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OPINION

SEVEN DAYS: 2 November 2012

SEVEN DAYS: 2 November 2012
November 2, 2012
SEVEN DAYS: 2 November 2012

Decision time

Polls loom

Americans go to the polls on Tuesday to decide on the identity of their next president. Polls had incumbent Barack Obama and his Republican challenger Mitt Romney running neck and neck before last weekend, although the arrival of Hurricane Sandy on the heavily populated east coast threw the two campaigns somewhat. Being the incumbent, Mr Obama was able to gain valuable airtime attending to the emergency response and proper campaigning will only resume once the storm's effect has passed. But, of more significant concern should be the potential upcoming financial storm which could hobble the US economy next year in the form of the 'fiscal cliff'.

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Barclays hit

Further pain to come

Third-quarter figures from Barclays this week highlighted the hefty exceptional costs the company is currently being forced to bear from a series of problems, including the Libor scandal fallout and the payment of Payment Protection Insurance compensation claims. Meanwhile, a further financial penalty may be around the corner after the company admitted it is being investigated in the US over whether it breached corruption laws in relation to electricity trading in the western states of the US between 2006 and 2008.

Return of the Jedi

Disney buys Star Wars

Disney is to pay Star Wars creator George Lucas $4bn (£2.5bn) in shares and cash for Lucasfilm, the company which owns the rights to the hugely successful Star Wars franchise. The deal sees Disney add to its stable of entertainment brands and the company has said it intends to release a new Star Wars film in 2015. The Star Wars franchise has generated $4.5bn in worldwide ticket sales and Lucasfilm also owns the Indiana Jones rights, which have generated close to $2bn. The deal also includes the Industrial Light & Magic special effects business and the LucasArts computer games businesses.

Budget battle

EU split

The debate over the budget for the European Union, and how much individual countries should contribute to it, has intensified in recent days as the member states and the EU Commission prepare to discuss the 2014-2020 period budget later in November. Chief among the sticking points is the continued huge subsidy for the Common Agricultural Policy which some countries believe should be slashed. The current negotiating position - a budget of a shade less than €1 trillion over the six years - is less than the Commission wants, but $40bn higher than the German proposal. The UK is seeking a budget freeze, which would represent a reduction in real terms.

Russian reward

BP divi hiked

BP has rewarded its 'very patient' shareholders with a dividend increase of about 12.5 per cent alongside its third-quarter results. The increased payout is possible due to the success of BP's divestment programme coupled with a pipeline of high-margin products. The third-quarter results showed a replacement cost profit of $5.2bn after improved operating performance at its downstream refining and marketing operations. Exploration and production performance failed to meet expectations. BP plans to ramp up its exploration activities next year.

UBS cuts costs

10,000 job losses

Swiss bank UBS has unveiled a sweeping restructure of its investment banking operations which could see up to 10,000 employees laid off worldwide. After a torrid few years for the banking industry, and for UBS in particular, the company has vowed to slash its cost base by £2.27bn over the next three years as it slims down its investment banking operations. At present, it is not known how many of its 6,500 London employees will lose their jobs, but some have already had their access to its Broadgate offices revoked. The news came as rogue trader Kweku Adoboli was in court charged with defrauding UBS.