The Business Matrix: Thursday 30 January

Nintendo bosses take a pay cut

Nintendo’s executives are taking a steep pay cut after announcing another disastrous quarter of falling profits. The struggling Japanese video games firm said profits fell by 30 per cent in the nine months to December, to ¥10.2bn (£60m). Nintendo also warned it expects sales to “decrease significantly” this quarter.

Deloitte beats PwC to top tables

Deloitte has pipped rival PwC to become the world’s top accountant by revenue in the face of rising pressure on fees and new rules boosting competition. The International Accounting Bulletin said that Deloitte, PwC, KPMG and Ernst & Young still dominated the sector with more than two-thirds of the accounting market.

Anger at reports of cuts at Barclays

Trade unions and consumer groups reacted angrily to reports that Barclays could close up to a quarter of its 1,600 branches in the next few years. But Barclays issued a statement saying it had “no intention” of making an announcement about branch closures alongside its full-year results in two weeks’ time.

Rifat charged with insider trading

The former hedge-fund trader Julian Rifat has been charged with eight counts of insider trading following a four-year inquiry by the City regulator. Mr Rifat, who worked at Moore Capital’s London office, is the ninth person in the UK to be charged under the Operation Tabernula inquiry, and will appear in court on 12 February.

Carphone to run Samsung’s stores

Samsung plans to open 60 stores in Britain and six other European countries, in an apparent direct challenge to Apple. The South Korean firm, the world’s biggest smartphone maker, will team up with Carphone Warehouse, which will run shops selling Samsung mobiles, tablets and laptops.

Seasonal cheer for International

Christmas cracker and gift wrap supplier International Greetings said results for the quarter to 31 December were in line with expectations after it “performed well” over the festive trading period. The group said debt levels were lower than expected, despite increased capital spending.

Boeing sees profit soar 26% to $1.2bn

Boeing announced a better-than-expected 26 per cent rise in fourth-quarter profits to $1.23bn (£742m) – but warned that revenues and earnings for this year were likely to be lower than forecast. The company expects to deliver between 715 and 725 aircraft this year.

Fruit Shoot brand quenches Britvic

Britvic said sales of its Fruit Shoot brand continued to grow in the three months to 22 December but those of J20 and Robinsons declined because of price competition. Still drinks volumes in the UK fell 3.4 per cent. Fizzy drinks volumes were slightly lower but revenues rose.

Finns try to drive off Rolls-Royce

The Finnish engineer Wartsila is trying to thwart any renewed takeover bid by Rolls-Royce with a restructuring plan that could save £49.5m a year. Reports of an £8bn bid have circled since it emerged that friendly talks had collapsed.

Staffline hails new business as robust

Staffline hailed a “robust” pipeline of new business in 2013 as it reported a 13 per cent rise in annual sales, to £416m, and a 16 per cent increase in profits. The recruitment company supplies up to 33,000 temporary workers a day.