HP: ‘Autonomy lied about finances’

HP: ‘Autonomy lied about finances’

NEW YORK: Hewlett-Packard Co. said a British company it bought for $ 10 billion last year lied about its finances, resulting in a massive write-down of the value of the business. HP is avoiding calling it a fraud, but it said there were “serious accounting improprieties, disclosure failures and outright misrepresentations at Autonomy Corporation.” HP is taking an $ 8.8 billion charge in its latest quarter to align the accounting value of Autonomy with its real value. It said most of that charge was due to the fictional bookkeeping at Autonomy. The revelation is another blow for HP, which is struggling to reinvent itself as PC sales shrink. Among other things, Autonomy makes search engines that help companies find vital information stored across computer networks. Acquiring it was part of an attempt by HP to strengthen its portfolio of high-value products and services for corporations and government agencies. HP shares sank almost 11 percent, or $ 1.45, to $ 11.85 per share in premarket trading.

Glencore shareholders back Xstrata merger

LONDON: Shareholders in commodities trader Glencore overwhelmingly approved its $ 31 billion takeover of Xstrata, setting the stage for the miner’s own investors to give their go-ahead and all but seal the deal. Some 99 percent of Glencore shareholders said “yes” to one of the mining sector’s biggest deals after a meeting that lasted just over ten minutes. Glencore is controlled by its senior executives and had been expected to back the deal by a large margin. More Glencore owners opposed the name change — to Glencore Xstrata — than voted against the tie-up to create a mining and trading powerhouse. The vote by Xstrata’s investors, however, will be more complicated. They are due to give their verdict over the next few hours in a complex and drawn-out set of votes, which analysts expect to reject a controversial retention plan intended to ensure managers stay on board to deliver important projects.

900 jobs to go at Premier Foods

LONDON: Premier Foods is to axe around 900 jobs at its bread division as part of an ongoing move to cut debt that will see Britain’s biggest food producer close two bakeries and four distribution centers. The shake-up, designed to help the performance of Hovis — a key brand, will result in an initial charge of 28 million pounds ($ 45 million) that should be recovered through site disposals and more efficient operations, Premier Foods said. The changes to bread, which accounts for nearly 40 percent of group revenue, follow a groupwide overhaul and the sale of non-core businesses to help cut debt that stood at 1.27 billion pounds at end-June.

Best Buy profit misses estimates

NEW YORK: Best Buy Co. reported a weaker-than-expected profit and its ninth same-store sales decline in 10 quarters, highlighting the challenges its new chief executive officer faces in trying to turn around the world’s largest consumer electronics chain. The news on Tuesday came just days before the unofficial start of the holiday season and amid a wide organizational restructuring under new CEO Hubert Joly and a looming buyout proposal by founder Richard Schulze. Best Buy shares fell more than 5 percent in premarket trading.