| Seoul marks recovery from 1997 crisis
South Korea has fully recovered from the devastating 1997 economic crisis, the government said yesterday on the eve of its anniversary, but commentators said crucial reforms were still not in place. On Nov. 21, 1997, Seoul asked the IMF for a bailout of US$57 billion -- the largest in the fund's history -- to avoid a state bankruptcy. In return it effectively gave up sovereignty over the economy, accepting tough austerity measures -- including high interest rates -- prescribed by the IMF. The turmoil swallowed up 16 of the 30 largest business conglomerates, including the second-largest Daewoo Group, and forced some 900 financial institutions out of business. Millions lost their jobs due to corporate restructuring and insolvencies, even though the government injected some US$180 billion to bail out failing businesses and financial institutions.
Kenya: Must We Pay This Debt?
For the better part of three decades, Telkom Kenya and its predecessor, the Kenya Posts and Telecommunications Corporation, were easily some of the most mismanaged public institutions in the country. Small wonder, then, that even after a few years of restructuring and corporate cultural retooling, Telkom still remains a business laggard in public and investor eyes. .
Samsung cuts 1,630 jobs, says report
SAN JOSE, Calif. — South Korea's Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. has cut more than 1,600 jobs since March amid a major restructuring effort, according to a report from the Korea Times. In August, Samsung announced a series of restructuring measures to cut costs and otherwise shakeup the complacent company. They included voluntary retirement programs and a corporate reorganization, according to the report. .
BpTT cuts staff
GLOBAL restructuring of international oil company BP affected local operations as two BP Trinidad and Tobago employees from the Communications and External Affairs Department have parted ways with the company. BP Group chief executive officer Tony Hayward announced last month that the company was set to take on a new direction and would be restructuring. He added that this would include a rigorous review of the corporate infrastructure, with some previously centralised functions being slimmed down and redeployed into business segments. In parts of BP, up to four layers of management will be shed, Hayward explained. Chairman and chief executive officer at bpTT Robert Riley said that despite the restructuring major changes would not take place locally.
Business newsmaker
NCR CORP., the world's largest maker of automated teller machines, named Tony Massetti as its chief financial officer, a position he currently holds at semiconductor maker QLogic Corp. Massetti, 45, will join NCR in January after concluding responsibilities at QLogic, Dayton, Ohio-based NCR said yesterday in a statement. Bob Fishman, NCR's corporate controller, has been serving as interim CFO since former finance chief Peter Bocian took the title at Starbucks Corp. in May. NCR spun off the Teradata data storage unit earlier this year to focus on ATMs and self-checkout registers used by retailers. Last month the company raised its full-year earnings forecast, excluding restructuring costs and taxes, to $1.20 (U.S.) to $1.25 per share. Massetti worked for QLogic five years and at International Business Machines for 17 years.
Quick Money Sunflashes
FOREIGN BUSINESS POSITIVE: REPORT Foreign-controlled businesses operating in Canada sink large investments into innovation, advanced technology and skilled labour and make valuable contributions to the domestic economy, Statistics Canada reported yesterday. The report also said it's a myth that foreign takeovers lead to the gutting of head-office employment here. BANKS HIT BY U.S. WOES Two of Canada's biggest banks took big charges yesterday reflecting troubles in the U.S. mortgage business and corporate credit markets, but also booked gains from their stake in the restructuring Visa credit card company. .
(AFX UK Focus) 2007-11-19 12:00 GMT: Northern Rock's bank financial strength cut to 'd+'; outlook negative - Moody's
MUMBAI (Thomson Financial) - Moody's Investors Services downgraded Northern Rock PLC's bank financial strength rating (BFSR) to 'D+' with a negative outlook from 'C-' with a developing outlook. It said the 'D+' maps into a Baseline Credit Assessment of 'Ba1'. Moody's said that the downgrade of the bank's BFSR reflects the more significant impairment of the bank's franchise as the effort to find a corporate solution has proven more protracted than initially expected. The rating agency said it sees the likelihood of a swift sale of the bank to a large and highly rated financial institution to be possible but less likely than initially anticipated. The downgrade also reflects its view on the bank's future profitability as a result of its increased cost of funding, expected lower levels of new business and possible restructuring costs.
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