Business Times Online - All The Headlines

Developers plan homes in central London

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

MORE people will be making their homes among the banks and insurance companies of central London as a shrinking financial industry and the prospect of leasing out buildings for free prompts landlords to convert offices into luxury apartments.

Time to re-assess price-to-book stock picks?

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

TWO weeks ago, I tested the strategy of buying baskets of stocks with varying ratios of dividend yield to price-to-book ratio.

US builders see stable home market ahead

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

THE chief executives of some of America's biggest homebuilding companies said on Thursday that they feel the housing market has stabilised.

Singapore lauded as trust centre

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

SINGAPORE is 'without doubt' the most progressive trust centre in the world, says Gurbachan Singh, managing partner at KhattarWong and a leading tax lawyer.

Brokers' take

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

'Risk on' trades are back on as the immediate danger of a euro zone-led global financial crisis recedes.

Poor value in core country govt bonds

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

OUTSIDE of the troubled countries in Europe, government bond yields in developed countries have fallen to generational, and in some cases, record lows.

The game changer

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

ACCORDING to a report by the Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu (DTT) Chemical Group and Deloitte Research, the global process industry could face competitive dynamics very different from today by the year 2020.

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

Next week | Feb 6-10, 2012

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

This week | Jan 30 - Feb 3, 2012

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

BUSINESSES here are hoping for measures to prop up jobs and productivity ahead of an expected slowdown.

Briefing

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

India's services sector grew at its fastest pace in six months during January as new business swelled, extending the previous couple of months' positive trend into the new calendar year, a survey showed.

China limits mortgage loans for foreigners

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

CHINA will limit mortgage loans for home purchases by foreigners to stem overseas investment in its property market as part of efforts to cool prices.

China pledges to help fight European debt crisis

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

CHINA'S premier pledged to help Europe fight its debt crisis during a meeting yesterday with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, but a ruling party newspaper criticized sanctions on Iran.

Bouncer polices Android Market

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

GOOGLE Inc has been quietly policing its online store for months now in an acknowledgement of malware's growing threat to its increasingly popular Android mobile software.

East Australia under water, many stranded

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

MAJOR flooding hit parts of Australia's east yesterday, stranding thousands of residents, prompting a military airlift and leaving some communities accessible only by helicopter.

ICAP cuts forecast for full-year profit

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

ICAP, the world's largest interdealer broker, said that it was cutting both jobs and its forecast for full-year profit because of weaker trading linked to the eurozone crisis.

Eurozone private sector activity rebounds in Jan: PMI survey

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

EUROZONE private sector activity bounced back in January after four months of contraction, a key survey showed yesterday, with notable increases in the two biggest economies, Germany and France.

US to name 'systemically risky' financial firms this year

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner said the first non-bank financial companies deemed systemically risky will be named this year, and the department will release more plans for an overhaul of housing finance.

Swiss bank charged with tax conspiracy

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

WEGELIN & Co, the 270-year-old private bank, became the first Swiss lender to be criminally charged in a broadening US crackdown on offshore firms suspected of helping Americans evade taxes.

Great food, relaxing soaks

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

WINTER is a great time to visit Kanazawa, the capital of Ishikawa prefecture, especially if you're in the mood for the double-whammy sybaritic pleasure of food and hot spring soaking.

Japan's top baker

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

AT the rate the Japanese devour baguettes, buns, croissants in every size, permutation and filling, it's a wonder they haven't turned into a population of rolling dough people.

Uncharted star

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

SINCE the Michelin guide formally - and loudly - cemented Japan's reputation as a culinary paradise, two things have happened. One, it opened up a lucrative international market for the country's rated chefs who enjoy both recognition and added business. Two, it has seen some chefs hightailing it in the opposite direction, staunchly preferring to do things on their own terms, with as little media attention as possible. Namely, chefs like Matsukawa Tadayoshi.

Boss calls the shots

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

IT is a cold, quiet Friday afternoon in the Technology and Service Centre of the Hugo Boss headquarters in Metzingen (Stuttgart, Germany).

Getting a check-up: it's a male thing

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

HAVING problems getting your man to the doctor for a check-up? Especially if he's been constantly tired, unmotivated and irritable lately? Women might want to bring up their husbands or partners' sexual performance as an excuse to get them to see a doctor - and halt testosterone depletion in its tracks.

Obamas take to seasonal cooking

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 20:00:00 GMT

THE White House has fully embraced one of eating's hottest trends - seasonal cooking with ingredients grown at home.