News

Tata of India has clinched a deal to buy Britain's Corus for £6.7bn, beating CSN in an auction to create the world's fifth largest steelmaker, reports the Times.

The company emerged victorious in the early hours of this morning with a bid of 608p a share, topping a 603p a share offer from Brazil's Companhia Siderurgica Nacional, after an unprecedented nine rounds of bidding overseen by the UK's Takeover Panel. The £6.7bn deal includes £500m of debt.

The controversy surrounding Torex Retail, the software developer whose shares were suspended last week, deepened yesterday as the Serious Fraud Office and the City of London Police announced that they had begun an investigation into the AIM-listed company, writes the Times.

Kerzner International, founded by South African tycoon Sol Kerzner, is in the driving seat to become the biggest winner from the decision to award Manchester the right to host Britain's only super casino. Manchester awarded a provisional contract back in 2004 to Kerzner, along with Ask and Artisan, two small local development companies, to create a £260m casino and leisure complex in the east of the city, reports the Telegraph.

Some of the biggest names on the high street, including Arcadia, Debenhams and House of Fraser, have been caught up in an investigation into mis-selling of payment protection insurance (PPI). GE Capital Bank was fined £610,000 yesterday for failing to train and supervise an army of 300,000 shopworkers who try to persuade shoppers to take storecards and accompanying PPI, reports the Times.

The beleaguered British car industry suffered a fresh blow yesterday when MG's Chinese owner backtracked on plans to manufacture large volumes of the marque at Longbridge. Nanjing, which bought the assets of MG Rover for £53m two years ago, said that most of MG's production would take place at a new plant in China, writes the Times.

Microsoft launched its new operating system Windows Vista to great fanfare in 70 countries, but analysts say this may be the last time the company releases such a 'big bang' product. The development of Vista has been a tortuous five-year process, which cost Microsoft $6bn and arrived at least a year late, reports the Telegraph.

PwC is facing a damages claim potentially worth tens of millions of pounds over management consultancy advice that the accountancy firm gave brewer Scottish & Newcastle. The S&N claim, filed last year, arose after PwC advised on the restructuring of supply arrangements at the brewer's UK-based Scottish Courage (Scotco) subsidiary between 2001 and 2003, writes the FT.

The Chinese stock market is developing into a "bubble" and investors are in danger of behaving irrationally, a leading Chinese legislator said on Tuesday. Cheng Siwei, vice-chairman of the National People's Congress and an influential figure in Beijing financial circles, warned the mainland stock market could be overheating, after a rise of 130% last year, reports the FT.

Russia's largest producer of silver is to float on the London Stock Exchange in a move its billionaire owner hopes will help raise more than $800m. Shrugging off reports of investor fatigue with Russian companies, Polymetal, the world's fifth biggest silver miner, plans to sell 30% of its shares in a simultaneous offering in London and Moscow next month, says the Independent.

The London Stock Exchange is expected to scrutinise recent statements issued by FishWorks after the restaurant company's admission yesterday that it is suffering a financial crisis. Ratnesh Bagdai has resigned as finance director, less than a year after he joined the company, writes the Times.