A round-up of today's other stories in brief...
Oil rises to 2007 high as tensions grow
Oil climbed to a 2007 high of more than $63 a barrel yesterday on growing tension between Iran and the West over Tehran's nuclear work and its capture last week of British servicemen.
US crude traded up 28 cents to $62.56 a barrel after hitting a three-month high of $63.30 earlier. Brent crude gained 88 cents to $64.06 a barrel.
The standoff between Western nations and Iran has added to supply worries, although there has been no disruption to the Opec nation's oil exports of about 2.2 million barrels a day. - ( Reuters )
Setanta in deal with JetBlue
Setanta Sports, the Irish television broadcaster, has signed a deal with JetBlue Airways, a low-cost airline in the US, to provide programming on its flights.
JetBlue customers will shortly be able to watch live English Premiership matches, Tri-Nations and European club rugby and this year's Rugby World Cup. The sports will be made available through JetBlue's live onboard TV service, which is provided by satellite broadcaster DirecTV.
Aer Lingus and JetBlue recently signed an agreement that will allow passengers flying from Ireland to connect to the US airline's network of services in North America and the Caribbean by making just one booking.
Londis to spend €6m on premises
ADM Londis, a leading grocery wholesale group that supplies 350 convenience stores here, is spending €6 million on building a new head office in Johnstown, Co Kildare, and on expanding an adjoining distribution facility.
About 100 head office staff will relocate from Crumlin, where the company has been based since 1932, by October.
ADM Londis is also adding 10,000 sq ft to its existing 80,000 sq ft warehousing and distribution facility in Johnstown to facilitate the expansion of its retail network.
Porsche raises Volkswagen stake
Porsche has exercised an option to raise its voting stake in Volkswagen to 30.9 per cent, which will technically trigger a takeover bid, though at a cut price that looks designed to fail.
"The completion of the share acquisition is expected to take place on Wednesday, 28th March," Porsche said in a statement yesterday, after management made use of its 3.6 per cent call on shares in Europe's largest carmaker.
Crossing the 30 per cent threshold will technically mean Porsche must bid to buy out the remaining investors in Volkswagen, but the minimum legal price that Porsche must offer will be just €100.92 per ordinary share, a hefty discount to Friday's closing price of €117.70. - ( Reuters )
Ex-Reagan budget director indicted
David Stockman, a former Reagan White House budget director and former head of Collins & Aikman, has been indicted on fraud, conspiracy and other charge. He is accused of misleading investors when he was chief executive of the bankrupt auto parts maker.
Mr Stockman and three other former executives are accused of orchestrating a scheme to hide the company's true financial condition when it was on the brink of collapse, according to an indictment unsealed yesterday in a court in Manhattan.
Four other former company officials, including a former treasurer, have pleaded guilty to related charges, prosecutors said.- ( Reuters )
