In today's FT

View an online version of this email here.  All times are London time: Tuesday Dec 23 2008 Financial Times - UK Homepage Madoff investor warned its clients Dec 23 2008 00:40 One of the biggest investors in Bernard Madoff's alleged $50bn fraud explicitly warned its clients of the danger that his brokerage 'could abscond with those assets', but still attracted $2.75bn, according to documents sent to investors Read more » Fiat pays $10.6m in Iraq settlement Dec 23 2008 00:44 Italian carmaker agrees settlement with SEC over kickbacks paid to Saddam Hussein regime under the oil-for-food programme Read more » Financial crisis fells Belgian leadership Dec 22 2008 22:15 The Belgian government became the first national administration to fall as a direct result of events linked to the global financial crisis Read more » Financial Times - US homepage Madoff investor warned its clients Dec 23 2008 00:40 One of the biggest investors in Bernard Madoff's alleged $50bn fraud explicitly warned its clients of the danger that his brokerage 'could abscond with those assets', but still attracted $2.75bn, according to documents sent to investors Read more » Record number of M&A deals cancelled in 2008 Dec 22 2008 23:32 The total volume of worldwide mergers and acquisitions reached $3,280bn in the year to date, down 29% from the full year 2007 as financing difficulties, volatility in valuations and widespread risk aversion saw deals pulled Read more » Financial crisis fells Belgian leadership Dec 22 2008 22:15 The Belgian government became the first national administration to fall as a direct result of events linked to the global financial crisis Read more » Financial Times - Europe homepage Financial crisis fells Belgian leadership Dec 22 2008 22:15 The Belgian government became the first national administration to fall as a direct result of events linked to the global financial crisis Read more » Madoff investor warned its clients Dec 23 2008 00:40 One of the biggest investors in Bernard Madoff's alleged $50bn fraud explicitly warned its clients of the danger that his brokerage 'could abscond with those assets', but still attracted $2.75bn, according to documents sent to investors Read more » UK sees no role in regime for Mugabe Dec 22 2008 20:14 Britain plans to make a fresh attempt next year to persuade the EU to step up economic sanctions against Robert Mugabe's regime in Zimbabwe after it bluntly declared for the first time that he could no longer be part of any political solution to the country's crisis Read more » Financial Times - Asia homepage Toyota warns of first ever operating loss Dec 22 2008 09:02 The world's biggest carmaker, forecast its first ever group operating loss due to a relentless global slide in car sales and a crippling rise in the yen Read more » NZ economy shrinks as recession deepens Dec 23 2008 04:05 New Zealand's economy contracted by its biggest amount in eight years as the recession deepened in the third quarter, backing the case for more central bank rate cuts to cushion the impact of the global slowdown Read more » Madoff investor warned its clients Dec 23 2008 00:40 One of the biggest investors in Bernard Madoff's alleged $50bn fraud explicitly warned its clients of the danger that his brokerage 'could abscond with those assets', but still attracted $2.75bn, according to documents sent to investors Read more » FT.com - World UK sees no role in regime for Mugabe Dec 22 2008 20:14 Britain plans to make a fresh attempt next year to persuade the EU to step up economic sanctions against Robert Mugabe's regime in Zimbabwe after it bluntly declared for the first time that he could no longer be part of any political solution to the country's crisis Read more » Japanese exports suffer record fall Dec 22 2008 17:18 Japan has suffered its sharpest fall in exports on record as even previously robust markets hunker down against the widening shockwaves of the global financial crisis Read more » China cuts rates further to 5.31% Dec 22 2008 19:20 China has lowered benchmark interest rates for the fifth time in three months as the government tries to pump money into the economy to restore the high growth rates it considers crucial for social stability Read more » Tainted political tradition resurfaces in Illinois Dec 22 2008 20:40 When Barack Obama won the US presidential election last month, Chicago's political and business elites boasted the city had at last thrown off its reputation for crooked politics and underhand deals. Read more » Russian arms suspect claims US framed him Dec 22 2008 19:00 A suspected