European consumer-discretionary companies such as Marks & Spencer Group Plc are outperforming consumer-staple businesses including Nestle SA, indicating investors’ forecasts for the region’s economy were too pessimistic. Investors have pushed shares of the discretionary group higher in recent weeks as concerns about another prolonged recession have moderated, according to Robert Griffiths, a London-based pan-European equity strategist at Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc. These stocks historicall

Japan’s machinery orders rebounded in November, signaling that companies are willing to invest even as the yen remains strong and the global economy slows. Bookings, an indicator of future capital spending, rose 15 percent in November from a month earlier, the Cabinet Office said in Tokyo Monday. The median estimate of 29 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 5.1 percent increase. Weak overseas demand and gains in the yen have cut profits at Japanese exporters from Nippon Steel Corp. t

Raising new concerns, Iran warns Gulf Arab producers to not ramp up productionCAIRO (AP) ― Iran warned Gulf Arab oil producers against boosting production to offset any potential drop in Tehran’s crude exports in the event of an embargo affecting its oil sales, the latest salvo in the dispute between the West and the Islamic Republic over its nuclear program. The comments by Iran’s OPEC governor, published Sunday, came as Saudi Arabia’s oil minister was quoted the same day denying that his count

PARIS (AFP) ― Hailed as the French Steve Jobs, entrepreneur Xavier Niel is shaking up the country’s mobile phone market with a maverick style far removed from France’s traditionally conservative business practices.A rare business heavyweight not to emerge from the country’s elite universities, Niel started his career in the 1980s operating adult chat services on a French forerunner to the Internet called Minitel.In 2002 he launched Freeview, a pioneering set-top box that offered combined Interne

Apple Inc.’s next iPad, expected to go on sale in March, will sport a high-definition screen, run a faster processor and work with next-generation wireless networks, according to three people familiar with the product. The company’s manufacturing partners in Asia started ramping up production of the iPad 3 this month and plan to reach full volumes by February, said one of the people, who asked not to be named because the details aren’t public. The tablet will use a quad-core chip, an enhancement

ATHENS (AFP) ― Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos on Friday said his country faced “acute economic dangers” without eurozone loans and the conclusion of debt write-down talks that were suspended earlier in the day.“We are fully aware of how critical the situation is,” Papademos told a dinner hosted by the Greek-German chamber of commerce.“Until the (debt write-down talks) are complete and the new loan agreement is voted, the country continues to face acute economic dangers,” he said.Papademos

Microsoft Corp. is making plans for a companywide restructuring of its marketing operations, a move that may include hundreds of job cuts, according to people familiar with the matter. The plans haven’t been settled and could change, according to the people, who asked not to be named because the review isn’t public. Job cuts are unlikely to involve thousands of employees, the people said. Initial steps could be announced within the next 30 days, according to one person. The changes would elimina

China rejects limiting oil imports from the country despite U.S. pushU.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner’s efforts to tighten economic sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program won backing from Japan a day after China rejected limiting oil imports from the country. “We want to take concrete steps to reduce our share in an orderly way as soon as possible,” Finance Minister Jun Azumi said at a press conference in Tokyo Thursday after discussions with his U.S. counterpart. “The world canno

BEIJING (AP) -- Dozens of workers assembling Xbox video game consoles climbed to a factory dormitory roof, and some threatened to jump to their deaths, in a dispute over job transfers that was defused but highlights growing labor unrest as China's economy slows.The dispute was set off after contract

BRUSSELS (AP) ― The European Union stepped up the pressure Wednesday against Hungary, saying its fiscal policies were unsustainable and threatening legal action over a new constitution that some fear could push the country back into authoritarianism. The warnings escalated the standoff between Hungary’s government and the EU and underlined the difficulty Budapest will face in negotiating a desperately needed international rescue package from the EU and the International Monetary Fund. Hungary, w

India allowed foreign single-brand retailers to open stores in the world’s second-most populous nation, paving the way for Starbucks Corp. and Ikea to start outlets without local partners. The government Tuesday ratified a Nov. 24 cabinet decision to raise the ownership limit to 100 percent from 51 percent, Trade Minister Anand Sharma said in a statement. The companies will need to buy 30 percent of the value of products sold from domestic small and cottage industries, he said. The move undersco

BEIJING (AP) ― China and the United States have pledged during a visit by Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to cooperate on boosting the global economic recovery, but Chinese backing for U.S. sanctions on Iran’s oil industry appeared unlikely.China buys almost one-third of Iran’s oil exports and has rejected the U.S. sanctions as a tool to rein in Tehran’s nuclear program. That sets Washington up for a public setback if the government of the world’s second-largest economy refuses to cooperate.