Japan’s top broker Nomura Holdings said yesterday it would cut up to 1,000 jobs in London to cope with the financial crisis after buying parts of failed Wall Street giant Lehman Brothers.
The cuts, the latest in a wave of global layoffs by banks and brokers struggling to weather the worst financial crisis in decades, could affect almost one quarter of Nomura’s 4,500-strong workforce in the English capital.
“The decision follows an internal review after the acquisition of Lehman Brothers’ equities and investment banking operations in October,” said Nomura, which took on more than 8,000 staff from Lehman Brothers’ Asia-Pacific, Middle East and European operations, as well as its Indian IT subsidiaries.
Nomura made a net loss of ¥149.5 billion (US$1.61 billion) in the six months to September, hit by the turmoil in world financial markets.
It estimates that the total cost of acquiring Lehman’s operations in the Asia-Pacific, Europe and the Middle East will be about US$2 billion.
The Lord Mayor of the City of London has warned that at least 70,000 jobs will be lost in London’s financial district — a key pillar of the British economy — within barely a year as it grapples with the world financial crisis.
SWISS BANKS
Credit Suisse says it will cut 5,300 jobs as a result of the global financial crisis. The figure represents about 11 percent of the Swiss bank’s global work force.
Credit Suisse says most jobs will be cut in its ailing investment banking business.
The bank predicts a 3 billion francs (US$2.5 billion) net loss for the fourth quarter.
Credit Suisse said in a statement yesterday that chief executive Brady Dougan and other senior officials would not receive salary bonuses for this year because of the bank’s bad performance during the year.
CARLYLE GROUP
Carlyle Group, the world’s second-biggest private-equity firm, is cutting 100 jobs, or 10 percent of its workforce, as the leveraged-buyout business remains stalled.
Some of the dismissals come at the Washington-based firm’s group dedicated to taking US companies private, spokesman Chris Ullman said on Wednesday in an interview. He declined to be more specific.
The layoffs are separate from Carlyle’s decision last month to shutter its Central European and Asian leveraged-finance units, which eliminated fewer than 20 jobs.
“In response to extraordinary market conditions, Carlyle has taken measured steps to balance its cost structure with the current investment climate,” Ullman said. “The firm is well positioned to take good care of our investment portfolio and has the resources to create and respond to compelling investment opportunities.”
The Chien Feng IV (勁蜂, Mighty Hornet) loitering munition is on track to enter flight tests next month in connection with potential adoption by Taiwanese and US armed forces, a government source said yesterday. The kamikaze drone, which boasts a range of 1,000km, debuted at the Taipei Aerospace and Defense Technology Exhibition in September, the official said on condition of anonymity. The Chungshan Institute of Science and Technology and US-based Kratos Defense jointly developed the platform by leveraging the engine and airframe of the latter’s MQM-178 Firejet target drone, they said. The uncrewed aerial vehicle is designed to utilize an artificial intelligence computer
The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) caucus yesterday decided to shelve proposed legislation that would give elected officials full control over their stipends, saying it would wait for a consensus to be reached before acting. KMT Legislator Chen Yu-jen (陳玉珍) last week proposed amendments to the Organic Act of the Legislative Yuan (立法院組織法) and the Regulations on Allowances for Elected Representatives and Subsidies for Village Chiefs (地方民意代表費用支給及村里長事務補助費補助條例), which would give legislators and councilors the freedom to use their allowances without providing invoices for reimbursement. The proposal immediately drew criticism, amid reports that several legislators face possible charges of embezzling fees intended to pay
REQUIREMENTS: The US defense secretary must submit a Taiwan security assistance road map and an appraisal of Washington’s ability to respond to Indo-Pacific conflict The US Congress has released a new draft of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which includes up to US$1 billion in funding for Taiwan-related security cooperation next year. The version published on Sunday by US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson removed earlier language that would have invited Taiwan to participate in the US-led Rim of the Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC). A statement on Johnson’s Web page said the NDAA “enhances U.S. defense initiatives in the Indo-Pacific to bolster Taiwan’s defense and support Indo-Pacific allies.” The bill would require the US secretary of defense to “enable fielding of uncrewed and anti-uncrewed systems capabilities”
Renewed border fighting between Thailand and Cambodia showed no signs of abating yesterday, leaving hundreds of thousands of displaced people in both countries living in strained conditions as more flooded into temporary shelters. Reporters on the Thai side of the border heard sounds of outgoing, indirect fire yesterday. About 400,000 people have been evacuated from affected areas in Thailand and about 700 schools closed while fighting was ongoing in four border provinces, said Thai Rear Admiral Surasant Kongsiri, a spokesman for the military. Cambodia evacuated more than 127,000 villagers and closed hundreds of schools, the Thai Ministry of Defense said. Thailand’s military announced that
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