HSBC faces investor anger on pay

HSBC bosses faced shareholder anger over lacklustre returns and high
executive pay, at the bank's annual general meeting. Chairman Douglas
Flint admitted that shareholder returns had been disappointing and
inadequate. A fifth of investors refused to back the bank's
remuneration plan, marking stronger opposition over pay than that
faced by other banks in the UK. Under the plan, chief executive Stuart
Gulliver could earn up to £12.5m. The remuneration report contained
new arrangements for paying board members in the wake of protests at
last year's shareholder meeting. But some investors at this year's
meeting were still unhappy. "How greedy is this board of directors?"
asked private shareholder Michael Mason-Mahon. Ahead of the AGM, both
share advisory group Pirc and the Association of British Insurers had
raised concerns about the scheme. But another institutional investor,
Standard Life - which had been one of the bank's fiercest critics over
executive pay last year - backed the plan.
---------------BBC ONLINE

Japan's car production plunges due to parts shortages

Japanese car production plunged in April as manufacturers continued to
face a shortfall in parts supply. Toyota, the world's biggest
carmaker, said its domestic production fell 74.5% compared with the
same month last year. Honda's Japanese output plummeted 81%, while
Nissan reported a 48.7% decline at its factories in Japan. Japan's
carmakers have been facing a shortage of parts as the 11 March
earthquake and tsunami disrupted the country's supply chain. As a
result, the country's top car manufacturers have been forced to
suspend or slow down production at their factories. Global impact The
effects of the disruption in Japan's supply chain have been felt well
beyond the country's shores. Leading Japanese carmakers have reported
a sharp drop in their global production numbers as well. Toyota
Motors, which has curbed production at its plants in various
countries, said its factories outside Japan produced 25% fewer
vehicles in April. Honda Motors has reported a decline of 43.5% in
output at its overseas factories, while Nissan Motors said its foreign
output dipped by 12.7%.
---------------BBC ONLINE

Saab resumes car production after Pang Da deal

Saab has resumed car production after a layoff of nearly seven weeks
caused by financial problems. Last week, China's Pang Da Automobile
agreed to buy 24% of Saab's parent company Spyker Cars and make an
upfront payment for 1,300 Saab cars. Saab says it now had orders for
more than 8,000 cars. The shutdown began after several parts suppliers
stopped delivering to the Trollhattan factory, saying Saab had failed
to pay its bills. The deal with Pang Da still needs to be approved by
the Chinese government, the European Investment Bank, the Swedish
National Debt Office and Saab's former owner General Motors. "We have
gone through a rough patch in recent weeks but Saab is back in action
again," said Spyker chief executive Victor Muller. "We will work hard
in the coming period to regain confidence and show our ability to
become a successful carmaker." Pang Da's chief executive Pang Qinghua
visited the Trollhattan plant for the first time on Friday.He met
Sweden's industry minister and the Debt Office on Thursday.
---------------BBC ONLINE

Cyber-attacks hit e-G8 web forum

French president Nicolas Sarkozy's 'e-G8' summit on the power of the
internet suffered a technical hiccup when cyber-attacks disrupted the
forum's wireless connection, organisers said Wednesday. Since Tuesday
'we have been undergoing a series of attacks and attempted attacks
from people outside' the wireless service providing internet access to
journalists and delegates, an e-G8 official who asked not to be named
told the AFP. The cyber-attacks failed to cut off access but caused
'disruption' of the wifi connection and the forum's video streaming in
the tent where politicians and the world's top media bosses were
meeting, the official added.
---------------NEWAGEBD ONLINE

IMF race heats up

The United States was tight-lipped about its pick for the next head of
the International Monetary Fund after Europe threw its support behind
France's finance minister, Christine Lagarde. As the biggest IMF
shareholder, the US could cement Lagarde in the powerful global
finance post if it joins forces with the seven European IMF directors
on the IMF board. Yet, after Lagarde officially launched her candidacy
in Paris Wednesday, and Jose Manuel Barroso, head of the European
Commission, declared his support, the United States took the quiet
tack. By tradition at the 66-year-old institution, a European is the
IMF managing director, while an American holds the number-two IMF post
and the World Bank presidency. The resignation of Dominique
Strauss-Kahn a week ago, after he was charged with sexual assault and
attempted rape of a New York hotel maid, has focused the spotlight on
the developing world's drive to end the power-sharing agreement.
Lagarde, who announced her bid amid swelling support in European
capitals after Strauss-Kahn's May 14 arrest, has drawn backing outside
Europe from one country—Congo, on Sunday —but cautious comments
elsewhere, including the United States. US treasury secretary Timothy
Geithner on Wednesday called Lagarde and Agustin Carstens, the
governor of Mexico's central bank, 'very credible' candidates to lead
the International Monetary Fund, without endorsing either. The two are
the first declared candidates in the race to succeed Strauss-Kahn, who
denies the sex charges. 'Two very credible people now said they'd like
to run the institution,' Geithner said at a Politico news event in
Washington. 'There may be others that join them.' Nominations close
June 10 and the 24-member executive board is expected to select the
next managing director of the 187-nation IMF by the end of June.
Washington's North American neighbours, Mexico and Canada, praised the
qualifications of Lagarde and Carstens, but only Mexico has taken a
position, nominating Carstens.
---------------NEWAGEBD ONLINE

Sony confirms $3.1bn annual loss

Japanese electronics giant Sony has reported a loss of $3.1bn (£1.9bn)
for the year to 31 March. The net loss was largely due to writing off
$4.4bn related to a tax credit, and Sony added that the stronger yen
had also affected earnings during the year. Sony's business was also
affected by the earthquake in Japan in March. This is the third
successive year that Sony has reported a loss. However, it forecast
that it would return to profit in the current financial year. Sony
said that it was seeking to improve its profitability by cutting
costs, and has forecast a profit of 80bn yen ($976m; £600m) for the
current fiscal year.
---------------BBC ONLINE