UPDATE 2-Telstra shareholders back $11 bln govt network handover
* Shares rally 1.6 pct in weak market
(Recasts with vote outcome)By Sonali PaulMELBOURNE, Oct 18 (Reuters) - Telstra Corp
shareholders on Tuesday approved a plan to hand over the
company’s fixed-line phone network to the Australian government
for $11 billion, transforming the nation’s dominant phone
company into a pure telecoms retailer.The deal, which marks the biggest overhaul of Australia’s
telecoms industry since Telstra was privatised 14 years ago,
still needs approval from the country’s competition watchdog.The alternative to the handover — competing against
Australia’s new state-owned high-speed broadband company, losing
access to new digital spectrum and nursing a home phone network
with falling revenues — would have left Telstra $5 billion
worse off, an independent expert advised shareholders.”Any company that can sell a structurally challenged
business in return for a high yielding government bond is a
great outcome for shareholders,” said Rhett Kessler, a portfolio
manager at Pengana Australian Equities Core Fund, which voted in
favour of the deal.The company said any changes to the deal to meet concerns
raised by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
were not expected to be material, but if they were, it would
need a fresh shareholder vote.Telstra executives declined to put a figure on what would
constitute a “material” change.Telstra Chairman Catherine Livingstone said the company
would consider returning capital to shareholders after the deal
with the government’s new A$38 billion ($39 billion) high-speed
fibre network goes through.In the meantime, she reassured investors that the company
would hold its dividend steady at 28 cents this year and next,
which on Tuesday’s trade implied a yield of nearly 9 percent.Shares in Telstra rose 1.6 percent to A$3.16 in a broader
market that was down on Tuesday, as investors turned to
stocks with healthy dividend.”The dividend’s only good if it’s sustainable, and we think
it’s sustainable,” Kessler said.Shareholders had been eager to vote on the plan to spin off
Telstra’s fixed-line assets, looking to end two years of
uncertainty sparked by the government’s plan to shake up the
industry which sent the company’s shares to record lows.As expected, proxy votes revealed at the annual meeting
showed shareholders were “significantly in favour” of the deal,
Livingstone said.The Labor government’s plan is to wire up the whole country
to high-speed services and provide a neutral platform on which
rival firms, including Telstra, would compete for customers.”This AGM comes at a historic moment, because we are poised
to decide on a transaction, a transaction that will deliver
long-term financial and strategic benefits for our company,”
Livingstone told shareholders.The conservative Coalition, which would trounce Labor if an
election were held today, is opposed to the national broadband
network (NBN) and has said it would review the rollout if it
comes to power.To protect itself against a change of policy, the network
deal includes compensation of up to A$500 million to Telstra if
the rollout ceases after reaching at least 20 percent of its
coverage target.
($1 = 0.976 Australian dollars)
UPDATE 3-Thousands protest banks, corporate greed in US marches
By Edith Honan and Edward McAllisterNEW YORK, Oct 15 (Reuters) - Thousands of anti-Wall Street
protesters rallied in New York’s Times Square on Saturday,
buoyed by a global day of demonstrations in support of their
monthlong campaign against corporate greed.Inspired by the Occupy Wall Street movement, protests on
Saturday started in Asia and rippled through Europe back to the
United States and Canada. Protesters fed up with economic
inequality took to the streets in cities from Washington,
Boston and Chicago to Los Angeles, Miami and Toronto.After weeks of intense media coverage, the size of the U.S.
protests on Saturday have been smaller than G20 meetings or
political conventions have yielded in recent years. Such events
often draw tens of thousands of demonstrators.In New York, where the movement began when protesters set
up camp in a Lower Manhattan park on Sept. 17, organizers said
the protest grew to at least 5,000 people as they marched to
Times Square from their makeshift outdoor headquarters.”These protests are already making a difference,” said
Jordan Smith, 25, a former substance abuse counselor from San
Francisco, who joined the New York protest. “The dialogue is
now happening all over the world.”The protesters chanted, “We got sold out, banks got bailed
out” and “All day, all week, occupy Wall Street.” They arrived
in Times Square at a time when the area is already crowded with
tourists and Broadway theatergoers.”This is disgusting” said Anatoly Lapushner, who was
shopping with his family at Toys R Us in Times Square. “Why
aren’t they marching on Washington and the politicians? Instead
they go after the economic lifeblood of the city.”PARTY MOOD IN NEW YORKAmerican protesters are angry that U.S. banks are enjoying
booming profits after getting bailouts in 2008, while many
people are struggling in a difficult economy with more than 9
percent unemployment and little help from Washington.Some were disappointed the New York crowd was not larger.”People don’t want to get involved. They’d rather watch on
TV,” said Troy Simmons, 47, who joined demonstrators as he left
work. “The protesters could have done better today … people
from the whole region should be here and it didn’t happen.”The Times Square mood was akin to New Year’s Eve, when the
famed “ball drop” occurs. In a festive mood, protesters were
joined by throngs of tourists snapping pictures, together
counting back from 10 and shouting, “Happy New Year.”Police said three people were arrested in Times Square
after pushing down police barriers and five men were arrested
earlier for wearing masks. Police also arrested 24 people at a
Citibank branch in Manhattan, mostly for trespassing.Citibank was not immediately available for comment.Five thousand people marched through the streets of Los
Angeles and gathered peacefully outside City Hall.The Occupy Wall Street movement has been gathering steam
over the past month, culminating with Saturday’s action. The
protests worldwide were mostly peaceful apart from Rome, where
the demonstration sparked riots.But it was unclear if the movement, which has been driven
using social media, would sustain momentum beyond Saturday.
