty that hurt travel mostly to and from the euro zone has eaten into airlines' margins in recent quarters. High fuel prices and regulatory uncertainty remain concerns for Asia-Pacific carriers.

AUTOS: MOSTLY NEUTRAL (INDEX AT 60 VS 50 IN Q3)

Four out of five automakers polled had a neutral outlook, while just one respondent had a positive outlook. Apart from economic uncertainty, the risk of foreign exchange volatility kept carmakers uncomfortable.

BUILDING: TURNS MORE BEARISH (INDEX AT 25 VS 33 IN Q3)

Sentiment for the building sector continued to deteriorate, with one respondent having a negative outlook, and the other a neutral view. One of the participants cited global economic uncertainty as a risk, while another participant said declining business confidence dented the outlook.

FINANCIALS: SENTIMENT WORSENS (INDEX AT 50 VS 57 IN Q3)

Financials were mostly neutral with all but one of the 18 respondents saying that global economic uncertainty may hurt their businesses going forward. One participant said rising costs was the biggest risk.

FOOD: MOST BULLISH (INDEX AT 77 VS 73 IN Q3)

Food and drinks companies were the most bullish with an index reading of 77 for the quarter, an improvement on the last quarter's 73. Six out of the 11 companies polled had a positive outlook, while the rest were neutral. Higher costs were a concern, and commodity price volatility and changes in consumption trends also posed a risk. An overwhelming eight respondents said new orders were likely to increase.

DRUGS: OPTIMISM FADES (INDEX AT 72 VS 80 IN Q3)

Four of the nine drugmakers had a positive outlook for the fourth quarter and the rest were neutral, but the average index still fell for the second straight quarter. Drugmakers mostly cited global economic uncertainty as the biggest concern. Six respondents said they expected new orders to rise.

PROPERTY: WEAKENED SENTIMENT (INDEX AT 69 VS 75 IN Q3)

Property companies saw a fall in sentiment during the fourth quarter and were mostly neutral. These companies had seen significant improvement in business sentiment in the third quarter, when five of 10 surveyed responded with a positive view and the others with a neutral view. One company cited regulatory uncertainty as the biggest risk in the fourth quarter.

RESOURCES: UPTICK IN SENTIMENT (INDEX AT 68 VS 63 IN Q3)

Half of the 14 resource firms were positive on their outlook, and most of them expected customer payments to remain stable. Three participants said rising costs was the biggest risk they faced, while most others worried about global economic health. Seven participants saw no change in new orders.

RETAIL: SIGNIFICANT IMPROVEMENT (INDEX AT 75 VS 50 IN Q3)

Retail companies showed strong improvements in sentiment in the fourth quarter, with four participants saying they were positive, while the rest were neutral. Rising costs and the health of the global economy were cited as the main risks to the outlook by retailers. One of the eight respondents, which included CP All, Fast Retailing and Galaxy Entertainment, said increased competition posed another challenge.

SHIPPING: TURNS BULLISH(INDEX AT 67 VS 50 IN Q3)

Sentiment for shipping companies improved, with none of the six companies polled being bearish. None of them said they were worried about rising costs or foreign exchange volatility, and most of them expected customer payments to remain the same. This was in contrast to the mixed responses from shipping companies in the previous quarter, when one company held a positive view, one neutral, and a third negative.

TECHNOLOGY: SENTIMENT ERODES FURTHER (INDEX AT 57 VS 58 IN Q3)

Technology firms were less optimistic. Ten of 14 companies polled were neutral about their outlook, three were positive, and one was negative. In the last survey, 13 of 18 participants were neutral and four were positive. The majority of the tech companies surveyed cited global economic uncertainty as their biggest business risk. Two said regulatory uncertainty was their biggest risk.

Note:

** Companies sampled for the survey may change from one quarter to the next.

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UPDATE 1-Asia business sentiment edges up in Q4, but global worries persist-survey

* Sentiment index rose to 63 in Q4 from 62 in Q3

* Biggest concern is global economic uncertainty

* Southeast Asian companies most positive

* Defensive sectors such as food most positive

* Airlines, building most negative industries

By Miyoung Kim

SEOUL, Dec 19 (Reuters) - Business sentiment among Asia's top companies improved slightly in the fourth quarter, reversing two consecutive quarters of declines, while global economic uncertainty remained the biggest concern for the region's firms, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey showed.

The Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Index rose to 63 in the fourth quarter from 62 in the third quarter of 2012, having peaked at 80 in the first quarter of 2011. A reading above 50 indicates an overall positive outlook, while one below 50 points to pessimism.

The results showed a stark contrast between companies in Southeast Asia, a region of about 600 million people now benefiting from an increase in foreign investment and which showed some of the highest positive readings, and manufacturing-heavy northeast Asia, which is more susceptible to the global economic downturn and had some of the lowest index readings.

China, where exports support an estimated 200 million jobs, showed the most positive response in the northeast Asian region, but companies in other export-focused economies such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan remained more cautious.

"External risk factors that may pose problems in Asia are European debt crises re-escalating and if U.S. growth disappoints," said Juuso Mykkänen, chief executive of JOM Fund Management Ltd in Helsinki, which is running an investment company that have funds focused on investing in Asia.

"Asian own-risk factors are political ones that should be watched carefully. Territorial disputes should be also watched carefully."

The index surveyed more than 100 of the Asia-Pacific region's top companies in 11 economies. There were 96 responses.

The poll, conducted by Thomson Reuters in association with INSEAD, a global management and business school, was compiled between Dec. 3-14 and covered sectors such as autos, finance, property, resources and technology.

Indonesia, India, Malaysia and the Philippines all had the maximum scores of 100, followed by Thailand and China, whose indexes improved to 75 and 64 respectively from 64 and 50 in the previous quarter. South Korea also showed a sharp improvement from 20 to 50.

"Indonesia will remain our favourite destination in Asia due to very attractive structural forces in play currently. However, having said that, we have tactically increased weight in China in recent months as cyclical factors are on our side and valuations remain very compelling," said Mykkänen.

In contrast, companies in Taiwan were the most negative in Asia with a 33 index reading, the lowest level since the third quarter of 2011. It also compared with a reading of 40 in the third quarter.

Companies in Japan were the second-most negative, with a reading of 44 compared with a third-quarter reading of 48. It was the lowest reading in a year, underscoring the slow pace of recovery in the world's third-largest economy.

Many economists are betting Japan will ease monetary policy this week to pull the country out of a shallow recession, a Reuters poll showed.

Japan's economy recovered earlier this year from damage caused by March 2011's devastating earthquake, tsunami and subsequent nuclear crisis on spending for reconstruction.

As that boost tapered off, and the global slowdown hit Japan's export markets harder, the economy suffered a second straight quarterly contraction in July-September, putting it in a technical recession.

Offering a glimmer of hope, sentiment in the auto industry, a core part of Japan's manufacturing base, improved to 60 in the fourth quarter from 50.

DEFENSIVE SECTORS MORE POSITIVE

As uncertainty over the global economy persists, with the so-called "fiscal cliff" impasse in the United States now adding to the debt crisis in Europe, companies in defensive industries such as food showed more positive sentiment.

Asian companies are closely awaiting the result of last-minute negotiations in Washington on the fiscal cliff -- nearly $600 billion of tax increases and spending cuts set to take effect in January that could cause a sharp slowdown in growth or even tip the United States into recession.

"Generally in Southeast Asia we are focusing on the consumer sector due to rising wages, the infrastructure/construction sector, property developers, some insurance companies as they have very low valuations and good growth prospects due to low starting value," said Mykkänen.

The food sector was the most positive among industries, with a reading of 77 compared with 73 in the third quarter, followed by the drug sector with a reading of 72, although that was a decline from the 80 recorded in the third quarter.

The retail sector also posted a solid improvement, with its index reading rising to 75 from 50 in the third quarter, with four participants saying they were positive and the remaining four neutral, as the industry gears up for the year-end shopping season.