Russian arms dealer appeared in a Thai court, shackled and wearing an orange prison jump suit, and claimed he had been framed by the US to damage Russia's relations with Thailand Read more » FT.com - Companies S Korean carmakers in belt-tightening moves Dec 23 2008 03:22 Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors, together the world's fifth-biggest, are freezing administrative wages and slashing work hours at plants at home, following up a swathe of cut-backs across the globe Read more » Sir Run Run to take Shaw Bros private Dec 23 2008 02:36 Sir Run Run Shaw, the 101-year-old godfather of Hong Kong show business, has offered HK$1.33bn (US$1.72m) to take private Shaw Brothers, the filmmaker which controls the territory's leading television station Read more » Madoff investor warned its clients Dec 23 2008 00:40 One of the biggest investors in Bernard Madoff's alleged $50bn fraud explicitly warned its clients of the danger that his brokerage 'could abscond with those assets', but still attracted $2.75bn, according to documents sent to investors Read more » Caterpillar slashes top salaries by half Dec 22 2008 22:49 Caterpillar, the world's biggest maker of construction equipment and heavy-duty engines, said that it would slash executive salaries by as much as half and offer buyouts to employees to cut costs Read more » Record number of M&A deals cancelled in 2008 Dec 22 2008 23:32 The total volume of worldwide mergers and acquisitions reached $3,280bn in the year to date, down 29% from the full year 2007 as financing difficulties, volatility in valuations and widespread risk aversion saw deals pulled Read more » FT.com - Financial Markets News Overview: Europe and Japan bond yields slip amid gloom Dec 22 2008 22:18 Government bond yields retreated as the economic outlook in both regions worsened and price movements were exaggerated by thin year-end trading conditions Read more » Wall St closes lower on growing auto gloom Dec 22 2008 21:50 US stocks sold off on Monday as investors reacted to more bad news from the embattled automotive sector and digested new details of president-elect Barack Obama's planned economic stimulus package Read more » Home Retail punished on return to FTSE 100 Dec 22 2008 20:45 Home Retail Group's return to the FTSE 100 after an absence of six months proved to be a disappointment, dropping 13% as the FTSE 100 drifted in quiet pre-Chirstmas trading Read more » Weak industrial orders knock European shares Dec 22 2008 19:20 European equities slid as carmakers and metals stocks were hit by plunging industrial orders data and banks spent another day in the doldrums Read more » Gieve comments send pound to new low Dec 22 2008 18:53 The pound fell to a record low on a trade-weighted basis and advanced towards parity against the euro as traders bet that UK interest rates were headed lower Read more » FT.com - Comment and analysis What we will remember from 2008 Dec 22 2008 19:38 Will the election of Obama or the collapse of Lehman prove the more significant event? That depends whether you believe history is shaped by the actions of remarkable individuals or by 'vast, impersonal forces'. I am opting for the vast, impersonal forces, writes Gideon Rachman Read more » Unfounded panics and unexpected disasters Dec 22 2008 18:28 A desire to predict the future is an ancient human trait but we are no good at it. The Oracle was vague for a reason, writes Michael Skapinker Read more » How to resuscitate the private equity industry Dec 22 2008 19:04 We need to renegotiate the covenant between investors and managers or paralysis may turn into rigor mortis, writes Charles Martin Read more » Boards must be made fitter for their purpose Dec 22 2008 19:04 With hindsight, failures can be seen to have been associated with inadequate assessment of vulnerabilities, writes David Walker Read more » FT.com - Business Life Managers say: suit yourself Dec 22 2008 20:07 Some companies are profiting by allowing teams to formulate their own flexible and efficient working arrangements Read more » Game theory behind toys in the workplace Dec 22 2008 20:07 Turning an office into a playground can encourage creativity, proponents say Read more » ABOUT THIS EMAIL You have received this email because you have signed up for this briefing on FT.com Manage subscriptions | Unsubscribe | Change your email address Change whether you receive this email as HTML or plain text | Forward this email to a friend Privacy policy | Advertise | Contact © Copyright The Financial Times Ltd 2008. 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