Toshiba waves the white flag in DVD war

Toshiba said yesterday it will no longer develop, make or market HD DVD players and recorders, handing a victory to rival Blu-ray disc technology in the format battle for next-generation video.

Wal-Mart profit beats estimates

Wal-Mart Stores Inc, the world's largest retailer, said fourth-quarter profit rose more than analysts estimated after it stepped up holiday discounts and added more brands of computers and flat-screen televisions.

Deutsche Post gets new boss

Deutsche Post logistics and international mail head Frank Appel took over as chief executive and pledged to focus on its loss-making US business and retail bank Deutsche Postbank.

Shoprite earnings rise on job growth

Shoprite Holdings Ltd, South Africa's largest food retailer by market value, said first-half profit rose 48 percent as employment increased and after a strike reduced year-earlier sales.

IN BRIEF (Page 17)

Business International

UK govt to nationalize struggling lender

UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown faced a political and public backlash yesterday after his decision to take ailing bank Northern Rock Plc into public ownership, the first UK nationalization since the 1970s.

FT: SocGen investigated dodgy trades since Sept

French bank Societe Generale, at the center of a huge trading scandal, began investigating trades executed by Jerome Kerviel months before his activities were exposed in January, the Financial Times reported.

Ackermann says further German writedowns likely

German banks may face further writedowns given the difficult market situation, Deutsche Bank Chief Executive Josef Ackermann told Germany's Bild newspaper in an interview published yesterday.

Qatar accumulates UBS stake

Qatar is accumulating shares in Credit Suisse Group and plans to spend as much as $15 billion on European and US bank stocks over the next year, the Gulf state's prime minister said in an interview.

IN BRIEF (Page 17)

Business International