In defence of the Chrysler hedge funds
Unlike Barack Obama and others, I have sympathy for the hedge funds and other investment funds that rejected the Chrysler restructuring offer and forced it into Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
In fact, not only do I sympathise with their argument, but I think they have a better chance of getting improved terms from the bankruptcy court than the US administration would have us believe. Read more
Blogging on my flight to New York
Well, I realise this is old hat for some but it is new to me.
I am writing this 35,000 feet up in the air on an American Airlines flight from San Francisco to New York, thanks to the inflight internet connection (which costs $12.95). Compared to the $10 the cabin crew are charging for a sandwich, I do not think that is bad. Read more
How chairmen and chief executives are vulnerable
I do not think a decision to split the roles of chairman and chief executive of a company, which is a sensible thing to do, should indicate the end for the dual occupant. But that is often what happens.
Bank of America is putting a brave face on the narrow vote by shareholders to strip Ken Lewis of the bank chairmanship, but the fact that he resisted it so staunchly makes the outcome painful. Read more
Madison Avenue feels the squeeze
My FT column this week is on the advertising industry: Read more
Americans become the mobile phone champions
We are so used to the notion that the US lags behind the rest of the world in mobile phone use that it is a shock to be told it is no longer true.
I am in San Francisco at the leadership conference of the American Association of Advertising Agencies (now formally re-branded as the 4As) and have been hearing some interesting statistics. Read more
What future for a union-controlled Chrysler?
It seems that Chrysler could eventually end up under the majority ownership of the UAW, its main union, with Fiat holding a minority stake. It sounds awfully like the revisiting of a past era.
In the 1980s, there was a rash of employee-owned companies emerging out of troubled private ownership. In 1994, United Airlines became majority owned by its employees after all else had failed. Read more
Maestros, mitts and the best laid plans
I wrote a piece in the Weekend FT on the vagaries of concert halls and baseball stadiums:
If you build it, they will come. But they will not know what to expect. Read more
Why global brands now rise in the east
This is my column on Asia and business brands in the FT: Read more
| About this blog | Blog guide |
John Gapper is an associate editor and the chief business commentator of the FT.
He has worked for the FT since 1987, covering labour relations, banking and the media. He is co-author, with Nicholas Denton, of 'All That Glitters', an account of the collapse of Barings in 1995.
Andrew Hill is an associate editor and the management editor of the FT. He is a former City editor, financial editor, comment and analysis editor, New York bureau chief, foreign news editor and correspondent in Brussels and Milan.
Latest columns by John and Andrew
Older entries