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Watch Sales Drive
Recovery at Swiss Firm
Cie. Financiere Richemont SA Monday reported a solid rise in third-quarter sales, led by demand for its high-end jewelry and watches, and said it is cautiously optimistic for the next few quarters.
Sales of Richemont, the owner of the Cartier jewelry brand and a range of Swiss watchmakers such as Jaeger-LeCoultre, rose to 1.59 billion euros ($2.31 billion) as of Dec. 31, 2009, from 1.55 billion euros a year ago.
The rise was 2% at actual rates and 7% at constant exchange rates, with strong Asian demand for Richemont's flagship brands boosting the top line. The trend over the quarter was constantly improving and revenue in December alone increased 12% at constant rates, Richemont said.
The luxury-goods maker didn't provide an outlook, but company spokesman Alan Grieve said first signs of restocking by watch retailers and good demand in several markets give rise to cautious optimism.
-- Martin Gelnar
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BRITISH AIRWAYS
Labor Union to Hold
Vote on Job Action
Unite, the union representing the majority of British Airways PLC's 13,500 cabin crew, told the airline it will begin voting on a job action in a week.
Monday's statement followed the failure of both sides to reach an agreement on working conditions after talks resumed two weeks ago.
The two sides have been at odds over British Airways' plans to change work practices. After nine months of talks, British Airways in November cut the number of cabin crew on long-haul flights from London's Heathrow Airport to 14 from 15. That led to a vote among cabin crew approving a strike. But the airline in December secured an injunction preventing staff from taking industrial action after the union had organized potentially crippling strikes over the Christmas period.
The two sides are set to face each other in court Feb. 1, when it will be decided whether changes BA introduced are a breach of contract.
-- Kaveri Niththyananthan
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CONTRACT CHANGES
Exxon, Shell Accept
Amendments, Iraq Says
A consortium led by Exxon Mobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell PLC accepted contract amendments made by the Iraqi government to develop an oil field in southern Iraq, a senior Ministry of Oil official said.
"They have accepted the changes, and we are finalizing the deal with them on Jan. 25," Abdul Mahdy al-Ameedi, head of the Oil Ministry's Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate, said Monday.
Exxon Mobil, the first U.S. company to gain access to Iraq's oil reserves, and Shell won the right to develop the West Qurna Phase 1 oil field following the country's first postwar round of oil bidding in June 2009.
The field holds 8.7 billion barrels in proven oil reserves.
The Exxon-Shell consortium signed the deal in November but was awaiting final approval from the Iraqi government.
The government proposed amendments to all the contracts recently awarded to foreign oil companies, though Iraqi oil officials declined to speak about the changes.
-- Hassan Hafidh
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ENERGY IN CHINA
Sinopec, BP Discuss
Venture for Shale Gas
China Petrochemical Corp. said it is in talks with BP PLC to cooperate in the exploration and development of shale gas in China, underscoring the growing interest that international oil companies have in gaining a foothold in such fields world-wide.
"The talks are going smoothly," Sinopec, as China Petrochemical is known, said Monday in its official newsletter. "This move could accelerate development in unconventional oil and gas fields with the help of foreign advanced conception and technology."
BP China spokesman Michael Zhao declined to comment.
Recent developments in extracting natural gas out of shale by cracking the rock underground has greatly expanded production in the U.S., reducing the need for imports. There is hope in China that the country's untapped shale-gas reserves could have the same effect.
China's first joint development project in shale gas got under way in November as Royal Dutch Shell PLC and PetroChina Co. signed an agreement to develop shale-gas resources in Sichuan province.
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