India says it will not appeal Vodafone tax ruling

NEW DELHI: India’s government said on Wednesday it will not appeal a court verdict favouring British mobile giant Vodafone in a multimillion-dollar tax suit, in a move aimed at winning back investor confidence.

Vodafone has been embroiled in a series of bitter tax disputes with New Delhi since it entered the country in 2007, becoming a symbol of problems facing foreign firms doing business in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Mumbai’s high court ruled in favour of Vodafone in one case in October, rejecting allegations by local authorities that an Indian unit of the telecoms major had underpriced shares in a rights issue to its British parent to avoid taxes. Indian tax authorities had been seeking payment of 30 billion rupees ($490m) from Vodafone.—AFP

Yahoo announces spin-off of Alibaba stake

NEW YORK: Yahoo is spinning off its stake in Chinese Internet giant Alibaba, splitting off the valuable holdings in a move that sidesteps taxes.

The strategy laid out on Tuesday aims to deliver more cash for shareholders than an outright sale of the $40-billion stake, avoiding a hefty tax bill, and to help Yahoo’s efforts to refocus under chief executive Marissa Mayer.

Mayer told a conference call the deal “maximises value for shareholders “and avoids a potential tax bill of up to $16bn under a traditional sale of the stake.

She said the move is part of a broader effort to help Yahoo’s “remixing” of its activities around mobile Internet, video and other forms of online media.—AFP

Sony to cut 1,000 smartphone jobs

TOKYO: Sony Corp plans to cut around 1,000 additional jobs in its struggling smartphone division as it tries to bring its electronics business back into the black, sources said on Wednesday.

Sony, which has cut its earnings forecasts six times on Hirai’s watch, has forecast a 230 billion yen ($1.95bn) net loss for the business year to March, suspending dividend payments for the first time amid weakness in smartphones.

The cuts would be in addition to the 1,000 jobs Sony already said it would eliminate in its mobile unit, the sources said.

Published in Dawn, January 29th, 2015

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