US-BUSINESS Summary
Greek bailout speculation lifts euro
LONDON - The euro rose on Tuesday on speculation that European Union nations could bail out errant member Greece, while global stocks were flat and emerging market shares climbed. Expectations about a rescue for Greece followed news that European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet was leaving a meeting of central bankers in Sydney early to attend a European Union leaders' summit.
Toyota adds new Prius to global recall list
TOKYO - Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> said it is recalling nearly half a million of its flagship Prius and other hybrid cars for braking problems as it seeks to address criticism over the handling of its worst safety crisis. The world's largest automaker is under fire for two other recalls covering more than 8 million vehicles worldwide due to problems with slipping floormats and sticky accelerator pedals.
JAL to stay with American in blow to Delta
TOKYO - Japan Airlines Corp <9205.T> said it would keep its partnership with American Airlines <AMR.N> in the Oneworld alliance, ending Delta Air Lines' <DAL.N> attempt to entice the bankrupt carrier to its rival SkyTeam group. JAL, Asia's largest carrier by revenues, said it would file with American Airlines for regulatory approval for closer cooperation on transpacific routes under a recently signed "open skies" treaty between the United States and Japan.
UBS back to profit in Q4, outflows accelerate
ZURICH - Swiss bank UBS <UBSN.VX><UBS.N> posted its first quarterly net profit since Oswald Gruebel took the helm a year ago but clients withdrew far more money than forecast, signaling he may need more time to steady the ship. UBS, left damaged by the credit crisis and a bitter U.S. tax row, is struggling to secure the sustainable recovery it needs to win back the trust of clients and investors, particularly as a U.S. settlement is now in question and the Swiss banking industry's culture of secrecy remains under attack.
Toyota pledges more responsiveness to U.S. regulators
WASHINGTON - Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> President Akio Toyoda wrote in an article published on Tuesday that he has promised the top U.S. transportation official the troubled automaker will be more vigilant in the future about responding to safety regulators. "I have spoken with U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and given him my personal assurance that lines of communications with safety agencies and regulators will be kept open, that we will communicate more frequently and that we will be more vigilant in responding to those officials," Toyoda wrote in Tuesday's Washington Post.
ECB Trichet departure sparks Greece rescue talk
SYDNEY - European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet is cutting short a trip to Australia to attend a special European Union summit, prompting market speculation initiatives are in the works to help resolve Greece's debt problems. EU heads of state are due to meet on Thursday in Brussels for a special summit on the economy under pressure to restore confidence among investors worried that rising debt in Greece, Portugal and other weaker states in the euro zone could undermine a global recovery.
Nissan returns to Q3 profit, lifts forecast
YOKOHAMA, Japan - Nissan Motor Co <7201.T>, Japan's third-largest automaker, returned to quarterly profit on Tuesday and lifted its outlook for the second time, as brisk global sales signal the worst may be over for the auto industry. Nissan joins Toyota Motor Corp <7203.T> and Honda Motor Co <7267.T> in raising annual forecasts, underscoring the impact of government stimulus and the improvement in the global economy following the worst downturn in decades.
Swatch full-year profit beats poll, upbeat on 2010
ZURICH , ahead of the average estimate of 698 million francs in a Reuters poll.
Macquarie outlook disappoints; shares slide 7 percent
SYDNEY - Macquarie Group <MQG.AX>, Australia's top investment bank, forecast a disappointing second-half profit and gave an outlook that raised worries about its key equity business, sending its shares sliding 7 percent. Macquarie warned in its trading update that some market conditions were weakening, creating concerns over its Australian equity capital markets business.
CIT sets John Thain's salary at $6 million a year
NEW YORK - CIT Group Inc <CIT.N> said its new Chief Executive John Thain will get an annual base salary of $6 million, most of which is in stock, and a bonus of up to another $1.5 million, in a nod to compensation practices popularized by the Obama administration's pay czar. The former Merrill Lynch & Co CEO's salary includes $500,000 in cash, $2.5 million of restricted CIT stock with a holding period of one year and $3 million in stock restricted for three years, the company said in a regulatory filing.