Thomson Reuters to focus on integration in Big Apple

Thomson Corp, which completed its $15.9 billion purchase of Reuters Group Plc yesterday, faces the most work merging operations in New York, said Tom Glocer, who will lead the combined company.

The top priority will be to deliver a "flawless integration", Glocer, who was chief executive officer of London-based Reuters for seven years, said yesterday in an interview from his still-being-renovated Times Square office.

The new Thomson Reuters Corp, to be based in New York, combines legal databases, bond-trading networks and news operations 11 months after the deal was announced. The most overlapping businesses and jobs are in the United States, especially New York, and in the investment and advisory unit that offers services such as earnings estimates, Glocer said.

"We have a Noah's Ark of two of a bunch of things," said Glocer, citing duplicate offices in Tokyo and gains from combined purchasing power. Savings from possible job cuts aren't the main focus right now, he said.

Glocer reiterated the company's projection of reaching $500 million in annual savings in three years. He also said Reuters' business has been "relatively immune" to the credit crisis. In March, Reuters predicted a 9 percent gain in first-quarter sales, excluding acquisitions, disposals and currency swings.

The value of the acquisition has declined to about 8 billion pounds from 8.7 billion pounds when the cash and stock deal was announced in May. Thomson shares have fallen 19 percent since then.

Thomson Reuters begins trading under the symbol "TRIL" at 8 am London time on the London Stock Exchange. The US and Canadian shares are trading under "TRI" on the New York and Toronto stock exchanges.

Thomson, based in Toronto and run from Stamford, Connecticut, adds the Westlaw legal database, TradeWeb bond- trading network, and tax and accounting services to the new company.

Reuters sells trading terminals to banks and brokers, and its 156-year-old news organization has more than 2,300 journalists in 132 countries.

Agencies

(China Daily 04/18/2008 page16)