Critics have accused the group of not having clear goals.In Toronto, a couple of thousand people gathered peacefully
and started to set up a camp in one of the city’s parks.
Protesters in Washington marched through the streets.”I am going to start my life as an adult in debt and that’s
not fair,” student Nathaniel Brown told Reuters Television.
“Millions of teenagers across the country are going to start
their futures in debt, while all of these corporations are
getting money fed all the time and none of us can get any.”
TEXT-Fitch places Europejski Fundusz Leasingowy SA on RWN
The rating actions follow the placement of EFL’s parent, Credit Agricole
S.A.’s (CASA) Long-term IDR of ‘AA-’ on RWN (see ‘Fitch Places Major
French Banks on RWN’ dated 13 October 2011 on www.fitchratings.com.)EFL’s ratings continue to be based on Fitch’s view that support for EFL
would be provided by CASA, if needed. At end-May 2011 around 30% of total
funding for EFL came directly from CASA. The parent has also provided guarantees
for funding received by EFL from International Financial Institutions.Fitch’s rating actions taken today for EFL have considered only the parts of
the criteria that deal with support.The rating actions are as follows:Long-term IDR of: ‘A+’; placed on RWNShort-term IDR: affirmed at ‘F1’Support Rating: affirmed at ‘1’National Long-term rating of ‘AAA’(pol); placed on RWNNational Short-term rating: affirmed at ‘F1+’(pol)
Hertz still chasing Dollar Thrifty, misses deadline
Earlier on Tuesday, Dollar Thrifty said it failed to flush out any final takeover proposals meeting antitrust concerns, and it planned to move ahead as a stand-alone company.However, Dollar Thrifty, which has been at the center of an 18-month tug-of-war between Hertz and Avis Budget (CAR.O), said it would review and consider any changes to Hertz’s offer or any other offer that might be made.”We remain interested in acquiring Dollar Thrifty. We remain focused on receiving an FTC consent decree,” Hertz spokesman Richard Broome told Reuters, referring to the Federal Trade Commission. “That’s the first step in the process.”The takeover of Dollar Thrifty, seen as the last big acquisition in an industry that has consolidated in recent years, has been shrouded by regulatory uncertainty as its buyout would leave only three major players dominating more than 90 percent of the car rental market.In August, Dollar Thrifty CEO Scott Thompson said the long-pending deal had kept the company from moving forward on growth initiatives and, last month, he wrote to both Avis and Hertz asking for their final written proposals by October 10.Last month, Avis dropped its bid, citing market conditions, leaving Hertz to seal a deal.Hertz currently has a tender offer out to Dollar Thrifty shareholders, valuing the company at around $1.92 billion.Thompson said his counterpart at Hertz called him on Friday to reaffirm the company’s commitment to pursuing a deal.”…the fact remains that they have not made a proposal that addresses our board’s requirements,” Thompson said.Industry analysts have said Tulsa, Oklahoma-based Dollar Thrifty can run successfully on its own.Dollar Thrifty reiterated its third-quarter outlook, and said it would soon start a $400 million share buyback program.Dollar Thrifty shares were down 2.2 percent at $59.10 in early trading on Tuesday on the New York Stock Exchange.
Michael Jackson’s legacy survives odd trial revelations
That was the picture that has emerged of the King of Pop’s private life during the first two weeks of the manslaughter trial of Jackson’s in-house physician, Dr. Conrad Murray.As bizarre as some of the revelations might be, they may add to Jackson’s legacy as a genius whose stature has risen since his death in June 2009 at age 50, pop culture experts said.Jackson’s odd, sometimes pathetic demeanor — largely forgotten in the worldwide grief over his death but on display again during Murray’s televised trial — may make him even more beloved by his fans.”Lets face it, we’re interested in this case because it is about Michael Jackson,” said Bob Thompson, a professor of pop culture at Syracuse University.”But the fact that he is gone also considerably changes how people perceive and emotionally engage in this kind of thing. The dead are the ultimate underdogs,” Thompson said.The most dramatic development in the trial so far has been a recording played for jurors in which Jackson speaks almost incoherently and slurs his words.Prosecutors say Murray made the recording after giving Jackson a drug treatment as a sleep aid. Medical examiners found the singer’s death resulted from an overdose of the anesthetic propofol combined with sedatives.”I think that has introduced an element of pathos to Michael Jackson,” Thompson said. “That slurred speech, he was saying, ‘I was deprived of my childhood. I want my money to go to a children’s hospital.’ How do you argue with something like that?”DOLLS AND BABIESWhen prosecutors showed the jury a photo of a doll on the bed where Jackson’s lifeless body was found hooked up to an IV, it made headlines.Photos of Jackson’s bedroom show he had several pictures and a poster of babies. The singer, who often said he was drawn to children because he never had a childhood himself, was tried and acquitted in 2005 of molesting a young boy.Stacy Brown, co-author of a book called “Michael Jackson: The Man Behind the Mask,” said the singer had collected dolls for years and had many at his Neverland Ranch in central California, where he also had theme park rides and a zoo.”In the grand scheme of things, especially as it relates to him, I don’t find it to be odd to have that doll there,” Brown said. “If anything, I would expect there to be more.”But for Jackson’s fans, a more disturbing revelation may be that the perfectionist “Thriller” singer appeared to be struggling during the strenuous preparations for his sold-out, 50-date London comeback tour — his first for 12 years.Jackson missed rehearsals in Los Angeles and those close to him had concerns about his health a week before he died. Tour director Kenny Ortega testified that on June 19, Jackson was too weak to rehearse and that he needed psychological help.Brown said the picture of Jackson painted at trial “has only added to what’s been going on since his death.”And that is his image has been rehabilitated — something that he might not have been able to do had he been alive.”
