Headlines

The European Union is in need of a new economic strategy, The Wall Street Journal reported. The veracity of that statement might seem indisputable, as various EU countries, led by Greece, struggle to avoid being crushed by their accumulated debts. But in the surreal bureaucratic thinking of the EU, the reason it needs a new economic strategy has as much to do with the fact that its previous one is nearing its expiry date as any desperate need to deal with the current crisis. In March 2000, the EU set out its strategy for the next decade. It wasn't unambitious.

General Motors Europe on Tuesday finally announced the details of its plan to restructure German car-maker Opel. In addition to thousands of job cuts, GM wants €2.7 billion from European governments. Opposition to the plan is building in Germany, Spiegel Online reported. GM is asking for €2.7 billion ($3.7 billion) in loans or loan guarantees from countries where Opel factories are located. Germany would be responsible for coming up with €1.5 billion of that amount, with half coming from the federal government in Berlin and the remaining amount being coughed up by the German states concerned.

Bank of Scotland Ireland is to cut 750 jobs from its Irish workforce of 1,600, with most of the redundancies due to take effect by July. The bank plans to close down the retail network which it operates under the Halifax brand. But it is expected that 850 jobs will remain in the corporate and commercial banking sections, Finfacts reported. The bank which operates 44 retail branches in Ireland under the Halifax brand, unexpectedly announced its decision to staff this afternoon.

Hector Sants said he will step down as chief executive of the U.K. Financial Services Authority, the regulator that he led through the credit crisis but which faces an uncertain future, The Wall Street Journal reported. Mr. Sants took over as CEO in July 2007, just as the financial crisis was starting, with plans to stay three years. "I intend to stick to that timetable," Mr. Sants said in a statement Tuesday. Mr.

JAL, Asia's largest carrier by revenue, which filed for bankruptcy protection to pursue turnaround efforts under the auspices of the ETIC, needs around 600 billion yen in bridge loans, the Nikkei said. The business daily said the Development Bank of Japan is expected to extend a total of 300 billion yen in bridge loans, up from the initial estimate of 200 billion yen. The remaining 355 billion yen will be provided by the ETIC.

The liquidator for the collapsed north Queensland construction company CMC Cairns says 25 associated companies have also gone into liquidation, ABC News reported. CMC Cairns went into voluntary administration in May and was placed in liquidation owing unsecured creditors more than $17 million and financiers nearly $100 million. Liquidators SV Partners is investigating a range of issues, including the relationships between the companies and whether CMC Cairns traded while insolvent.

AbitibiBowater's U.K. subsidiary has laid off another 163 workers as insolvent Bridgewater Paper Co. ceased production at its Liverpool mill while it explores options, including finding a buyer, The Canadian Press reported. The move comes a week after administrator Ernst & Young said it temporarily laid off 108 workers, or more than one-third of the 300 employees. Joint administrator Tom Jack said employees have remained supportive despite the very "unfortunate situation" facing the company.

Adam Opel, the European unit of General Motors, announced an ambitious turnaround plan Tuesday, vowing to become profitable in 2012 by cutting capacity by 20 percent and reducing its work force by 8,300, while introducing a raft of new models, including the battery-powered Ampera, The New York Times reported. But the chief executive of Opel, Nick Reilly said Tuesday that the plan was contingent on €2.7 billion ($3.7 billion) in loans or loan guarantees from European governments, as well as luring car buyers back to the Opel and Vauxhall brands.

British budget clothing retailer Ethel Austin and sister homewares chain Au Naturale have appointed administrators after failing to raise extra money, putting around 3,700 jobs at risk, Reuters reported. Business restructuring firm MCR said on Monday it had been appointed to trade the companies and look for a buyer. Ethel Austin, which was bought out of administration in 2008 by former MK One boss Elaine McPherson, has almost 300 stores across Britain. "In the current economic climate there are no guarantees that purchasers will be found," MCR said in a statement.

Bankruptcy continues to plague the athletes preparing to compete in the 2010 Olympic Winter Games, the Bankruptcy Beat blog reported. The organization that governs U.K. skiers and snowboarders was placed into administration last week, leading British Olympic officials to step in to ensure that the country’s 14 athletes can head to Vancouver this week. Following last fall’s news that Dutch bank DSB Bank NV’s bankruptcy filing would leave the U.S.