Wednesday Papers: Goldman Sachs records 40% drop in net income - money news

Financial Times

* Goldman Sachs recorded net income of $1.9 billion in the third quarter, ahead of analysts’ expectations but 40% below the $3.2 billion it earned in the same period a year ago; it reduced its bankers’ pay pool to $3.8 billion from $5.3 billion in the same period last year.

* Bank of America's third-quarter net loss widened to $7.3 billion, or 77 cents a share, from $1 billion, or 26 cents, in the year-earlier period; excluding the goodwill charge, BofA would have earned $3.1 billion, or 27 cents a share.

* Betfair, the peer-to-peer internet gambling exchange, is expected to increase the size of its London listing by at least 50%, valuing the company at more than £1.3 billion.

* Premier Foods has agreed to pay £167 million to restructure derivative contracts that had badly backfired.

* Norway’s sovereign wealth fund has topped NKr3,000 billion ($518 billion) for the first time.

* The European Union should explore taxes on financial transactions, air transport and other activities to generate its own sources of funding, the European Commission has recommended.

* Europe is set for a tough new regulatory regime for hedge funds and private equity companies after European Union ministers reached a long-awaited agreement on rules to cover the sector.

* The general secretary of the Trade Union Congress, Brendan Barber, on Tuesday said the £83 billion programme of cuts will “at best” lead to “years of high unemployment and growth so weak that the deficit may well stay high”.

* Prime, a property company that owns and develops healthcare buildings, has confirmed its intention to raise £200 million through a public listing on the London Stock Exchange.

* A 52-storey skyscraper project on London’s South Bank backed by Sergei Polonsky, the Russian property tycoon, has been put into administration by Royal Bank of Scotland.

* Former senior executives of BayernLB could face legal claims from the bank after an inquiry by a law firm concluded they were liable for the disastrous acquisition of Hypo Group Alpe Adria.