Industries

Retail LBOs are Back as Credit Freeze Abates, Buyout Firms Executives Say Private-equity firms looking to buy retail and consumer companies said they’re now able to finance deals and pay reasonable prices after the credit crisis and global recession triggered a buyout slump.

Warehouse Plans $70 Million Store Expansion to Raise Retail Market Share Warehouse Group Ltd. plans to spend as much as NZ$100 million ($70 million) the next five years opening new stores and expanding its product range to grab a bigger share of New Zealand’s retail market.

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IEA Raises 2010 Crude Oil Demand Estimate on Developing Economies, China The International Energy Agency raised its forecast for global oil demand this year for a second month as fuel consumption in Asia rises more than expected.

Crude Oil Rises as Dollar Weakens, IEA Boosts Outlook for Global Demand Crude oil traded above $82 a barrel in New York, poised for a second weekly gain, as the dollar weakened and the IEA bolstered its outlook for oil demand.

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JPMorgan, Citigroup Helped Cause Lehman's Collapse, Examiner's Report Says JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Citigroup Inc. helped cause the failure of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. by demanding more collateral and changing guarantee agreements, according to a court-ordered report on the biggest bankruptcy in U.S. history.

BBVA Chairman Gonzalez's $109 Million Pension Pot Riles Spanish Investors Francisco Gonzalez, chairman of Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria SA, Spain’s second-biggest lender, has a pension worth 79.8 million euros ($109 million). That’s almost four times the pot accumulated by Stephen Green, his counterpart at HSBC Holdings Plc, Europe’s largest bank.

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Fat Surgery Urged for Obese Kids May Boost Allergan Sales, Trim Liability David Ludwig, director of the obesity program at Children’s Hospital Boston, was against weight-loss surgery for kids, he says, because it ignored the real problem, a “toxic environment” jammed with junk food.

Roche's Avastin Fails to Extend Lives of Prostate Cancer Patients in Study Roche Holding AG said its Avastin cancer medicine failed to extend the life of men with late-stage prostate cancer in a study, limiting the Swiss drugmaker’s efforts to expand the use of its biggest medicine.

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Buffett Gets $100,000 Berkshire Salary for 29th Straight Year, No Bonus Warren Buffett, the billionaire chairman of Berkshire Hathaway Inc. who pays the company for postage and personal phone calls, received a $100,000 salary for a 29th straight year as he arranged a $27 billion acquisition.

AIG Said to Query Bonus Holdouts on 2009 Income in Push for Concessions American International Group Inc.’s effort to reach its commitment of $45 million in bonus concessions are focusing on former employees who have refused to accept reduced payouts, said people with knowledge of the talks.

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Dubai World Seeks to Separate `Good' Businesses From Underperforming Ones Dubai World, the state-owned holding company restructuring $26 billion in debt, is seeking to separate “good” businesses from underperforming assets as part of its restructuring plan, the head of the city’s airline said.

U.K. House Prices Rise the Most in February Since 2002, Acadametrics Says U.K. house prices increased in February at the fastest pace in more than seven years, research group Acadametrics Ltd. said.

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Apple Will Start Taking Orders for IPad Today at 5:30 a.m. California Time Apple Inc. will begin taking pre- orders for its iPad multimedia tablet computer today at 5:30 a.m. California time.

Microsoft Xbox Takes U.S. Console-Sales Lead After 2 Years, Surpassing Wii Microsoft Corp.’s Xbox 360 beat Nintendo Co.’s Wii and Sony Corp.’s PlayStation 3 last month to become the best-selling video-game console in the U.S. for the first time in more than two years, helped by the release of the “BioShock 2” shooting title.

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Finnair Is in Talks With Norwegian Air on Pact to Squeeze Unprofitable SAS Finnair Oyj is seeking an agreement with Norwegian Air Shuttle ASA that would funnel more passengers onto the Helsinki-based carrier’s long-haul flights, helping to win market share from unprofitable rival SAS Group AB.

Toyota Sees Recovery in 2010 for Most of U.S. Market Share Lost on Recalls Toyota Motor Corp. set a 2010 goal of regaining most of the U.S. market share lost in the past two months after global recalls of 8 million vehicles damped demand, the No. 2 U.S. sales executive said.

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