Fast Retailing Co Ltd, the operator of the Uniqlo casual clothing chain, reported a nearly 14 percent jump in November same store sales in Japan due to strong sales of its down jackets and winter wear. Its shares hit 2012 highs this week, fuelled by solid earnings recovery.

The shipping industry also saw an improved reading to 67 from 50, with none of the six shipping companies polled being bearish. None of them said they were worried about rising costs or foreign exchange volatility, and most of expected customer payments to remain the same.

In contrast, the airline and building sectors were the most negative with index readings of 0 and 25 respectively.

High fuel prices and regulatory uncertainty remain concerns for Asia-Pacific air carriers, while global economic uncertainty threatens to curb long-haul travel. (Additional reporting by Janeman Latul in JAKARTA and Anurag Kotoky in NEW DELHI; Editing by Alex Richardson)

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PRESS DIGEST-New York Times business news - Dec 19

Dec 19 - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages on Wednesday. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

* The Federal Trade Commission is unlikely to finish until January its investigation into whether Google Inc abused its power in the search market, people briefed on the investigation said. ()

* Facebook Inc responded to the anger over the proposed Instagram changes. Kevin Systrom, a co-founder of Instagram, wrote a blog post saying the company would change the new terms of service to make clearer what would happen to users' pictures. ()

* Nielsen Holdings NV said that it had agreed to acquire Arbitron Inc, the radio ratings company, for $1.26 billion. ()

* Penguin, trying to ensure a clean slate before its planned merger with Random House, announced that it was settling a lawsuit brought by the Justice Department over the pricing of e-books. ()

* Private equity firm Cerberus Capital Management said that it would immediately sell its controlling stake in Freedom Group, the gun maker that made the rifle used in the Connecticut school shootings. ()

* Jefferies Group Inc said that it earned about $71.6 million in profit for the fourth quarter, up 48 percent from the same time a year ago as its core businesses showed marked improvement. ()

* House Republican leaders struggled to rally their colleagues around a backup measure to ease the sting of a looming fiscal crisis by allowing tax rates to rise only on incomes over $1 million. ()

* The Federal Trade Commission said that it had opened an inquiry into the practices of nine companies that collect and resell or analyze consumer data. ()

* Seven weeks after Hurricane Sandy dumped an estimated 500 million gallons of water in Hoboken, crippling its transportation network and leaving tens of thousands of commuters casting about for alternative modes of travel, officials said that PATH train service was at last set to resume. ()

* Joseph Lhota, the chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority of New York, has informed the Cuomo administration that he is stepping down from his position, according to four people with direct knowledge of his plans. He is expected to resign on Friday, allowing him to pursue a candidacy for New York City mayor as a Republican. ()

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Asia business sentiment edges up in Q4, but global worries persist-survey

SINGAPORE | Tue Dec 18, 2012 10:00pm EST

SINGAPORE Dec 19 (Reuters) - Business sentiment among Asia's top companies improved slightly in the fourth quarter, reversing two consecutive quarters of declines, while global economic uncertainty remained the biggest concern for the region's firms, a Thomson Reuters/INSEAD survey showed.

The Thomson Reuters/INSEAD Asia Business Sentiment Index rose to 63 in the fourth quarter from 62 in the third quarter of 2012, having peaked at 80 in the first quarter of 2011. A reading above 50 indicates an overall positive outlook, while one below 50 points to pessimism.

The result showed a stark contrast between companies in Southeast Asia, a region of about 600 million people now benefiting from an increase in foreign investment, and manufacturing-heavy northeast Asia, which is more susceptible to the global economic outlook.

China, where exports support an estimated 200 million jobs, showed the most positive response in the northeast Asian region, but companies in other export-focused economies such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan remained more cautious.

The index surveyed more than 100 of the Asia-Pacific region's top companies in 11 economies. There were 96 responses.

The poll, conducted by Thomson Reuters in association with INSEAD, a global management and business school, was compiled between Dec. 3-14 and covered sectors such as autos, finance, property, resources and technology.

(Reporting by Miyoung Kim;Additional reporting by Janeman Latul in JAKARTA and Anurag Kotoky in NEW DELHI; Editing by Alex Richardson)

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