Business and City Summary

FBI seeks German aid in Lopez case

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has officially asked Germany to help in the industrial espionage case brought by General Motors against Volkswagen and its production chief, Jose Ignacio Lopez de Arriortua, the US justice ministry said.

It is believed that if the FBI were to prove the accusation in a US court, Dr Lopez and VW could expect to face much harsher penalties than in Germany.

Pay not perks

Most executives changing jobs would prefer more money to perks, such as company cars, offered by employers, a KPMG survey has found. The three most important perks were seen as non-contributory pensions, company cars and health care. Longer holidays were considered the least important.

Paltry pay rises

Managers of small businesses with turnover of less than pounds 25m received average pay rises of 4.3 per cent last year, the lowest increase for 10 years, according to research by the Institute of Management and Remuneration Economics.

VAT burden

Europe should not move towards a definitive, EU-wide VAT system until it is prepared to reduce the burdens imposed on business by the current, transitional EC VAT arrangements, the Institute of Directors has told the European Commission.

China investment falls

China yesterday reported a continuing sharp fall in foreign investment and said it faced strong competition from other countries in Asia. The China Daily said contracted foreign investment in the first five months of this year was dollars 32.7bn in 20,230 projects, against dollars 58.756bn in 43,632 projects in the first half of 1993.

TODAY 27.6.94

Interims: Airtours, Emerald Energy, Sleepy Kids, Soundtracs

Finals: Business Post, Clayhithe, Hewetson, Hogg Robinson, Lister, Norweb, Seeboard, Sunleigh

TOMORROW 28.6.94

Major British banking groups' mortgage lending

Interims: Allied Radio, Hunters Armley

Finals: Berkeley Group, Cassidy Brothers, Debenham Tewson, Falcon Holdings, GRT Buses, Halma, Lowndes Lambert, McInerney Properties, Midlands Electricity, MS International, Sutcliffe Speakman, Wilton

WEDNESDAY 29.6.94

Welsh economic trends

Interims: Enviromed, Heavitree Brewery

Finals: Asprey, Castle Mill International, Eastern Electricity, Feedback, John Foster, Metrotect, Midland & Scottish Resources, Northern Electric, TGI, Tring

THURSDAY 30.6.94

New vehicle registrations, energy trends, economic trends, monthly digest of statistics, family expenditure Survey 1993

Interims: Eurocamp, First National Finance, Gestetner, Gresham Telecomputing, Kleeneze

Finals: Aberdeen Steak Houses, Asda Group, Booth Industries, BPB, British Bio- Technology, British Bloodstock, Matthew Clark, Fairbriar, Hadleigh, Ivory & Sime, Leopold Josephs, Platignum, Porth, South Western Electricity

FRIDAY 1.7.94

Interims: Crest Nicholson, Inveresk, Partridge Fine Arts

Finals: Fuller Smith & Turner, Samuel Heaths, OMI International, Vendome Luxury, Yorkshire Electricity